Hopefully by now you have all started some sort of fitness programme and you are well on your way to being a fitter and healthier you!
As we said in our last article commitment is the key to your own success and that means committing to other things outside of your exercise regime. Eating smarter and exercising must be major parts of your plan. Your eating plan should be about being smarter about your nutritional choices and not totally eliminating any one particular food group.
If you have been a little careless during the winter months now is the time to get back on track. Your aim should be to eat smaller portions at shorter intervals throughout the day, say every three hours. This proves to be helpful in improving your metabolism and allowing your body to burn more calories even when you’re resting. You should also cut down the high fat food and keep this to a minimum.
As much as we are all Spring cleaning at the minute you should look at making changes to your kitchen by stocking it with seasonal fruits, vegetables, grains and good quality meats. Your meals should contain more of raw foods, fruits, nuts, seeds and sprouted whole grains. Fibrous fruits like blackberries, strawberry, can satisfy you cravings for sweets. They help reduce cholesterol and improve digestion. These foods can help with weight loss as they make you feel fuller faster.
Dehydration can lead to lack of energy, mood changes and loss of concentration. This is made worse if you are training and working out where you are losing fluid through sweat. Aim to increase your fluid intake to 1.5-2 litres of water a day. Be careful what you select to drink. Some of the diet drinks can have a lot of hidden calories that you don’t want. Aim to drink semi skimmed milk and replace your tea with green tea.
When it comes to exercising try and add as much variety into your schedule as possible. If you have a young son, daughter, niece or nephew they can be fantastic motivators to kick start your fitness regime. Plan activities with them for a weekend or a couple of evenings during the week. Swimming, playing a game of football, mountain biking are all fun ways of getting fit and the reality is they will probably have more energy than you so they will push you to your limits. They have fun and you get a great workout, everyone is a winner!
Try a new fitness class or programme and add this into your weekly schedule. Take a friend with you and make a deal that you will both commit to getting each other there. There will be some days you will feel de-motivated and not want to go but if you have someone there to push you on you are more likely to succeed.
Make these simple changes now and your summer fitness will be well on track and you can enjoy an active summer in the sun…….we hope!
PS! Our new Pilates classes start next week. We have two classes @ week,one morning class on a Tuesday at 7:15am and one on a Thursday evening at 7:30pm.
Classes are run by a fully qualified instructor and classes are kept small to ensure everyone gets the attention they need.
Book your place now as places are filling up. We also have a deal if you want to attend the two classes. Each course lasts for 6 weeks and costs €60. If youwant to attend both the Tuesday and Thursday it will be €100 for the two classes.
Get in touch today!!
Michael Black
Personal Trainer &
Sports Coach
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