Posted on

Friday, 25th May

Apologies i havent been able to post every day the last couple of weeks, but my schedule has been crazier than ever, so even the limited time i usually get to post has gone out the window so to speak!

Anyway, just like i try to encourage you to make your exercise sessions count, i’m going to try and make my posts count too!

We have a 26 degrees day today, and although the temperature may make it hot and sweaty to train, its still important not to miss exercise just because its very warm, and some simple precautions would go a long way in making the whole process a lot more comfortable for you.

Number one is not to exercise in the middle of the day when temperatures are at their hottest. This is the time of day when it really is difficult to exercise, and totally takes you out of your comfort zone. Try early mornings and evenings as much better time slots.

Number two is to drink water throughout the day, and avoid dehydration. Sipping water at regular intervals will keep your body’s core temperature constant and keep you feeling comfortable, and be able to put in a decent workout performance.

Talking about dehydration, this can be a very serious state to get in, chances are if you’re still thirsty, then you are already in a state of dehydration and should look to immediately up your fluid intake. Severe dehydration can be seen in individuals who have white around their lips, this can lead to hospital treatment so beware.

Another key measure is to exercise within yourself and dont push it too far, in fact working slightly short of your normal performance will be a good idea, and being cautious will always lead to sound exercise habits in more extreme heat!

Bottom line is be sensible, and you can still get some good workouts in!!

Twitt
Posted on

Tuesday, 22nd May

The warm weather is back, or should make that it has actually STARTED after one of the worst April’s and May i can remember.

Please don’t use the excuse of “its too warm now”, please DO NOT use that because you should see this weather and light nights as an INVITATION TO GET FIT AND HEALTHY!!

Compare this with mid-november to mid-march and you are right in the best time of year now to really make a difference to your mind and body. Theres every opportunity now to get your body in great shape by simply enjoying the environment around us.

If you cant get out there on the bike in this sunshine, then you ought to question your commitment to yourself. Besides all of this commitment talk, its actually ENJOYABLE, thats definitely the best way to think about it rather than seeing it as some kind of chore!! Riding a bike in this weather with all the beautiful scenery is one of the best things you can experience full stop.

Get off the roads too when you walk too if possible, and avoid all the pollution. Get up mountains and enjoy the fresh air, and the air that most people don’t get to take in. Its good for you full stop, and the often steep gradients will lift your fitness levels to brand new levels.

There are plenty of people swimming, but i happen to know a few more people now who swim outside, enjoying the different challenges that this brings. Enjoying the more natural route is always a winner for your health and is so demanding that it will often trump your inside swimming sessions! Both are good though it must be said and depends on the individual.

Personally, as you can tell, i love being outside at this time of year, as well as inside sessions. Mix them both up and reap some pretty serious rewards!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Tuesday, 15th May

Another myth of weight loss is that the more calories you cut, the better and the more weight you will end up losing.

One pound of fat equals 3500 calories, so a good idea would be just to get your daily intake by 500 calories, and over seven days, then you will have your magic 3500 calories (7×500).

The problem though with cutting more than that is that your body ends up in “starvation mode”. This is exactly what you do not want to do, as your body will go totally on the defensive.

This process evolved from the early days of man, when food wasnt so plentiful, and it doesnt take long  for your body to start holding on to body fat in any way it can.

When starvation mode starts, then your gets desperate for calories and will take it out of food and drink in all sorts of ways.

In order to keep functioning, your body will also unfortunaltely start to take calories from your hard-earned ultra-efficient lean muscle tissue, this is bad news because it will slow your metabolism down when lean muscle is reduced.

Muscle loss means a slower metabolic rate, which means slowing or completely stalling weight loss, exactly what you do not want to do!

Losing weight TOO QUICKLY is totally the wrong thing to do for a whole host of reasons, and this is why cutting calories too quick and by too many can help you lose more over the first couple of weeks, but will definitely lead to you piling it pack on and more when you begin to eat properly again.

This is the same old story maybe, but it  doesnt make it any less sad, and the more times i see it, the more angry and determined to get people doing their weight loss plan in the correct manner, and not falling for the totally unhealthy way of slimming clubs etc.

Twitt
Posted on

Monday, 14th May

There are a lot of myths being exploded all the time by latest science in terms of losing body fat, and we should keep mentioning them on here.

We all know that drinking pop will put weight on us, especially the full sugar versions. In fact, studies have shown that they can contain up to 40% of total calories in some people!

Then we move on to diet pop such as diet coke or pepsi, or diet just about anything!

These WILL NOT help you lose weight and here’s why.

The problem is not with the one calorie but with the artificial sweetener.

The sweetener has been linked to weight gain because it stimulates your taste receptor than senses sweetness in the stomach, Once the stomach expects energy, it stimulates insulin production from the pancreas, which is a very important hormone for increasing body fat.

At the same time, chemicals are sent to the brain and it becomes confused whether it is having calories or not.

As your body gets tricked into whether it is receiving food or not, then your body tends to want to overeat to make sure you are having the required calories!

You will feel hungrier and less full, so the urge to overeat will always be strong.

Artificial sweeteners are 100 times more sweet than normal table sugar. This is very concerning since this makes natural sugars such as fruit quite bitter to some people who slam back sweeteners and products that contain lots of sweeteners.

The more natural you eat, the better. The same with drink. If you have a glass of water, then slice some lemon in it to give it a natural flavouring.

If you had the diet lemonade, you are conditioning your body to all sorts of negative eating emotions, which can be highly damaging to your long term weight control and performance.

Twitt
Posted on

Thursday, 10th May

Adjusting your eating in the first place to become a healthier, fitter person is one of the hardest, most uncomfortable processes we go through.

Although most of us show great enthusiasm when we say we will and want to change our lifestyle, the actual knuckling down to it all can be much harder than we thought.

Most people who are overweight and unhealthy exist on a diet of high refined sugars and high in saturated fat. This is the ultimate double whammy in becoming the most unhealthy version of yourself, and the bad news is that this way of eating can take a lo of getting used to.

Not only that but those of you who eat a lot of “bad” and “empty” calories (in terms of nutritional value), will usually be prone to drinking a lot of these worthless calories in too.

If you see someone carrying a big bottle of coke or pepsi down the road for instance, then its fairly reasonable to expect them to be overweight.

If you see someone who “calls for a pint” every night or every other night in the pub, then is usually guaranteed they will be overweight, and if not, certainly unhealthy inside which can be even worse.

Since most people who live this lifestyle have been on it most of their lives, then of course it is going to be very difficult indeed to get off this path.

The great news is though that once you leave the path of making yourself extremely unhealthy over the long term, the changes can start happening fairly quickly, and happen much quicker again when you start exercising properly, or just even moving around more.

As I said, the hardest decision is often to change your diet in the first place and get on the right road. I don’t consider the right road to be slimming clubs either, they are the quick path to yo-yo dieting and ultimate failure and self-confidence destruction (scientific studies say that 97% of dieters put the weight back on and 5% more).

Im talking about eating healthy, eating fresh when possible and eating foods as much in their natural state as possible. This is the right road that will eventually take you to ultimate health and a strong standard of fitness.

Twitt