Posted on

Wales v South Africa

Wales versus south africa today is a strange occasion. Normally a huge game, this perhaps means a little less to most because technically we are out of season and it may be that we have had enough of rugby for this season!!

The season used to be septermber to april if you were lucky, now it seems as if it goes on all year with summer tours etc.

Anyone who plays the game knows though that the game really goes on all year, with training and pre-season going on throughout the summer, with some pre-season’s actually starting now. No player can afford to be off-season anymore, its all about improving your conditioning year in year out and improvement being the operative word.

You should be having the same attitude too, being in shape all year round is tough, but being in generally good health all year should be no problem for you now!! You have all the tools to stay in shape, you have the motivation and you know what to do.

It comes back to the same old saying “there’s heck a lot of difference between knowing what to do and actually doing it”!!

Enjoy the game!

Twitt
Posted on

Fundamentals

So how’s the basics/fundamentals in your life going? These never change after all.

When you’re doubting your progress towards your goal, why exactly aren’t you getting there? There is a set path to get to wherever you want, and whilst nobody expects you to be perfect, there are some basics you need to practice on a daily basis if you want to make the kind of transformation you’re looking for.

Someone who never eats breakfast, snacks on crisps, and has a bit of what they fancy every night for evening meal is not really taking their health seriously. A lean athletic body won’t happen when you fuel your body like this, you may get away with it for a couple of years when you’re 18 if you do lots of exercise, but the situation is likely to be highly different in your 30’s and 40’s!

The person who has a good breakfast full of good nutrients, snacking on nuts and fruit, has a lunch full of goodness, and finishes the day off with a variety of healthy food is likely to be looking good as well as FEELING good, which is the name of the game of course.

What about the person who trains now and again, doesn’t train with much intensity and tends to do a bit of what they fancy? They are likely to have mediocre progress at best.

The person who shows some commitment to their training, throws in 3-5 sessions per week, trains with real purpose and tries a variety of different training sessions (resistance work and runs or cycles or swims etc) is very likely to be at the top of their game, and be in this kind of shape year round.

Some people think that its hard to be in good health all year, in fact its not. If you like feeling and looking good, you are likely to continue to do so, that makes sense surely. Okay it means some sacrifice here and there but the benefits are much more rewarding than the 2 minute pleasure of eating rubbish all the time and laying down on the settee all night.

It all comes down to doing the basics and fundamentals, its not rocket science so let’s get your behind off the settee and get out there and do something and achieve something worthwhile this week, no time to waste!

Twitt
Posted on

Getting leaner means eating smaller

 To answer some of your questions i have had this week, there is one theme running throughout.

Its vital for you now not to get too downhearted about your lack of weight loss if you’re having a bit of an up and down time. If you have been signing in most days, you have made significant improvements lately and for a long time now so its no time to quit and go off track, you’ve come too far.

If you have put an enormous amount of effort in your training and eating, it doesn’t take a genius to work out that you are burning more calories, burning more body fat in the vigorous nature of your workouts. You have complete confidence that you are getting fitter and healthier, now we have to fix the area which is dragging some of you down by your texts and emails

Portions size and inconsistency of eating is the area you need to look at, and getting some very stable habits into your life. Lighter lunches one day, then heavier lunches the next will not let you get used to the same desirable quantity of foods. Your body will like regular, smaller portions and will make you lose weight if done on a regular basis. Your body likes stability.

This one area is making a lot of you deeply unhappy when it comes to measuring and weighing times, and all that unhappiness is not worth going through if it makes you feel like that. If you change your eating habits that much more again, YOU WILL DO IT AND YOU WILL BE SUCCESSFUL NO DOUBT ABOUT IT!!

Some of you said you don’t eat the chocolate, the chips, the crisps, all the stuff everyone else is eating around you, as your priorities are being fit and healthy, and you should be proud of yourself showing such control, when in the past you would have caved in and joined everyone else so you have moved forwards significantly further than even you previously thought.

Many of you show guts and determination EVERY TIME you workout in adverse conditions (snow, ice and extreme heat), and the times you don’t really feel like it in the first place, some of this dedication has to go in now during the private moments when you’re struggling to control your eating binges, when some damage can be done.

Even if you eat smaller portions, and often you will still have much bigger portions, you’re not really teaching your body that you want to get smaller. You won’t be teaching your stomach to get smaller and smaller because you will still keep your overall long term capacity for food quite high. If you eliminate these bigger portions for good, you will be saying to your body that the old days are over, and that you want to get down to your desired weight/body fat levels very quickly indeed.

Smaller portions cannot support higher weight, remember that and if you 100% begin eating like much smaller and leaner people, you will struggle to start with but your body will get used to it, YOUR NEW BODY THAT IS SO LET’S MAKE IT HAPPEN AND BE PROUD OF YOURSELF AGAIN, you should be proud of your workouts and athletic ability, but imagine how good you will be if you didn’t carry all the excess weight you don’t need in your life anymore!

Its time to make it happen and that time is now! The fittest people aren’t always the leanest, so workouts don’t do it all, healthy structured eating counts big time when it comes to being in shape and at your very best so let’s do it!

Twitt
Posted on

Stay full

Dieting is never a good word to use, as it scares the hell out of most of us. It’s often associated with going hungry, so feeling full is one of the best strategies you can take on to make the whole process of losing fat tolerable!

Most of your hunger pangs and cravings happen in your mind, and not your body’s sudden urge to consume huge amounts of food. Watching TV is a good way to get hungry and snack on things you know you shouldn’t!

The best way not to make rash decisions with your food intake is not to get so hungry in the first place.

Ways to stay fuller start with water intake believe it or not, not only does it burn body fat and make your insides work well, it also makes you feel full.

Eating fibre makes you feel full too as it takes a while before it gets through your system. You also get better cholesterol, better blood sugar levels and better intestinal health, an all round winner of a strategy!

What about times when you get uncontrollable urges to eat  kebab, ice cream, chocolate etc? You need an emergency low-fat stash of healthy snacks to counter this, or your whole diet is going to come off the rails! I know some people who keep emergency snacks but they’re usually chocolate! If you keep chocolate in the house as an emergency, you’re going to have that “emergency” once a day so don’t buy them in the first place.

Healthy snacks include nuts, any fruit, lean pieces of beef, chicken, turkey and the occasional protein bar.

Other ways to avoid hunger bangs include staying busy, if you just hang around watching tv, you’re going to struggle big time, do something and you don’t think about food.

Eating at regular times will always help, if you know that a meal or snack is just around the corner, you’re not going to be looking to grab food in a haphzard way. Plus, you keep your blood sugar levels steady which is always good.

Don’t forget sweeter, sugary foods can re-ingnite your sugary taste buds, making you want more and more and this creates new “bad” habits!

Exercise doesn’t only burn calories, it suppresses appetite too to a degree so you’re not feeling hungry all the time.

Keep your protein intake up, eating protein in most meals fill you up, and helps keep you lean and your desire for sugary foods way down.

Staying full is vitally important, and help you make the consistent good choices you need to be in shape!

Twitt
Posted on

Move and eat less?

The move and eat less way of doing things is always going to work isn’t it?

If you concentrated this week and moving around more than last week, pushing your workouts a little harder, trying new activities maybe, just doing more, plain and simple!

What about your eating, a key tactic i find is to control your portion size at each meal. I may have said eat less but i still recommend eating often, every 3-4 hours, it keeps your blood sugar levels steady and stops hunger pangs from ruling your life. So portion size is always important.

A good tactic would be to use smaller plates which will automatically get you used to less calories. Stick to the smaller plates and don’t be tempted to grab the big dinner plates, because this will be a good way of putting on weight, exactly what you don’t want!!

When looking at portion sizes, use your carb and protein portions wisely and look to have them the size of your fist, a rough but good guide when serving up your favourite dishes, another way of keeping your waist down long term.

This is a big week and it starts tomorrow for many of you, after the bank holiday so lets move around more and definitely eat less and smaller portions. This is a simple and forgotten strategy.

Twitt