Keep Encouraging Yourself - Striving for a healthy life: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Right?!

Keep Encouraging Yourself - Striving for a healthy life: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Right?!: Another month, another charity to support, another indulgence to deprive ourselves of. I understand the weariness we have developed toward...

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Right?!

Another month, another charity to support, another indulgence to deprive ourselves of.

I understand the weariness we have developed towards Febfast, Movember, Dry July etc. However, aside from the fantastic charities that they provide well needed funds for, we should look at them as an opportunity to flex a bit of discipline. 

I've discussed in previous posts how discipline is just like a muscle: the more you use it, flex it, challenge it, the stronger your discipline becomes. What I want to go through today are the 4 main things I learned from this year's Febfast:

1. Sugar and alcohol cravings do not go away after 4 weeks of abstinence!

'Fraid not. My body's circadian rhythms have dictated that I will feel sleepy at 2pm and thereby reach for something sweet to kick start myself. But by going just one more day without that sugar, I know that I don't actually need it. Instead I can have a cup of tea or pop on a quick meditation audio guide or do some invigorating stretches - all of which will give me that kick that I need to get through the afternoon. Don't expect the desire to go away, but do expect your resistance to be challenged and do get creative in combatting that desire. 

This is my current favourite mindfulness meditation track:

2. Most desire is based on habit.

As Art Markman, a professor of psychology and marketing at the University of Texas at Austin, author of Smart Change: Five Tools to Create Sustainable Habits in Yourself and Others says, "the brain's habit-learning system doesn't really learn anything by "not doing," he said. Instead, frame your goals in terms of what you are going to do. For example, rather than telling yourself you are not going to eat sugar/drink alcohol, turn it around and say you are going to have a yummy selection of nuts/cheese/enter own preferred snack here instead of sweet or alcoholic treats. Remember - everything in moderation. A handful of nuts is sufficient.

3. Kids can do it too!

My boys asked if they could do Febfast and they were brilliant. Once they understood what alternatives they could have (turning it into a "what you are going to do"), they stuck to it really well. Sugarfree peanut butter or Vegemite on toast or poached eggs for breakfast, lots of veggies in their lunch boxes and nuts for after dinner treats. So often at sporting events I hear kids saying that they need sugar for energy. For my busy boys to play their sport with as much vigour and stamina as they always have, without any processed sugar in their bodies, it shows them that they don't need sugar for energy at all.

4. It's such a pain-free way to lose some post-Xmas weight.

No counting calories, no fasting, no hunger. What you will have is less moodiness, higher energy levels, a healthier digestive system as you've probably eaten better choices of food all round and that discipline muscle sure is looking toned, trim and terrific! 

So when Dry July comes round, give it a go. No harm will come of it. Look on it as 31 days to get your disciple on track again.

Let’s kick start the school year with a cleanse! 

I hope you’ve all enjoyed endless BBQs, summer picnics and bubbly, but now it's time to get back on track.

I’m looking for 6-8 ladies to join me on a 28 day febfast-fit=fabulous program. Let’s help motivate each other as we ditch the alcohol and drop a dress size.

The low down:

Cost is $50 a week which will give you

• 2 group exercise sessions a week. I suggest Mondays and Wednesdays at 6am but will go with the majority’s preference.
• a personalised take home exercise program that you must complete once a week.
• 24 hour on line fitness and nutrition support from me.
• a community page for us all to keep chatting and encouraging each other.

Your commitment: 

Either no alcohol or no sugar or both for 28 days and 3 training sessions a week (2 group classes + 1 at home).

My commitment:

In true febfast fashion, we will raising money for a charity dealing with disadvantaged youth – this time for Tony McMullen's Papuan Health Initiative -  so all profits (after covering costs) will be donated to those West Papuan Children for life-saving surgical procedures.

There you go – the perfect solution to your cheese, cracker and sauvignon blanc laden waist lines. I did febfast last year and felt so amazing I even contemplated giving up wine forever. A rash thought! However, it is a great motivator for starting the year on the healthy note.

Please message me as soon as you see this post and let’s get started creating a healthier you for 2017.

Resistance Training - Key Points for Key Fitness

This weekend we are hosting our Women’s Health and Fitness Expo. We would love for you to come join us for an hour or so to experience and learn some new recipes, new training techniques and health and fitness tips.

Details are: Sunday 11^th from 10am to 12pm

Location is the boat ramp at the bottom of the hill before 40 Baskets beach. Officially it’s the Marina at Gourlay Ave, Balgowlah.

My role in this expo is to guide you round, give you a warm up and tell you how great resistance training is for your bone health, metabolism and fat reduction. Read on…

Essentially what happens when we train with weights we cause wee micro tears in the muscle. The body then sends out signals to the body to turn ingested proteins into new muscle tissue to repair these micro tears and to be stronger to cope with the chance of this happening again. Carbohydrates and body fat stores are used as energy to fuel this strenuous exercise and muscle building process.

Physical and mental health benefits that can be achieved through resistance training include:

• ·       improved muscle strength and tone – to protect your joints from injury. It also helps you maintain flexibility and balance and helps you remain independent as you age.
•      weight management and increased muscle-to-fat ratio – as you gain muscle, your body burns more kilojoules when at rest
• ·       greater stamina – as you grow stronger, you won’t get tired as easily
• ·       prevention or control of chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, back pain, depression and obesity
• ·       pain management
• ·       improved mobility and balance
• ·       improved posture
• ·       decreased risk of injury
• ·       increased bone density and strength and reduced risk of osteoporosis
• ·       improved sense of wellbeing – resistance training may boost your self-confidence, improve your body image and your mood
• ·       a better night’s sleep and avoidance of insomnia
• ·       increased self-esteem
• ·       enhanced performance of everyday tasks.*

However, we can’t just pump some weights and expect to reap all those benefits after one or two sessions. 

•      So exercise must be regular - at least three times per week.
• ·       Our body adjusts quickly to any regime and as it adjusts to the same, repeated program the benefits decrease. Therefore, the exercise should progress over time. That is, the amount of weight used, degree of exercise difficulty, height of jumps must increase or vary over time to challenge bones and muscles.
• ·       Keep your exercise routines should be varied. Variety in routines is better than repetition.
• ·       Exercise should be performed in short, intensive bursts

I hope to see you at the boat shed this Sunday.

Cheers

Louise

*https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/resistance-training-health-benefits

Bountiful Heart Women's Health and Fitness Expo

Bountiful Heart

in conjunction with

present a

Women’s Health and Fitness Expo

Join us for a morning of wellness workshops including a nutritionist-prepared breakfast, HIIT fitness demonstrations and life coaching tips.

Bring your trainers!

You’ll find us at the North Harbour Sailing Club at the bottom of the hill on Gourlay Ave, Balgowlah

Sunday 11^th September 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Please enrol to attend at

www.bountifulheart.com.au

or phone Louise 0414 678 943

Belinda 0413 120 768

Krys 0416 111 331

Gold coin donation to Jean Hailes' Women's Health Week is appreciated