For many of us, the pressure to be productive during lockdown continues to rear its obnoxious head. But you don’t need to spend hours exercising just to be strong or to help your mental health. Case in point: our weekly workouts and Strong in 10 videos on @StrongWomenUK are only 10 minutes long – but you better believe they are effective. It’s about quality, not quantity – here’s why.

We’re back to our old habits during lockdown 2.0, which means banana bread season has returned (did it ever leave?). But this time, we’re stepping up our baking skills with this decadent banana bread.

It contains iron-rich buckwheat for energy and is rich in D-chiro-inositol, a soluble carb that supports your blood sugar levels (which helps to prevent diabetes in the long term). Plus, the cacao is packed with flavonoids for both short- and long-term benefits on brain function (helping you remember things like all the plot twists in the last episode of The Undoing). Banana bread 2.0, we’re ready for you.

What? Kymira Sport Women’s IR50 Long Sleeve Top, £85 & IR50 Leggings, £80

What is it? Activewear that claims to reduce the impacts of DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) with infrared technology that promotes blood circulation.

The verdict: “I am a person of extremes when it comes to exercise. I either do nothing at all or go big with an intense HIIT session. This inevitably means that I suffer from DOMS every time I work out, and no amount of foam-rolling, stretching or long, hot soaks in the bath seem to help. Which is why I was intrigued by Kymira Sport, a brand that makes infrared sportswear that supposedly enhances performance and recovery.

Even without the high-tech element, the top and leggings perform well – the lightweight fabric is breathable but still keeps you warm, which is ideal for winter. What’s special though, is the sciencey bit: they contain mineral fibres that absorb kinetic energy from your body and ambient light (such as sunlight or indoor lighting). The fibres then convert that energy into infrared light which penetrates your muscles, up to 4cm deep. This is said to aid everything from your circulation and breathing efficiency to DOMS – big claims, but I have to admit that after a high-intensity class that would normally have left me sofa-bound, I am surprisingly pain-free. 

I’m definitely keeping this set on rotation – who knows, it might just encourage me to exercise more often without having to worry about my legs being too sore to walk down the stairs afterwards.”