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Monday, 19th November

Five weeks tomorrow is christmas day, but the biggest mistake you can make is taking your foot off the gas, and “settling” for nominal effort in terms of workout efforts, settling into poor eating habits already way before christmas, and drinking alcohol much more, just because the “festive season” is almost upon us!!!

If you fall into any of these categories, then i urge you to re-think your habits right now and set yourself new targets for year end, rather than worrying about how much weight you are likely to put on!!!

You don’t have to make it complicated either.

Keep it simple by making your performances better.

For example, if you are running a mile in 11 minutes, then your aim over the next 5 weeks would be to bring that down to 10 minutes and 30 seconds, this would be a big achievement!

I would look at a 6 second reduction per WEEK, and you should be able to get there. Plus when you’re able to run that mile 30 seconds quicker over a 5 week period, then you are bound to be in better shape, your body fat will be less and you will get leaner.

The same can be applied with cycling, inside or out. 5-10 seconds off your time every week can make a big difference to the way you look. Not only that, but your view on food choices and drink choices will change too. Will you really want to blow all of that hard work christmas time? You will of course cheat on your diet but studies show that those who train with improvements in mind all the time, will usually eat a lot better than those who have given up, or lost complete interest in their training!!!

The basic message is train hard, look to continually improve by setting shorter term goals and the whole run-up to christmas will be far more productive for your body than usual!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Wednesday, 14th November

Not appreciating how far you have come is a surprising trait amongst many individuals I deal with.

This is the due to the negative kind of mental conditioning that weight loss clubs have given many of us in the past.

For example, if an individual who has been training for 4-6 months, and they are not a tiny person in terms of waist size, then I would consider 4-8 inches off their waist as a totally conservative estimate.
Some people achieve even more but I’m trying to offer you the least/bare minimum I see individuals achieving in this time frame.

So if during this time they training consistently, eat pretty well most of the time and don’t overdo it on alcohol, you would assume that most people would be happy with this kind of impressive progress?

The problem I often see with those who have gone to weight loss clubs for years is that they still rely on the scale as their true measure of progress, and this is where the negative thinking and problems start.

So if I give you an example of someone I have trained for one year, and has lost 12 inches off their waist, you would have to accept that this is a truly inspiring and wonderful achievement!!!

Then what would you say if that same individual was still a little bit unhappy because they had only lost “15-20 pounds off the scale”, and why wasn’t it 3 stone because she had come down 4 dress sizes and 10 per cent body fat after all, and she had lost 3-4 stone in the past!!!

This is an example of not accepting the scientific approach to weight/fat loss, despite the fact that the same individual was looking incredibly better right now than she had EVER LOOKED, and especially better now than when she lost 3 stone because she was now toned, had a lot more energy and her waist and hip size now allowed her to fit into clothes she had never been able to even think about wearing before.

Its time to throw out those negative images and heresay given to you by these dubious weight loss clubs, and use the latest science to get your fat loss plan correct. Don’t put up with false claims of these clubs, and weight loss plans that are according to every single study over the last few years, to not only put the weight back on, but another 5% on top!!!

The science is here, if I were you I would use it wisely and not waste a penny more of your money!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Tuesday, 13th November

We talk about the struggles of getting into shape here all the time.

It is often difficult to keep going when “life gets in the way”, and definitely even harder to keep your performances at their peak for any length of time.

There are different ways to overcome this and i recommend the following.

First of all, make your weight loss, fat loss. muscle gain, endurance efforts whatever you are looking for in other words PUBLIC!! Tell you close friends that this is the path you are on, and you would appreciate their support when times get tough, because you’re definitely going to need someone who bats for you in your corner!!

It may be something like your closest friend measuring your waist every month, and hips too.

You know by now hopefully that i do not consider the weighing scales a true record of your progress.

Put up a calender in your kitchen and mark off your workouts AS YOU DO THEM!! If you start skipping your workouts, make yourself accountable to your friend, and ask them to kick your behid if you start slacking!!!

Try this old classic, put a photo of yourself on the fridge, you know the old photo when you looked terrific!!! That should be a constant daily inspiration on how you really can look!!!

This getting in shape “thingy” is an ongoing process, and you need a structure right behind you thats going to help you in the tough times, as well as pat you on the back all the fun, fat loss get in shape moments start to happen!! These times are just as important!!!!

By making yourself truly accountable to yourself and at least to one person you trust and respect, you are far more likely to achieve those goals you promised yourself in the first place!!!

Twitt
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Thursday, 8th November

Short termism is never usually a good idea, but there is one area where you may need to reconsider!

One of the biggest reasons i have found that people fail in their health and fitness plans is sometimes looking TOO far ahead.

If you tell people from the outset that they HAVE to eat well for the rest of their lives, they HAVE to exercise for a certain amount every day for the rest of their lives, then the reaction usually can be somewhat negative to say the least!!!

When i have set different challenges up for people i train, the overall best participant is usually the one who tells me that the key to success for them was simply taking one day at a time.

They found that even looking one week ahead was often too much of a challenge. One day was the most they could think of, as there was so much going on in the rest of their lives, they didnt was diet and exercise to overtake their lives!

Taking one day at a time also helps you get into routine, and keep routine.

By that i mean you get used to eating well and exercising sooner than you think, and it can get an addictive feeling.

You will recognise the different feeling you get between being idle and exercising.

You will know the feeling you get when you eat well, and when you eat junk!

So what you are doing the whole time is presenting an alternative lifestyle to yourself. One is refreshing, makes you look and feel better. The other makes you feel lethargic the whole time, and makes your appearance deteriorate pretty quickly, as well as hurt your internal health, probably the biggest consequence of an unhealthy lifestyle!!!

Practice the one day at a time theory, it seems to work in a big way for your longer term success too!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Wednesday, 7th November

A big congratulations to the 44th president of the united states, and one thing that has been consistent of the last few presidents is their priority on their exercise programmes!

Obama is a super keen sports fan, he lifts a lot of weights, he run, he loves cycling and likes nothing more than a game of basketball when he can with staff and friends at the white house, or wherever he is in the world!!!

George Bush senior and junior were very keen weight trainers. George Bush junior was known to be surprisingly strong with bench press his favourite lift, and was thought to be able to lift in excess of 250 pounds, no mean feat as most of us would know!!!

George Bush in 1992 was a very keen runner too, preferring distance work and he often said it allowed him “thinking time” away from the pressures of being the most powerful man on the planet!

Bill clinton, who in many people’s eyes was the country’s greatest ever president was famed for his running WHEREVER he was. He would often have his entire entourage running with him, and clinton loved having a white towel around his neck to mop up the sweat!!!

Clinton again knew the value of weight training and always hit the white house gym, and often hired out entire private gym’s in various cities around the world.

We have talked about the presidents, but the stafff underneath are just as keen to train, almost the entire list of vice-presidents over the last 30 years have been and continue to be extremely keen exercisers.

The reason for all of this is much more than vanity. Exercise increases one’s concentration levels 100%, it makes you think clearer and gives you energy 24 hours a day. These leaders were/are famed for existing on not a lot of sleep, it takes a lot of energy to lead the most powerful nation on the planet and they will use every advantage known to man to make a success of it!!!

A key element of people who want to be successful is making sure they are fit and healthy, goes without saying surely!!!

Twitt