If I had a spare £100

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been slowly, quietly working on getting fit again. It started with a revelation a few weeks ago at my first postnatal yoga class. I realised how great it felt to be doing something for me and me alone. I decided there and then to try to gradually ease myself back into shape with the occasional run. Oh, and to be a bit less eager with the cake.

Which leads me to my point. I was recently asked by TSB to write about what I’d spend a spare £100 on. The maximum interest you can earn on the TSB Plus Account is £100 AER. “Would you give it to charity, pay it forward, treat the kids or treat yourself?” they asked me. And now, I’m kind of ashamed to say that after much thought I think I’d spend the cash on myself.

Spending imaginary money is pretty fun, so at first I envisaged going into a shoe shop and finally getting those Stan Smiths I’ve been lusting over. Or maybe I’d splash out on a pair of dungarees (a current Google obsession – really must get out more). Or perhaps I’d invest in that Eames style chair I’ve been hankering after. And then it hits me: I wouldn’t spend my imaginary £100 on ANY of those things. I’d spend it on the internet’s other big darling of the moment – the Nutribullet.

The internet is to blame for many a fad of mine, but I’ve fallen hard for the idea of this smoothie maker / juice machine / lifestyle essential for middle-class “clean” living. It seems I can’t even glance at Instagram these days without seeing a kale and cucumber juice or homemade smoothie, courtesy of the Nutribullet. In my head, a Nutribullet will transform me into Polished Mum. Owning one will automatically make me three stone lighter, with bouncy hair and dazzling white teeth.

I very nearly bought one in John Lewis the other day but… well, it’s £100 isn’t it? It could prove to be £100 I only actually use once which ends up gathering dust at the back of my kitchen cupboard.

The thing is, though, if we were talking about spending £100 on something the (self-proclaimed) Northern Love Machine needed, or £100 on something either of the girls needed (“needed” in its loosest sense here) I know I wouldn’t think twice. It’s kind of symbolic really, my current inability to buy a Nutribullet has come to represent my hesitance in putting myself first. Can you hear that? That’s the sound of my tiny violin.

Anyway, all these Nutribullet musings and lack of putting myself first made me realise something the other day – I’m SO starved of any “me time” at the moment (and by “me time” I’m talking 2 minutes to go for a wee in peace) that even the thought of running through a muddy field in the rain at 6.45am on a Saturday morning was appealing.

I put my trainers on and left the house before anyone really noticed I was gone. And I actually enjoyed it. Apart from being completely and utterly free, it was also rather nice to not have anyone ask me for anything. I ramped up my music and plodded on. And when things started to really hurt and I thought I’d die in the middle of a rain-soaked swamp, half-eaten by stray cats, I just turned my music up louder and pictured myself beating Polished Mum in a race.

When I got home I felt elated, proud of myself and ever so slightly holier than thou. The only thing missing was a kale and cucumber juice for breakfast and a shot of my trainer’d up feet uploaded to Instagram. So perhaps I do need that Nutribullet after all….

Tell me, what would you spend a spare £100 on? (And do you have a Nutribullet? Are they worth the money?)

To celebrate the fact their Plus account improves over time, TSB have created this infographic. Is it bad that my eye immediately hones in on “wine” and “cheese”?!

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Thank you to TSB for commissioning this post. For more information on how I work with brands check out my Work With Me page.