Identify your bad habits

Be true to yourself and outline the things that don't bring you true happiness. Coffee, alcohol, fried and fatty food, sugar loaded deserts, or my colleague Toni’s terrible habit of eating Nutella out of the jar when stressed 😊 Identify those bad habits and ditch them now!

How? Reach out and I will help you, because you too CAN DO THIS!


Be intentional! Be in the moment!

Ah it just sounds so… romantic right… be in the moment… can you hear the violins in the background 😊? I know I know but just stay with me here… I really had to stop myself today, I was trying to do 5 things at the same time, cooking, pacifying an unhappy daughter who had been pushed over by her twin brother, pacifying an unhappy son who felt that his sister was in his way..the doorbell ringing, with the much desired Amazon delivery and the phone ringing, whilst I was trying to take in a few bites to eat as I was starving. Lockdown times ask more of us, more pressure, more patience, more of everything and if you had asked me 10 minutes later what I had eaten, I would not have been able to tell you. I was certainly NOT in the moment enjoying the food, nor the children, nor the cooking for that matter. That or something similar might also be your current reality but… I challenge you stop! Like me today I stopped and thought… WHAT truly is the most important thing right now right here? My children! I kneeled down I hugged my children we all said sorry to each other and I took a deep breath!

Be intentional about living your best life! Be intentional about eradicating what drains you. Be intentional of giving love and happiness and laughter to the people around you. Set your daily goals and tasks, work on them and work to achieve what makes you truly happy!

Just, be intentional!


Visualise!

If you can see it you can achieve it! Visualise what living your best life looks like. Feel it see it smell it! Take time before you go to sleep and let your mind wander. Have you set your plans, your intentions and your goals for living a more satisfying life? What will you do? Where will you live? What will your time with your family, your loved ones, your friends look like? What will your spare time look like?

See it, write it down and make your plan to work towards it. Every single day!

Why do we find it so hard to lead a healthy lifestyle?

Most of us would like to live a happy healthy life but… a healthy lifestyle is often perceived as difficult to follow. Did you decided for the millionth time during the new year that now is the time to get in to shape and get healthier? However, by the time spring started even before Covid-lockdown measurements your new routines were out of the window and you had almost given up on the idea. Well don’t give up just yet, because I can help!

So, what is healthy living really?

Healthy living is the day to day routine and lifestyle that lowers the risk of you being seriously ill or having a shorter life expectancy. However, health is not just about avoiding disease; it also takes in to account your physical, mental and social wellbeing. For many of us a healthy lifestyle may come in the form of losing a few pounds and dropping a clothes size. However, the holistic approach behind it is so much more important!

Losing weight can have a knock-on impact on your bodily functions, such as how well your heart and lungs can function. Moreover, it can reduce your risk of heart disease and many other factors, increasing your overall health. As well as this losing weight can improve your mental and social wellbeing, as it can help you feel more positive about yourself and your body image, and give you the confidence you need to be more social!

One of the key reasons you may feel that you are not able to lead a healthy lifestyle may be due to time constraints. You may lead a busy life, and either spend a large proportion of your day working or looking after children. This can make it harder to find the time to focus on your healthy living journey. The biggest issue of course at the moment is the lock down but… is it really?

Take this opportunity of time at home to plan! Educate yourself on what a healthier lifestyle for YOU would and could look like. New habits MUST be maintainable and realistic for you! Furthermore, you need them to be something that you are happy to stick to and if you have a family it also needs to work for you and your family.

If you are struggling with developing or maintaining a healthy lifestyle, why not book a consultation with me today! There are no food supplements, no extra food cost, just a daily routine which will help you live a happier and healthier lifestyle! So why not give it a go!

Should women be lifting weights?

Have you thought about doing some weightlifting but always feared that in the end you will look like Arnold Schwarzenegger which might not look all to attractive on a female body in your mind?

Don’t worry! If you want a strong, healthy body then weights and strength training is definitely one way to go and the road to a true body builder body is long, if you feel it is getting too much you can change your program anytime!

A friend of mine got into weight training in a big way. When she started out, very often she was only one of a few women in the weights room at the gym and it made her feel self-conscious being the only female in this testosterone-filled room. She wore headphones to keep focused but she could feel the eyes burning into her as she pumped iron. She stuck with it, and got herself incredibly fit and super strong.

Women often asked her 'aren't you scared of getting too bulky?' but she said it wasn't a concern. If they knew the level of dedication and sacrifice it takes to gain even the slightest bit of muscle then they would see why that is an outdated myth.

The female body just isn't built that way, and even if you train with heavy weights you are not going to become Superman overnight (or ever, for that matter).

What you ARE likely to get is lean muscle, which will give you what is often referred to as a 'toned' physique. We just don't have the same hormones in our system that enable men to develop big muscles.

Fact is:

BURN MORE FAT - Regular strength and resistance training will help you build lean muscle. The great news is that the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns during the day. It speeds up your resting metabolism. That means that you can get away with eating more food and your body becomes a fat-burning machine!

PROTECT YOUR BACK - Weight training can protect your back against all sorts of illnesses like slipped discs or even arthritis. Regular strength exercise will increase the function of your muscles in the back, core, and glutes, which will help reduce the amount of pain over time. By strengthening the spine and stabilising the muscles, you will reduce your risk of injury too.

CORRECT POSTURE - Some exercises can help to correct your posture. A common issue is poor posture caused by sitting hunched over a computer, and if your body isn't aligned correctly you may feel tense. Good posture will work wonders for your self-esteem too!

PROTECT AGAINST AGEING - Evidence also suggests that regular weight training can increase bone density, which reduces the risk of osteoporosis. Older women should be doing more weights and resistance training to help guard against the effects of ageing.

So, forget the myths and pre-conceptions. If you want a strong, healthy body then weight training is definitely one way to go!

Stop saying 'I'm fat'

Women we can be really horrible to themselves. We can stand in front of the mirror and mentally hurl insults at ourselves that we wouldn't dream of telling another person. Language is a powerful thing and some words are loaded with negative emotions that drag us down without even realising.
Top of the list of phrases that should be banished; 'I'm fat!' It's a self-defeatist statement. It implies fat is a fixed state of being, and there is nothing you can do to change it.
Just eradicate it from your vocabulary, right now. Try saying things like;
'I don’t yet have the body I would like to have but it is in my hands to change that!

Then ask yourself are you ready to make a change? What is the reason? What is your WHY?

One of my clients has recently decided that she really wants another child but for this would need to shed a few kg before she would want to be pregnant and suddenly the “WHY” has become so strong that the motivation to change runs on a high every day!

5 kg in 2 weeks through a change in her daily food intake – now I don’t recommend people to lose weight fast by cutting down daily calories too much. I am a big fan of reducing it a bit every day AND changing habits, but in this particular case the decision to go for another pregnancy has been so strong that she was willing to reduce faster and stick with it.

Remember though, everybody has fat on their bodies. It protects vital organs, insulates the body, and provides fuel to keep us going when we can't access food.

Also women’s bodies just are built different and I would want you to start of with accepting yourself first!

It doesn’t matter what you weigh YOU ARE AMAZING! You have achieved amazing things in your life and IF you really take the decision to want to lose weight, make sure the picture of yourself, is one that YOU feel good in, not one that the media makes you believe everyone should have!

As for language…You will stand taller, and feel much more motivated to lose weight, just by changing the way you speak to yourself.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) – Medical reasons for gaining weight

Today’s Blog is about a condition that affects around 1 in 10 women in the UK. We all know that a good diet and regular exercise are the best ways to lose weight, but what happens if you are doing everything right and the scales keep going up? Unexplained weight gain may be a sign that you have an underlying health condition and you have to really make sure you see your GP!

One of the most common causes of weight gain in women is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Other symptoms include excess facial and body hair, irregular periods, depression and mood swings, and reduced fertility. It can at this point in time not yet be cured however it is very easy to manage with medication and lifestyle changes. If you have PCOS the chances are that you will find it much harder to lose weight, but it IS possible.

One of my friends was really having a hard time losing weight. She was eating a good, balanced diet and went to the gym 3 times a week. She had a glass of wine on a weekend, but nothing major, yet she just couldn't fathom why she was piling on weight.

It was only when she read about PCOS that she had a 'lightbulb moment'. Recognising the symptoms in herself, she went to her GP and got tested. She was prescribed some medication and made a few tweaks to her diet and 6 months later she lost over a stone and is at a really healthy weight now.
If you can relate to this, I urge you to speak to your GP as it is much easier to get your symptoms under control with a proper diagnosis and medical support. There is also lots of helpful advice from the charity https://www.verity-pcos.org.uk/

Always listen to your body

I accompanied a friend to the gym for moral support a while back. Determined to lose a bit of weight he booked a trial session with a personal trainer. With severe arthritis in his knees, I advised him not to lift more than he was comfortable with and to stop if anything didn't feel right.  Did he listen?
Under the instruction of the personal trainer, he set about doing 20 second intervals on the bike, followed by the leg press. I watched from the corner of my eye as he loaded the weight up to 120kg... and CRUNCH! He tore three ligaments in one go.

If you don’t tell your Personal Trainer about the issues you or your body is facing, then you can not expect them to put the right programme together for you! And even IF you tell your PT, they are not in your shoes! No-one knows your body better than you do. If an exercise doesn't feel right, don't do it.

As we get older we need to think about training differently and when done correctly exercise can be wonderful even if you have to manage pain or want to relieve tension. Fitness isn't all or nothing - if you feel able to exercise that's great, but do make sure that you listen to what your body is telling you.

Find what works for you, and always go for your training to a pace you feel comfortable in. That does not have to be a gym, this can be at home or in a park and you can have YOUR exercise plan put together so you can do it even if you are in a hotel or travelling!

Remember also that recovery time is just as important as the training time! Your body, you know it your knowledge for a healthier you!

If you want us to help you put YOUR plan together that fits into YOUR life, please sign up on my website!