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Moments of change

It only takes a moment to change the way you are looking at your health.

How on earth could jean go from more or less giving up to going on a one hour 15 minute bike ride? Thats quite a reversal and turnaround!

Thats why i get annoyed when some people think about starting an exercise programme, they do exactly that only, THINK about it and usually never get started.

This usually involves going around all the shops to get the perfect workout gear, that looks all fancy as this time you’re really going to do this BIG STYLE!

Then you may think how you’re going to get fit. Do you go to a gym, and if so which one?

Do you buy one of those exercise dvd’s? If so, which one?

Do you buy the really expensive training shoes or the cheap ones?

Do you start your diet straight away or do you just start exercising and then change your diet “gradually”?

All valid questions but shouldn’t you follow someone like jean, who has more experience than most people i know. She JUST DID IT!

She didnt think about it too much, she just got on the bike and went for it. Tell me, is that such a ground-breaking thing to do? Is it rocket science or do you have to study nuclear physics to do such a thing?

I have seen lots of individuals change their lives around by taking on such an attitude.

The power of saying “im not going to take this crap anymore, this time no matter what im going to do it” is amazing! This is extremely powerful and if you do get in bit of a rage with yourself over the way you’ve let yourself slip, then that GREAT, use it as a motivational tool to get more out of yourself in your workouts!

My best workouts are usually when im pretty steamed about something, and i take it out on the weights or a run or  a cycle.

Being fed up may actually get you to do something.

Forget about prancing around fancy clothes shops, forget about talking a good game, change it around right now and get off your behind to make a massive difference to yourself.

Its not too warm, its not too humid, if it is then get out there early tomorrow morning and JUST DO IT!!!

Your moment of change is right here, time for action!

Twitt
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Motivation can’t last

Jean makes an interesting point today, she says she has forgotten how to diet, how to train, and definitely forgotten about how to get motivated!

I remember jean when she was doing very well and it wasnt that long ago.

She now makes reference to the asthma pump back in her life, when she was training regular and eating better, the asthma pump amazingly disappeared, in fact everything seemed a lot better.

I take the point on  board about enjoying your lie, one life you have and all that, but here’s another approach.

Say you want a few drinks whenever you want and say its tonight. What is wrong with that? You can make the decision yourself and all you have to do is be ready to do something the very next morning.

I hate it when people say “no point in exercising the day after a few drinks, it doesn’t do you any good”! WHAT RUBBISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everyone i know who trains after a few drinks the night before feels much better afterwards, and are sure in their minds that most of the sugar/alcohol they put in the night before is being worked out.

I have done this for years, without fail i have either cycled or ran the day after, and always felt great the day after.

I remember i did not do it one week the day after and felt lousy all day long, and felt really bloated and i felt horrible, so working out after the night before is now a way of life for me.

Back to the motivation cant last statement. NOBODY stays motivated 52 weeks a year, nobody!

So how does someone workout 52 weeks a year? Structure and making exercise and eating well a part of your life forever and no, its not boring!!!!

You can still eat your favourite food in moderation, you can still drink alcohol but it doesnt have to be every single night of course, drink when it means having some fun and you dont feel you’re missing out, but like i said, you need to train the morning after to get all the weight-gaining chemicals/sugar out of your body.

Motivation doesnt always last, it will come and go but its vital you keep some structure in your life of moving around more, when you shop for food your trolley is not full of rubbish, have some treats but the majority should be wholesome.

This one life you have slogan is great, but surely the best way to achieve that is making sure you are healthy too to enjoy it to the full.

Have your treats, have a drink, have plenty of fun, but make sure your workouts and wholesome food are in there too!

Lets do it and whether you’re motivated or not, lets make it happen until it comes around again, and it will for sure!

Twitt
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Don’t waste your efforts

Everyone seems to give a different effort into their training.

Those who give little effort and tend to go through the motions tend to get some mediocre results, often drifting in and out of their training programmes and not really achieving a whole lot. They promise themselves that “next time” they will really do it.

If you have had some outstanding results lately, you are really in the category of giving an enormous amount of effort and you are willing to suffer heck of a lot to get some great sessions in. You are expecting harder and harder sessions, and you adapt to these very well by showing the level of commitment you show on a regular basis.

You are creating a deficit of calories in your body that should be prime time for body fat loss. The times that this ideal situation is disrupted is if you consume more calories than you need.

I know most of your calories may be good, and its not as if you eat rubbish every day.

The biggest problem when you’re trying to reduce your calories is the initial hunger pangs you feel in the first week. If your body is used to a certain amount of calories, a certain portion size etc, it is very difficult to feel satisfied that first week of trying to cut down.

This first week is so critical in laying the foundations of portion control. Always remember that if you eat too much of anything, you WILL put weight on, this is the fact you need to remember.

This is why its always recommended to eat with good guidelines in mind. Think size of your fist with carbs and protein portions, and have as much veg as you like. A pack of cards is a good way to describe your carbs and protein portions too, think smaller portions and you will get smaller full stop.

So now we are thinking a lot more about food and portions control, imagine how powerful this will become with the enormous effort you put in your training. Whenever you put the powerful combination of hard training with disciplined, well controlled eating, you are going to have serious results full stop so let’s get it going!

If you can do this, and not pick on things in the kitchen just because nobody is looking, you will be given yourself a big guarantee of superb results.

Always think of the incredible efforts you put into your training, do you really want to waste ANY of that by over-feeding yourself? None of us are perfect but the serious eating control will make you have 100 times more reward than if you just hope for the best on the eating side of things.

Twitt
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Eating before exercise

Its more important than you think to have a snack before exercise.

We are all a bit different and react that bit different to all sorts of foods, so working out what best food choice for you and agrees with you is always important.

Whole grains, lower far dairy or fruits will always work well for you as a stop gap for your workouts and give you some energy for your tougher workouts through the summer.

Try eating these snacks if you can at least 30 minutes before exercise to make sure your food goes down properly, and your food is ready to release energy into your system.

The 30 minute rule applies to smaller snacks, if you were to eat a big meal before training, you may need 90 mins to 2 hours before your workout.

I find some people have better digestive systems than others. I find i can eat and literally then go for a run. I could probably do a big meal and exercise 30-60 minutes later, but that took a lot of getting used to because i tend to eat on the run throughout the day, and took me years to get used to that because of my lifestyle.

If you stick to the guidelines i first mentioned, you shouldn’t really go wrong.

I used to try the no food strategy before a workout because i thought i may feel sick. This was a stupid strategy because i would always then fail towards the second half of the workout, due to lack of carbohydrates left in my system. I avoided the sickness for sure, but it wasn’t worth losing all that energy.

You will find also that if you don’t have food before workouts and you have no carbs in your system, then your body will use precious lean muscle tissue already on your body. This can be a disaster because you have worked so hard to get in the first place, as well as muscle being so important for your metabolic rate (the rate your body burns calories). The last thing you want is to slow down your metabolism, so lets keep getting your snacks in every 3-4 hours and really make this thing happen for you!

Not eating before exercise is bad news full stop, just like the idea of not eating breakfast, any time your body goes long periods without food, its goes into starvation mode and stops burning fat so easily.

Keeping your weekly eating well-structured and full of nutrients is the only way to go if you want the best out of yourself.

Twitt