Posted on

Monday June 6th

Monday starts off with a few of you struggling with aches and pains of different kinds, the big question is can you still have a successful week? The big answer must be of course you can!!!

For example, if you have a bad knee, theres a million other things you can do APART from running, which is guaranteed to put further stress on an already bad situation!! You have to work around it!

I like to totally go against the “no pain no gain” saying, in fact whoever made it up needs to be shot!!

If you have a bad knee, you should pick activities that WILL NOT put any strain on your knee at all.

Options include working on the bike on flat surfaces, or working on a stationery bike, the rowing machine MAY be okay if you can pull more with your upper body rather than your lower body.

You can do lots of weight training exercises that DO NOT put any strain on your knees whatsoever, this can be quite easy to do, and still means you can have a very intense workout, which will be highly beneficial to you of course. I have been in this situation many times and the ability to “work around” injuries will be one of the most valuable things you can have.

If you have a bad back, this tends to be tougher because your back is involved in everything you do. I would recommend some swiss ball work, which can help your back a lot and there are numerous options on this ball. If you can cycle again on a flat surface, AND you have no pain whatsoever, i would work at a moderate intensity and you WILL again get some seriously good benefits from this. I would avoid any weight training with a bad back.

The bottom line is that are numerous alternatives of training even if you have injuries, you just have to be more selective and train smarter. We all have aches and pains from time to time, but they are definitely not a reason to give up on yourself as many do.

Its not about whether you get knocked down, its whether you get up again so your choice entirely!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Friday 3rd June

A brutally hot day today, but not hot enough to put you off your training hopefully!!!

Famously on days like these, you have the hideous sight of tops off at the local pub and beer drinkers pretending as if its christmas!

Nothing wrong at all with having a drink on days or nights like these, but it shouldn’t be your sole reason or only goal on days like these, lets get down the pub at all costs because they’re not going to be serving beer ever again!!!!

Its up to 25 degrees today, but that could be classed as a normal day in australia or california, and it actually ENCOURAGES people to exercise because its a great day to get out and about. I dont recommend you get out there and do marathon runs in this weather, but like yesterday, i do recommend you get out there again in the morning early or in the evening when its somewhat cooler.

The old saying that only englishmen and mad dogs go out in the midday sun is true! Lunch time for us IS a nightmare time to be out there and exercising on days like these thats for sure!! The alternative is though as i said exercising at different times of the day.

If you feel you cannot resist any longer and have to go to the pub, then fair enough. You HAVE to make up for it though!!! THIS MEANS GETTING UP EARLY TOMORROW MORNING AND CYCLING, SWIMMING, WALKING HARD, RUNNING WHATEVER!!!! You have to take responsibility for your actions and act like a grown up!!

If you pile all of those calories in today, you have to pay the price by getting a lot of them out of you tomorrow morning, or you have no kind of commitment to a health and fitness lifestyle whatsoever, and you have commitment to big results in your life.

Your life, your choices and that means your results!!! Lets do it!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Debs Week 2

Hi there!!
 
Just checking in to let you know how it’s going.
I started week 2 on Tuesday and I still feel great. I purposely haven’t weighed this week,  I don’t want to treat this as a “diet club”.
I had a session in the gym with Keri on Tuesday and worked hard, oh yes, the memories of days gone by came flooding back.
There’s a glint that appears in his eye and believe me, it’s scarey!!
I was unable to get there today so did some work at home.
This is what I did Keri:
 
Squat thrusts: 3 sets of 60
Sit ups: 3 sets of 30
Weights: front/side/curls 3 sets of 15 each
Press ups: 3 sets of 20
Back raisers: 3 sets of 10
 
Menu today:
B: plain yogurt/banana/honey
L: apple/soya nuts
T: chicken breast/roasted veg/sweet potato wedges
S: no snacks, been a busy day!!
 
I feel so very positive that I will succeed. My husband showed me a photo taken 6yrs ago and I look great. That is how I want to look again.
All the best, will be in touch again soon,
Deb xx  
Twitt
Posted on

Thursday 2nd june

The temperatures are up and most people complain about their workouts, their intensity levels not being able to be reached and they go totally off any kind of running efforts.

If you have read this for a while, you know I never recommend long, long boring running efforts anyway, which are the last thing you probably want to do in this heat (24 degrees and upwards).

I have concentrated on mostly cycling today because it is a much cooler activity, because you have a good breeze usually, and especially when you are close to the sea of course.

The benefits are huge and the main attractive benefit you have of cycling in weather like this is the scenery, especially on days like these which are supposed to last at least until Monday.

There are a million ways to get fit so before you get too many excuses out, think long  and hard before you cancel your training efforts for the weakest of reasons!!!

In fact, the training sessions you DON’T feel like are ALWAYS the most valuable. This applies to hot and freezing cold weather.

If you want to end up like most of the population, then stay on the settee and eat whatever you want, no matter how much harm it does you over the long term.

The chances are that if you are reading this, you DON’T want to end up like most of the population! You DO want to be fit and healthy and you should be willing to employ every strategy under the sun to make it happen.

For instance, if you think its too hot to train the weekend, get up early and hit the bike before 7am on Saturday morning, believe me there is no better feeling!!!

If you think im crazy suggesting that, perhaps you have to raise your commitment levels and attitude.

The reason I suggest 7am is because it’s the coolest time of day in predicted very warm temperatures, plus you have the rest of the day to do all the other things you wanted to do.

There is a way around everything and anything, and all you have to do is open up your mind to it. Lets cut out any narrow  mindedness and lets get your training in to make big things happen in your health and life in general!!!

Twitt
Posted on

1st June 2011

The start of the hottest of months if you believe the weather forecasters, and it could be a very hot month for you in terms of overall progress if you’re prepared to fire on all cylinders. You don’t have to be an olympic athlete either to fire on all cylinders, but you do need a very positive attitude to make the kind of changes to your body deep down you really want to happen.

We always talk about fresh natural food, but as we do this, there is a very tedious debate going on in france about the “Dukan diet”. One french government nutritionist calls it a sham, the authors are trying to debate that in court. An interesting case coming up.

This diet has been compared to the famous or infamous (depending on the way you look at it) Atkins diet. Most people know it concentrated on high protein foods, with litte consideration given to the saturated fat running through a person’s arteries.

I know  most people went on the Atkins diet did lost a lot of weight, and most people who go on the Dukan diet are having similar results. Eating mostly protein will lose you weight, but the difficulty remains in  keeping it up long term.

Carbs are always seen as the enemy, but the reality is that if they are consumed in moderation, such as the size of your fist, AND they are of a more natural source, such as wholewheat or wholegrain, in terms of pasta and brown rice for example, they WILL be good for you.

New potatoes, wholemeal bread with little or no spread, wholemeal pitta breads for example will all be good for you in moderation.

The problem comes when they are consumed in much bigger quantities than you need. THEY ARE NOT BAD FOODS FOR YOU, and will offer seriously good energy levels.

The likes of the dukan diet will come and go, and make their author a fortune but where will they be in 3-5 years?

The bottom line is that there are lots of people looking to create the next big thing, the question is will you let them fool you time and time again, when a well balanced diet of more natural foods is always the answer and will last you a lifetime!!

Twitt