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Tuesday, 10th January

I always tell people that when they employ me, i can give you all the correct advice but i won’t be able to do their exercises for them!

You have to exercise yourself if you are to get any value out of this programme.

If i give you the programme, its like giving you a map but you still have to drive the car. I can teach you principles but you’re going to have to apply them. If you decide to put the effort in, then the rewards are going to be well worth it!

You have to realise one thing though, good things come to those who have patience.

You will get times and wonder “why all of this isn’t working faster? Why haven’t i reached all my goals in super-quick time? Why aren’t people telling me how good i look already? When am i going to be at my ideal body fat?”!!!

Success takes time, perserverence, effort and patience as i have previously said.

If you go in the diet section, you will begin to eat better and you WILL reach your ideal levels of body fat.

If you go into the training section, you WILL get fitter, healthier and have more endurance than you ever have.

These statements only come true if you apply them and actually do what you say you’re going to do, no secret in that piece of information!!!

Its normal in any endeavour to come up against obstacles, to hit plateaus regularly. This is perfectly normal and anyone who has ever tried out a new sport, played the piano for example or just about anything, know there will be times when you feel as if you have made no progress at all. This is when  most people give up, drop put or just try something else they think will be easier.

The smart people find out that if they just keep practicing, and thats what exercise is, practicing, you will eventually make a big leap in terms of progress and you will become a much more impressive athlete with an abundance of health.

Its only early in the new year, but you have to realise that you’re going to be into some kind of health and fitness programme for the rest of your life. Don’t give up, ever, this is the true secret of success with health, or just about anything else!!!

The principles on here will ALWAYS work, and its time to get started!!

Twitt
Posted on

Friday, 6th January

Hope you have made a great start to the new year, and things are working out in a very positive way for you!

If things are positive for you, then you have actually taken action and you are a DOER instead of a talker and you are on your way. You have probably realised that the DOING comes before you feel better.

When you do something, you get rid of your fear and you build a good amount of self-confidence, this is the power of it all.

So if its the fact that you are on your way and you have trained well this week, you will soon enjoy this experience and you have overcome all of your initial fears. This feels so good usually that you want to challenge yourself again and move on to the next level.

Then the fear starts all over again, and you have doubts in your mind again! This is a good sign!

You have to realise though that this fear of a new challenge is experienced by EVERYONE ELSE TOO!!!! All those people you may have admired from afar and achieved a lot in their lives were actually scared to death themselves at some stage, plucking up the courage to actually “go for it” and reach their seemingly lofty goals!

Instead of seeing fear as a massive obstacle and retreating at a rate of knots, you should see it as a sign inviting you to improve and change your life for the better!

Instead of settling for what you have now, its going to be far more rewarding for you to be fitter and healthier for the rest of your life, in terms of inner satisfaction and quality of life to name just two massive benefits!

You may ask why you would want to put yourself through the uncomfortable nature of trying to change your life, but that temporary feeling is going to be hundred times better than sticking with a lifetime of being overweight, unfit and unhealthy, and all the negatives that situation brings.

 Its time to make the change to grab the chance with both hands!

Twitt
Posted on

Thursday, 5th January

The term “snacks” can be viewed in two different contexts.

Snacks have been given a bad rap, but this is usually because most people consider snack as mid-morning junk or mid-afternoon treats. If you imagine pasties, cakes, biscuits, sausage rolls, chocolate, bags of crisps as the right sort of choices for snacks, then you are going to be highly destructive to your body.

These types of foods not only pile the weight on, but they will create wild swings in your blood sugar, causing potential diabetes if consumed over a longer period of time, mood swings due to the sugar swings, and low energy levels again due to the sugar swings. A bad idea all round then!!!

I have included some snack ideas at the end of this piece, and all of them will be based on my philosophy of eating natural foods when possible.

After an initial period of a few days, you will appreciate the natural flavours of these foods, and not revert to the saturated fat, high sugar, high salt nature of the foods mentioned in the second paragraph.

I love these snacks also due their ability to sweeten your “plainer” foods. Try dates and figs, chop them up and use them as a sweetener for porridge for example.

Chop fruit up and make natural fruit salads from an assortment of fruit, with natural yoghurt as a topping. Nuts also make great toppings for just about anything, and include vital natural fats that will enhance your skin, and just about all your internal workings of your body, making sure you perform and look your best at all times!

This is the time right now to convert your very poor choices of snacks to the natural variety we have just talked about. Eating in between meals used to be a big no-no, eating these snacks though will keep you full in between meals (mid-morning and mid-afternoon) and stop you overeating at meal times, and don’t forget the energy they give you too, a win-win situation I think you’ll agree!!

Snacks-calorie breakdown

Snacks are vitally important, to keep energy levels up, and to keep important nutrients coming in throughout the day

Fresh fruit for energy-100g usually

Apple-50

Pear-64

Banana-95

Blueberries-30

Kiwi fruit-29

Plums-34

Grapes-60

Strawberries-27

Satsuma-23

Dried fruit-to cure a sweet tooth and good for you

Sultanas-138

Raisins-136

Figs-43

Apricots-29

Low-fat yoghurts-provide calcium and nice desserts

Natural low-fat-56

Whole milk-79

Low-fat fruit-90

Low fat fromage frais-58

Nuts-50g-for essential fats

Cashews-287

Brazils-341

Almonds-306

Walnuts-344

Pumpkin seeds-57

Sunflower-57

Mixed nuts chopped-304

Hazlenuts-325

Twitt
Posted on

Wednesday, 4th January

If you are approaching this new year with an attitude that enough is enough, and you’re not willing to take being out of shape, unfit, no energy, no drive ANYMORE, then you are in the perfect situation to change your life around and you’re really ready for change this time!!!

Its time to get rid of your internal fear that stops you doing good things for yourself. Your negativity can be smashed if you employ the right tactics and you can banish it forever!

Some people thrive in negatvity and others being sad, you have to avoid these people at all costs, or they will drag you down and will always try to spoil your ambition and future success.

When i start off training someone these days, i make sure they REALLY want to improve because if they are half-hearted, then those no way they can get the kind of results they want. Commitment is everything in getting what you really want.

There’s an old saying that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. When you are ready, you will find all the avenue’s to success appearing all over the place for you.

Smashing through the fear you have right now and looking and feeling your best physically may seem impossible, but once you take the first couple of steps, you will not only get where you want to be but you will ENJOY the process too, perhaps this will be the most important and most developing part of it all.

When you get out of your comfort zone, you will be initially scared, thats the exact point when you don’t step back anymore, use the fear to not only push forward but to create your new life!!!

Don’t be stuck in your thinking and you should realise that the change in the way you think will directly change your life from where it is now, and for some can literally transform it!!!

Hope you found yesterday’s breakfast ideas helpful, try some of these lunch and evening ideas!

Lunch and dinner choices often mix so here’s some options

Making the time for lunch is essential, so no skimping on time and take time out for yourself!

Chicken breast with 100g pitta bread, add a serving of salsa and a serving of lettuce

489 calories

A chicken breast, a serving of lettuce, 100g of boiled potatoes, 100g asparagus, plus 2 dates to finish

437 calories

A generous piece of salmon, a sweet potato, 100g of spinach, 10g of peas and a nectarine to finish

423 calories

A piece of turkey, 50g of brown rice, 100g of broccoli, 100g of carrots and an orange to finish

402 calories

125g lean roast chicken without skin, 225g of new potatoes and 100g butternut squash, brushed in tsp olive oil and baked, 60g peas, 100g dark leafy greens, 50g home made rice, apricot and nut stuffing, 5 tsp pan juices made into a sauce with a little wine and cornflour

631.5 calories, 21g of total fat, 4g saturated fat, 45.7 protein, 68.5g of carbs

Thinly sliced naked turkey breast, one tablespoon of cranberry sauce in a small bowl for around 30 seconds. Poor sauce over turjey breast. Serve with a portion of brown rice and broccoli.

455 calories

Grill a lean cut of steak until it’s to your liking. Squeeze the juice from half a lime over the meat and sprinkle with pepper and garlic powder. Then slice and serve with brown rice and salsa.

396 calories

Grill any fish with a selection of steamed vegetables-around 100 calories and that’s plenty of veg!

100g haddock-81, mackerel-220, canned salmon-153 etc

Lemon chicken and potato

Smother a grilled, skinless chicken breast with a freshly squeezed lemon, either a jacket potato or boiled potatoes with it.

303 calories

Brown rice salad with beans and asparagus

263 calories

In a small saucepan, mix one can of chicken broth, a sliced, grilled chicken breast, a 50g portion of cooked barley and a handful of your favourite mixed vegetables and frozen ones can work just as well. Heat for around 5 minutes and you’re ready to go.

400 calories

Tuna salad

Drain a can of tuna in brine, place tuna in bowl and mix one tablespoon of very light mayonnaise and some juice from a lemon. Pile tuna on top of lettuce and serve with a portion of fruit. This is a light meal with plenty of good stuff throughout the meal.

Pasta and tuna salad

50g of wholemeal pasta, 100g of carrotes, 100g of tomatoes, 100g of cucumber, a can of tuna in brine and an apple to finish

373 calories

I medium baked potato or sweet potato with 100g cottage cheese and tomato and cucumber

160 calories

I medium wholemeal roll, 100g tomato, a good slice of 100g turkey breast plus some strawberries and low-fat natural youghurt.

393 calories

Twitt
Posted on

Tuesday, 3rd January 2012

Its fantastic news that on the first day back working for many people, some common sense has taken over the world!!! Or most of it anyway!!!

The government is persuading us all to eat healthy, no faddy diets, in fact they tell us faddy diets DO NOT WORK, they detest them in fact, just like i do!! Its great these charlatans are finally being exposed!!!

Some papers advise proper exercise and good healthy food in sensible portions, and to forget the diets that never worked for the last 30 years, a lot of people got rich out of them, but to see them ridiculed is great news for all of us today!!!

Hope you have made sensible resolutions this year, and made attainable goals that can be achieved gradually, and not by the end of the week. Don’t forget that 99% of new year resolutions are usually broken in just 14 days!!! Most diets are all over by valentines day, and most gym memberships are never actually used in the first place!!!

I like to give tried and tested sustainable advice that’s going to work for you, that’s going to inspire you to greater heights and take you on to new levels when you get there. If you don’t progress, you will go backwards so life ends up being a case of constant improvement, or you get left behind.

If you are treating this day as your first day of self-improvement, then you have to be eating well first thing in the morning to give yourself the most energising start possible. Breakfast is classed as a meal eaten within one hour of getting up. This fires up your metabolism and gets you into a fat-burning machine when practiced regularly.

A big mistake at breakfast time is not drinking water when you get up. This will get rid of impurities built up in your system overnight, and get your body functioning closer to its capacity. Water also helps enormously in the fat-burning process too, and will get you performing a minimum off 33% higher according to latest research!!!

So lets get on to breakfast, and here are some ideas for you to get you performing at your best!!!

Breakfast

Vitally important and a very good start to the day

150ml of natural yoghurt with 1 medium banana chopped in, half a grapefruit, a slice of wholemeal bread with either a small amount of honey or a small amount of olive oil spread

400 calories

150ml low-fat bio yoghurt topped with 50g of no added salt/sugar muesli and a portion of strawberries, with a small piece of bread with a small smearing of olive oil spread

414 calories

Beat 2 egg whites and one whole egg with 2 tablespoons of skimmed milk. Toss eggs in a bowl coated with low-fat spray or no spray at all. Have one piece of wholemeal toast with no butter and you have a god meal with a good balance of carbs and protein. Have a big glass of water and a great breakfast!

317 calories

Two Weetabix with a big spoonful of walnuts and skimmed milk, a small portion of apricots, a piece of wholemeal bread with a small smearing of olive oil spread, with a little honey, and a glass of diluted orange juice

507 calories

Some low-fat natural fromage frais with a level teaspoon of honey and a slice of melon, plus half portion of chopped almonds, with a piece of wholemeal toast with a very light olive oil spread

487 calories

Porridge with skimmed milk and sultanas as a sweetener

284 calories

Wholemeal toast with cottage cheese for energy

166 calories

2 poached eggs on toast without spread on one piece of wholemeal toast

275 calories

1 big banana mashed with kiwi fruit and some lemon juice on a slice of wholemeal toast with no spread, with a glass of skimmed milk

273 calories

2 egg white omelette with peppers and mushrooms with one piece of wholemeal toast

219 calories

Fruit salad with natural low-fat youghurt

156 calories

A milkshake with 200ml of skimmed milk with a banana, small amount of orange juice, 1 teaspoon of honey and drink chilled

268 calories

100g of Muesli with no added sugar/salt plus 100ml skimmed milk

215 calories

Twitt