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Giveaway: Balancing Health and Wellbeing with Blackmores!

2 Dec

I was recently contacted by Blackmore’s to do a review of their new “Personal Health System”.  At first, I was a bit wary.  I get asked to do a lot of product reviews and I like to align myself only with things that I truly believe in and things that I think are relevant to mine and my reader’s interests.  So I had a quick squiz (yes, squiz, I’m standing by that word!) at the site and I was actually pleasantly surprised by what I saw!

Developed specifically for time-poor Australians, The Blackmores Personal Health System (PHS) takes Blackmores’ expert understanding of nature and science a step further, providing an individually tailored online health program which combines the latest interactive technology with personal support from Blackmores’ team of naturopaths.

Basically, it is a 360 degree holistic approach to health including menu plans, nutrition advice, fitness suggestions, and a community of support as well as a lot more. It gives time-poor people the opportunity to stay fit and healthy wherever they are, whenever they want, with the support they need.  Blackmores has also welcomed Asher Keddie (Australian actress and star of TV show OffSpring) as their inaugural PHS member and ambassador.

I decided to trial the Sport & Fitness Program as it was most relevant to my goals.   The first thing I did was get stuck into the Health Assessment which was VERY thorough!  I may have giggled at how many questions about pooh it asks but hey, a healthy pooh is very important!  ;)   My overall score was 82/100 which is 14 points above the average of all females.   It went on to show the areas that are letting me down – vitality and digestive health being the main culprits.  But after having a chat to one of their wonderful naturopaths and being sent some awesome supplements to try, I’m pleased to report that these issues are no longer such a problem for me!  I’ll provide a review on these products in another post!

Once I had completed the assessment I started browsing the other areas of the program.  There was really nothing that it didn’t cover – it has everything!  It provides you with a menu plan, a workout plan, a food and workout diary, a My Body tracking system (where you can record PBs, your weight and measurements – SO motivating!), access to email your assigned naturopath whenever you see fit (my FAVOURITE feature) as well as an awesome resource library that has great articles on nutrition, exercise and healthy living.   There is also a great forum with over 308,000 members and growing!  I personally think that being a part of a community is highly beneficial to reaching your goals as it provides an invaluable amount of support and motivation.

I honestly can not speak highly enough about this system!  I have only covered the basics of it too, it offers so much more!  And lucky for you guys I have TWO FREE one-month passes to giveaway (valued at $49.95 each)!

To win just leave a comment below on why you think you are deserving to win this prize!  A winner will be drawn at random on Monday the 12th of December at approximately 9:00am EST.

Get in quick guys!  This is a great way to help you start your new year (and new you!) with a bang!

This is Why You Fail in the Gym, Part 3

18 Sep

Knock knock! 

Who’s there?

It’s me!

Me who?

Me Vs The Bulge telling you all about why you are failing in the gym again! :D

The last 2 parts of this series addressed goal setting and strength training.  This post is all about diet.  And I don’t mean Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers, I mean diet in the true definition of the word – “The usual food and drink of a person or animal.”

Source: fashionhealthy.tumblr.com/

It took me a long time to finally get my head around diet and what I should be eating.  I spent far too long trapped in “diet land” and was suckered in to all types of quick fix “solutions” to my weight woes.  I’ve tried shake diets, soup diets, diet pills, meal delivery services, Atkins, extremely low-calorie diets… you name it, I’ve most likely tried it.

If I had to only ever have one piece of advice to give to others it would be to DITCH THE DIETS.  They do not work, they are unsustainable, they mess with your metabolism, they do not provide you with enough energy to fuel you through exercise and the generally make you feel lousy and miserable.  It’s really not worth it.

So finally I got to the point of realising that diets don’t work and with the help of Nat I started changing my evil diet ways.  The first thing I did was I got rid of the majority of the processed foods I was eating – diet yoghurts, diet soft drinks, diet sauces and marinades… basically anything labelled DIET had to go and most things that come in a box, packet or bottle too.  Why?  Because these foods are usually full of nasty preservatives and hidden fats and sugars.  Just because something is labelled “low-fat” doesn’t mean it’s not full of sugar which will eventually store as fat in your body.  DO NOT WANT.

The next thing I did was start eating foods which were as close to their natural state as possible. My daily diet became full to the brim of fresh produce.  I’d never SEEN so much fresh fruit and vegetables in my fridge!  It got to the point that when we go grocery shopping we hardly enter the aisles at all except to buy tins of legumes and tomatoes and to buy practically the entire spice section. Spices and herbs are now my best friends!

I finally started to feel free from the constraints of diet hell.  I was training hard and seeing results.  But there was something else I needed to address that was holding me back from reaching my full potential… the weekends.

All week I would eat really well but then the weekend would hit and I would have a cheat meal.  That’s all well and good and perfectly normal, but that cheat meal would turn into another cheat meal, and then a cheat DAY and then I would go out and have a few drinks (hello empty calories!) and think, “Stuff it – I’ll go back to healthy eating on Monday”.  So before I knew it, the entire weekend was full of cheats. Which is to say, I was cheating myself out of reaching my goals.  Self-sabotage at it’s finest!

What people don’t realise is that whilst you may be eating at a calorie deficit during the week, falling off the wagon weekend can put you over your weekly calorie limit and therefore you find that you have eaten at maintenance calories for the week or even WORSE a calorie surplus!  This could basically cancel out all that hard work you did in the gym that week.  All that sweat and pain for NOTHING.

So if you are going to be spending all this time working out then you MUST address your diet as well.  They go hand in hand.

Source: cutandjacked.com

So my tips -

Consume fresh and unprocessed foods that are as close to their natural state as possible

Ditch the diets

Eat to fuel your body – steer clear of empty calories

Eat small meals and often to keep your metabolism humming smoothly

Limit sugar and starchy foods

Use fresh and dried herbs, chilli, garlic, ginger, lemon and lime to flavour your food

Make sure you get plenty of healthy fats – avocado, flaxseed oil, olive oil and unsalted nuts

Stick to low GI carbohydrates for slow release energy and to maintain healthy blood sugar levels

I could probably go on and on and on when it comes to diet but I’ll let you guys have a say too – what are your healthy eating tips?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Why You Fail in The Gym, Part 2

8 Sep

Welcome back readers and I hope you are all ready for another thrilling instalment of “This is Why You Fail in the Gym”.

Today we are going to talk about weight training.  The most common mistakes that many people make in the gym (and especially WOMEN) is that they either do not weight train, do not weight train effectively OR have no idea what they are doing when it comes to weights but will pick them up anyway.  Example – 1kg weights for a bicep curl is probably going to be too light for you, unless you are Mr Burns. 

A lot of women shy away from lifting weights as they are worried they will become too muscular.  Let’s clear this up now – women do not have the amount of testosterone required to pack on as much muscle as what men can.  It just won’t happen.  Okay?  So take those visions out of your head of you as some sort of half woman, half Arnold Schwarzenegger hybrid and get over your fear of lifting weights!

Lifting weights (in conjunction with eating a clean, healthy diet and adding a healthy dose of cardio) will help you create lean, sexy muscle.  When you create this muscle it will help you burn fat even when your body is at rest.  Cardio, on the other hand, burns the majority of your calorie intake only whilst you are performing it.   So it’s really beneficial for you to have those muscle stores as it will help transform your body into a fat-melting machine!

Weight training will also increase bone density, will lower your injury risk and will improve balance, flexibility, mobility and stability.

And one more thing – muscle weighs exactly the same as fat except that it takes up less room.  So even though the number on the scales may remain the same, you will be a smaller and leaner version of yourself.  Who doesn’t want that, am I right?

Okay, so now you know the benefits of weight training, the question is how exactly do you go about doing it?

If you’re a total newbie to weight training then I suggest you consult with a qualified and experienced trainer to show you the ropes as we do NOT want you to hurt yourself!  When it comes to weight training it’s all about TECHNIQUE.  It doesn’t matter how quickly you do it, that will mean nothing if you do not perform the movement correctly.

If you have a fair idea on what you are doing when it comes to weights then I suggest a program that is similar to the below (this program can be for men or women):

  • Choose a weight that you can perform no more than 8 – 12 reps with, with perfect form
  • Select one compound and one isolation exercise per body part – for example, for the chest you could choose a bench press followed by a chest fly
  • Perform 3 sets of the 8 – 12 reps of each exercise
  • Follow the above program 3 – 4 days per week focusing on either the lower or upper body each session (this is what is known as a split program)
  • Once you get to the stage where you feel you can perform more than the 8 or 12 reps, increase your weight slightly

Have a look at Natalie Carter’s Spring Shred program or BodyBuilding.com if you are stuck on what kind of exercises you should be performing but if you’ve got a pretty good knowledge on weight training exercises then go nuts!  The world is your oyster!

Important note: YES this will feel hard, YES you may feel overwhelmed and weak, YES you will want to quit, YES this will challenge you mentally and physcially, YES you will be sore the next day (or possibly for days after!) but it will all be worth it. 

When I first started training I remember my eyes would well with tears of frustration at how hard it was.  I remember feeling helpless and inadequate and most of all weak and that made me want to give up.  But every week I got stronger and stronger and now I feel like there is NOTHING I can’t do if I put my mind to it.  Do not let your mind win over your body!  Stay mentally strong and focused and the body will follow.

Now get to it!  I want to see all my readers with glorious glutes, amazing abs, lean legs and smouldering shoulders – all of which you will get if you just pick up those weights! :)

This is Why You Fail in the Gym, Part 1

1 Sep

Source: http://globaltrendtraders.com

Since I’ve been back training in a commercial gym (*shudder*) I’ve been looking around at the type of people who go there.  You can really tell the people who are training with purpose apart from those who are just going through the motions.

People who train with purpose look focused and determined, they’re sweating, possibly grunting (I’m a huge grunter!), they’re red in the face, they get in the gym and they make full use of their time there and their appearance visibly changes week after week.

People who go through the motions are reading magazines on the treadmill, looking around the gym aimlessly whilst pumping out a million bicep curls with 1kg weights, they’re on their phone “checking-in” at the gym on Facebook to make it seem like they’re actually working hard and they never make any visible changes.  And they are all probably wondering why.

Well, this has been done a million times by a million different people and here’s my little contribution to why people fail in the gym.  This will be a 5 part series and this post is the first of that series.

Why am I doing this?  Because I’ve been one of those people who went through the motions and I don’t want you to be one too because you will not get the results you want!

Prior to training with Nat I spent countless dollars and time on personal trainers, gym classes, gym memberships and home exercise equipment.  But none of it ever worked because I did not set goals.  I just had and idea in my head that if I exercise I will look and feel better about myself.  But what does that mean?  What does looking better look like to ME?  What do I need to do to achieve this?  Well, this is my take on how to properly set goals.

HOW TO PROPERLY SET A GOAL

Before you start a fitness/diet regime you really need to assess your desire for change.  Why are you making this change?  What will make you stick to this change?  How IMPORTANT is making this change to you?  Are you committed to making this change for the long haul?  Once you have an understanding of why you want to change then you can start setting goals.  Because if you do not have a burning desire to change you will not be successful in achieving your goal.  End of story.

So, you’ve now come to the conclusion that the change is very important to you because you feel uncomfortable in your skin / are out of breath too often / want to set a healthy example for your kids / want to compete better in sports / want to look hot and feel confident / [insert reason here].  This is your “bigger picture” goal.  But it’s pretty broad and unspecific.  So you have to drill it down further to make it achievable.

Okay, let’s pick “want to look hot and feel confident”.  What does looking hot and feeling confident mean to you?  Describe it to yourself.  Write it down.  Cut out images of people who you think look hot and confident.  Paste them in a book or stick them on an inspiration board.  Then think to yourself, “What would I look like when I get to the stage of looking hot and feeling confident?”.  Is it 10kg less than what you are now?  Is it fitting into size 10 skinny jeans?  It must be specific and tangible i.e. it can’t be “look good in a bikini” (what is “good”?  I think a bulldog looks pretty good in a bikini!) and it can’t be “have Miranda Kerr’s legs” (you can’t – they’re her legs, not yours!).

Let’s say it’s to lose 10kg.  That’s a fairly large sum.  It’s not something you can just drop in a matter of weeks.  Well you COULD but let’s face it, you will not be hot and confident because you will mostly likely have lost precious muscle mass and have droopy skin.  NOT HOT.  CONFIDENCE LEVEL = ZERO.

You need to break that goal down into smaller goals and you need to set a time frame to do it in.  If you do not set a time frame you will most likely fail.  So, break the 10kg goal into smaller goals of maybe 2kg losses by the end of every 4 weeks and that would bring your end goal time frame to 5 months.

So now you know that you want to lose 10kg in 5 months and you’re going to set a milestone (or mini goal) of 2kg every 4 weeks.  BOOM.  So do-able.  But HOW are you going to do it?

Well, you’ll need to modify your diet and you’ll need to include exercise (obviously you’ll need other factors like motivation and support etc but that’s not tangible and we want only tangible things to be included in our goal).

You will need to consult with a professional and do some research to find out how much exercise you will need and what your diet will need to include but once you have all that information you will be able to set your goal and it will look something like this:

“I will lose 10kg by 1st of February 2012.  I will measure my progress by weekly weigh-ins and my milestones will be set by a loss of 2kg every 4 weeks.  I will achieve this goal by exercising 4 days a week and following a diet based on 1400 calories a day”.

Well now! THAT’S a goal you can set your watch to! Notice the language as well.  I WILL lose, I WILL achieve.  Get used to using this language in your head because this will give you a sense of ownership of your goal and will make it feel very important to you.

Now that I have shown you how to set a proper goal, how about you share your goal with me below?  Spring has sprung people!  It’s the perfect time to set a goal to be a new, improved version of you!

Dexa Scan – Review & Results

3 Aug

Yesterday I went to get a dexa scan and I have to say it was honestly one of the most interesting things I have ever done in my life!

What is a Dexa Scan?

Body Composition Australia uses the worlds most advanced scanning technology from Hologic, USA.  Dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), assesses total body bone mineral density and highly accurate measures of the body’s soft tissue composition (muscle mass and fat mass).  By measuring your body’s muscle mass, fat mass, and bone mineral density, Body Composition Australia can determine your total body fat percentage, and changes in regional body composition. We also undertake specific measures to determine your risk of Type 2 Diabetes and heart disease. 

Dr Jarrod Meerkin was so lovely and made me feel very at ease.  The scan is non-invasive and you remain fully clothed the whole time.  The only thing that is uncomfortable about the whole thing is the amount of time you need to remain still!   Basically, all you need to do is lie down on a bench and the scanning device passes over your body.  The whole process takes about 5 minutes.  It’s that easy.

My Results:

Firstly, he told me that my bone density was excellent.  It is so good that it is actually off the charts for my age.  How you like them apples??

Then he moved onto the real reason I was there – to learn more about how much fat and muscles my body holds.

My overall body fat percentage was 27.6% (women should be between 21 – 33%).

Jarrod explained to me that the percentage number is not the most important factor here.  What is more important is the actual fat mass and lean muscle mass that your body holds.

I have 18.5kg of fat mass and 45.8kg of muscle mass (which he said was very good).

The total fat mass of females should weigh between 20kg – 25kg.  He explained that anyone who falls between 15kg and 20kg is doing very well.  Professional female athletes sit between 10kg and 15kg of fat mass therefore this is now my goal.

Body Part Breakdown:

Each arm: approx 1kg fat mass; 2.2kg muscle mass
Trunk: approx 6kg fat mass; 23kg muscle mass
Each leg: approx 4.5kg fat mass; 7.8kg muscle mass

So How Do I Get to My Goal?

The coolest part of the whole process was when Jarrod broke down all the information in order to develop a plan and helped me set an initial goal of getting to 23% body fat within 12 weeks.

Using the information from my results he calculated that my BMR is 1565 cal/day (the amount of calories your body needs to just maintain life).  To get to 23% I would need to be at a weight of 63.9 – 64.9kg.  To achieve this I will need to lose 4kg of fat (which would bring me to 14.5kg of body fat) and gain 1-2kg of muscle.  To achieve THIS I need to modify my diet and expend a MINIMUM of 1800 cals per week on exercise (too easy!).

Then he gave me my new calorie and macro requirements: 1900 cals per day; 166g protein; 143g of carbs and 74g fat (fat total is to be divided by 3 – 1/3 sat fats and 2/3 poly and monounsaturated fats).

I’m excited to punch all the numbers into Calorie King and develop a new meal plan!  Yay!  More food!

For those in Sydney, you can get it done in Pitt Street at http://www.bodycomposition.com.au/

Prices are here: http://www.bodycomposition.com.au/index.php?pageid=2 (I had the short consult)

Moral of the story – whether you are serious about making gains or loses, get this done. You will not regret it.

The scans are clearly VERY flattering... haha

 

 

Review: CLA

15 Jul

I have been using CLA now for about 4 weeks so now it’s time for my review!  I must also apologise for my lack of posting – life has been very busy lately!

What is CLA?

Conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) is a type of fatty acid that is found mainly in meat and dairy products.

Over 30 clinical studies have been conducted on CLA with the following possible benefits being found:

  • Increases metabolic rate
  • Decreases abdominal fat
  • Enhances muscle growth
  • Lowers cholesterol and triglycerides
  • Enhances immune system
  • Anti-Carcinogenic

One study that I found particularly interesting can be found here.  This study was conducted by a company that makes CLA so it’s important to remember the results can be skewed.

Another interesting article can be found here.

My Experience With CLA

In the four weeks I have been using CLA, whilst keeping up my clean eating and exercise regime, I have leaned out , particularly in the middle, more than ever before.   I take two capsules of CLA, 3 times a day, with meals.

My last measurement results showed that I had lost 3cm from my waist and 2cm from navel and I had only been using CLA for two weeks at that time!  I definitely attribute this to the CLA as my results have been fairly consistent and this loss was quite a big one for me.   I am also starting to feel my abs come through, which excites me greatly!

My new measurements and photos will be taken in about a weeks time so we will really be able to see the results then but I am feeling confident that I will have some more good results this month.

Muscle growth has been coming along nicely too but I can’t really say if that’s just a side effect from training hard. ;)

As for immune support, well, I caught a terrible respiratory infection so it hasn’t done so much for me in that area I’m afraid!

One thing to note though – this is not some miracle pill that will make your weight worries go away.  You MUST train hard and you MUST eat clean for this to work.  Otherwise you may as well just be taking capsules full of olive oil, it will simply do nothing.

Where to buy it?

Your best bet is to source it online.   Have a bit of a search for the best deal.

This is the brand I use:

Have you used CLA?  What’s your experience?

Review: Dietlicious

7 Jul

Recently I was contacted by Dietlicious who asked me if I would like to try their meal service.  My response?  Hell yes I would like to try your meal service!  So they VERY generously sent me a weeks worth of lunches and dinners to try.

What I love about Dietlicious is that it’s not a DIET.  There’s no heavy restrictions, just good quality real food that has been portion (very important!) and carb controlled.

Their meals taste absolutely delicious (hence their clever play on words – ‘dietlicious’) and very gourmet.  The philosophy they stick by is that you shouldn’t need to sacrifice taste to lose weight, you can still eat tasty (but healthy!) food – it’s just all about the portions in which you eat it!  I think this is very true for successful weight loss.

The meals are conveniently delivered straight to your doorstep and on top of frozen meals they also provide you with fresh salad ingredients and airlocked bags of fresh vegetables which you can add to any meal as you see fit.  Everything is labelled clearly and has heating instructions.  The ingredients and nutritional values are also clearly displayed.   You can read about what plans Dietlicious offers here.

Now, about the food!  My favourite meals were:

Chicken Cacciatore (373 calories)

Baby lamb fillets marinated in lemon, garlic + sumac, ready to grill (137 calories)

Honey Soy Chicken Noodles (429 calories)

I also had a couple of gorgeous curries that I can’t seem to find pictures of on the website, but trust me, they make a GOOD curry!  Even though the above were my favourites, I did thoroughly enjoy every meal they gave me.

The smaller serving sizes were a little hard to get used to at first (I’m used to a more generous serve of protein) but by the end of the week I was absolutely fine with it and even felt full at the end of each meal.  I have now carried over the smaller portion sizes into my own diet.

You can pick and choose the meals that you want delivered or you can just ask them to send you a variety, it’s up to you.   There’s also snack packs, fruit and breakfasts’ that you can add to your order.

Another thing that I found really cool is that they have husband/partner meals, larger serves of the same meal that you can order along with your meals so that your partner isn’t missing out and you get to eat the same thing at meal times!

Having tried another meal delivery service in the past, I can honestly say that this was far more superior in terms of taste, freshness, nutritional value and convenience.

So, if you are looking to lose weight yet still get to eat delicious and nutritious food, then Dietlicious is where it is at!  Give it a go.  You will not be disappointed.  :)

Update!  FREE snacks for your first order
Place an order for one week and receive a free snack pack. If you place a multiple week order you will receive free snacks for each week up to 5 weeks.
promo code: snacks

Amanda’s TV Debut!

3 Jun

I was lucky enough to be asked on Kerri-Anne this week to talk about weight loss and it’s correlation with happiness and positive self-image.

For those of you overseas and unsure on who Kerri-Anne is, she is a very popular morning show host and has been in the television industry for many many years.  Justin called her the Australian Oprah.  Not like that helped me.  It just made me more nervous!

I had never been on TV before so I was extremely nervous and a little tongue-tied but I would have been a fool to pass up the opportunity to talk about something I am so passionate about.  Plus, Kerri-Anne was so lovely that it was easier to relax.  A little.  ;)

The blog readers that have been with me since the beginning may recall my earlier posts on how I started to change the way I saw myself, improve my self-image and get motivated.  Here’s some links on the posts I have written on these topics:

Celebrities Are not Diet & Fitness Role Models

How to Get Motivated

The Follow On Effect

How Your Thought Patterns Impact Your Weight Loss

You Are What You Think

Goodbye Burgers, Goodbye Fries, Hello Health

Sometimes, when I feel unmotivated and wonder why I’m doing all of this, I just go back and read those posts and it sets me right back on the straight and narrow again.  It puts it all back into perspective that I am doing this for ME and if you don’t put yourself first then who else will?  :)

So, without further adieu, here’s my appearance on Kerri-Anne!

It’s Time to Disconnect

18 May

One of the hardest things that I have had to overcome during my lifestyle overhaul (and especially during Project Tighten Up) was to stop eating food for pleasure.  I loved food (I still do, but not as intensely) and whilst I didn’t eat extremely unhealthily, I still made taste the main focus of my meals.  A lot of people would think, “Duh, taste is what it is all about!” but when you embark on a mission to TOTALLY reshape your body, taste can no longer be the primary or only focus.

When we eat something yummy it sends little signals to the pleasure centres in our brain that says, “Om nom nom, this is GOOD” and we want more.  So we eat more.  And the whole time there is a little party going off in our mouths and our heads and it’s a glorious time.  Ever been to a party and there’s some amazing soft cheese there?  How hard is it to stop at one piece?  Bloody hard, if you’re a cheese-a-holic like me.  That’s because food is almost like a drug – you become addicted to the pleasure it provides.  Hence, fat happens.

So, how do we disconnect these crazy little signals?  It all comes down retraining the way you think about food.  At the moment, I think of food as fuel.  I figure out what I will need throughout the day to fuel my workouts and I plan my menu around that.  I know I will need low GI carbohydrates to give me slow release energy, lean protein to help my muscles grow and aid recovery and healthy fats to keep me full.  I can make these things tasty and therefore give my pleasure centres a lil sumpin sumpin by adding garlic, herbs, lemon and chilli without increasing the calorie content.

People ask me if I get bored eating the same thing every day.  I honestly don’t because I’m now so focused on food being fuel that it doesn’t bother me.  I make my lunches for the week on a Sunday and I will happily eat the same breakfast, lunch and snacks every day resting assured in that fact that by doing so I will be moving closer to my goal of taking over the world of achieving ultimate health and fitness.  And a bangin body to boot.

Now, this doesn’t mean that I don’t reward those pesky little pleasure centres every now and then because I certainly do and would probably die if I didn’t.  Okay, I probably won’t die but I would be a sad little bulge battler.  Once a week or so I’ll indulge and have a treat – that might mean a few pieces of chocolate or it may mean a delicious takeaway thai beef salad but I maintain the discipline not to go overboard and to keep it within a reasonable calorie limit.  Only on special occasions do I allow myself to indulge further and have something that I really want (like my favourite pub meal – steak, salad and chips) and maybe even a few glasses of wine.  But apart from these moments I stay strict on my food and alcohol intake because I don’t workout this hard to go and undo it by eating foods that offer me no nutritional value.  I’m going forwards people!  I do not want to stay at a stand-still or go backwards!

Think before you reach for that chocolate or that piece of pizza next time and ask yourself – why do I want to eat this?  Is it purely because it tastes good?  If so, you’re falling back into the old ”food for pleasure” cycle.  Have something that offers better nutritional value instead and treat your body like the temple it deserves to be.

Do you think of food as fuel or are you stuck in the “food for pleasure” cycle?

Recently Trialled Health Products!

3 May

I’ve been meaning to post about these for a while now but I have been time poor lately.  Okay, poor choice of words… I’ve not been time efficient.  Argh, alright alright, I’ve been outright lazy.  OKAY?!  Gosh you people, always on my back.  I joke, I joke.  ;-)

I’m going to make this really easy for you (and me) and just give you some bullet-pointed notes on each product.  Then, hopefully, you can make an educated decision on whether you would like to try them or not!  I’m hoping it’s a big fat YES because they are each equally wonderful!

Coconut Oil

  • Coconut oil has anti-microbial and anti-viral properties and is even being used to help treat AIDS patients
  • It is known to contain a unique form of saturated fat that helps prevent heart disease, stroke, and hardening of the arteries
  • It has been shown to improve digestion and strengthen the immune system
  • It is used as an energy booster and enhances the performance of athletes
  • It is great for weight loss as the fat in coconut oil is used to produce energy and speed up metabolism, rather than be stored as body fat
  • It is fantastic as a massage oil or body moisturiser
  • Start off taking a teaspoon daily and slowly work up to 3 – 4 tablespoons
  • You can add it to smoothies or cook / bake with it (I recently used it in a thai inspired soup and it was delicious!)

I buy my coconut oil products from Nature Pacific.

Vital Greens

Vital Greens sent me some samples to try recently and I think this is an amazing product!

  • It’s a great tasting green powder that you mix into your favourite milk, juice, smoothie or water
  • Contains 76 all-natural ingredients and is known as a ”super food”
  • It has all the benefits of spirulina, chlorella and other super foods in the blend as well as herbs, enzymes, probiotics and minerals
  • It’s free from gluten, allergens, additives, artificial flavours, dairy, wheat and other nasties
  • It helps detoxify, energise, alkalise, nourish and support your system

Why not visit their site and give it a go for yourself?

Whey Protein Isolate

I was so thankful to receive a sample of this product and will definitely be using this for the long-term, that’s for sure.  I’ve even got Justin on to it!  I’d been looking for a good quality whey protein isolate product for a little while and when I stumbled across Double Barrel Nutrition’s site I knew I had hit the jackpot.

  • Contains no added fillers or flavourings – just 100% high quality whey protein
  • I blend it into my morning smoothie and flavour it with a little honey
  • Whey protein is derived from milk during the process in which milk is turned into cheese
  • Protein is found naturally in every day dairy products, eggs, and soy, but the quality is not comparable to whey protein powder nor is it as easy to use
  • Studies have shown that whey protein is the best concentration to provide optimal performance
  • Whey protein contains BCAA’s which can be utilised directly by the muscle cells, so they are used at a high rate during exercise
  • These BCAA’s have shown in studies to have the greatest positive effect on muscle protein synthesis among all of the amino acids
  • Have a read of this site for lots of useful info on Whey Protein – www.wheyoflife.org

Do you use any of the above products or products that are similar?  What do you think of them?

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