Category: Fitness

It’s so frustrating isn’t it you’ve been really good with your diet and exercising loads but don’t seem to be seeing the results you expected. It becomes disheartening and you end up throwing the towel in anyway wondering why you bothered in the first place. How do other people do it they seem to eat what they like and still have an enviable figure? So, what is going wrong? Why aren’t your efforts producing the results you so desperately long for?

I’ll break it down into two categories; diet and exercise and go through common mistakes made in each then give some really easy tips to follow and simple changes you can make to get results.

Diet – you have been ‘good’ with your diet. Let’s, for arguments sake, say your goal is weight loss. I have chosen that as most of my clients are seeking weight loss. The primary factor in weight loss is being in a calorie deficit for a sustained period ie eating less calories than your body uses per day thus burning fat and resulting in weight loss. Unless you are tracking and sticking to a deficit calorie allowance ‘being good’ alone may not reap results. I often find people are ‘good’ in the week and fall off at weekends which would see them over the 7-day period not being in a deficit thus not seeing results. My top tip – track your food every single day of the week, stick to your deficit and repeat that for a sustained period and you WILL see results. Although the calorie deficit is paramount in weight loss food quality and food choices can play a large part too. Especially if you are exercising your body need the correct fuel and repair foods to see maximum results. Protein is king it helps to build and repair muscle, keeps us fuller for longer and burns more calories to digest than any other nutrient. Aim for 1.5-2g of protein per kg of body weight per day track that along side your calories. Aside from protein eat as many whole single ingredient foods as possible, avoid processed foods and fried foods. Eg eat as wide a variety as possible of fruits, vegetables, nuts seeds and nut butters, grains and lentils, beans and pulses.

Exercise – the results most of my clients want from their exercise and training efforts are to be more toned and leaner. So, let us assume that’s the goal here. To achieve this, we need to shed body fat and build muscle. Often the mistake made would be to do loads of cardio eg running, cross trainer, bike etc and stay away from the weights section. I find women more guilty than men of this. To build muscle and burn fat you need to be lifting heavy weights, according to your ability, at least 3x per week concentrating on compound lifts eg squats, deadlifts, bench press, overhead press, lunges etc I’d add in regular core work and some HIIT cardio to get maximum results. You also need to make your training progressively harder for your body to change and develop eg lift slightly heavier each week, take shorter rest periods, do more reps, add sets, perform more complex moves, slow the tempo etc so keeping a training record is useful.

Two more tips I’d advise to make sure you see results are set a goal at the start and chose the correct method to track your progress throughout.

Goal setting should specifically outline what you hope to achieve eg be a dress size 10 by my birthday in September. It should be measurable eg you can fit into a size 10 dress, it should be achievable within the timescale (don’t set yourself up for a fail by aiming for the impossible). It should be relevant eg I am setting this goal so I will feel confident in my clothes happier within myself. Set a deadline for your goal to aim for eg my birthday in 4 months.

Make sure your action steps map towards your goal and always hold it in mind when your motivation wavers.

Progress tracking – in my experience the scales and weighing yourself is never a great way to chart progress if you are dieting and exercising. Take progress photos weekly and go by how your clothes feel plus measurements paint a much truer picture of your progress. Throw the scales away the camera does not lie!

If you’d like me to help you get the results you’ve always dreamed of then fill out the contact form by clicking this link and book your free consultation

https://www.thevegancoach.co/online-coaching/

If you’d like to hear more about why and how to take progress photos follow the links below to my YouTube channel where you’ll also find useful videos on following a calorie deficit, workout videos and mindset tips.

https://youtu.be/dwYqBPifRXc

https://youtu.be/70I9FS6lc7c

Is it ruining your quest to be slim? Maybe bingeing is making you feel depressed, out of control, sad or stressed? It is easy to become trapped in the vicious cycle of bingeing as most of us will turn to food as a comfort or crutch when feeling low.

 

I am someone who has struggled and still does to a lesser extent with binge eating. I am not a psychologist or therapist just a personal trainer with lots of personal experience dealing with my own and my clients food issues.

 

Firstly, I would recommend trying to identify what initiates a binge for you. There will be ‘triggers’ either.

1. A trigger food or foods
2. A trigger emotion
3. A trigger situation

 

I usually find trigger foods are foods that you have perhaps labelled as ‘bad foods’ or foods that you somehow feel as off bounds eg pizza, chocolate, cake.

 

A trigger emotion can be anything that leaves you needing comfort for example sadness, anger or loneliness can have you reaching for food as comfort or to fill that void.

 

A trigger situation may be a celebration for example a birthday or when you are home alone, even a long car journey could trigger the need to stuff your face!

 

It is worth bearing in mind also that although our access to food is almost unlimited in modern society our physiology has not changed since cave men times. Meaning that we still have an in-built mechanism to make us fill up on hyperpalatable foods for our body to store as fat for leaner times or periods of famine. Early humans would hunt and gather food and often find it in short supply, so the body naturally wants to gorge when we come across sugar or fat to store for future use. That is why you cannot just eat one biscuit!!!

 

How do we overcome this? Gain back control of our eating and waistlines not to mention preventing diseases associated with obesity and overeating eg diabetes.

 

1. The first step is identifying and being aware of our personal food triggers then working out strategies to deal with them. Eg if you know you cannot stop at one biscuit do not buy a pack of biscuits. Avoid high sugar foods and opt for more protein rich, savoury whole foods that are more satiating.

Try changing your attitude to ‘bad foods’ no food is ‘bad’ or ‘good’ context is key small amounts of ice cream and pizza are ok and if included and enjoyed when managing a calorie allowance as part of a healthy diet. This gains back control and removes the forbidden fruit feeling.

2. Working out what your trigger emotions are can help too. Then creating alternative strategies to coping with those that do not include food eg call a friend or family member for a long chat after a stressful day instead of going home and diving into the biscuit tin. Take a long walk or do a workout if you feel angry to dispel the emotion and avoid reaching for food.
3. Anticipate trigger situations eg a birthday celebration and decide in advance whether you will indulge in cake sometimes even allowing yourself one slice guilt free can break that need to binge. Plan before a long car journey and take a pack of healthy snacks with you, this will prevent that stop at the service station to fill up on highly calorific foods.

Lastly if you are still really struggling seek help from a professional, talk to people about how you are feeling and take things one day at a time. If you do end up having the odd binge, try not to be too hard on yourself accept it for what it is and try to move on quickly making a plan for good food and exercise choices the next day.

 

If you need help with a healthy eating and workout plan for weight loss, I have online coaching options currently available. Click the link below to contact me to discuss yours.

https://www.thevegancoach.co/online-coaching/

‘I have this pocket of stubborn fat on my lower belly and round my belly button I absolutely hate and cannot get rid of’ Sound familiar?

This is probably one of the most common issues as a coach ladies ask me to help them with. I’ve been there myself. It’s a problem a lot of mums blame on having kids and yes, its true the skin in that area becomes more loose post pregnancy but most women face this problem kids or not.

Our female bodies are genetically programmed to store fat in the belly area, hips, and thighs in preparation for pregnancy unfortunately we will always store more fat that men. Like it or not your bodies sole purpose on this planet is to reproduce and your body is an amazing machine that will always be preparing to support a growing foetus. Couple this with the abundance of food and calories and lack of exercise in our modern society and we store more fat than we need or like to see. The result is looking in the mirror wearing your bikini and not being happy with what you see. Your self-confidence suffers and it becomes a downward spiral often leading to comfort eating and low self-esteem.

You have tried slimming world, juice bar and shake diets all manner of stuff you see on the internet, but that belly area still does not look like you want it to. So, what do I advise my clients to do to address this problem?

 

1. To start with I advise a sensible calorie deficit eating plan –

eating slightly less than the body needs in terms of energy consistently over time to drop body fat. Around a 15% deficit is enough for most people and is easily sustainable for the long term unlike other crash diets mentioned above! Adherence is key here no quick fixes we are in this for the long term.

2. Eat mainly whole foods eliminatetrans fatty acids and processed foods –

ok so when you eat trans fats eg fried foods and super processed foods you know the ones that don’t even resemble proper food!? To give an example the chain with the big golden ‘M’ your body doesn’t actually recognise that as food and tries to store it away from your bodies organs in order to protect them hence a pocket of fat around your belly button.

3. 10,000 steps per day also known as NEAT non exercise activity thermogenesis –

most people in the modern world are very sedentary not moving much throughout the day, this has a big impact on how many calories we burn and therefor how much food we can eat without storing body fat around the belly area. Get moving completing your 10,00 steps per day or hitting a target of 70,000 in the week should always be second priority after the calorie deficit and before your gym workouts. Get walking!!!

4. Workout –

hit the gym or workout at home prioritising core workouts to strengthen and flatten the tummy area plus improve posture and help with back pain, strength training with weights plus HIIT cardio helps to burn more fat and calories at rest and tones.

5. Consistency is key –

doing the right things consistently over time building habits that you will maintain for the rest of your life. You will see your tummy area flatten and stay that way, quick fixes don’t work but I guess if you’re reading this you’ve realised that by now!

6. Stop weighing yourself –

so how are you going to track your progress with the advice I have given you? Stop aiming for a magic number on the scale that was not your problem in the first place, remember you are not happy with how your belly looks when you look in the mirror.

Take progress photos – there is a link below to talk you through why and another link to show you how to. Everyone hates doing it, but it is the most reliable way to track your success and I’m certain you will succeed!! This tried and tested method has worked for numerous ladies I have helped over the years and it will work for you too!

Links below to help you succeed:

 

1. Why you need to stop weighing yourself and take progress photos instead

https://youtu.be/dwYqBPifRXc

2. How to guide on progress pics

https://youtu.be/M-a5FTlUCFw

3. Sample full body home workout

https://youtu.be/Vzv3iZrtHPo

4. Sample core workout

https://youtu.be/4cL55NO7MAA

5. NEAT

https://youtu.be/nlPq6liZWg8

6. Stop weighing yourself

https://youtu.be/e4PG4uItOxI

If you’d like to work with me in one of my online programmes fill out the contact form here and we can have a chat about how I can help you succeed https://www.thevegancoach.co/online-coaching/