Social media

Is everything you see on social media true?
Now a days everyone follows social media in some forms, be it Instagram, Facebook or just magazines, the first thing people see is stick thin models in magazines, celebs that have just given birth but back in there size 6 clothes looking like they haven't even been pregnant.

Now I personally know how depressing this can be, you look at these pictures and look at your body and then beat your self up because you don't look like that, you have a little extra body fat, you have given birth and you don't just snap back in to shape the next day etc.

But are the pictures that you see actually real? Are the photo shopped to make that celeb look slim etc? 9 times out of 10 these pictures are photoshopped, they are air brushed to make the person look amazing, Celebs look slim, stars that have given birth look amazing..

Is this fair to the young teenage girls or boys out there, that are already self conscious about the way their body looks? No it makes them suddenly go on stupid daddy diets that in the long run can lead to serious mental health problems, I'm not saying all but i am saying it can happen.

I follow loads of people on Instagram who have amazing bodies, chissled and nice size back sides etc, but are actually all of them real or are they photo shopped to make them look like that, with added filters in? Chances are majority of them are and the minute I stopped stressing that I don't look like them, and accepting that they may not even look like that and I should just accept who I am, was when I actually started to see results.

It has been proven that those 6 week transformation programmes that go around Instagram do not work, they are just out to get you to spend your money, the diet is very basic and not enough calories for the average person as the diets are just a general meal plan, obviously they will get some results and they post them but the average person won't change much in 6 weeks due to the fact your body has only just started to get used to change.. Some of the stars doing these 6 weeks transformations actually use photo shop themselves which I think is really bad because if you can't be accepting of your own body how do you expect your followers to be of their bodies?

Magazine diets

We often see diets that pop up in magazines promising to loos 7lbs in a week drop a dress size in 2 weeks etc, you all start to follow them and you feel hungry whilst doing them, you then stop the diet as it is only 2 weeks log and go back to eating how you were before and pile on the weight again.

The diets in the magazines are roughly 1000-1500 calories which for the average person is way to low, you can't stick to it for a long time as your get hungry and then your start to binge and this leads to yo to diet.

These diets are just written out without any kind of person in mind, the food itself is fine, but if you were going to follow them you would need to make sure that you bulk it up, make sure the portions are bigger, you eat food that you actually like and make sure if you exercise then you up your calories as you really need to eat to perform, a car can't run on no fuel so a body is exactly the same 

Pre and Post-natal exercise and nutrition

As of now I am dong a pre and post-natal exercise and nutrition course, so I will be qualified to give advice to pregnant women and mummies, this is an area that is still very limited in the exercise world, and I want to help people not feel bad about themselves during pregnancy and afterwards.

When pregnant with my son 4 years ago it was still very common for people to say do not exercise it is bad for you and the baby, I knew no different, so when I was pregnant with my daughter 2 years ago it was mission to research everything that I could about exercise whilst pregnant.

as you all know there is still so much information and it is all do this don't do that, then another site will contradict everything that was on one site, still people don't know about body temperature etc.

My mission in life is to help others enjoy exercise whilst pregnant, if that's what they can and choose to do, and also make people embrace their new bodies afterwards and then help them learn that it takes time to loose weight, get more toned bodies, enjoy their babies and find time even if its just 10 minutes a day to do some exercise and eat properly.

if you hve any questions do not be afraid to ask, I will also be doing more posts on this subject

Guilt

I'm writing this post based on my own views, we all have guilt in all aspects of our lives, from going to the gym and not seeing loved ones, to not going to the gym, to eating that bad meal to turning nice food down, I could keep going on.

For me guilt comes in the form of my children. I have always worked I can't remember a time I haven't worked, but I have always worked shifts, and most of my shifts started at 6pm when the children were getting ready for bed or weekends when they would be home with their dad so to me it was my free time my times to escape and also their time to bond with their dad who works long hard hours for us all.

However we moved and I had to find a job closer to home so I had to then put he children into nursery in preparation for work, that worked well it gave them some times to play with other children and me 4 hours to clean and cook.. I then got my job and the kids nursery hours had to change, my oldest child is at pre school so he's good as being left, my youngest she is a cuddly little thing that isn't so sure at being left, so for me to walk away from her screaming mummy is heart breaking, I know I am doing it for all of us as it means Iam happier as I get to spend time with adults, they get to play sigh children and do things they necessarily can't do at home.

I do feel guilty about my exercise as well, but I try remember I don't go out partying, I spend all the time I can with my children and when I go to the gym its when they are at nursery or when they are in bed, I do exercise with them to show them exercise is good, but I make sure the time I spend with them is all about them, they choose what we do and I follow.. 

But my point is guilt is good it shows we are human, but don't let it consume your life, if you want to eat food that's a bit naughty then do, one meal will not make you fat, one day of bad food won't make you fat, it will probably make you feel bloated and terrible the next day, in the sense of tummy ache, but then you just drink lots of water and eat healthily again, and realise life is for living so eat the chocolate every now and again, go out and have a burger etc.

Guilty about exercising, remember we all need our own time, how you spend it is up to you, so if you rather go to he gym then hit the pubs then good for you, but your kids won't hate you, your partner won't hate you and your friends will understand you are doing it for you, a release a bit of time that is just you, you don't have to cook clean, be needed etc.. Enjoy every minute of it and remember we all deserve it  

German interval training beginner program

Day 1 chest and back
Decline dumbbell press  10 sets 10 reps 40x0temp 90sec rest
Chin ups 10 sets 10 reps 40x0 tempo 90sec rest
Incline dumbbell flys 3 sets 10-12 reps 3020 tempo 60sec rest
One arm dumbbell row 3 sets 10-12 reps 3020tempo 60sec rest

Day 2 legs and abs
Back squats 10sets 10 reps 40x0tempo 90sec rest
Leg curls 10sets 10 reps 40x0tempo 90sec rest
Low cable pull ins* 3sets 15-20 reps 2020tempo 60secs rest
Calf raises 3 sets 15-20 reps 2030 tempo 60secs rest
*attach a bet to cable machine lie on floor put feet in belt and pull knees to chest

Day 3 off

Day 4 arms and shoulders
Bar dips 10 sets 10 reps 40x0 tempo 90sec rest
Hammer curls 10 sets 10 reps 40x0 tempo 90 sec rest
Bent over dumbbell raises 3 sets 10-12 reps 20x0 tempo 60 secs rest
Seated dumbbell raises 3 sets 10-12 reps 20x0 tempo 60 secs rest

Day 5 off

Phase 2
After 6 of the 5 day cycles do a 3 we recovery period of 6-8 reps and only 4-6 body parts, after 3 weeks return to programme doing 20 sets of 6

Day 1 chest and back
Dumbbell press 10 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90sec rest
Pullups 20 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90sec rest
Flat dumbbell flys 3 sets 6 reps 30x10 tempo 60 sec rest
Bent over rows with E-Z bar 3 sets 6 reps 30x20 60 sec rest

Day 2 legs and abs
Deadlift 10 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90sec rest
Leg curls 10 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90 sec rest
Twisting crunches 3 sets 12-25 reps 30x30 60 sec rest
Calf raises 3 sets 12-15 reps 30x30 60 sec rest

Day 3 off

Day 4 shoulders and arms
Bench press 10 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90 sec rest
E-Z bar curls 10 sets 6 reps 50x0 tempo 90 sec rest
Seated external rotations 3 sets 10-12 rep 30x10 tempo 60 secs rest
Lateral raises 3 sets 10-12 reps 20x10 tempo 60 secs rest

Day 5 off

German interval training

This type of training is done to build maximum muscle quickly.. it was the base programme of Canadian weight lifter Jacques Demes, a silver medalist in the la Olympic games.

It works because it targets a group of motor units, exposing them to an extensive volume of repeated efforts,10 sets of a single exercise. The body adapts by hypertrophying the targeted fibres.

The goal of the GVT is to complete 10 sets of 10 reps with the same weight for th entire exercise. You want to begin with a weight you could lift for 20 reps to failure, 60 percent of 1RM load. Therefore if you could bench press 300lbs for 1 rep, then you would need to use 180lbs for this exercise.

New lifters follow this body split: chest and back, legs and abs, day off arms and shoulders, day off.

There is miminal rest between sets, 60 seconds for sequence 90-120 for supersetting.

For long range movements such as squats and dips use 40x0 temp, this means for the eccentric portion of the exercise is 4 seconds and the concentric part is done rapidly as possible. For curls and triceps extensions use a 3020 tempo.

Perform one and only one exercise per body part, select a part that recruits as many muscles as possible. Tricep kickbacks and leg extension is out, however squat and bench press is in.

Once you are able to perform 10 sets of 10 reps with constant rest intervals, up the weight by 4 or 5 percent and repeat the process. Refrain from performing forced reps or negatives reps.

Exercise during pregnancy

Here is a list of benefits of exerting during pregnancy:

Lower risk of developing gestational diabetes
Weight control
Reduced postpartum depression
Less water retention
Larger placenta and more nutrients for your baby
Decreased likelihood of varicose veins
Less likely to require a caesarian delivery
More rapid return to pre-pregnancy weight
Leaner children up to 5 years after delivery
Increased fitness for delivery & for toting around your new baby stroller and diaper bag

When you find out your pregnant you worry is it safe to exercise or is it safe to start exercising? The anewer is as long as there is no complications and your mw has giving you the go ahead, then its very safe to continue and start exercising.

Remember you are exercising to stay fit and healthy, not to loose weight or to break any records, as long as there is no complication than you can continue where you left off, once you reach third trimester you will naturally slow it down because of how you feel.

You need to really listen to your body, do not over do it, make sure that after exercising you feel the baby move, if your tired stop, if you don't feel well stop. Keep hydrated make sure your body temperature doesn't rise to much and you can still talk properly during the exercise. heart rate shouldn’t climb higher than 70-75% of maximum (HR maximum = 220-age) and body temp should get no higher than 38 degrees.

Beginners don't suddenly start sprinting or lifting weights, pick a dental exercise such as swimming or cycling, don't suddenly expect to do spin or cross fit, you are building a new life which takes it out of you, so do things slowly.

Do not do floor ab workouts such as sit ups and crunches, do standing ab workouts, such as draw your belly into spine like you would if your doing a tight pair of jeans up. Plank is excellent, and also standing crunches, lean to one side when stood up straight, then stand back up, then lean to other side.

Weight training is proven to be very beneficial whilst pregnant, just use lower weights and higher reps, don't do any exercise which means lying flat on the bench.

Glute exercises

Everyone wants a nice bum, to achieve that the following exercises will help:

Squat

Lunges

One-Legged Cable Kickback

Physioball Hip Bridge

Single Leg Glute Bridge
 
Step-up with Knee Raise

Ankle On The Knee

Barbell Glute Bridge

Barbell Hip Thrust
 
Butt Lift (Bridge)

Flutter Kicks

Glute Kickback
 
Hip Extension with Bands

Hip Lift with Band

Knee Across The Body

Kneeling Jump Squat

Kneeling Squat

Leg Lift
 
One Knee To Chest

Food

As diets go people think eating 1500 calories or less is the way to go and will help with weightloss. Wrong, you are putting your body into starvation mode which means if you do lose weight, you will actually gain more when you put it back on, your making your body burn muscle and getting your body to fling on to the fat.

People who are serious about exercise, especially weight lifting are eating 2000+ calories a day, and normally have to keep upping the calories the more muscle they have built.

That seems a scary amount to some people and they think oh my I will get fat. Wrong, you need to fuel your body, you cannot build muscle on nothing, you need to gain weight to help build the muscle.

I am not tellin you to go eat 2000 calories and as long as your doing exercise you will loose weight, or gain mass amount of muscle. You need to take it slow, so if your on 1200 calories you will need to build up slowly, so increase your calories slowly and up your carbs slowly, that way you can monitor your weight and if it stalls or you gain then to lower the calories a little bit till you start loosing weight again.

If you follow iifym than this is known as reverse dieting,basically in lamen terms you are re training your metabolism and speeding it back up, or re tuning your body.

Remember fuel your body, like a car with no petrol it will not go any were, your body is exactly the same thing.

Meal plan and clean eating website

A basic meal plan:

Breakfast: 3 egg omelette now if you fancy saving your fat then have egg white omelette, have it with onions peppers and tomatoes to get in all the important micronutrients and maybe some bacon

Snack: a fruit smoothie mixed with protein powder and maybe oats if you want some extra healthy carbs

Lunch: lean grilled meat or fish, a sweet potato, salad and maybe some cheese, for healthy fats protein and carbs, the meat could be marinated

Snack: rice cakes, with nut butter/ veg stick with humous/ dried fruit

Dinner: sweet potato chips, steak and mixed veg,

Now you can make anything as long as it includes healthy fats protein and carbs and has plenty of veg or salad to bulk up your meal with free calories really

For me I love Kitchen shed this website is a clean eating website in the uk, it has lots of recipes and also gives sample meal plans which are a lot more exciting than the one I have given, so go give it a look

Abdominal exercises

To get abs you really need to shred the fat that is covering, then you need to do a variation of exercise to strengthen all the abs

Plank
Get into the press up position, keep your back flat and bum down, hold that position for 30-60 seconds.

There are other variations, such as on your elbows, one leg up, side plank, side plank with one leg and arm up

Plank with oblique twists, plank position and move knee to elbow and back again, then repeat on other side

Swiss ball Jack knife

Begin in a press-up position with your feet resting on a Swiss ball, Your body should form a straight line from feet to head.

Without rounding your lower back, contract your abs and use your feet to pull the ball toward your chest by bending your knees, return to starting position

V ups

Lie on your back with arms and legs outstretched.

Keeping them straight, bring your arms and legs together by crunching up from the abs.

Hands and feet should meet in the middle.

Slowly return to the starting position ensuring there is constant tension on the abs

Reverse crunch
Lie on the floor, lift your legs up in the air, keypads beside you, lift bottom off the floor then back down, keep legs as straight as you can ad when lifting aim for the ceiling

Russian twists
Sit on the floor, for easy version keep feet planted, for harder raise your feet, tilt your back back, then put your arms in front of you, twist your upper body to the side then back to centre than to the other side, to make it harder hold a weight

Leg lifts
Lie on through floor legs straight in front of you, slowly raise your legs off the floor, up to the ceiling then back down again, keep everything else on the floor and contract (pull abs to spine) when lifting legs

Bicycle crunches
When you crunch up, bring opposite knee to elbow and repeat, getting faster as you get more used to it

Scissor kicks
Lie on the floor, raise legs up and the cross es over each other as you lower and raise your legs