• Welcome to ‘Simply Cantara’
  • Welcome to ‘Simply Cantara’

    Hello, hi, welcome to Simply Cantara! I’m so excited to be back blogging again and finally writing this post. It’s been a long time coming! We’ve got a brand new name, a fresh new look and a change in the content to come. You may have noticed that I haven’t blogged in almost a year and that was in part because I got caught up in the excitement of being engaged and wedding planning (eek!) and also because I had started to fall out of love with blogging.

    Welcome to Simply Cantara - a UK healthy lifestyle blog. I'll be sharing my journey to a fitter, healthier me, as well as tips to increase your productivity and simplify your lifestyle

    A step back

    ‘Gymbags and Gladrags’ was something I created almost five years ago now. The name was a play on the song ‘Handbags and Gladrags’ and a way to prevent anyone I knew IRL finding my little space on the internet. I managed to keep it a secret shared only between you, Michael (my now-fiancé) and myself for well over a year and it was wonderful. We exchanged fitness tips, I recommended my favourite healthy snacks and you picked me up when my motivation was running low.

    Suddenly a feature in The Evening Standard meant that everyone at work, my friends and family and even more of you guys discovered my little blog. There was no ‘hiding’ anymore but it was fun. I’ve since been shortlisted twice for a Cosmo Blog Award and actually came runner up for ‘Best in Fitness’ (crazy!), worked with some amazing brands, travelled to incredible places and connected with you guys even more. There was no way I wanted to give this all up, but something wasn’t feeling right anymore. Blogging started to feel like a chore instead of a fun hobby so I took a break, I stepped back and re-evaluated.

    A new name

    I realised that ‘Gymbags and Gladrags’, although a fun name, didn’t feel like me anymore and it limited the types of blog posts I wanted to write. It was time for a new name and a refresh, but what name?! I toyed with other made-up names but I soon realised I just wanted to use my name. I love my name. I’ve grown up always being complimented on it and I’ve never met another Cantara. I thought about using my surname, but I’ll be changing my name when I get married later this year and didn’t want to have to rebrand again. Besides, my new surname would be a struggle for people to spell!

    So here we have…  Simply Cantara.

    No made-up names to hide behind, just me, simply striving to live my best life and I’m taking you along for the ride with me. You may have noticed I have renamed all my social channels to become @SimplyCantara.

    Welcome to Simply Cantara - a UK healthy lifestyle blog. I'll be sharing my journey to a fitter, healthier me, as well as tips to increase your productivity and simplify your lifestyle

    A new focus

    My attitude to all things weight loss and fitness has shifted these past few months and so will my blog content. Get ready for posts on mindset, goal setting and self-care as well as good old fitness tips and motivation, yummy recipes, straightforward skincare and tricks to simplify your life. Oh, and of course, wedding planning fun!

    I’ve got a brand new design thanks to the Pipdig ‘Blossom’ theme and the many late nights I spent customising it. I’ve also streamlined the categories to make it easier for you to browse the type of posts you’re into and introduced a new ‘Wellness’ category.

    I hope you are as excited as I am for this new chapter. It wasn’t an easy decision to drop ‘Gymbags and Gladrags’ and sort of start again, but I’ve got my passion for blogging back and cannot wait to see what the future holds. Simply Cantara – let’s do this!


    Let me know in the comments below what sort of posts you would like to see from me, or if there are any resources, tips or tricks you’d like to help you to simplify your life and be your best self.


    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


    Looking for Something?