Be Healthy #87 #88 #89 #90

New experiences, new adventures…a healthy way to live.

No. #87

• Core stability & gentle stretching

No. #88

• Abdominal reverse curls
• Straight leg sit up
• Single oblique crunch
• Abdominal leg raises

No. #89

• Over 20’000 steps exploring Paris!

No. #90 – Back to my comfort zone & reality

• Dumbbell shoulder press
• Lateral raise
• Dumbbell shrugs
• Front raise
• Cable shoulder abduction
• Cable lateral raise
• Teaching my first spin class in years!

A looooooong bank holiday weekend. EASTER weekend…Hot cross buns, chocolate eggs, roast dinners with all the trimmings…Was it healthy? (I will let you be the judge) Was it happy? (Yes indeedy).

I ventured from Northampton to Bedford to Brentwood to Chelmsford, back to Brentwood, back to Chelmsford, back to Bedford to PARIS! Back to Bedford and back to Northampton in the space of four days. Hence why I haven’t really been around to write.

Do I feel like I have indulged? Yes! Am I feeling slightly guilty about it? A little. (although after writing this, actually, I don’t feel guilty at all) The important thing? Get right back on track when life goes back to reality.

Fri and Sat were reasonably healthy, exercise was still consistent and food was still pretty healthy, meals were cooked from scratch (with the exception of a tin of soup), meat, eggs, rice, broccoli etc. BUT…I’m beginning to see a relationship between a day of indulgent food and lower intensity exercise.

Sunday was a family day and being surrounded by loved ones offering you mini chocolate bunnies and little eggs found on an Easter egg hunt was hard to resist! I did however, still do half an hour stretching and light core stability and although the calories burnt were minimal, my body still felt better for moving! Like I have said before, our bodies are designed to move and over the next couple of days I’m going to demonstrate some back stretches and core stability exercises which you can do at home if the gym or any outdoor exercise seems impossible!

Monday, a very special man in my life took me to Paris! It was incredible. Exploring a new City, Paris was exactly how I pictured it. Loads of cafes, bistro’s, chocolat chaud, patisseries, croissants, pain du chocolat, vin, cocktails etc. etc. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth but for some reason, when in Paris, things changed!

We went to ‘Angelina’ which is famous for, let me write it word for word and see if you’re tempted by the ‘super thick, decadently sickening ‘African’ hot chocolate which comes with a pot of whipped cream’. And that’s exactly what it was. Pretty much melted hot chocolate in a cup, I struggle to believe anyone could stomach a whole cup to themselves because we certainly couldn’t! Alongside two desserts (one each obv). This was…indulgence to the extreme! Do I feel guilty? Actually no. We were in Paris! Yet, sticking to my guns I still did a few abdominal exercises in the evening just to keep my body ticking over.

Tuesday, food wise was not a problem. Omelette for breakfast with ham, a yogurt and some fruit and a cheeky croissant. We walked over 15km during the day and although the walk wasn’t a strenuous, power walk, it was constant. We walked down the ‘Avenue des Champs-Élysées’ to the Arc De Triomphe to the Eiffel Tower. We explored Le Louvre, Notre Dame and Les Invalides in the space of two days. The perfect way to explore and see the delights of Paris!

So let me summarise, as I think I’ve just written the joys of my bank holiday weekend rather than going into detail about how to keep my fitness on track whilst away. Being on holiday or long weekends is about relaxing and enjoying what’s going on right there and then. The here and now. HOWEVER, you can still make relatively healthy choices (breakfast example) and choose when to really indulge (Angelina’s) and wherever you are (hotel, beach, garden, home) you can still do some sort of exercise!

Back to reality, Happy midweek everyone.

Be Healthy #84 #85 #86

Happy Bank holiday weekend everyone. Just a short, quick post as I encourage you to be out and about, talking to your loved ones, reading a book, exercising outside (weather permitted), socialising with friends and family or enjoying an afternoon nap!

No. #84

• 45min spin

No. #85

• 6 mile jog in the sunshine!

No. #86

• Dumbbell chest flies
• Rear deltoid flies
• Dumbbell chest press
• Incline Dumbbell rows
• Cable chest press
• Upright row
• Standing shoulder press
• Full body press ups
• 1000m swim

Stay healthy, stay happy and enjoy the long weekend!

Be Healthy #82 #83

No. #82

• Back squat
• Machine deadlift
• Single leg press
• Wall sit
• Weighted lunges
• Bridge
• Alternate side lunges on the step

No. #83

• Half a mile swim (morning)
• Seated flies (evening)
• Full body dips
• Dumbbell tricep kickback
• Decline press up
• Cable tricep extension
• Single arm flies

Keep calm, only one day to go.

Be Healthy #79 #80 #81

Happy Monday everyone.

No. #79

• 30 minute jog

No. #80

• A gentle walk

Ironic actually…sometimes, the more time I have, the less I feel like doing! Hence the very gentle training this weekend. I tend to find the busier my day the more I actually fit in and at the moment, my training is more on point during the week than at the weekend!

My advice…set yourself training goals for the week and write them down. Yes, they may change but organise them in your timetable, choose your days and put your training in the diary!

Preparation is everything, I am a massive believer of fail to prepare, unfortunately prepare to fail.

SO! Exercise this week looks like;

Monday (today) No. #81 shoulders and back

• Shoulder press (14kg each arm!)
• Front raise
• Lateral raise
• Cable lateral pull down
• Cable straight arm pull down
• Chin ups
• Seated row
• Cable torso extension

Tuesday – short run, legs

Wednesday – swimming am, spinning pm

Thursday – chest and arms

Friday – spinning, legs

Saturday – swimming

Sunday – running

Now, this is the plan, it may change, it probably will, but the intention is there!

Food preparation;

• Porridge or eggs on toast for breakfast (key staple items).
• Homemade chilli, carrot & chickpea soup for lunch (with a side of roast chicken to up the protein)
• Salmon, cous cous, kale for dinner (or another lunch)
• Sweet potato, tuna, cottage cheese & beans for dinner
• 5% lean mince beef with tinned tomatoes, kidney beans, fresh chilli & brown rice for dinner
• Rice cakes, marmite & cottage cheese for snacks (trust me-its yum!)
• 25g of almonds, apple or a banana for a snack

Healthy yet tasty!

Prepare to live well.

Be Healthy #77 #78

Weights! Weights! Weights! Absolutely love it. The feeling of being strong, fit and athletic. Lifting weights and working different muscle groups creates a lean and strong physique. It helps your body burn fat and increase lean muscle mass. An intense weights session can increase your metabolism and keep it still ticking over after your workout! Why would anyone not lift weights?!

No. #77 – chest

• Seated fly
• Dumbbell chest press
• Single arm fly
• Press up
• Squorms
• Cable chest press

No. #78 – legs

• Front squat 12 reps 3x  

Keep your heels down, shoulders relaxed and use your core to squat down as low as possible. Use your glutes to straighten back up. Picture from (reachyourpeak, 2014)

 

 

• Barbell deadlift 12 reps 3x

Do not curl your spine, lower your hips and look forward. Use your core muscles and the strength of your hamstrings and glutes to lift the bar. (WorkoutLabs, 2015)

 

 

• Single leg lunges (weighted) 12 single/10 pulses 3x

Chest up, shoulders relaxed, keep your front heel on the floor. Make sure you have a wide enough stance so you have the flexibility to lower your back knee. Think about lowering down rather than forward. (WorkoutLabs, 2015)

 

 

• Single leg deadlift 15 reps 3x

Have a slight bend in the knee of your working leg, keep all the weight in that one leg and lower the weights down. Keep your spine straight and use the strength in your legs and glutes (not your back) to straighten back up. Squeeze your glutes as you straighten. (Allfitness, 2016)

 

 

• Hip adduction 15/12/10 reps
• Hip abduction 12/10/8 reps

Easy machines to use. Try not to slouch in the chair, sit up straight and use your core whilst you adduct or abduct.

 

 

• Swissball leg curl 20 reps 3x

Keep your hips up! Squeeze your glutes as you pull the ball towards you using your hamstrings. Don’t forget to use your tummy muscles. (chickentuna’sblog, 2013)

 

Have a healthy weekend!

 

 

Be Healthy #76

Today’s topic at teacher training school…shouting.

Is shouting acceptable? Is shouting effective? Who loses or gains control in the situation? Is shouting good for our psychological or physical health?

It may seem like an odd topic but I thought an interesting discussion point and one that links to our health.

I have mixed reviews on the topic. I think an absolutely acceptable reason to shout is to alert somebody in a dangerous or risky situation. In that case, I think you or I will shout through instinct, it’s an impulse and the reason behind the shouting is to prevent risk or harm to somebody else. Another acceptable reason to shout is to possibly demonstrate feelings of excitement or enthusiasm! As adults, we may announce at the top of our lungs that we’ve just lost 2lb! (or that there’s cake in the kitchen-‘QUICK!’ before it’s all gone!)

Unacceptable reasons and probably causes that are in most debate between teachers, parents, other educational professionals and those working with children. Does shouting demonstrate control? Does it scare the individual? Let me be clear, there is a distinct difference between raising your voice to make a point in comparison to shouting in an aggressive, high tempered sort of way.

Let me tell you what shouting does to your health…

Physical Health (Better Health Channel, 2015)

Shouting through anger triggers the body’s ‘fight or flight’ response. Other emotions that trigger this response include fear, excitement and anxiety. The adrenal glands flood the body with stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. The brain shunts blood away from the gut and towards the muscles, in preparation for physical exertion. Heart rate, blood pressure and respiration increase, the body temperature rises and the skin perspires. The mind is sharpened and focused.

The constant flood of stress chemicals and associated metabolic changes that go with recurrent unmanaged anger can eventually cause harm to many different systems of the body. Some of the short and long-term health problems that have been linked to anger include:

• headache
• digestion problems, such as abdominal pain
• insomnia
• increased anxiety
• depression
• high blood pressure
• skin problems, such as eczema
• heart attack
• stroke

So…what can you do?!

• Breathe! Inhale and exhale deeply from your diaphragm, under your chest bone. After a minute or so, you should feel some tension ebb away. You can do breathing exercises anywhere, anytime-even during an aggravating dinner with your in-laws.
• Take a break. When rage strikes, change the scenery. If possible, leave the room or take a walk.
• Use your mind. Count to 10. Imagine yourself on a Caribbean beach. Or repeat a soothing word to yourself.
• Blow off steam. Exercise, because physical activity can be a great stress reliever. Try slow, stretching moves like those done in yoga (WebMD, 2016).

Anger is a natural emotion and at times, we all may lose a little control, raise our voices, say things we don’t mean…this however, increases your blood pressure and your stress levels which as mentioned above does no wonders to your health!

So, stay calm, relieve stress (& anger) and don’t shout.

No. #76

• Early morning swim.

Happy midweek!! (raised, enthusiastic voice)

 

Be Healthy #74 #75

Good evening fit and healthy people.

No. #74

• Clean & Press
• Shoulder press
• Back squat
• Squat & press
• Single lateral raise
• Machine leg extension
• Shrugs

No. #75

• 30 mins body balance

Breathe, reflect, stretch…keep going.

Be Healthy #72 #73

Barriers to exercise.

Barriers, excuses, reasons, obstacles, difficulties, hurdles…whatever we choose to call them, there will always be reasons not to exercise.

Too tired, not enough time, low motivation, low energy, there is no exercise I enjoy, family obligations, I don’t know what to do in the gym, I don’t have the money to join a gym, I’m not running outside in this weather, I don’t have anyone to go with! The list could go on forever…

The fact is, our bodies are designed to MOVE! Years ago, humans washed their clothes by hand, walked miles to get clean, running water (in some Countries this is still the case) and grew their own vegetables to provide on the table that day. Now…as humans, we are so accustomed to having everything on our doorstep, within such an easy reach I think it has morphed people into thinking that walking to the shop for milk rather than driving is absurd!

Our bodies are designed to walk, run, jump, lift and stretch yet so many of us limit ourselves to such little or even no exercise probably using one of the barriers mentioned above.

Exercise is SO important to good health…

• It releases healthy endorphins which lifts mood and encourages a feeling of happiness
• It increases strength so lifting shopping bags or walking upstairs is a manageable and doable activity
• It increases cardiovascular fitness so parents can run around the garden with their children or someone late for work can run for their morning bus!
• It decreases the risk of developing diabetes and heart disease
• It creates a social encounter with people that may have never stepped foot in the same room before

So…looking back at the barriers to exercise. Moving does not have to take place in a gym or a studio. You do not have to go out of your way to spend a fortune on a gym membership. Lots of my colleagues have fitness DVD’s/videos which they do in the comfort of their own homes plus they can work it around having young children at home. Bodyweight exercises such as squats, lunges, press ups, planks etc. can all be done in your living room using the best resistance equipment you have…your body!

Exercise also doesn’t have to take hours…20/30 minutes each evening or 3 ten minute power walks through the day is a good start. Using a pedometer or a step app is a great way to keep track. The average number of steps a day, we as adults, should be doing, is 10’000. Trust me half an hour walk at a reasonable place will get you half way there! Plus the fresh air and the ‘time out’ from work, home, time to gather your thoughts is a good stress buster!

You never know, you may find an exercise you really enjoy. A class which you find challenging yet sociable, one that incorporates good music or encourages a relaxing, calming feeling like bodybalance or yoga for example.

I agree that at the times you have low motivation, low energy or are under so much pressure at work exercise may be the last thing on your priority list. But! If not for a physical health benefit I encourage you to do some sort of movement for the stress relief, psychological health benefit. When walking outside, you can practice your presentation in your head, go through your lesson plan step by step or reflect on that challenging meeting you had at the end of the day.

Move, move, move! This is what our bodies need!

No. #72

• 20 mins elliptical trainer
• 5k run

No. #73

• 5 mile jog

I challenge you…10’000 steps a day.

Be Healthy #70 #71

A fabulous effort from me and my sister this week. Our own, individual workouts plus two training sessions on Wednesday as well as a good back session in the gym on a Friday evening!

All the years I have been interested in fitness, I have always hated the gender separation in the gym. Not always and I think times are slowly changing but I still see it! Lots of women spend a lot of time on cardiovascular machines and don’t go anywhere near the weights area. Why?

1. If you’re new to the gym (men as well) one fitness programme is not enough to teach you the ins and outs of weight training. My sister’s words ‘I don’t feel confident knowing what to do!’

2. If the weights area is full of grunting, sweaty, red-faced men it can be daunting and a little intimidating particularly if you’re completely new to the environment (both for men & women).

3. ‘I don’t want to bulk up’.

I have heard these 3 reasons several times and I can completely understand. Any new skill takes time, practice and perseverance to feel like you are starting to achieve it. If you have never lifted a weight before, one walk around the gym with an instructor is a lot of information and technique to master in one hour. I suggest keeping goals small, simple and enjoy the gradual process of weight training. Two upper body exercises (shoulder press, chest press), two lower body exercises (hip adduction, leg press). OR, focus on learning exercises for a part of your body you may want to focus on more often, legs for example (leg press, hip abduction, hip adduction, leg extension, leg press, and machine squat). Attend a group exercise class to increase your confidence, body conditioning or body pump all incorporates resistance exercises. Research! Men’s health, women’s health, youtube, there is so much information out there!

Point number 2, there are men in the weights area! Fact. What I’ve encouraged my sister and my friends in the past to do, is join them! You are entitled to spend time in the weights area just as much as the men in there! More often than not, they’re going to be so engrossed in how much weight they’re lifting and are concentrating on their technique they won’t even know who’s around them. OR they will be in EXACTLY the same position as you and feel just as nervous and inexperienced as you. We are all human, we have all learnt this as a new skill at some point in our lives.

Finally, weights will not make women bulk! Women do not have as much testosterone as men hence their muscles do not increase in size like men’s do. Lifting weights will increase strength, burn fat and build lean muscle.

Me and my sister, lean, strong, fit, athletic…that is what we are. We will never be ‘dainty’ or ‘skinny’, we are just not built that way. I think I can speak on both our behalves (comment if you disagree Karina) and say that at different times in our lives we have been a little self-conscious about looking too muscly, or ‘hench’ or ‘manly’ (our choice of words, that was then).

Now…I say, let’s embrace strength, muscle and power! I think the picture’s above speaks for themselves.

Lift heavy, eat protein, and embrace strength.

No #70 (that was it for that day!)

• Abdominal leg extensions
• Abdominal knee tucks
• Slow abdominal hold
• 15 reps, 3 sets

No #71

• Single arm row
• Upright row
• Assisted chin ups
• Cable lateral pull down
• Straight arm push down
• Cable bent over row
• Plank (step)
• Hanging knee tucks
• Swissball abdominal crunch

Happy Friday.

 

Be Healthy #69

Slightly concerned…I am already feeling my workout from yesterday and as muscle soreness tends to ‘attack’ two days after a workout, I think I’m going to be in quite a lot of agony tomorrow!

Today has been a successful day of good training and good eating! Plenty of protein and healthy carbohydrates.

No. #69

• Half a mile swim in the morning, combination of breast stroke and front crawl
• 45 spin session in the evening.

Now…I’m beat. Happy midweek everyone.