I was inspired to write this post after I made the below point on my Facebook profile a couple of weeks back and it got a great response, including a good bit of discussion which is always nice.
We receive lots of emails about fat around the middle and how to blitz the old belly into shape. In some people a quick tidy up of their nutrition and they melt the muffin top away, discovering abs for the first time in years! For others it can be a case of identifying a few health issues which are actively exacerbating the situation and fuelling fat storage around the middle first...
How frequently have you said “it must be my hormones!” because I hear this pretty often from clients, friends and family. We talk about our hormones like they’re some separate entity ticking away inside of us with a mind of their own, completely outside our control. In fact, hormones are actually taking most of their direction from our senses and feedback signals from our environment. A single thought experienced by you can initiate a cascade of hormones. Here is a guide to understanding hormone health and an overview of some common complications that can occur.
Fat loss, fat loss, fat loss. Probably the answer to so many peoples question when you ask “what is your health goal”. Well that’s cool because losing body weight can be a good thing, especially if you have excess body fat to lose and you want to look and feel better. However, here's why the fastest route to fat loss isn't always the best route.
Lately my newsfeed keeps me telling to “Get Lean Legs!” and offering the promise of super slim thighs in six weeks. Can I be honest? It all makes me sigh a little. Don't get me wrong, I’m actually quite a fan of the 'bro-science' and articles out there about reducing lower body fat. Particularly because a lot of the information is based upon supporting optimal hormone balance and detoxification, which can only be a good thing no matter what you’re health goal is. However, they’re often lacking a little feminine perspective for my liking!
Last week we attended The Fit Festival in Edinburgh to deliver some educational presentations on nutrition, exercise and healthy living. We also had a stand at the show so we could chat to visitors and spread the Fitter Food love in person. We always enjoy any chance to meet new folk and offer advice and guidance to keep them progressing on their health and fat loss journey. However I head something at the weekend that I really want to address...
There's something I want to share with you guys. Even though life may often look hunky dory for Matt and I, it’s actually been a bit of a rough year for us. Just like many of you we've had our fair share of personal and work related issues that have really impacted our outlook on life. At times it's felt like ‘one thing after another’ is going wrong and we've questioned our ability to cope. When lots of events beyond your control take place life can quickly became frightening and overwhelming.
I'll be honest with you. I have never had any interest in doing a skydive and my heart sank when I found out this was planned for the group activity day of our mentoring program. Am I scared of heights? No. Flying? Never been a problem. Jumping out of a plane from 14000ft with no guarantee the parachute would open? YES that’s what I was scared of!! And not just for me but for Keris too, as she was right there with me doing the same crazy thing, so I was double scared for the two of us.
I’ve never been very good at 100% so I no longer endeavor to achieve it when it comes to nutrition and health, I just make the right decisions the majority of the time and don’t go crazy or feel guilty when I don’t. In the past I’ve followed strict elimination diets, partly to understand the experience and benefits they have to offer and partly to help fix up my gut or maybe ditch a developing reliance on something, usually caffeine.
Adapting your carbohydrate intake and limiting certain types of carbs is certainly a significant aspect of optimal health for most people. We have spoken before about establishing your carbohydrate tolerance and manipulating carb intake to help optimise hormone function. However, watching the cast of TOWIE ditch the 'carbs before Marbs' alongside those awesome results many of us experienced when we first dropped out the bread, potatoes and pasta, often makes it easy to creep back into low carb habits, perhaps even limiting carb intake much more than we need to.
By the time you read this blog we’ll be out in the Algarve enjoying our first holiday in months. Whilst we’ve travelled around a geat deal in the last year, most of the time it’s involved working each day to some degree or a previous commitment for our time. Read about how we're coping with our switch off.
Totally riding off the back of the ‘are you beach body ready?' campaign from a few weeks back (hopefully with less controversy!). I've decided to share my training schedule after receiving several questions from people about what they can do training wise whilst on their summer break.