Over the past 28 days i have been helping a client through our 28 Day Online Program.

28 Days ago this client reached out for my help, was sent the guidelines and actually started off with a free 7 day detox.

The client joined 14 others in deciding they were going to make a change to their lifestyle.

Now, im going to be honest, 28 days really is not that long in terms of changing a lifestyle however everyone wants quick results right?

Now i probably receive around 6-8 enquiries for Bootcamp and Personal Training each week and out of this maybe one sign up.

You see, people need to trust me, im a stranger after all.

That’s part of the reason i send emails 2-3 times a week with valuable content for everyone

When they are ready, they know where i am should they want my help

It also the reason we now offer a free 7 day online detox once a month

The problem with free is there is no accountability

There is no reason for that person to follow my instructions as they have nothing to lose, we dont meet face to face so who am i to tell them what to do.

However, everyone that contacts me has one thing in common

THEY WANT TO CHANGE SOMETHING

Now, back to my client

Sarah is a single Mum who is a Nurse who works very long shift including night shifts each week

Sarah decided she would give the 7 days her bets shot, she lent on the group of ladies for support online, asked for help, asked for recipes to fit in with her lifestyle and we provided the coaching each day to help her stay on track.

Was it plain sailing?

HELL NO

Did she have to put some work in

HELL YES

Sarah got herself prepared and didnt let anything get in her way

She even cried over some lettuce (but thats a whole different story!)

The 7 days increased her energy levels and made her feel so amazing she decided to stay with us online for the whole 28 days.

Sarah ate Carbs, she exercised maybe 3-4 times across the 28 day period so the majority of her changes were all through clean eating nutrition guidelines around a very busy job.

Sarah was preparing her food when she could and managed to work the program into her hectic lifestyle.

The results?

Well i can honestly say in the 5 years i have been doing this, they are some of the best we have ever had on the program!

Take a look yourself (below)

Oh and then Sarah sent me this very emotional testimonial to go with the photos

I had a lump in my throat when i read this and it really allowed me to sit back and realise the power my job has to change people’s lives.

Im assuming the investment was worth it!?

Pics below and testimonial underneath

Testimonial

The biggest change I have noticed is finding my confidence and happiness again. When I joined I was in a very unhappy almost depressed place – too much information, but I had 6 months before thrown my abusive husband out of the house. But he was somehow still controlling me and I wanted that control back. I lived on a diet of caffeine and crap or no food at all because I didn’t have enough hours in the day to do everything as a single parent who works full time in a really stressful job, well that was my excuse. You gave me the confidence to realise that I could do this. You have a no-nonsense approach which makes you take a deep breath and say I can do this (if you remember I cried over lettuce!!!) kind of like the good angel on your shoulder who shuts the bad one up (the one that’s saying don’t bother prepping food, just get a plate of chips at work tomorrow!!) I didn’t think I could give up coffee and chocolate and to be honest I still love my morning coffee, but that’s pretty much the only one I still have. I’ve remembered how much I love cooking tasty food…. And it is so much tastier than ready meals or stuff that came out of a jar.

Plus your cheaper than the psychologist.

The Summer is here and we have had some fantastic weather recently

This can make losing weight tough as the social events in our calendars increase, the invites to BBQ’s with friends and families, the dining in the garden, the glasses of wine in the evening etc

We all know it happens right?

Relax

Summer is there to be enjoyed

However, if you are sat there every Monday morning thinking

“i have to get back on this, i have to start losing some weight”

Something fundamentally is wrong

Now dont get me wrong, everyone likes to relax on the weekend but im talking to the people that really are getting on their own backs.

For example

2 weekends ago i was invited to a family BBQ out at the New Forest

It was a gorgeous hot day and i would be away from work with no wifi access, a BBQ and a big field to run around with the kids.

Bliss

Now, most of my family are following slimming world

Well, when i say following slimming world

When they feel like it

The usual comments were coming out

I didnt go to my weigh in last week, i know i hadnt lost”

“I didnt eat the day i had a weigh in to trick the scales”

etc etc

However, what happened next really made me smile and of course, i even commented

I had the BBQ already, im a real man and love to do the cooking

It also keeps me busy while people start munching on all kinds of naughties

We cooked most of the Burgers and i was then handed some sausages which were in fact Chicken Sausages

Apparently these are lower in points

So i watch my family not have burgers or any other bits because they were being good

They waited for the chicken sausages to be cooked and then had them with some salad

All good you would think

But then, one of them mentioned they had been baking

An BAM

Out came a lot of cakes, biscuits and a lot of delicious looking treats.

I will be honest, i had a couple but i was firmly in control of what i was eating.

The people that had the chicken sausages

Yep, you guessed it, were eating the cake and a quite a bit of it

I was smiling to myself

Now the thing is

If they had a burger without the bun and had it with the chicken sausages and the salad they would have been a lot fuller from the protein and stood a better chance of not being hungry and would have eaten less cake

Remember, its protein content of food that fills you

Not bloody salad!

So out of thinking they were being good, in fact they brought there own problems on and probably didnt go to that weeks weigh in either.

This is where i think most dieting clubs guidelines let people down

I will have a separate post on this next week

The one thing we do at Bootcamp and our online programs is educate people on their food choices and structuring their foods in terms of proteins, carbs and Fats.

Yes we have foods lists we utilise with clients but everything is about that structure.

I mean, imagine being able to go to a social event, eat out, enjoy yourself and still manage to be accountable to your weigh in????

Now that is what i pride myself on offering our clients

Of course its still down to each individual client to follow our guidelines but i guarantee you will stand a much better chance of fighting that battle.

So, dont ditch the protein, fill up on it and have less treats

Over the last few weeks i have been speaking to ladies looking for my help through online programs and Bootcamp.

During the consultations its amazing how many people that have tried one of the shake diets that are out there.

Now, i dont want to get into the names of the companies at this point as im sure most of you are aware of 1 or 2 of them.

The bit that really annoys me is most people get into these schemes though PT’s!

So, do Shake Diets work?

The answer to this question really comes down to

WHY YOU SIGNED UPTO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE?

The most common reasons for people signing upto shake diets are the following

>Looking for a quick fix
>The marketing is hard hitting and appealing
>The idea of drinking a shake 2-3 times a day to lose weight seems easy
>Seriously fed up with not getting results
>low self esteem
>Poor relationship with food
>Confused from all fo the diets they have tried before

Here is the hard truth about diet shakes

THEY WILL MAKE YOU LOSE WEIGHT

Yep, shock horror, they actually do what they say they will, they actually help you lose weight which lets face it, is the reason most people start taking them.

Now, this is the worrying bit most people overlook

They allow you to lose weight because they put you in a calorie deficit each day

At the end of the week your body has lost weight and you are encouraged by the results

The trouble is the calorie deficit is too much and your body starts to crave food, probably sugar as this is the quickest form of energy it can convert.
Eventually you end up giving in and start eating and probably end up binging because you get gripped by food again and end up with a lot of expensive product just sitting in the cupboard.

If you are one of the mentally strong, hard bodied people that actually manages to take these things long term using will power at its best to beat of the cravings when you stop taking them at start eating food again, the viscous cycle starts again, the weight piles on and you end up really confused and down hearted.

One of the biggest things the people selling wont actually tell you is where the weight loss comes from.

Generally you will lose a lot of water, muscle and a little body fat.

The body will also get less nutrients in the shakes so you will become pale, light headed, shaky, dizzy and generally feel shit!

Is it worth it?

So, do they actually work?

Short term, possibly (weight loss), long term NOT AT ALL!

All that happens is you waste a shed load of money on poor products.

I say poor products because the ingredients are so so poor in these things, cheap protein, artificial sweeteners and a whole host of chemicals (that’s another blog post in itself)

Anyone selling you these products is not thinking of your overall health, they are simply making money from you.

But we all have to make money dont we?

Yes we do, but for me, not out of sacrificing someone’s long term health.

So, lets get back to the question, DO THEY ACTUALLY WORK?

I would answer No

The reason?

Because they are not teaching you anything, they are not educating you in the long run.

Do you realise that if you decided to not sign up for one of these shake diets and invested the money in Protein Shakes with better ingredients and replaced each meal with a protein shake you would actually get the same results but actually a lot cheaper?

NOW IM NOT TELLING YOU TO GO AND DO THAT!

When you come off of these shakes your relationship with food has not changed so why do you expect to keep the weight off long term?

You go back to eating all those foods you did before and eventually you end up putting the weight back on.

Lets face it, we have to be brutally honest here

Eating those foods before the shake diet got you in this position, it will get you there again.

Unless you are changing your eating habits, unless you are being coached on how to change those habits to suit your lifestyle and unless you start eating healthier foods YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD WILL NOT CHANGE.

Well, you could of course take shakes for meals for the rest of your life and hope that strong mindedness and will power dont give in to the tempting treats all around us.

You can turn every invitation down for a mela out or special occasion and continue with your shakes.

Or you can make a decision to hire a coach who can help you improve your relationship with food.
Someone you can speak to daily about your worries, your cravings, your lifestyle, your struggles with food and lean on them and other people that have been through exactly what you are going through to improve the situation long term.

To me, its the only way to true happiness with weight loss.

All of our clients online or at Bootcamp are coached to making smarter choices with food and as a result when they walk away from us are better educated to make smarter decisions in the long run.

As a result, those special occasions get easier, those meals out and nights out get easier and your life in general becomes happier.

So next time someone offers you a shake diet or you see an advertisement for one, think about long term changes rather than quick fixes

THINK ABOUT YOUR HEALTH!

You deserve to lose weight the healthy way and keep it off

YOU DESERVE TO FEEL A MILLION DOLLARS WHEN YOU LOSE THE WEIGHT

I have been thinking about writing this post for a while and have put it off

Why have i put it off?

Well because i feel slightly silly saying it if im honest

I have 37 Bootcamp clients, 3 Online clients, 2 Children under 6 years old and my wife works 2 days a week and also one in 4 weekends.

Over the last 12 months i have been focussing so much attention on building my business i have forgotten to actually focus sometime on myself.

So im going to say it

I have been struggling!

Over the past 3 months business has been crazy which of course has been fantastic but of course this has an impact on things.

Im more tired, im more stressed, i have become lazier with my own nutrition and also my exercise
I have also been bad company to be around at home as i literally work all of the time unless i have my kids.

Why am i telling you this?

Well, i suppose to prove im human and also for accountability.

One of the biggest pressures i have on myself is my job and being labelled a Personal Trainer.

You see, everyone thinks we are naturally fit and dont need to work at this like they do.

How wrong that actually is.

If anything i actually find my training slightly lonely and have to train at awkward times due to supplying training to my clients at the more popular times.

Over the last few months i have put so much pressure on my self because i knew my fitness and health were slipping that i have actually made it worse for myself.

So 2 weeks ago i made the decision to do something about it.

To stop feeling this way
To stop moaning
To feel better about myself

and i put myself in my clients shoes and did exactly what they do

I INVESTED IN SOMEONE THAT CAN HELP ME!

Yep, thats right, i invested money in a nutrition coach, not because i dont know what to do when it comes to nutrition but to be accountable to someone for my own results.
I submit weekly results and it also gives me a chance to speak to someone weekly.

I have also accepted that my business is very busy and that i finally need some help.
The problem with help is it costs money and every business owner will tell you, its hard getting someone in and paying them to do something that technically you have the time to do but always feel too shattered.

For a long time i have been telling myself, this is just how it is by owning a busines

WRONG!

I have now invested in a business mentor
Someone who has been where i am in my line of work, again that i can speak to and who can also help me make some strict targets for my business and also help with any problems.

The first thing, get some help on jobs i find it hard to do.

Over the course of the next 3-4 weeks i will be bringing in 2-3 people to help me with things which will lift a huge burden from me and actually allow me to focus on the things i enjoy doing and in return reduce my stress and get more done.

Im 2 weeks into this process and while im investing a lot of money i cannot tell you how much better i feel already.

I very rarely make anything i do about me however i have come to realise i am actually a very important part of what i do and i need to be happy.

The reason im sharing this is simple

Do you feel the same way with your health and fitness?
Do you never feel like you commit the time you need?
Do you always put others first?
Are you unhappy?

You need to really sit down and ask yourself these questions and then you need to do one thing

You need to come up with answers on how you can improve these things!

The longer you leave it, the harder it gets

Everyone struggles

but it doesnt have to be that way

There are people that can help you

Money is money and a good investment is well worth it

After all, your time is worth way more than money

Once time has gone, you wont get it back

Anyone that has ever worked with me will tell you i put 100% in with my clients, isnt it strange i dont so the same with myself and my family?

We are officially 8 days into Summer and my inbox is crazy with enquiries.

You would be amazed at the difference in the enquiries i am sent.

I think because people are speaking via email they forget their manners!

Now one thing that always makes me smile with some of the enquiries is the way they get straight to the point

Here is one from last week

“What the cost?”

Now, first of all im in a very lucky position to turn people down from my serice, especially if they are rude!

You see, i dont need rude people’s money

Secondly, we offer 3-4 services so im supposed to guess which one im pricing up?

Third and final, if you focus on cost alone how are you able to see if you are getting great value?

What i mean is, shouldnt the question be, im interested in Bootcamp, how much is the package and what am i getting for that price?

You see the difference?

Now i understand everyone has a budget but surely it makes sense to see what you are getting for your money?

One of the reasons we offer a lower end value trial is to get people through the door and experiencing first hand what we do.
Get them into the female only environment, have a giggle at sessions and see what its all about.

You will never experience this through just asking “whats the cost”

Now, i believe one of the biggest things my job offers is accountability, i also think we do a very good job of supporting our clients.

How am i supposed to show the value of that in an email?

Im not

I can however show you on a trial.

You see most people out there that join us not only need exercise education, not only need nutrition education but they also need support.

Im going to be honest aswell, that support does not always come from friends and family as you would imagine.

So, what do we bring to the table on all of our programs

A Private Support Group

All programs include a private facebook support group.
This is a group that only the clients in the group can see posts. A place for people to support each other, answer questions and generally share how they are feeling.
These groups also allow me to see where people are struggling and i regularly post up educational videos.

Anyone that has been part of any of our groups will tell you how valuable the groups are.

Accountability

This comes in the form of weekly measurements and weigh-ins all done from your own home.
Now, how do you feel your week is going to be if you know at the end of it you have to supply your measurements and weight, what if someone was asking you for those measurements and weight on a Monday (me) if you have not submitted them?

I can honestly tell you your week will be much better! You have more chance of succeeding if someone is holding you accountable.

It also noticable the amount of people that come through our free programs and submit end results is a lot less than the people that pay and finish the programs.

Why?

Accountability usually comes in the form of money. We all hate wasting it right?

The next time you look at a diet, a bootcamp, a fitness class, personal training etc ask yourself the value you re getting out of that program and how it is going to keep you accountable to our goals.

You never know, you may even achieve them 🙂

Ross

During our last 7 day detox we covered a subject that every client suffers with

Sugar Cravings!

Yep, pretty much every client i have ever trained gets sugar cravings

Mid morning

Mid afternoon

Evening after dinner and before bed (this is the most common)

What i will say though is every client i have ever taken through clean eating has always commented on how these cravings have pretty much disappeared

So, whats the magic formula to reducing or getting rid of sugar cravings?

Its simple, eat less of the sugary foods and replace them with cleaner foods oh and dont forget about bringing structure into your daily meals.

Now i know what your thinking

Yeah yeah Ross, if it was that easy everyone would be doing it

Well, this is where our coaching comes in with clients

However, im going to share with you the easiest way to curve the cravings and finally break that sugar fix

Blood Sugars

Generally, most cravings come from not eating enough.
The majority of people out there dieting are starving themselves and as a result your blood sugars drop.
When our blood sugars drop our bodies crave energy and guess what the quickest energy is that it can convert the quickest?

Yep, you guessed it SUGAR

So, you crave sugar from not eating enough and you feed your body the sugar it wants

You snack on chocolate Bars, Fizzy Drinks, Sweets, Cakes etc and suddenly your body feels satisfied.

Well, for 20 minutes or so before it starts wanting that sugar fix again and the cycle begins again!

Hears what happens

Your blug sugar drops, you feed yourself sugar and your blood sugars spike, they shoot right up past the level point and your body releases all these feel good endorphins.
Your body loves this feeling however you stop eating the sugar and eventually your blood sugar starts to drop and once again it drops below the level point and creates another craving and the cycle begins again!

Pretty crafty this body of our isnt it!

I call it the biscuit theory, once you eat 1 you will generally not be able to put the packet down!

So how do we get round this and stop this from happening?

Protein

Protein is a key ingredient your body needs for repair and once again generally people dont eat enough of it.
Protein is very good at regulating your insulin levels and therefore keeps your blood sugars level.

Lets start with breakfast

Most people choose a sugary cereal for breakfast and start the day in the worst possible way by starting that sugar spike/drop cycle and by mid morning are dipping into the sugary drink or snacks.

Now, replace that sugary breakfast with a protein based breakfast like Eggs and not only will you feel fuller, your blood sugars will remain level and you will get through the day better.

When it comes to a mid morning snack (if you need one) again, protein based instead (cold meats, eggs, protein shake) and you are keeping everything ticking over.

Lunch, mid afternoon, dinner etc, yep, you guessed it, protein based and you finally end the day with reduced sugar cravings.

Easy hey?

This is something we run clients through all the time helping with structuring there food every day so that the protein content is higher and in turn they no longer want that chocolate fix.

Now, the general eat clean diet helps to balance hormones which in turn helps keep everything ticking over.

SO what happens when those hormones are thrown out of sync?

You guessed it

The sugar cravings hit again

The biggest example i can give of this is a womens monthly cycle.

Now that in itself needs very good structure and a lot of willpower!

Do you suffer from sugar cravings on a daily basis?

If you do, try looking at your food choices throughout the day and try adding more protein into your diet.

Examples of proteins

Eggs
Fish
Meats

Dont let the sugar win!

One of the hardest parts of coaching people through a weight loss journey is undoubtedly the weekend.

Its amazing how many people can stick to a nutrition plan or diet Monday-Friday and then BAM the weekend hits and it all goes out of the window.

I use to get frustrated by this as a coach

However, when you actually delve into the exact reasons as to why this happens it becomes easier to coach people through it.

Most people lead very stressful and busy lives with kids, work, cooking, cleaning etc

People generally get more time on weekends as they do not have to work.

You know the scenario, the rushing around all week to get the kids ready for school, then get to work, get home, cook dinner, sort the kids out before finally sitting down for an hour, eating your own meal and then getting into bed before repeating again for 5 days a week.

Suddenly Saturday is here and there is no rush, the kids can chill out a bit and everything is generally a little bit more relaxed.

Now i appreciate that is not the case with everyone.

So what happens in our minds is this

We have a stressful week, we finish work and all we an think of is relaxing and unwinding over the weekend.

Why not hey, we deserve it

Rightly so!

This blog post is certainly not here to tell you, you cant do that.

However, lets look at things from a weight loss point of view

You have had a great week, you have avoided the temptations, you have exercised and are feelin gpretty good with your efforts.

The weekend hits and that unwinding translates into sitting down and having a glass of wine or other alcoholic drink once the kids are in bed, maybe even going out for a meal or even a take away.

Saturday comes and you get the same feeling, after all you have been working so hard all week so once again the wine comes out, you relax with your food again, that leads to some chocolate coming out after dinner whilst watching tv or a film

Sunday comes, more wine and big stinking roast dinner followed by desert.

Before you know it, all your hard work from Monday to Friday seems so long ago and you are now worried that all your hard work has been wasted.

Quite honestly, it probably is

Since Friday and across the weekend you have probably consumed a minimum of an extra 2000 calories in processed food, sweet treats and alcohol.

For an average female that’s a days worth of calories.

So you start again Monday and the cycle goes round again and again and again.

So, why does this happen and what can you do about it?

Now i want to start by saying that you need to be aware that this is happening, the more you hide the fact that is actually happening the more you will get frustrated with your weight loss results and how you feel.

This is not about a night out with friends, its about regularly going off plan over weekends.

Once you have accepted it is happening you need to come up with a plan of action.

The biggest reason this happens is the change of routine people have.

We answered it above

Weekends are more relaxed and therefore our routine’s are more relaxed, we dont plan for the weekends and we leave everything to chance.

99% of people will choose the drink and takeaways, trust me!

Now, if you are on a weight loss journey because you genuinely want to lose the weight, you feel crap about yourself and really want to end this cycle, here is what you need to do.

You need to come up with a Monday-Friday routine that works for you in regards to food and then a Saturday and Sunday routine that works for you and keeps your weight loss goal in mind.

Now, most people reading this will say

OMG How boring i am never going to be able to drink again, i enjoy a drink on the weekend and it relaxes me.

Well shock horror, i like a drink on the weekend but it needs to be managed.

This mindset to me is the number 1 problem people have

No one is telling you you will never drink again, that’s the way you perceive the information

I have stages we work on with clients

Weight loss stage

This is the stage where the biggest changes happen and the routine needs to work consistently, not 5 days a week, 7 days a week. It takes your lifestyle into account and your goals.
The odd night out during this stage is fine and is discussed.

The aim of the weight loss stage is to get you to maintenance stage.

Maintenance Stage

A stage where you have changed your habits for the better and are leading a healthy lifestyle.
More treats and a slightly more relaxed approach can come in and we work on making you happy overall.

The problem is, most people dont ever hit Maintenance Stage because the are not consistent enough with the weight loss stage.

The other thing to take into account, is most people’s diets are far too restrictive in what they eat and therefore they end up binging.

Lets take an average shake and bar diet that keeps you around 1000 calories a day, you constantly fight hunger every day of the week because you are not eating enough.
There is only so much of that your body and mind will take before you crack, have a blow out and end up eating and drinking the whole world in one weekend.

A weight loss plan should always contain foods you enjoy within reason and yes, the odd drop of alcohol if thats how you want to live.
Most of the time its just a case of talking it through with your coach.

Im a big believer that this is why most of the regular diets out there that you can sign upto fail, because they are too restrictive and also because people dont actually have someone they can talk to about there individual situation.

So, be aware of your weekends and ask yourself if they are hampering your weight loss and if so Why?

If you genuinely dont like the way you feel and are not happy with your weight at some point in your life you need to make that weight loss goal a priority.

What separates the people getting results from the people not getting results?

Consistency!

If you need any help or would like a chat about this please feel free to get in touch.

This week has been a fantastic week for me as a Coach.

We have a lot of people enquiring about Bootcamp and our online nutrition coaching.

These enquiries are coming from seeing results from my clients and also reading the blog posts i have been putting out.

Facebook have dramatically changed the way our business pages show information now, only 2% of the people that like the page will actually see the results.

This is why i have been stepping up my emails to my list and also these blog posts.

Today i want to share 2 posts that have been posted on my facebook business page (https://www.facebook.com/LiveYoungBootcamp) this week.

The first is a picture of my client Erline who has been with us 6 months.
Erline trains with us in Wimborne at our 7pm sessions, 3 times a week and is a pleasure to train.
Erline’s consistency across her sessions each week is fantastic and her passion for implementing the nutritional changes has been exemplary.

The biggest part of Erline’s journey that is not mentioned on the picture below is how only 6 months ago she stepped through our doors a little nervous joining a beginners bootcamp that we trialled.
After completing that Erline decided to kick on and join our main group.

Look what that decision has done for her!

I am determined to start showing people the health benefits of Bootcamp away from the obvious weight and inch loss that comes with a healthier lifestyle.

Here are some screen shots taken from our Private Client Support Group when i asked the simple question

What benefits to your health, nutrition, day to day lives have you noticed since you started Bootcamp?

Im looking forward to sharing more results with you all next week

Have a great weekend everyone

Ross

This is a very important subject and something i see happening amongst everyone i coach on weight loss.

Monitoring the changes your body makes when weight loss is the aim.

How do you currently monitor changes when on a diet? following a healthy lifestyle? Exercising?

A guarantee 99 out of 100 answers will be

WEIGHING SCALES

Now, what i am about to tell you has come from experience in losing weight myself and also helping clients lose weight across the last 5 years.

First of all, i get it. I understand why you get on the scales and i understand how frustrating it can be when that number has not changed or in fact has gone up even though you have had the most amazing week of eating clean!

Well folks, welcome to the Human Body!

The dieting world we have lived in the past 30 years has brain washed us into thinking that this figure ont he scales is the most important part of our lives.

Just read that back for a second and ask yourself why it has so much power?

I will tell you why, because we all remember a figure on that scales when we remember we were happy.

But were we happy? Really, can you honestly tell me you remember that exact figure on the scales that made you happy?

Generally people remember a number on the scales that was some time ago, 1 year, 2 years, 5 years or even before they had their 3 children, before they grew up and had responsibilities like a mortgage, a full time job and day to day stress in life.

One of the biggest challenges i have as a coach is to get into people’s heads and understand exactly what is going on.

You can have the best week in the world, be feeling amazing, full of energy, getting comments from friends and family about how well you look, feeling the difference in your work clothes but wait, you have not got on the scales to check how much you have lost so you get up early the next day jump on the scales and BAM

1 pound off or even nothing!

How can this be when you are feeling fantastic and getting all of these comments!?

You get up the next day, its showing you are a pound heavier! OMG what is going on, my diet is not working, you get home that night, you grab a bottle of wine and a huge slab of chocolate, what’s the point if its not working!

You wake up feeling awful, you have undone all of your hard work and all because of that 1 number on the scales.

Now whats happening?

What’s happening is we have been brainwashed into thinking this figure on the scale sis the most important part of our journey.

Ask yourself this

If that number on the scales can be so destructive, why do we bother stepping on them?

This is where i want people to change their way of thinking

And no, it wont come easy.

Your scale weight can fluctuate between 3-5lbs in one whole week! Yep, you heard me right, it can fluctuate between 1-2lbs a day!

You need to know that before you step on them.

So what causes the scale weight to fluctuate so much?

Water Retention – especially around monthly cycles in women
Stress Levels
Muscle Mass
Dehydration
Glycogen levels – will cover this in a separate post

All of these things play a part and its truly hard to determine which one when you step on that scale at the end of the week.

If you are stepping on the scales more than 2-3 times a week you will start to see the effect this one number has on your life.
For most that step on everyday, they will notice the fluctuation and it will mainly have a negative effect on the mind and you will question what you are doing and in almost most circumstances go off the rails or evenquit what you are doing.

So why do we let this one thing trouble us so much.

I think its because we have been measuring in this way for so long.

Let me ask you this question

Would it matter to you if you never knew how much you weighed for the rest of your life?

Lets just expand on that question.

If you monitored changes in a different way

How clothes feel / dress sizes
How healthy your skin, hair and nails feel
How your energy levels are
How your confidence level is
How your digestion is
How relaxed you are
How focussed you are

How much of an effect do you think this would have on your life?

So what do we do?

Well we teach our Bootcamp and online clients to take weekly measurements as well as weight.

Once a week simply measure

Chest- Men around the nipple, ladies under the bust
Hips- The top of your hips
Waist- Around your belly button
Upper leg- At its widest point
Arms- From the middle of the bicep

Also take the following photo’s

• One facing the camera
• One facing away from the camera
• One side on to the camera

Now, my suggestion would be not to take a weight measurement but if you have to, take it at 3 points across the week and take the average measurement as a guide to what is happening across the week.

Taking all of these stats week by week allows you to build a picture of what’s happening and will allow you to speak to somebody to adjust things as you go.

All diets needs tweaks and you need to bear this in mind.

What has worked day 1 may not work day 31 and its all about noting the stats down and making adjustments where necessary.

You deserve not to beat yourself up about your weight, you deserve to be happy.
The scales will never make you happy!

Stop looking at the scales for the answer and start looking at you as a whole.

As i say to clients, its a tick box exercise when it comes to health

Long term changes have a far better effect than any number on the scales will!

If you have scales in your house and you cant stop yourself getting on them then force yourself.
Simply give your scales to someone to look after, get your partner to hide them or better still, take them out into the back garden and smash them to pieces 🙂

Body Fat

Your main aim when it comes to loosing weight should be reducing body fat.
This is something the figure on your scales will not help you with.

Im sure you have heard the term

Muscle weighs more than Fat

Well that’s great if you are training to build muscle.

Increasing your muscle mass through resistance training will make you slightly heavier day to day and in return will mean you are burning more calories each day simply walking around.

This is why resistance work beats cardio for fat burn.

Now, how many of you actually monitor your body fat %

Probably not that many.

The lower your body fat % the harder it will be to drop that figure on the scales, the higher, the more scale weight that will generally come off.

Body Fat % will also put you into a category.

Now i hate categories because it generally stresses people out and people hate being labelled however body fat % has to be categorised in terms of your health

Underweight
Normal
Overweight
Obese

The higher your body fat % the greater the risk of many diseases like

Type 2 Diabetes
High Blood Pressure
Stroke
Heart Disease
Certain Cancers

So without trying to scare you, wouldnt it be better to know the percentage of body fat you have compared to just a number on the scales?

The picture is much bigger than just a figure on weighing scales.

I regularly have clients that dont drop any scale weight but lose inches, we have a few that don’t drop either we have some clients that lose a lot of each.

What needs to be brought into this equation is you as an individual. Your history of dieting, your genetics, your family history and your current lifestyle will all play a part in your health.

Start focussing on your health and not a number.

Over the past 2 weeks we have had an influx of around 11 new Bootcamp clients.

The best bit about new clients joining the group is i get to work with new people, new routines, new challenges and get to put my coaching skills to test.

We work with everyone on a 1-2-1 basis when it comes to nutrition and of course we see patterns with people.

The most common pattern we see amongst new clients is the lack of food they consume when weight loss is the primary goal.

Does this surprise me

NO

You see, for the past 30+ years we have been brain washed by the “diet” culture and its forced people into confusion when it comes to foods to the point they eat very little expecting to lose weight in the process.

I can tell you one thing as a coach, its fantastic helping people eat more to lose weight.

Now, when it comes to helping people eat more to lose weight, its all about eating the right things.

Its not simply about them just eating more

Lets start by talking about the knock on effect of eating too little each day

>Your body starts to store Fat instead of burning it

Your body uses carbohydrates and fats as energy. Now, in the absence of carbs it will use any carb stores it has as energy and once depleted, it will start to use your fat stores for energy.
Now that sounds amazing doesnt it, and people generally think eating no carbs automatically means you will burn the fat.
Now, that’s true in once sense but around 7-10 days of no carbs for energy and the body will in fact start to shut you down rather than continue to burn the fat.
Without getting scientific on you, your fat is basically an emergency store for survival.
Think of being stranded on a desert island with no food, your body will start to eat away at its own fat for energy and to survive.
No in real life, what happens is, you will stay low carb, you will lose weight initially, 7-10 days time you will start to feel very light headed and even dizzy, like you are going to pass out. The more active you are, the worse this will get.
Its the body saying it does not have enough energy for your day to day routine and it wants carbs. It will make you feel awful.

How anyone follows a low carb diet 100% of the time is beyond me, they must feel awful.

>Your hair, Nails and Skin deteriorate

Yep, through a lack of nutrients the health of your skin, nails and hair will reduce.

>You will feel tired and run down

Again, through a lack of energy and nutrients your body will feel shattered and tired all of the time. You will also find you catch every cold going as there are a lack of nutrients to help build your immune system.

These are generally the main side effects people see, there are others but i want to just get the point across in this post.

Now, how do you know you are under eating?
Generally if you feel any of the above or maybe you are fighting that constant hunger feeling day to day?
Maybe you have suddenly stopped losing weight?

Now the major factor we have not discussed is metabolism.

The faster your metabolism, the faster you burn carbs, fats etc

Under eating will slow your metabolism down in a big big way.

So, where do you start with sorting this out?

First things first, make a note of how often you eat each day.

A general start with clients is we work on getting 5 meal times worked into there day, sometimes 6 if we can.
You will aim to eat Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and 2 snacks.

You will aim to get a decent hit of protein in your 3 main meals (meats, fish, lentils, pulses)
Your snacks will be cleaner than normal (no crisps, cakes, chocolate bars etc)

Sounds simple right?

Until you try to put it into practice.

This is where our 1-2-1 caching comes in.

Now, for the sake of this blog i will give you some meal suggestions at the bottom to get you started.

So what benefits will you notice from upping your food intake (if you have been under eating)

>A huge increase in energy
>Healthier skin, nails and Hair
>A faster metabolism which means you should start to lose weight a little easier
>Fuller for longer with less hunger pangs

Here are some tips on meals you can be aiming towards eating. Dont stress over times, just aim to get the meals in when you can and take some time to implement this as your body may not be used to the amount of food.

Breakfast Options

2-3 Eggs (Fried, Poached, Scrambled, Omlette) Serve with green leafy veg if you can)
Porridge