A pinch and a punch...

Well it's not actually the first of the month, but somehow, and I don't quite now when this happened, but September crept up on us as if from nowhere!

While I can still class the past week as "summer", I spent it by:

Supporting: Team GB in the paralympics - after being glued to most of the Olympics throughout July (and boring friends and family by producing a copy of Bodyfit every time I watched an athlete I'd had the pleasure of interviewing) I am now curing my POD (Post Olympics Depression) with the next instalment of sporting events. It was emotional viewing to watch Ellie Simmonds smash a world record and take gold in the 400m swimming, and inspirational to watch the men's 4x100 relay in the pool. I definitely won't be making any more excuses the next time it comes to exercise!

  
Watching: The Expendables 2 (reluctantly)! I can't say I was exactly looking forward to seeing a group of middle-aged men nearing retirement pretend to play "action men" for a couple of hours, in the most self indulgent film I've seen in some time - but, due to my low expectations of the movie, it turned out to be far more watchable than I'd anticipated! This was mainly down to the presence of Liam Hemsworth, which was a treat for the eyes, until he got brutally killed off half way through and I had to focus on the semi-funny one-liners and the fact that Sly, Arnie and Jean-Claude have all had more cosmetic surgery than Jackie Stallone!

To regain some femininity, I decided to watch The Vow - probably a mistake to do so when hormonal and home alone! A tale of true love that, despite the odds, comes back around for a second chance at happiness. But, the most heart breaking part of this true-life story is that Paige never regains her memory of their time together, while Leo has to live with the fact that he has already been married to his wife, has loved her and been loved by her - but he carries these memories alone.

Cooking: My sister and I decided to cook our parents a special meal to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. While dancing around the kitchen to Luther Vandross and taking to our cooking stations, we whipped up a storm, creating a feast of bruschetta, chicken and spinach risotto, and profiteroles to finish! I think we were both surprised with how well it actually turned out, and I think it was fair to say that the clean plates spoke for themselves!

Who Runs The World...Girls!

http://iam.beyonce.com/

This week I'm...

Reading: The Last Letter From Your Lover by Jojo Moyes. It's about a journalist who is in love with a married man, who secretly believes they will end up happily ever after. Meanwhile, she uncovers a love letter at work, from over 50 years ago and discovers the story of a lady who has been involved in a car accident and has no recollection of her life prior to the crash.

Learning: To drive (again!). After four years of putting it off, I've finally got behind the wheel again. It's actually much like riding a bike, you never really forget how to do it (just occasionally forget to look in my mirrors!). Hopefully it will be fourth time lucky for me!

Falling: Head over heels - not for a gorgeous stranger, but right onto my face! Grazing my legs, arms and breaking my elbow! Which, as we all know, is not my first time! Clearly a liability when it comes to putting one foot in front of the other, so driving and other fun summer activities are on hold, while I enjoy spending my free time at the fracture clinic instead!

What Katy Did...: Nike Training Club Live

 Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending Nike Training Club Live - where I tried out a couple of fitness classes, spoke to a nutritionist and enjoyed a relaxing massage - plus there was a live performance by Katy B! Read all about it on her blog: What Katy Did...: Nike Training Club Live: So I'm performing for a crowd of 2000 strong women tomorrow at Nike Training Club Live at Old Billingsgate market, Woop Woop! Gonna be sick...

Viva Forever...

When I think of the 90s, apart from sportswear and sovereign rings being in fashion, there are two words that spring to mind - girl power! Most girls who grew up in that era will have at some point (whether they admit it or not) been in a Spice Girl tribute band, and I was no exception. Of course, I was always Vicky B - I had the point and pout perfected!

And, with the very exciting news of Spice Girls the musical hitting the stage at the end of the year, a flurry of 20-something-year-olds are secretly digging out their Buffalo boots (I had a turquoise and grey pair) and playing Wannabe on their iPods! What's more, there's also talk of Spice Girls the movie gracing the big screen as well! No, not the awful 1997 car crash of a film, but a brand spanking new block buster to spice up your life! In a recent interview the girls were asked who they'd like to play them in the movie, with Geri replying that Cameron Diaz would be her first choice, while Posh Spice was as modest as usual, claiming that Angelina Jolie would be the ideal pick to perfect the pout!

So, over dinner we played the age old classic "who would play you in the movie of your life" game! Of course, Laura wanted an Olsen sister to play her, mum got given Rachel Weisz and my poor dad got lumbered with Tom Cruise! I was fairly happy with my first choice of Emily Blunt, before my mum added that she thought I had a touch of J-Lo in me, too - while Laura chimed in, "that'd be your ass then!" Cheers sis!

And, while I wait with anticipation to get the call that Emily or Jennifer are planning to play me in my life story, I will, instead, settle for seeing Viva Forever at the West End this winter.

This Week I'm...

Reading: Room by Emma Donoghue - I'm branching out from my traditional chick-lit favourites and have started reading the remarkable and somewhat dark story of five-year-old Jack. He has never known anything outside of his room, and along with his Ma, you learn about how he views the world.

Making: Healthier meals in order to shape up for summer! I've been whipping up roasted veg and quinoa salads, along with tasty fresh fruit pots and herbal teas. Together with my weekly Zumba sessions, I should be beach body ready in no time!

 Trying: To move outside of my comfort zone and challenge myself a little more. So, in a bid to boost my confidence, my friend Fae and I headed down to the Quay Theatre in Sudbury Suffolk and joined a play reading club. Ordinarily, the thought of reading out loud to room full of strangers would usually fill me with dread! But, once we got into the swing of things I started to enjoy myself. We might have been the youngest members there, but it was actually quite fun to enjoy some of George Bernard Shaw's finest work with like-minded individuals.

Celebrating: June and July are busy months on the birthday calendar - with three best friends, my mum and sister's birthdays all in the same week. So, it was off to London for a few days in the city with my good friend Charlotte to see in her 27th year. I should have been leading by example being six months older than her, but with an empty stomach and three bottles of wine later my memory of the celebrations had become a little fuzzy! This week I'll be looking forward to enjoying a tasty meal with the family and going all 1940s at the Blitz party!

http://www.jojomoyes.com/blog/

This week I was lucky enough to receive a few tweets from the author of my new favourite book - check out her blog at www.jojomoyes.com/blog/

This week I'm...

Reading: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes - it's the most beautifully moving book I've ever had the pleasure of reading. For 20 chapters I read with anticipation to see if Louisa could change Will's mind about his future, and one little sentence in chapter 23 took my breath away - "I'm sorry. It's not enough." I looked up from the novel that I'd been gripped to for the past two weeks and I sobbed - heartbroken, out loud, clutching a mascara-stained tissue. But, despite falling head over heels for a fictional character and enveloping myself in their love story, the key message that I took away from this great read can be put simply in the epilogue: "Live boldly. Push yourself. Don't settle."

 Making: Over the bank holiday weekend the number of shops open were quite limited, but I managed to get my hands on an age 8+ jewellery making set! The pink, glittery beads were not quite what I had in mind when I wanted to take up a new hobby, but I quite enjoyed putting together my tacky bracelets and beaded rings!

Baking: Chocolate cornflake cakes and homemade pizzas! So, I'm not exactly a pro when it comes to cooking, but I can whip up the basics. I decided to try out a few new recipes over the weekend and put together my own pizzas and a batch of (very chewy) cornflake cakes!

 Celebrating: the Queen's Jubilee! I spent the weekend in Clapham, Brixton, Shoreditch, Colchester and Sudbury - seeing in Elizabeth's 60-year reign with my nearest and dearest. Unfortunately, it rained cats and dogs for the majority of the celebrations, but we still raised our glasses of Pimms, with our umbrellas high, while singing Rule Britannia and God Save The Queen!

Let's get crafting...

I'm currently on my second attempt at reading JoJo Moyes' Me Before You and this time around I just can't put it down. The main characters, Louisa and Will, are slowly become more civil towards each other and when Will asks Louisa what her hobbies are, she can't answer him - as she doesn't have any! And, this notion really struck a chord with me.

 Apart from the occasional Zumba class, my spare time is mainly filled with the latest celeb gossip from the Daily Mail and catching up on all my favourite TV programmes! But, now that all of my fave story lines are coming to a close, I figured it was time to actually start doing, rather than watching the make-believe lives of others!

So, I've decided to try my hand a bit of jewellery making this summer, so this weekend I'll be shopping for beads, gems and charms and putting my new hobby into practise.

Friends Reunited...

Not many people can say that they are still in touch with the majority of their school friends, let alone still regard them as some of the nearest and dearest - but, I am lucky enough to be able to say just that! And, while we've all grown up together since primary school, we're all now celebrating each others first house purchases, career achievements, marriages and even children - and, it was with great pleasure that I attended my good friend Baz's (David) son's first birthday party!

We spent the afternoon listening to "Raggy Dolls" and Thomas the Tank Engine, watching a montage of baby Oscar's first year and enjoying an incredible buffet! Two plates of pasta, cheese straws, sausage rolls and quiche, and it was time for the birthday boy to take centre stage and blow out his candles! After some emotional speeches, and with the whole room welling up, we all toasted baby Barrett's birthday.

With a full belly, and listening to the best of Billie Piper blaring out of Adam's car, the rest of the gang headed back to Adam's gaff for Pimms and trampolining! Of course, having an injured foot from my midnight marathon the week before, I just observed the jumping action and guzzled down my fruity tipple.

Once we'd had our fill of bouncing and waving to the Sudbury train (like modern day railway children - Dave waving his red jumper in the air to welcome the people arriving to the town!), we decided to take an adventure across the countryside and walk towards Henny for an evening drink. Three gin and tonics later and we were well and truly in the party spirit - making our way into town for a few more bevvies!

As always, it was a night of cheesy music, giggles and shocking revelations about Adam's unhealthy amount of love for Olly Murs!

One bag of chips, one set of hiccups and one short walk home and we were all tucked up in bed to get some shut eye before having afternoon tea the following day to welcome home our good friend Graeme who has spent the last four years down under.

We all agreed, that we feel incredibly lucky to have such great pals - even if we spend most of our time reminiscing about the last fifteen years!

Who do you think you are...

One of my ultimate guilty pleasures has to be the TV programme Who Do You Think You Are, and I watch eagerly as the celebrities trace their family trees and discover all about their distant relatives.

 So, I decided to do a bit of ancestry digging on my own family and after researching back to the 1800s, I discovered that I have many, many relations called Charles and Thomas. But, the most incredible find so far, is that I have a great, great, great granny called Fanny Bush - you just couldn't write it!

Things to do before 30...

With only two and a half years until the next big milestone, there's a few things I'd like to tick off my bucket list before then:

These are just a few of the big achievements I want to do while I'm young, free and single - but, I've also decided to be a bit more of a "yes woman" this year - so, let me know what else I should give a go before the big 3,0!

My midnight stroll...

After months of training, starting off with a simple 5k walk around the Suffolk countryside, and finishing with two 13-mile stomps back-to-back, it was finally time to tackle the big one - the MoonWalk!

I headed down to London bright and early Saturday morning to have a relaxing afternoon with my sister. Kicking things off with a hearty bowl of porridge and stretching our legs with a mid-day wander around North London. We tucked into cream cheese and smoked salmon bagels from a local food market, and treated ourselves to some homemade flapjacks and vanilla fudge for during our epic challenge later that night.

The race prep was still ongoing when we got home, whipping up a protein packed chilli with sweet potato wedges to keep us fully fuelled throughout our event. And, we even got time to watch The Voice before we headed on over to Hyde Park!

Bum bags at the ready, we hopped on a tube and followed the crowds of pink feather boas and decorated bras towards the huge fuchsia tent in Central London. We made our way to the media tent and slipped into our fetching walking gear, before settling down for a few hours in the rock and roll diner. We munched on corndogs, mocktails, and mini pecan pies while we geared up for the long night ahead.

It wasn't long before midnight rocked around and we were lined up at the starting line. As the clock counted down it was time to put all that hard work into practise.

Five miles in and we were making good time, with 15-minute miles under our belts. But, with a lot of stop-starting across the main roads, it wasn't long until the niggling pains started setting in. So, to keep our spirits up, Laura and I came up with various games to keep us amused and distracted from any discomfort. By mile 13 we were losing momentum - it was cold and we were tired. But, one toilet stop, two painkillers and a few snacks later, we were back on track stomping across the Embankment.

However, I wasn't prepared for what mile 18 had in store! It was now 6am and I'd become slightly delirious - replying only "yes" to anything Laura was asking me. We'd waited to put our playlist on for when we really needed it, and Laura decided that now was that time! A couple of bites of a banana, a sip of water and the amazing one hit wonder by Charles and Eddie blasting into our ears, and we were singing into our water bottles and picking up the pace.

Our feet were really starting to hurt by the time we'd reached the 20-mile marker, but Laura was outstanding at keeping the mood light and the conversation flowing. I felt pretty good up until mile 25 - and with just one and a bit left to go, I'd finally started to flag. I was almost ready to rest my tired limbs, but Laura encouraged me to go just a stretch further to cross that finish line.

Over the hill I could see the pink balloons calling, willing me on to the end. Holding each others hands, team Treacy shuffled the last half a mile to be met by crowds of cheers. After eight hours of continuous walking, we'd finally made it to the end and received our MoonWalk medals! It wasn't long before I collapsed to the ground, pulled off my trainers and curled up in a ball, not wanting to be moved for the rest of the day!

But, it was on to Essex to celebrate our Aunt's 70th birthday and a day of socialising with the family. And, by the end of the evening, and having not slept for over 24 hours I'd gone a little mad - a twitchy leg and strange whimpers aside, I couldn't wait to roll into bed and rest my exhausted body!

It was an amazing challenge, one that I doubted I could complete, but we learnt just how much time we waste sleeping! We managed to raise a lot of money for Breast Cancer Care and discovered what we were capable of when we put our minds to the test!

http://zoemonk.blogspot.co.uk/

Follow this fab blog for all the latest fashion, celeb and lifestyle news - http://zoemonk.blogspot.co.uk/

Sister Sister...

 Curled up on the sofa on a grey, drizzly Sunday afternoon, I've got my head in another book. This time it's Caitlin Moran's, How To Be A Woman, and every few pages I'm giggling away to myself, tears of laughter streaming down my face as I relate to yet another one of her childhood stories. The one that springs to mind is when she's explaining to her younger sister what it's like to start your periods, while they play with their Sindy dolls, using the sanitary towels as Sindy mattresses!

I remember my sister Laura and I having similar moments - where our Barbies would, for some reason, have American accents and all be in a relationship with the one Ken doll that we owned, who, evidently, fathered two sets of quintets, while they all lived happily ever after in the Barbie mansion.

And, while little sisters can be a great nuisance, and older siblings can be bossy and frustrating, the bond between sisters is a strong one. One of my favourite memories has to be the following...

Together, the Treacy sisters watched Blue Peter eagerly as the presenters demonstrated how to create a Barbie salon out of empty cereal boxes. We decided that we definitely needed a Barbie salon for our plastic doll's make believe lives and got to work straight away. However, the 1980s children's presenters neglected to inform us that we shouldn't actually cut off poor Jasmine, Pocahontas and roller skating Barbie's hair off! Even their fringes! We came up with a genius plan to hide the synthetic locks in a shoe box under Laura's bed - but, it soon back fired when mum discovered our secret stash of hair cuttings and demanded to know why we had disfigured our treasured toys. At the time of discovery, our hairdresser was round our house, and she lined up the dolls on our kitchen worktop, and while she held back the giggles and not wanting to crush our first attempts at being creative, she told us that she could see what look we were trying to go for, and that we'd mastered the asymmetric bob! Needless to say, that the fringeless, shaggy, bed head look didn't go down too well with Ken, and it wasn't long until the Barbie mansion made it's way into the loft.

We both have a bank of memories filled with laughter, tears and togetherness - and while, they might not be as cool as your best friends, as witty as your work colleagues or as funny as your boyfriend - you won't find anyone more reliable than a sister.

Follow the signs...

Today's Sagittarius: "The lucky moon shines on you to help you win what will make you happy, whether it’s the lottery or a love promise.
Being with people who make you feel good about yourself is a big plus at work. If you’re single, an old love may want to try again – but you have plenty of other options."

There used to be a time when I'd read my daily stars religiously, scouring the internet for as many different astrology sites as I could. And, while I still love a cheeky read of the light-hearted horoscopes, I won't break out in a cold sweat if I can't get my daily fortune fix! So, the lucky moon may well be shining on me, and the many other Sadgies, but it certainly won't help me win the lotto (because I haven't bought a ticket!) and it definitely won't fulfil a love promise (as I'm as single as they get!). It's not exactly rocket science that being around people who make you feel good is a big plus, and I really hope that none of my old flames want to try again!

After spending the majority of my twenties soul searching and looking for reasons as to why certain things have occurred in my life, I've exhausted almost every avenue of spiritual therapies to try and find what I'm looking for. A visit to a flamboyant psychic a few years back, left me believing that I'd find happiness with Mr J, at company C and mother to a baby girl by the ripe old age of 28! Well, that's only eight months away, and of course, none of the above has come true! Then, came reiki - where I felt like I'd levitated above the bed I was lying on, and my therapist told me she'd "seen" my self esteem that had been pecked apart by a huge crow and it was trying to sew all the holes back together! And, finally, the random palm reader on the stoop of a Californian beach house informed me that I should never be with someone younger than me, that I'd be financially stable by my thirties and that I probably shouldn't have more than two children!

Now, I didn't need a bunch of fortune tellers to know all of the above! My self esteem had indeed been pecked apart by a huge crow (aka my first boyfriend) - but only because I'd allowed him to. I definitely shouldn't have a toy boy (been there, done that, got t-shirt!).And, I probably will only have two children at the most (because I'm not really the maternal type!). But, if Conde Nast come knocking with my dream job, along with Jake Gyllenhaal - I definitely won't knock mystic Mary for prediciting those things!

But, it wasn't until I sought out help from a hypnotherapist that I really started to change my beliefs. I embarked on the Thrive programme, which really focused on the way I was thinking and why I was looking externally for all the answers to my problems. When really, the answer was with me all along. Once I got my head around the concept that I choose the way I'm feeling and everything else is a trigger, not a cause, it started to change the way I viewed everything.

And, it's not a mystical reading that has improved my confidence, but my own hard work - and it's not a lucky moon that takes credit for my achievements, but my own efforts that'll get a little pat on the back.

What Katy Did Next...: Train SuperNatural

What Katy Did Next...: Train SuperNatural: Last weekend I took part in the FREE!!! Nike 'Train Super Natural' event at Westfield London. Nike master trainers took to the stage to inst...

Spot the difference...

The idea of individuality is drummed into us in all aspects of our lives, especially that of our personal fashion style. So, turning up to work or an event and discovering one of your pals is sporting the same frock can often leave you feeling embarrassed, frustrated or even flattered. Whether it's friendly intuition, similar styles or pure coincidence that led you to pick the same ensemble, you're better off just rolling with it, rather than winding yourself up with the "I should have chosen that red blouse instead" thought process that you may naturally reach for upon first sight of your fashion double.

Me on the other hand, I'm not too bothered about who wore it best, but I feel safe in the knowledge that my friends like what I'm wearing - because they are wearing it too! I'm all for individuality, but there's something quite comforting about having a similar style to your closest girlfriends, as it confirms your own beliefs that you're on the right track in the fashion stakes.