The fabulous people at Herbalife and the lovely Lara from Immediate PR, got in touch and offered to send over the new Banana Cream Herbalife shakes, which I jumped at the chance to test out!

Before I get into the product itself... I'd firstly like to point out, whilst writing this review, I was sat watching Christmas films and drinking green tea singing Gwen Stefani's Holdback Girl because I swear (other than autocorrect!) that this is the only way to remember how to spell banana.

Next up, this is THE cutest PR package I have EVER received. Along with the shakes, I was sent a shaker, a cute banana stirrer and... a banana plant!! When Gus (my local DPD driver) turned up with the box... I was taken aback/ shocked!


The packaging of the shakes is in line with the rest of the Herbalife range, the traditional white and green. The nutritional values were outlined clearly which, in my book, can only be a positive.

Now onto the bit that you care about, THE TASTE. I honestly loved it. I tend to find a lot of banana flavoured things taste really synthetic but there was nothing synthetic tasting about these shakes! It has a beautifully subtle banana flavour. The texture of the shake itself (I used almond milk) was thick and creamy which left me feeling full and didn't make me feel like I was missing out whilst using it as a meal replacement.

I even pimped my shakes and created a banoffee shake (which, of course, I forgot to take a photo of!) I drizzled toffee sauce round the glass, popped together my shake in my blender, poured it into the glass and used some Anchor light whipped cream on the top before drizzling some more toffee sauce on the top. AMAZING.

As a die hard Weight Watchers (or should I say WW!) fan, I've always been skeptical of shakes that promote healthiness and weightloss. I tested these shakes for a week, with a weightloss emphasis. I had a shake in the morning with almond milk and a shake for lunch. I had a snack of fruit and then for tea I had a balanced 600 calorie meal. With WW, I tend to lose 2lbs a week. With Herbalife, I lost 2lbs, so the results were on par, which actually shocked me! If I have a super busy week/ don't have time for breakfast, I'll definitely be turning to a Herbalife shake as a stand in. I'd definitely like to try some other flavours so I'll be having a browse of their website, for sure.

In the words of Gwenny, this shit is bananas, b-a-n-a-n-a-s! I'd definitely recommend for those who have a busy lifestyle and need a quick breakfast or those looking to drop a few pounds.

I've been a bit quiet as of late, due to a whole host of stuff going on in my offline life! I just thought I'd write a little post updating you all on the trials and tribulations of my life (yawn) before making a promise to be much more active with both my blog and social media (hahaha...)!

What have I been up to for the last few months?

To answer this question briefly, I've been wrapping up my masters degree in Marketing by writing my dissertation about the effect that bloggers have on purchase intention, which many of you contributed to by answering my survey (which I am eternally grateful for! thank you thank you thank you if you did take part). Nearly 16,000 words later and after a lot of blood, sweat and tears it's been handed in! Which brings a close me being a post-graduate student. SO SAD. I wish I could be a student forever.

As my masters was in marketing, I have managed to secure a job as a Digital Marketing Executive, which I'm most thrilled about! I start next Monday. However, securing this job meant that I finished at my previous job in the office at a plumbing and heating firm, which was really tough saying goodbye after three years.

Why did I stop blogging and being active in the blogging community?

When times get hectic, something has got to give. In this case, I prioritised my masters and my work above blogging. I also stopped contributing to the blogging community because I was finding it was becoming increasingly negative in my life. I wasn't posting and therefore seeing everyone else thriving (which by the way, is great, and I fully support each and everyone of you for this!!) and posting new content made me feel really guilty that I wasn't producing new content. I felt it best to take a step back so that once I was ready I would be ready to step forward once again.

What's next?

I'm in the middle of a blissful week and a half off, doing nothing except netflixing and looking after my dog! Long term however, I am looking forward to the new challenges my new job brings and to use my degree in a role that really interests me. I am also making a promise, right here and right now, to post once a week until at least Christmas in regards to my blog. I'm also going to be bringing back BDIB and weekly twitter chats. Watch this space...

I'd love to say all of my all time classic films grace IMDB's Top 100 Greatest Movies of All Time list, but I'm the hugest RomCom fan, so basically none of them make the list but honestly, I don't care. They're just the best kind of film and they are my favourite feel good films. Whenever I'm feeling down, or if it's cold and rainy and gross (or equally, muggy and rainy as it has been today)I just pop one of these films on and chill out!

1. Notting Hill

Absolute classic and I love anything with Julia Roberts in. Who doesn't also love Hugh Grant?! Hugh Grant's character is so loveable and so relatable it has me in stitches. My favourite quote being 'These carrots?' 'Murdered' hahaha.

2. My Best Friend's Wedding

Another Julia Roberts classic, with Rupert Everett and the absolute DILF who is Dermot Mulrooney. A classic tale of woman being in love with her best friend but not realising until the very last minute.

3. Clueless

Love, love, love Clueless. That is all.

4. Mean Girls

THE ULTIMATE GIRL FILM. Need I say anymore? Bitchiness, the fight for queen bee status and everything being fetch.

STOP TRYING TO MAKE FETCH HAPPEN, MOLLY!

5. 10 Things I Hate About You

Heathy, we miss you. This is one of my all time favourite films, with Julia Stiles playing a perfect role as a moody and angry teenager. My favourite quote has got to be: 'Am I that transparent? I want you, I need you, oh baby, oh baby'.

6. Pitch Perfect

I love Pitch Perfect, and if you don't agree... I'll pitch slap you.

7. How to Be Single

I first watched this when I had literally just come out a year long relationship. I loved every minute of it and it definitely helped me learn and grow as a person, as well as having a proper laugh at my fave Rebel Wilson.

8. Rush

Slightly different to the rest of the films on this list, but who doesn't love a cheeky bit of Chris Hemsworth.

9. How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days

Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey- match made in heaven on the silver screen. The twist is in this is so obvious but heartwarming. This film is a fantastic watch.

10. Love Actually

Technically a Christmas film, but I have zero shame in admitting I watch this all year round.

With both of the packs, you wash your hair, as normal and apply the pack leaving on for 15-20 minutes. As my hair is in need of the moisture, I choose to leave the pack on for the full 20 minutes and I found that both packs left my hair smooth, non-frizzy and both feeling and looking healthy!

Although I liked the Manuka Flower Honey Protein pack, I found the Coconut Oil Deep Conditioning pack did more for my hair, and gave my hair more of the moisture boost it craved. I would re-purchase the Manuka Flower Honey pack if the Coconut Oil Protein pack wasn't available. I use the Coconut Oil Protein pack every Sunday now, without fail, as part of my Sunday night routine (as detailed in my Skinny Tan Review!).

You can purchase both of these packs from Superdrug (I should really buy some shares in Superdrug now!) here. The Coconut Oil pack retails for £2.09 and the Manuka Flower Honet pack retails for £2.99.