The Lionesses definitely inspired a nation over the summer with some fantastic performances finally bringing football home with a Euro victory on home soil. Seeing them lift that trophy from inside Wembley stadium is going to be one of those moments that is going to be ingrained in my mind forever and seeing them lifting a major trophy in the flesh is probably something I am never going to see again unless I get very lucky to travel the world for other competitions in the future. The team might have an inspired the nation over the summer but honestly, they have been inspiring me for many years prior to this as they are a team that just don't give up and they are some of the best players in the world even if they aren't winning trophies every time they play. They have certainly inspired me in so many different ways and here is why the Lionesses are some of the biggest inspirations to me and some of the things they have inspired me to do... 

Got me back playing football

Now I never thought this would happen, but the Lionesses have played a big part in this for me. I have had a bad knee for as long as I can remember so I gave up playing the game I have always loved, now though 7 years since my last game I am back playing for a club and it feels so great to be back kicking the ball, something I never thought I would do. My season starts very soon and honestly, I am so excited to get back and playing weekly, it is going to be like being a kid again.

Working on my health and fitness 

The Lionesses have definitely helped motivate me to work on my health and fitness a whole lot more, I need to do this for playing football too so it has proved to be a great thing they have inspired. The funny thing is they have inspired me in so many different ways, but there are players with injuries who have come back stronger than ever and those are the most inspiring ones and are the ones I have been motivated by the most. If I can come back from injury and improve my standards like them, I will definitely be very happy. 

Make changes to my football website 

Before the Euros the football website was for both the men's and the women's game however, since the competition ended we decided we no longer wanted to cover both sides of the sport and since then we have changed to only cover the women's game. We no longer just focus on the national league either, we now cover a variety of leagues and have a few little projects we are working on behind the scenes. It is time to give the women's game the attention is really deserves and spread the word about just how good the women's game actually is. We are definitely more passionate now about the growth of the game which is hard to believe as we were already very passionate about it.

Become more focused & determined when it comes to the football site

Before my mind was all over the place and the football site got neglected far too often where as since the Euros there is a new rule. Content for the football site comes first, so far this has really helped us and it has increased the productivity on the site and in turn has helped us increase views. The football site really does come first these days I am loving it.

Showed me no dream is too big

Those players went into the Euros dreaming about lifting the trophy on home soil and people laughed saying there was no chance. Those players dreamt though and at the end of the tournament their dreams had come true and they were European champions. The Lionesses really have shown us all even if you dream big if you put in the work that dream is never too far away from being possible. I always thought the dreams I had were never in a million years going to be achievable but stood in that stadium on the 31st of July that thought went out of my head and I knew that if I worked hard I could achieve them.

Helped me develop new goals

The Lionesses have also inspired me to develop new goals that are going to help me achieve those dreams I have. Some goals were totally unrealistic and others weren't pushing me enough so I decided to sit down and set myself some new goals that realigned with what I wanted to achieve and since setting them I can honestly say things are going very well and I am looking forward to working on them daily. They are all set and I am more determined to smash them than ever before. 

I have to say though some players have certainly inspired me more than others, maybe because I pay more attention to these or maybe because I have followed their journey over the years so know a bit more about what they have been through, but those players that have inspired me the most are...

Leah Williamson 

At just 25 years old Williamson has captained her country to their first major trophy since the men won the World Cup in 1966. For her to have achieved this at just 25 years old is truly inspiring and shows just how much talent Leah has on and off the pitch. What is more inspiring though is the fact that until Sarina Wiegman took charge of England Williamson was either on the bench or not in the squad at all. Imagine working so hard in just a year to be able to Captain your country amongst other really talented and experienced players and actually bring football home. I can see Williamson being a very inspiring player for many years to come. 

Jill Scott

Jill Scott is a player who has inspired me since I first fell in love with the women's game, she just always seems to have been there and has never given up no matter what has been thrown her way. Scott has been to plenty of tournaments with England where they have fallen in the later stages of the tournament but did she give up and retire? No she kept putting in the hard work for the call ups and didn't stop until she lifted that Europen trophy in July. With injuries and age she could have given up a while ago but she kept on going and retired on a brilliant high. 

Bethany England

Beth England was inspiring through the Euros for so many reasons but the main one was that she didn't get on the pitch but that didn't stop her playing a big part from the bench and making an impact without even kicking a ball. There were a few players like this but England stood out to me as when that final whistle went in Wembley she ran straight to the manager, she might not have got game time but she still appreciated all that Wiegman had done and wanted to celebrate with her first. England is a player that is always looking on and improving her game, I don't think it will be long until we see her playing more regularly. 

Jordan Nobbs

Jordan Nobbs wasn't at the Euros but she is still one of the Lionesses that inspires me, in fact she inspires me more than anyone else as she never gives up and always bounces back up. Nobbs has to be the unluckiest player as she always picks up an injury before any major tournament, she could have easily retired with the injuries she has had over the years but she works hard all off season and into the new season to put in performance after performance and that is why we still see her getting called up. She never gives up and does everything possible to recover and come back her very best, let's hope in 2023 we will see her at the world cup , injury free. 

I definitely thing it is funny how after all these years watching the women's game and being inspired that the most inspiration and change comes after seeing them win the tournament. It really is amazing how a win can spark so much within you whether it is football or life related, all I know though is these women have really inspired me to push on and be the best version of me and really push to achieve those goals. 

Where has this year gone? It doesn't seem like two minutes ago we were celebrating the start of 2022 and now we only have 100 days left of the year. This year might have flown by but it has been one of my favourite years so far with some brilliant things happening, mainly that Euro's win, but all in all it has been a fantastic year. The fact there are only 100 days left for the year though has got me thinking about how I can make those last 100 days count towards some goals I have set myself and also how I can make the start of 2023 continue the greatness of this year. I want to start next year the best I can and I know goals I set myself for the next 100 days in the build up to the new year are going to help me achieve the best possible start. There are a few areas I want to improve on and here are the things I am aiming to achieve over the next 100 days...

Fitness

Fitness and weight loss has played a big part in 2022 and it is going to continue playing a big part in my life for the longest time. I have long term goals I want to achieve that fall into this category and in the next 100 days I am going to work really hard to achieve the goals below as they are going to help me work towards my long term goals. So here are the things I want to achieve fitness wise in the next 100 days...

Hit my goal weight for the year

weight loss has been hit and miss for me this year and I set myself a target at the start of the year which I wanted to achieve and I am still working towards that now. I am throwing myself in head first over the next 100 days to really push to get as close to this goal as possible. I know that if I really focus on my nutrition and getting all my workouts in I should definitely get very close to this goal if not actually achieving it. 

Get into size 14 trousers

This is a big one for me as I have had a pair of trousers just sat in my wardrobe ready to be worn but they have always been too small for me. I am determined by the end of this year I will be able to fit in these trousers comfortably. Again if the weight loss I spoke about above starts to fall into place this should be no issue at all. 

Get into size medium tops

I am determined to end the year in size medium clothing and honestly as I said before if the weight loss goes the right way I think this is one I am going to hit and if I do there is a football shirt in a medium waiting for me, giving me that bit more of an incentive which always comes in handy. At the moment I am comfortably in large tops and some are even starting to get a bit big on me so it is time to knuckle down as I really want that football shirt.

Do full push ups

It is a known fact that I have noodle arms and I am working on that these days. One thing I have always wanted to do is a full push up, no knees, a real push up. So that is a goal I am working towards for the end of the year. I would love to do 3-5 by the end of the year but I will even take 1 as a win with the arms in the state they are currently in. 

Increase my stamina

This is a big one for me as I am now back playing football so I need my stamina to be a lot better than it currently is. At the moment my stamina levels are absolutely terrible and I struggle after a short time but I am determined to work on this and at least double my stamina levels by the end of the year which won't be much in the grand scheme of things but is a start and will give me a good marker for the start of the new year.

Increase weight I can lift

I did well earlier in the year and slowly started to increase the weight I could lift but then burn out happened and I ended up back at square one which frustrated me but I am determined to get back to where I was before burn out hit and to be honest I want to push myself to go beyond that point and lift my heaviest weights in my journey so far. I am more than capable of this if I stay consistent with my workout's so I am looking forward to seeing the final numbers at the end of the year.

Blog

When it comes to the blogs well this year has been very hit and miss and that is my own doing as I would start to focus on one site and neglect the others and then play catch up and fall into a cycle of neglecting various sites and the consistency just hasn't been there this year. I want to start being a lot more consistent, so these next 100 days are all about getting my act together and putting goals in place so that I can kick start 2023 in a great way and actually know what works for me and how I can stay consistent. So here are the blog related goals for the next 100 days... 

Get into a posting schedule

This is something I really need to do to start being consistent and stop overwhelming myself. At the moment I keep forgetting to post things and I aren't writing things on time for when I intend to post them so it is time to get that sorted. I want to create a schedule where I have set days for types of content and where I aren't having to spend every free hour working on content to make sure it is all done. 

Get ahead of myself

This is a big thing I need to do as when I have done it in the past life has been so much easier. I found in the past if I get ahead of myself I m a whole lot more productive as I don't feel like I am being forced to do the task at hand plus I get a bit more free time by doing that. I know that if I start getting ahead of myself on content that overall it is going to be much better than it has been this past year and I can have time to myself alongside working on other projects. Getting into a routine is definitely going to help me with this. 

Be consistent on Insta

I have tried and failed at this so many times but over the next 100 days I am planning on being more consistent on all my Instagram accounts, especially my main blog ones. The thing ith Instagram is one minute I love posting on it then I get really fed up so I am hoping that getting ahead of myself and scheduling post is going to help me show up more and finally start growing my following. I am really looking forward to this goal and getting some consistency going in the build up to the new year.

Life

Life has certainly been chaotic this year but I can't complain as it has given me opportunities I never thought would happen. But at the same time I could have done with calming down just a little bit as I did end up getting burnt out in the summer. Things are starting to calm down just a little, not as much as I would like but just enough therefore, I am going to use the time to set myself some goals that will hopefully help me create habits that are going to stick even if life does start to get busy again. Those life goals to help that into the new year are...

Build a routine

This is a big thing that I need to do especially for on a morning which will hopefully mean a super productive morning and a more relaxed evening. At the moment I struggle for free time but I want to change that for the remainder of the year. I want to get up at 5.30am, get my workout done and out of the way and have time to get ready for work or the day in general so I aren't rushing around, I want to tackle my skincare and just generally develop a morning and evening routine I can stick to and really benefit from.

Not let things get on top of me

This is something I really need to do towards the end of the year and learn that it is ok to take some time out when needed. A lot of times this year I have put pressure on me to get certain stuff done on and unrealistic time frame then I get stressed and everything just gets messed up. For the next 100 days I am determined to not let things get on top of me and to take a step back when needed the last thing I need is to spend the Christmas period burnt out yet again. 

Complete the home gym

We have a plan in place of what we are going to do with the gym now and I can't wait to get this project moving so that I have my own area just to work out in, no more dragging equipment from room to room. 100 days is definitely a realistic time frame to get this done in and I am looking forward to seeing the final result. We are basically starting from scratch on this build so it might be a bit more expensive, but it is definitely going to be worth it in the end. 

Get a list sorted of all the jobs in the house we want to get done in 2023

So that we know where we stand going into the new year, I want to get a list done of all the things we want to get done in the house. There will be big jobs on this list and also some smaller ones. Just have a list though for us to check back to gives us an idea of how much we need to budget for each job and realistically just how much we can get done. This might give Liam the chance to make one of his typical spreadsheets for us both to follow but I am just hoping doing this keeps us focused on the tasks at hand, so we don't just go out spending money for the sake of it and we get the house just as we want it once and for all.

Sort a budget out

This is definitely going to be one of the biggest ones for the final 100 days of the year as I really need to get back on top of my finances after a summer of buying whatever I wanted, the Euros cost me a fortune in the end but that is an experience I might never get again so I was making the most of it. I am hoping over the next 100 days I can create a budget that I can stick to and finally start building my savings once more rather than taking money out of them. If I want to get those jobs done around the house I really do need to get better with my money and stop throwing it away so fingers crossed by the start of the new year my finances are looking much healthier and I am cutting back on the useless purchases. 

So there you go that is the plan for the next 100 days so that I can start the new year in the best way possible. I have my head screwed on and I am determined to achieve each of these goals I have set as it is time to really knuckle down and start achieving what I set out to achieve at the start of the year. 

Have you set any goals for the remainder of the year?

It is safe to say when working out everyone has their own music they would prefer to listen to, when I used to go to the gym I would hate if I forgot my headphones and I would feel as though I wasn't working out to my full potential as I didn't have my own music that gave me that motivation to push harder and harder each time. My music taste definitely varies from day to day however, I have 10 songs that are always on my playlist and that I make sure I listen to during each workout, they just help motivate me that bit more and keep me going towards my goals. So here are those motivational workout songs I can't do without...

Halestorm - I am the fire

I fell in love with Halestorm as a band a long time ago and me and Liam were lucky enough to go see them live a while back. Their songs are fantastic but the one I have to listen to when working out is I am the fire. This song just stands out to me in so many ways and the lyrics throughout the whole thing are fantastic and each one speaks to me in different ways but the one that gets me the most is 'Shackled by the ghost, of what I once believed, that I could never be, what's right in front on me' I always doubt myself which I know I need to stop doing but this song is such a good one to pick up the spirits and push you even further especially if you are struggling for a bit on sets. 

Nickelback - When we stand together

I have found that you can't beat a bit of Nickelback when working out, so many of their songs are great motivators however, for some reason it is the song when we stand together that stands out to me more than any other songs of theirs. I think it is due to the line 'there's no giving in' being repeated a fair few times during the song that it just keeps me going a bit more than other songs of theirs.

Jay-Z - Run this town

'Walking tall against the rain, victory's within the mile, almost there, don't give up now' I think it is that part of the song that means it get's played every workout session. I used to listen to this before our college football games and it has just stuck with me and carried on into my workout sessions these days. I am sure this is going to be blasting through the home gym speakers all too often when the home gym is up and running. 

Skepta - Hold on

This is another song that I have had on a workout / football playlist since its release in 2012. This is another one of those songs that is great for when you are struggling on a set or just don't want to do the workout in the first place. I have found if I put this song I soon start to get into my workout and don't want to quit. 'What's the point in trying if you ain't trying your best'.

Taylor Swift - Ready for it

There are no lyrics that are the reason that this song is on the list, it is in fact just down to the beat in the song. The tune/beat is super catchy and I use this song most for my weight workouts. To be honest there are quite a few Taylor Swift songs on my workout playlist but this is the one that I make sure to have on every single workout. 

Fort Minor - Remember the name

This song was one I never really bothered with until they played it on the TV for every 2019 Women's World Cup game. They did their own little version of the song as the theme and had some of my favourite players flash across the screen whilst it played so of course that has helped it become one of the most motivating songs I listen to whilst working out. 'Ten percent luck, twenty percent skill, fifteen percent concentrated power of will' this is the part of the song that stands out to me every time and it is definitely a motivator to push that bit harder in the workouts.

Rachel Platten - Fight song

This is another song that made it onto the list due to the football but that is due to someone making a version to do with the USA women's national team winning the 2015 World Cup. The song is brilliant and has some strong lyrics in the original and the remake that are definitely motivators for those workouts that just feel that little extra challenging. I can't see this song leaving the workout playlist anytime soon. 

Lucy Spraggan - Lightning 

'We were born to wonder, be brave, don't afraid', Lucy Spraggan is someone who has really inspired me with her own journey so of course there are a fair few songs on my playlist of hers but lightning is one of my go to motivation songs mainly for those lyrics at the start of this paragraph. This is a good one for those lighter sessions where you still need a bit of a push and to be honest I don't remember the last time I worked out without listening to this song. 

Fifth Harmony - That's my girl

There are a few lines in this song that have made it on this list... 'Who's been working so damn hard you got that head on overload' & 'aching now from head to toe' this song is always one of the ones I play during a session and to be honest I do play this on certain exercises such as squats and dead lifts as I just need that extra boost. This song is fantastic and probably gives me the biggest boost out of all the songs.

Lucy Spraggan - Run

'I'm gunna run, run, run bye-bye problems' this song is one that is always going to be on my workout playlist and I don't plan on removing it anytime soon. This song is a big motivation and the lyrics are brilliant as is the tempo of the song. I am hoping to actually run whilst listening to the song however, for now I mainly listen to this when sat on the exercise bike struggling to keep going. It definitely picks me back up again and gets me through to the end of the session. 

So there you go those are my most motivational songs on my workout playlist that I always make sure I listen to when I need that extra boost or just need help to get going in the first place. There is certainly a mix of artists on this list but they all motivate me in different ways and thanks to these songs I am slowly chipping away at my goals. 

What are some of the songs you listen to when you need an extra boost of motivation?

Well that is August over and done with and it turned out to be a much busier month than I expected. I had a holiday at the start of the month, the football returned and most days I was out and about with family. Tie that in with falling behind on the blogs so spending hours after work and on weekends glued to my PC not getting enough steps in I was definitely shocked to see just how much progress I actually managed to make throughout August because if I am honest I thought that I would actually gain rather than lose. So here is how the goals went in the crazy month...

Another month has absolutely flown by and we are very quickly approaching the end of the year. August has been another busy, fun filled month with plenty going on and it has really kept the momentum of July going for me in the terms of football. The month has also held a holiday which was certainly needed. It has once again been a month of discovering new favourites and rediscovering old ones and here is what has made the cut...

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