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Thursday, 6th December

All of us get in a rut from time to time,but we have to make sure we get right back out of it!

First of all, one of the best ways of changing is to change what you do.

For example, if you ideally do 8-10 reps of each exercise and have done for years maybe, have 4 weeks of doing 12 reps per set. You will have to reduce the weight of course, but the extra reps will bring your body a new challenge and you will be pleasantly surprised at the results!

If you do a split routine, in other words you may be doing chest and arms in one workout, shoulders and back the next and then you do this twice each which means 4 days a week with this type of training, then i always find it beneficial getting individuals on whole body workouts that can be done just twice a week with a three day gap in between. This is well proven to bring some spectacular results in a short period of time.

Do drop sets! Say you do a set of curls with your best weight, do 8 reps and instead of ending there, pick up a lighter weight and hit another 8 reps, then pick an even lighter weight up and do 6 reps with that. This will absolutely crucify your muscles and you will find that if you pick just four exercises to do this in a workout, then that will be enough to get the job done in super-quick time!!!

When is the last time you kept an eating diary? This is one of the most overlooked things i see every week, and often explains why many of us don’t get into the shape we really want! Unless we realise how much we eat, what we eat and when, its tough for us to find out whether we are sticking to our plan or not?!!

No time for getting stuck in a rut, reaching a plateau or getting medicore results, you have the chance right now to turn it all around!!

Twitt
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Wednesday, 5th December

So we have discovered there are two sides of the fence in december, those who have given up and those who remain on track to have their best december in years!

The best thing about that statement is that as long as you continue to read, its never going to be too late to get out of the “given up” crowd!!

We have talked a lot about food, but how’s your workouts going?

Are you going through the motions? Are you watching the clock all the way though, can’t wait to get it over with?

If you are one of these individuals, then please stop what you are doing right now, there is much more to learn about your workouts, there is much more to learn about what it means to be fit and how you manage your heart and lung capacity, there is much more to learn about creating a lot more variety and interest in your workouts, and you ought not to waste one more day!!!

Not having a plan and not having any standards in your workouts is a sure fire path to failure, and at best mediocre results so its time for you to pick up the pace!!!!!

Try moving away from doing the treadmill and bike for example, these two things can be excellent parts of your workouts, but there’s more, much more in fact!!!

Please make sure you do an all over strength/resistance workout twice a week with a 2-3 day gap on between, gap in between each set needs to be eventually 45 seconds.

Don’t spend more than 45 minutes in the gym, one hour very maximum. You can have some great workouts in 20-30 minutes if you hit it hard and have a good plan!!!

Always use proper form, no cheating, no swinging and no bad form on any exercise!

Don’t train to impress others, try and impress yourself by constantly improving each week on one exercise. Little improvements over a few weeks can lead to one massive improvement, you know you have it in you!!!

We are going to concentrate on really shaking up your programme this december, no “settling” for mediocrity, get into the crowd who are interested in their strongest december yet!!! You will enjoy christmas far more when it comes and you will be glad you have put the big effort in!!!

Twitt
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Tuesday, 4th December

If you followed my advice yesterday and made breakfast a priority, then you are less likely to snack in the morning on rubbish foods that will eventually destroy your dreams of finally getting into shape!

If you are focused on results, you had better look at the rest of your day and exactly what you are snacking on!!!

I see that mince pies are already entering people’s diets judging by the stories i am hearing.

The problem with mince pies are that once you start on them, you usually can’t stop.

The other funny story about mince pies is that not a lot of you like them!! Not only that but you feel you have to eat them because “its christmas”!!!

If there’s one thing guaranteed to blow your progress, its got to be starting on mince pies this early in december. When you eat them, not only are you going to put on weight, but your exercise performance will go straight down the toilet!!! If you want to really stay on track, then the toilet is probably the best place for the mince pies, as they are definitely not going to help you get into shape or help your health in ANY WAY WHATSOEVER!!!

We talked about this last week, eating foods that you think you should eat JUST BECAUSE its christmas is an old classic i used to tell myself too!!! Those stories i used to tell myself resulted in me being around 20 pounds heavier than i am right now!! It’s not hard for me to make the better choices now because i REALLY don’t want to go back to those old days when after eating foods such as those, i would frequently feel out of breath, my training sessions used to be so much harder and its was hell of a job after christmas getting the weight off!!!

Now is not the time for mince pies or anything else you think you SHOULD be eating. Keep making the right choices and you will keep on being in shape!!!

Twitt
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Monday, December 3rd

Breakfast is always the key to your big start on Monday.

Having a good healthy breakfast can make the big difference between setting yourself up for success or setting yourself up for failure.

A good breakfast will make the difference between feeling fired up and full of energy, or feeling like your day has already become a damp squib!

A good breakfast will satisfy your hunger levels totally, and make sure your blood sugar levels are steady for the next 3-4 hours.

Once you get your blood sugar levels steady, then you are far less likely to grab sugary snacks such as chocolate. The chocolate will be far more likely to be consumed when there is a void created by an insufficient breakfast meal that doesn’t hit the spot!

Have you noticed that on holiday, if you don’t get a healthy breakfast in, you will automatically feel like eating sugary and fatty stuff throughout the day, as you end up never being truly satisfied with any meal and you end up consuming empty calories throughout the day.

Always remember that I bang on about the fact that breakfast can only be considered “breakfast” IF it is consumed within one hour of getting up. This is the magic time when you can really boost your metabolism, and get your body burning calories at a much faster and accelerated rate all day wrong.

You should realize by now that its not all just about the workout you do, it’s the other 23 hours a day that is just as important, and will really dictate the way you look and feel!

How many people do you know who train like dogs, yet always look a little overweight. This is always diet related, this is completely why we are talking about breakfast today, and why a good healthy breakfast will always start your day off in the right way setting you up to be successful in your efforts to be in great shape!

Twitt
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Friday, 30th November

Don’t want to seem like some scrooge like character with Christmas coming up, and it’s the first of December tomorrow would you believe!

Anyway, the big question is what kind of Christmas do you think you’re going to have this year?

Apart from the presents and general giving and receiving, we’re talking how you’re going to feel throughout the Christmas period, and how you set yourself up for the new year.

Im all for enjoying myself, its great to have a couple of drinks over Christmas, and letting your hair down from time to time can be a great thing to do.

The big question is if it turns into an everyday affair, and when do you stop?

Do you buy lots of “party food” this year or not? Isn’t it true when we do, that nobody really wants it when they call round the house anyway? Isn’t it true that most people decline it (usually saying that they have eaten already) unless you have an organized party?

This is a great example then of buying rubbish, empty calories into the house that will eventually get eaten by one person usually, and that’s you! From what starts off as a “pick” here and there, will eventually end up in you consuming the whole lot!

Then you will get a taste for it all, and then you are bound to end up getting stuck into the rest of the food, you know the food that you initially bought for “other people”. This is a familiar process I think we have all gone through and it’s

REALLY hard then to get back to normal in eating terms!!!

How about saving yourself some money this year, get yourself a limited amount of treats in, stuff you may actually eat and you know you can control!

Let’s face it, if you need more food or run out, most shops are open right up until Christmas eve, and open sharply on boxing day!! It’s not as if you’re going to be holed up in some bunker for a couple of weeks with no way out, and you have to get as much food in as possible in case you end up “starving”!!!

In these times of austerity, it’s the perfect opportunity for you to buy less junk this year, buy less sugar-laden products, and those you get given to you, please give them away to someone else who hasn’t got the same high ambitions that you have, or give them away to someone who you know that these sweets will make happy!

Time for a fitter and healthier Christmas, and with wiser buying choices, you’re bound to feel and look a whole lot better for it, far better than a normal Christmas anyway and you will thank yourself a lot for it!!!

Twitt