Your Friday Dose Of Inspiration.

AmandaCatherineDes

Ain't nothin' truer than that.

App To Buy. Now, Not Later.

Food Switch

A very food-savvy friend alterted me to this one to me and, in a word, it's genius. It's called Food Switch and it works like so: You're standing in the cold food section, debating the difficult issue of which vanilla custard to buy. You turn on Food Switch. You scan the barcode. It recommends healthier options. Simple as that. And you're out of there before your eyebrows freeze over.

Happy Australia Day.

Willoughby and Co.

I love Australia Day. When you can smell the barbies firing up, hear the Triple J Hot 100 blaring and Woolies has sold Pavlova bases. It's a great day to be Australian... But then, isn't every day?

Fashion On The Court.

You'd have to be living under a rock right now not to have noticed all the tennis action going on Down Under. And if the sport doesn't interest you, some of the interesting fashion choices might (ahem, Serena Williams). So if you've got the fever, save the white for Wimbledon and take to centre court in one of these bright buys. You'll be the hottest player at the net. Sharapova, eat your heart out.

Skirt, $75.99 @ Lorna Jane

Lunar Speed 3 Tennis Shoes, $180 @ Nike

Dress, $80 @ Adidas

Featherlight Cap, $30 @ Nike

Do It, Log It.

Fitness Log, $3.50 @ milas

My trainer always used to give me grief for not properly documenting my workouts. And while I know it's important to log what you do on a day-to-day basis so you can keep track of your progress (and ensure you're actually making some), I always had a perfectly good excuse – you know, no pencil, a hand cramp, the dog ate my log book...

Maybe I wouldn't have had to think up those pearlers if I'd had these super-cute sheets. Now they would have motivated me to bring a pen.

If Your Fridge Could Talk...

 
What would it say about what you eat? Well, you don't have to wonder anymore because LG has unveiled a new ThinQ refrigerator, complete with an inbuilt dietician that can scold you when you make an unhealthy choice.

You program in your BMI and weight-loss targets and it uses an in-built smart TV to suggest healthier meal options. At the risk of sounding like my grandma, whatever will they think of next?

Can You Hear That?

Lorna Jane

 
I feel like this outfit is talking to me. It's saying, "Go straight to Lorna Jane. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200."

Well, if you say so...

This Year I Will...

Magnets, $12 @ HappyTownUSA

 
Read more, eat less, get organised, take up a new sport... It's that time of the year when we all make resolutions in an attempt to better our lives or better ourselves. Maybe you've already broken a few of the promises you made to yourself on January 1? That's okay, because the good news is, you've got another 350+ days to turn it around.

The best advice I ever got about New Year's Resolutions is this: break it down, keep it simple. Don't just say, "I need to visit my grandparents more" or "I want to start running". It's too broad and too vague. Instead, make it manageable – think about it not as a yearly resolution, but on a week-to-week basis. If you want to visit your grandparents, set aside one day a week and do it – make it a habit. If you want to start running, start with one morning a week, and go from there. It's only one morning a week – there's no room for excuses.

If you rush out of the starting blocks to fast, without thinking about how you're logistically going to maintain your resolution long-term, you'll get tired too fast and you'll fall off the wagon. And when the first day of 2013 rolls around, you'll be resolving all over again to achieve the exact same thing.

And if you're really serious about your resolutions – tell somebody. Having someone on board to help you might just be what you need to get you over the line on December 31.

Feeling Inspired?

Work Is Not A Job

How about now?

Running With A Heartrate Monitor.

RS100 Heartrate Monitor, $159 @ Polar Australia

 

It's the start of our seven-week countdown to Christmas and for day one, I decided to whip out the heartrate monitor. If you've never used one before, it's a nifty little gadget that straps on around your chest (invisible under a sports bra) and feeds your heart-rate info to you in a very profesh-looking watch. It's great for keeping track of exactly how hard you're working – whether you really are pushing your body as hard as it will go – and it keeps a very honest count of just how many calories you're burning. 

 

Weight loss is always going to come down to a simple equation – what you're putting in needs to be less than what your putting out – so it's well worth knowing just how much that sweat session has burned up. I don't use mine every time I work out – I find it becomes too intense as I'm constantly trying to one-up my last session (competitive, me?) – but it's a great tool to use to check your progress and give you a little reality check. I used it this morning and shaved a minute off my run. I don't quite know how but it seems knowing all my results will be there in black and white at the end of the run makes me move that much faster. We're off to a good start, folks.

Currently Running To... Nothing But The Beat.

 
Now I'm not saying David Guetta is the single most defining artist of our time or anything, but the boy knows how to spin a mean dance beat. And if the tracks like Memories and Sexy Bitch got you running like Usain Bolt last time, rest assured there's more where that came from in this new album.

From Where Them Girls At feat Nicki Minaj to Titanium feat Sia and Sweat feat the legendary Snoop Doggy Dogg... There's plenty of up-tempo tracks to keep you on pace. Just try not to bust out any dancefloor moves on the running track. That would be embarrassing.

I Might Be More Inclined To Ride...

If The Lampshade Fits

If I had this Missoni-print bike with turquoise wheels. Swoon.

Roberto Cavalli Is Designing Exercise Bikes Now.

Robert Cavalli

I'm not joking. It seems even high-end Italian fashion designers have been inspired by the recent Tour De France. Mr Cavalli has teamed up with his friends at Ciclotte to craft a spin bike that certainly won't be an eye-sore in your living room.

The "no frills" design, which is estimated to cost in excess of $11,000, boasts a lightweight carbon, steel and fibreglass frame, four gears and a nifty erganomic design. Oh, and of course, a little leopard print.

And if you've still got change left from the bike, there's matching workout gear, too. Sigh.

On The Couch: Bye For Now, Offspring.

It's the Offspring season finale tonight (Channel 10, 9pm) and I have to admit I'm a teensy bit sad that it's all over for another season. You see, I love Nina Proudman. And it's not just her amazing owl-filled apartment and her sometimes very original wardrobe choices, I love Nina because she makes me (and every other slightly neurotic woman out there) seem somehow less crazy, more normal.

I also love that she is played by one of my absolute favourite Australian actresses Asher Keddie. Loved her in Paper Giants. Loved her in Underbelly. Love, love, loved her in Love My Way. In fact, not long after Love My Way wrapped on TV, I saw Asher in a make-up store on Oxford Street. I was there on official magazine business so I had to reign in the crazy fan part of me that wanted to run over and scream, "Ohmygodyou'reAsherKeddie! Iloveyou!"

Instead I just silently stalked her around the store, trying to think of something cool and ot even slightly obsessive to say, until my online editor told me it was time to roll. And I like to think that's exacty what Nina would have done.

So if you've been living a rock and haven't yet caught Nina Fever, do yourself a favour and get thee to the DVD store, stat. Already a fan and not sure what you're going to do with yourself post-Offspring? You might start with one of these Nina-inpired owl buys...

Owl box, $24, Have You Met Miss Jones.

Wall hanging, from $135, Bride & Wolfe.

Tea towel, $16.95, Annabel Trends @ Funk Mebourne.

Planters, US$39.99 each, Fruitflypie @ Etsy.

White owl, $19.95, Hart & Heim.

We All Need A Reminder To Get Our 5 Serves Of Vege.

paperflavor

And this is way cuter than any post-it note.

Fashionably Fit.

Lorna Jane

This is what I imagine I look like when a run through the city. Fit. And chic.

Of course, in reality I'm sweaty and red-faced and I have a bulge of fat making a muffin top over my leggings. But I'm not going to stop in the impossible pursuit of looking good whilst running and I have a feeling this hot pink crop top from Lorna Jane's latest collection might just help me get there...

Eden Crop, $59.99, Lorna Jane

On The Couch: Not Sure What To See? Ask Margaret And David.

I once saw David Stratton and Margaret Pomeranz at a preview screening at Greater Union and I was starstruck. "Do you think Margaret and David buy movie snacks every time they see a film?" asked my sister as we chomped down on a sizeable bucket of popcorn. I hope not. Because that's a hellava lot of candy and slushies.

The movie-reviewing duo give their two cents on up to five films every week on their popular ABC program At The Movies. And if, like me, you just never seem to catch the show when it's on - there's a nifty little app you can get for your iPhone that lets you instantly look up a film and read the full review before considering if it's worth a visit to the cinema to see. Plus, it even tells you where the films are showing in your local area.

The Gloves Are On.

Daily Mail

I need this super-cute Marc Jacobs bag to carry my boxing gear in. Anything else simply won't do.

Get It Off Your Chest.

Daily Mail

When The Hills hottie Kristin Cavallari hit the ground running in LA last week, there was no questioning where she got her motivation from. It was right there on her chest. And in case you need a bit of the same, I thought I'd share my top three inspirational singlets on the shop shelves right now...

Lorna Jane, $34.99

Asana @ Rebel Sport, $24.99

Running Bare @ Rebel Sport, $29.99

Ring My (Bike) Bell.

Spoke N Wheel

Why have a plain silver bike bell, when you can have one of these? Ring-a-ding-ding!