Mandybean88

Grew up in N. Wales, studied for my degree in Cheltenham, now I live in Bedfordshire :)

I am on day 3 of level 3 but have had to have more rest days than I planned due to not having space available at home some days (need the living room free to exercise in) I've seen a difference in the mirror... my tummy is smaller and I see some definition of my hips and stomach muscles, but the main difference is I've…

When I was studying my English A Level we looked at a poem by Seamus Heaney which mentions 'Strange Fruit' and my teacher played the song to us. It really powerfully affected me and I have always thought of it since as one of the most affecting and haunting songs I've ever heard. It is incredible. Even though it's very…

Sonic the Hedgehog on the Master System, The Lion King for the Mega Drive, and the Secret of Monkey Island (I played it on floppy disks for the Atari ST!) :D

I'm on day 7 of Level 2 and starting to see improvements now. The hardest thing for me is literally just holding myself up with all the plank moves; I do enjoy them though. I find the high knees and oblique twists much better than the jumping jacks, jump rope cardio from Level 1. They're tough but fun and I can get through…

I loved reading all the posts on this thread! Ed sounds delightfully entertaining to live with. At least he keeps you on your toes! :D

Omg... I can't believe how many different kinds of pop tarts you have!! That photo of them all stacked on the shelves blew my mind! I love poptarts but in the UK we have like 2 flavours and you have to look really hard amongst the other cereals in the supermarket to find a small amount of them!

I'm also struggling with jumping jacks. I'm 16 days into 30DS and at the beginning it was fine, but now when I do the jumping jacks I get sharp pains in my ribs from the impact when I breathe, I find myself holding my breath as long as possible which is a stupid way to exercise. I'm not really sure what's happened, it was…

I cannot BEAR Two and a Half Men! I have to leave the room if it's on because it makes me SO ANGRY! I think it's the most shameless sexist programme I have ever seen

I adore asparagus! The only way I know to make yummy asparagus is cooked in olive oil with salt and pepper.. so I'm reading this thread with interest :)

What he said isn't true - he just did his best to come out with something that he knew would deeply hurt and upset you and feel the worst way possible. I agree with what others have said. He's shown himself capable and extreme nastiness and spite, lucky for you he is your ex and you are free to cut him out of your life…

When I was about 5, my dad told me that he was Batman and went out at night fighting crime... I thoroughly believed him and went to school the next day and told all the children in my class and my teachers!

If it was me and I had a tummy bug, I'd probably just concentrate on getting better. If I'd only done a couple of days, I'd just start again when I was feeling better again :) My experience with the soreness was at day 3 I was in agony all over. I could not walk properly, could hardly walk down stairs, or sit down on…

I'm 5 foot 3 and 161lb. I wear UK size 12 or 14 for trousers but in tops, it just depends! I have some size 10 and some size 18! I'd love to fit into size 10 jeans.

I'm 50% through :D Level 2 is so tough on my arms! The plank stuff! Ah! I can do it, but the pressure isn't on the cardio part it's literally just being able to hold myself up with my arms. I *love* the jump and twist thing, and the oblique plank twist thingymabob at the end :D

My diary is private because it isn't really anybody else's business what I eat. If I wanted it to be, it would be open and I'd be inviting people to look at it and comment. I know some people do this and that's fine. Nobody NEEDS to see what I'm eating. I know the basics of a healthy diet and I can get along fine by…

I have only ever eaten whole eggs... the yolk is the best bit for me! I love them boiled... but they must be done perfectly so the yolk is dippy but the white is hard. Sloppy egg white is the worst D: I don't really like fried egg (the yolk is nice but I don't like the fried white part) Duck eggs are my favourite but I…

I'm not sure if this was already mentioned, but lots of animals do continue to drink milk once they are completely weaned. It's often a comfort thing; I have seen stressed or insecure calves continue to suckle when they are far too big really, if their mum lets them... usually the mother will not allow an infant to…

Tomatoes in sandwiches are NOT allowed to remotely touch bread ever O_O

I always eat my veg first because I think I decided when I was very small that they go cold first. I have no idea if this is true or not :D

I aspire to be a full time zoo keeper. I have a few years' experience as a seasonal keeper but haven't quite made it to a permanent position yet. My favourite animals to work with are rhinos. :) I also love pets. I have 6 rats :) I'd have dogs if my current lifestyle allowed but I'm not in the right position yet. :)

I do this exact same thing!! :D I also 'save the best till last' ... My nan used to tell me she did the same thing when she was little, then one day she was too full to eat the best bit she'd been looking forward to so she stopped doing that! But I still always keep my favourite part of the meal for the end. :)

I don't think I have too many... I can be quite fussy with food going 'soggy' though! I have always refused to eat cereal with milk and have it dry. Gravy has to be nice and thick - watery juices on food are the worst! but I can eat really thin soup lol. Certain things aren't allowed to touch each other... like bean juice…

My boyfriend has been great... he is already is great shape, but doing all my workouts with me. When I lag he tells don't stop! keep going! but manages to do so without me wanting to punch him in the face ;) at first, he was a little judgy with my food choices ... but I've made it clear I want to eat healthily and get fit,…

I started level 2 last night . It was hard but not AS evil as I expected. Some of the moves will take more co-ordination and practise but I actually prefer them as they're not based on jumping up and down repeatedly (I'm very booby and find the star jumps and jump rope really painful!) In the first few days of level 1 I…

I like making stews/soups/casseroles etc. I guess it can just be 'chicken and veg' so might sound boring but you can flavour them how you want, and you know exactly what's going into it :)

Pot noodles... *shamed* And I love sausages, but think they are mostly full of rubbish...

I love to use sweet potato in curry, and in a sweeter, creamier version of home made chicken stew :)

First weigh in on Day 7 of Level 1 (but taking a rest day) Really disheartened! According to scales I have put on 2lb, BMI gone up by 1, body fat percentage is higher!? Water percentage was down by 1%. I don't understand :(

That's really good to know, so far I think I have only put on 1 or 2lb and not lost anything. I haven't measured so don't know if I've lost any inches. But looking at myself in the mirror, I THINK I can see slight changes/improvements (although that could just be wishful thinking and brainwashing myself!) At least I can…