If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail is my mantra for all things really, however, occasionally (very occasionally…) I will wing it but only in exceptional circumstances. I generally like to be organised and know that I’ve gone into something prepared as best as I can be because then if anything bad happens, it’s not really my fault. At least that’s what I tell myself. If I wing it, I will spend hours and hours after said “winging” trying to work out if I really did pull it off and I’ll beat myself up about it for the remainder of time.

That’s how I’m feeling about this year. Not beat up and awful. Just wanting to get prepared and get to it! January is a terrible time to really be brave and do anything apart from sleep, eat, stay indoors and just get through every day. February feels a bit more hopeful but when March comes, it really feels like things are about to change and become more possible.

So, my last week two weeks in February are going to be all about preparing for March because quite frankly, when the 1 March comes, I’m all about the Springtime wardrobe – the nautical stripes, the red, white and blue and getting rid of these schleppy old woolen jumpers and puffa jackets.

I’m going to make myself burst with energy in March. That’s my destination point. You can take that as being point Z right now with me being at point A. So – I have some way to go and I know exactly what I want to do (and need to do) to get me there.

The house is all ready for Spring. Is Mhairi ready? Nope, but I will be, once I’ve followed my own ‘Marching into March’ plan!

The 5:2 OK – I have done this before and not really planned properly for my ‘2’ days. If you’ve been living on another planet for the past five years and don’t know what this is then it’s a diet that you do for two days of the week where you consume 500 calories or less. Out of all people I know who have lost weight, look great and have kept the weight off successfully, this is the diet that has worked. I’m not backing it up with science, only what I know and observe. It works and in any case, we eat far too much food so I think two days of fasting will do me the world of good. I have put on two stone in three years. OK – I was quite skinny before I put the weight on but I was happier, lighter, healthier and I want to get back to where I was. I hate that nothing in my wardrobe fits me anymore! It really doesn’t take much to put weight on over time but the good news is that if you’re happy to take the journey, you can lose it all again in a pain free way. No crash diets, no odd milkshakes, no ‘no carbs’. Just five days of eating as you normally would (being a little calorie conscious of course) and two days of the fast. I’m doing it already and I am losing the bloat. It is working. I am thinning!

www.thefastdiet.co.uk The skin cleanser Winter makes skin look so pasty – everywhere! I am tired with looking at my pale, pasty, dehydrated face in the mirror. It doesn’t need to be like that! I can change that with how I look after my skin and what I put in my body. I don’t drink anywhere nearly enough water, so that’s changing. The cold weather, the constant in and out of centrally heated environments just wrecks skin. Mine is the worst it’s been for a while and it’s probably mostly down to sheer dehydration. Yes I can cover it up with make up and it looks fine but I know it’s parched and starting to wrinkle. I get bored of water and I don’t drink enough and I need to change that or I will look old before my time and I want to look young forever but not in a Joan Collins kinda way. Sorry Joan. You can look after your skin well on a budget or you can spend a fortune but actually, what you eat and drink and how you live your life is going to be the thing that will make the biggest difference. I use a cheapy exfoliator and Clarins moisturiser. My mother always told me to spend more money on my skincare products because “You can buy new clothes but you can’t buy a new face”. This was of course, before people bought new faces. I’m happy with the face I’ve got and I’d like to keep it so I need to look after it better.

Simple have a good range of scrubs that are gentle on skin and less than a fiver.

I also swear by Vaseline for my lips – lip balm doesn’t get any better than that and it lasts for ages. I like the Rosy Lips one as it gives you a little bit of a rosy lip shine (rather than glazed donut lips). Obviously!!

Exfoliate and hydrate!

The energy boost I always, always feel better when I juice. I don’t do it every day (hell, I don’t even do it every month) but in days gone by, once a day even just made a difference to my energy levels and the way I felt. I am rubbish – I never want to do it in the winter because quite frankly, I just want to eat hot buttered toast and tea but I am doing it in my ‘Marching into March’. This one works a treat as an energy boost. Even better than a cup of tea!

Juice Master Turbo Express ½ small pineapple ½ stick celery 1in chunk of cucumber 1 small handful of spinach leaves 1 small piece of peeled lime 2 apples ½ ripe avocado Ice cubes Juice the pineapple, celery, cucumber, spinach, lime and apples. Place the ripe avocado flesh in a blender along with the ice and juice mixture. Blend until smooth.

Pour into glass and enjoy.

www.juicemaster.com The morning wake up I love my cup of tea in the morning. Until I have that cup of tea, I am the lady pouring fresh orange on the Rice Krispies and feeding the dog a bowl of milk. Then I have that first cup of tea and everything magically straightens itself out. The best thing I know I can do, and have done, is have hot water and lemon. Yes, it’s not quite the same I know but it just gets everything going and you do feel quite cleansed in mind and body. Try it. It really makes a difference. The reverse osmosis!

Pull salt and harmful toxins out of the body and replace with magnesium and sulfates to improve muscle and nerve function, reduce inflammation and improve blood flow and oxygenation throughout the body. All can be done by taking a simple Epson Salt bath. Gwyneth Paltrow and Victoria Beckham bathe in Epsom Salts for flat tummies (actually I think they may live in Epsom Salt baths…) and they fix everything from greasy hair, lacklustre skin to a bloated stomach. And they only cost about £1.25 a jar at your local chemist. Google for more info and remember, I am not a doctor. My advice is not right for everyone, but it works for me. I know me. I don’t know you.

www.epsomsalts.co.uk Good luck and keep marching! Spring is almost within touching distance and we want to be ready for it!