I may well be behind the times slightly on this, however during a conversation with a long standing client recently, I was introduced the phenomenon that is ‘Pop-Up Shops’. The hippest shops, bars and clubs that are only around for long enough, that they don’t go out of fashion.

At first I thought this a crazy concept, however when you consider our current high-speed, short attention span culture it makes perfect sense. Bars and clubs are never the hippest places to be for more than six months, so by pulling it down and starting again, a business can be constantly reinvented. Being temporary, bigger risks can be taken, they don’t need as much investment, nor do they need to be perfect from day one, blink and you’ll miss it.

You might be thinking, whilst this is a great idea, it’s just a way of making some quick cash, however even some big brands are jumping on board, towards the end of last year Toys “R” US opened 350 temporary stores across the US, in a bid to boost sales during the crucial Christmas shopping period. The Gap opened stores in both Chicago and New York, dedicated to its 1969 jeans brand.

Pop up shops could also be a great way for business owners to create excitement and buzz about a new line of products, a brand re-launch or just get people talking about them, companies with main stream outlets would be able to increase footfall in the main outlets, through a short-term investment in a pop up shop.

I suppose it’s also worth considering if you do partake in the Pop Up Shop revolution, returning items could be an issue, if the shop disappears after you’ve bought something, you’d be hard pressed to return it! You have been warned.

Anyway very best wishes to both Deborah and Wayne this weekend as they rock climb, mountain bike, run and kayak – against the clock! Find out more about the event at  www.openadventure.com and more about their club, the York Mountaineering Club at www.yorkmc.org.uk

I, in the meantime, will continue to boost my cognitive calorie workout by walking upstairs backwards, cleaning my teeth with my left hand and trying really, really hard to understand the infamous offside rule (as though I care!).

So, I’ve devised a workable programme that over the next month will help you shake off unnecessary poundage WITHOUT altering what you eat or how you exercise. Over the next four weeks I’ll be bringing you a fact each week that you’re hopefully unaware of , or encouraging you to do a task that is a break from the norm all with the intention of achieving ‘brain burn’ and a more efficient calorific  burn-rate. The Foundation Plan doesn’t guarantee weight loss but by the end of June the science would suggest we’ll all be in much better shape, plus  we’ll possibly know 4 more things than we knew before!

Week 1. Hey Presto – as you’ve read and digested the above you’ve already learnt your new fact this week and your brain is in the zone. If you wanted to up the ante (or indeed if you already knew this fact), why not learn a language such as Croatian?

Check-in next week for the second session, after which you’ll already be half way through the programme. Bring on the holidays!

It’s also got a bit of background to some of the great projects BTCV have underway currently and details on how you can get involved in rural and urban community work in your area. Plus, it features celebrity recipes too – if you’re thinking Beyonce’s Maple Syrup and Lemon Juice Supper, Reese Witherspoon ‘s baby food feast or Posh’s Salt & Vinegar blowout, then think again. We’ve got yummy, wholesome recipes for soups, meatballs, muffins and flapjacks from the likes of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Charlie Dimmock and Julia Bradbury. And I can say from experience that they’re delicious because I’ve made some of them myself.  The courgette cake was delish but was squeezed out in the final edit to make way for Beetroot Bolognese – I kid you not!

The guide’s free and you can request your own copy at www.btcv.org/carbonarmy

So what’s not to love about us? (Apart from the unattractive smugness we’re displaying here, possibly!! And the continued overuse of exclamation marks!!!!!!!)

So the Foundation message has now gone north of the border to bonnie Scotland. Where next?

National Meet the Buyer, organised by The Regional Food Group, took place at Oulton Hall in Leeds and allowed suppliers from food and drink companies across Yorkshire to meet and sell to buyers from some of the UK’s biggest brands.

Just some of the buyers attending included: ASDA, Booths, Tesco and the Yorkshire Purchasing Organisation. National Meet the Buyer 2009 generated over £3.8 million worth of business.

Let’s hope this years event was even more successful, providing another boost to the region.

So,on my recent trip to Bath I sashayed along the Royal Crescent and skipped round the Circus, drinking in the gorgeous Georgian architecture. And even, much to Sandi’s disgust, took the Bath city bus tour to find out more. In keeping with our recent plight to promote Foundation across the world, I dutifully had my photograph taken on one of the famous crescents, sporting the now world famous Foundation t-shirt.

Don’t forget, if you visit somewhere exotic, or even somewhere not so exotic, have your photograph taken wearing the Foundation t-shirt and you will be rewarded.