Last weeks extreme bootcamp article certainly captured your attention, its great to get people thinking about fitness and health, creating their own opinions and finding their own way through all the confusion that surrounds the health market. You have seen just how hard you need to work to lose those rapid amounts of weight , yet it can be done, with a little bit of discipline and a lot of hard work. This week I am taking a slightly different approach, giving you the A-Z guide to weight loss . Full of tips ,tricks and information that will help you in your journey to combat the expanding waist line, to get you into that bikini , feeling good, feeling healthy and feeling proud!
Absolutely no more excuses! You are sick and tired of falling off the weight loss wagon, will this time it will be for real, for good and without the quick fix diet solution, are you ready!
Bragg amino acids. Many of us fail to get the essential amino acids into our bodies through our diets, by adding some bragg sauce into your cooking, you will ensure that you get them in, why are they important? Simple, they are the building blocks of the body and they will also help to boost your metabolism
Cardiovascular workouts. An essential part of any fitness plan. Your cardiovascular workouts are anything that gets your heart rate up such as walking, swimming, running ,cycling, dancing etc. They will burn calories, increase your fitness levels, help to firm up the body and help raise your metabolic rate.
D.O.M.S or delayed onset muscle soreness. This explains why you sometimes get pain 2 days after a tough workout. It is a symptom of muscle damage that occurs during your training ,the pain will increase if you work too hard too soon, so exercise caution when you are starting any training.
Epsom salts. One of the greatest and cheapest ways to alleviate pain caused by training. Pick up a tub in your local chemist, add the salts to a hot bath and jump in for 30 mins or so, this will prevent a lot of the stiffness and get you ready for your next session.
Fat loss. Each 1 pound of fat, as we saw last week, contains 3500 calories, thats what you need to defecit from your diet and training to lose fat, a lot of the loss can be fluid initially.
Garmin. If you are running or cycling as part of your training, I can’t recommend a garmin watch enough. Giving you information about your heart rate, speed,pace, calories and other feedback, it will help you not only to track your workouts, but also to work harder in your sessions, helping to burn more calories and get better results.
Heart rate. Your body can burn different fuel depending on how hard you are working ,certain heart rate zones will help you to burn more fat, depending on the type of training that you are doing. Heart rate monitors are on many machines, but often inaccurate, a heart rate monitor watch will be much more accurate and they start at 50euro upwards.
Interval training. One of the best ways to ensure that you are maximizing your training time . Intervals apply to any sport, consisting of 2 speeds. Fast and slow. As you get fitter you reduce the amount of time in the slow zone and increase the amount of time in the fast zone. Intervals help your body to burn more fat in less time ,they can be tough, but extremely effective.
Joints. We all have different genetic make ups. Your joint mobility affects the range of movement that you can achieve in an exercise. While some can do deep squats, other people can’t, the general rule of thumb is to go as far as you feel comfortable. If you find that you have joint problems, try to add some glucosamine into your diet ,these come in tablet and liquid form, just ensure that they come with condroitin , as this will help the absorbtion.
Ketosis. Ketosis is the key behind many quick fix diets on the market, where your protein levels are increased, triggering the body to use its own fat stores for fuel. Rapid weigh loss it will give you , but it will also give you bad breath, hard skin and possible kidney problems .
Love handles. Forget the hundreds of sit ups or heavy side bends, the only way to get rid of your love handles is a good diet, hard cardiovascular training and full body resistance training. This combination will yield the quickest and best results.
Mustard and spices. A great way to naturally increase your metabolic rate, spice up your food as hot as you can, using chillis, mustard and anything else that your like, a great way to help accelerate your weight loss
New sports. We live in a country surrounded by fantastic amenities, so why not get out there and try them. From rock climbing to surfing, hill walking to mountain biking, there is a sport out there for every one, so why not give it a go, you never know, you might just enjoy it.
Overtraining. If you push your body too hard, you can overtrain. Symptoms include: irritability , lack of appetite, insomnia and soreness after an easy session. If you overtrain you need to rest up and allow the body to recover, if you continue to get sore after an easy session then rest for longer until you don’t.
Personal trainers. We will help you to achieve your goals. Shop around to ensure you get a trainer that suits you best. They should advise you on nutrition and motivation , helping to set goals. There are hundreds across the country, using different methods, but working towards the same goal.Different trainers will have different bodies that they will train towards, producing a certain shape,ensure that it is the type that you want.
Quality. It is no use just doing a session for the fun of it. If your body is very tired, then take the session off. You are aiming to get quality sessions, not quantity. You should finish each session feeling that you have given your best in that session.
Rest. Often overlooked, your body needs rest!No matter how you are training to lose weight, you must ensure that you are taking at least one day per week to put your feet up and let your body recover. Rest will help you to avoid injury and actually improve the results that you get.
Spot reduction. Alas, I am afraid it can’t be done .You can’t just reduce one area of the body on its own, no matter what any machine or ad will tell you. The body needs to work as a whole, to get the best results , aim to do exercise for all the body parts, and the body will evenly tone where it needs to.
Tunes! You will train harder with music, your subconscious adapting to the beat of the song, so pick up a dance cd and pop it on your mp3 player, to help you get the best out of your workouts
Udo’s oil. One of my favourite products for overall health, Udo’s oil delivers a balanced 2:1:1 ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 and omega-9 Essential Fatty Acids (EFA's) which are essential for all round health in the body and the body can’t produce them . They also come in tablet form, which can be easier to take .
Vibro plates. Quite a popular weight loss method, I must say I have never been a great fan of it. For rehabilitation maybe, but for weight loss and getting results I feel that there are certainly better ways. If you are going that road, ensure that you get good instruction and at the slightest sign of back pain stop straight away.
Walking. As regular readers will know, I am a huge fan of walking to get results. Its free, accessible and if done properly will yield results. Aim to walk at 4 miles per hour.
Xenadrine. One of the most popular fat burners on the market, avoid at all costs. It will send your heart rate through the roof, increase your thirst and can cause headaches. Leave it on the shelf!
Your friends. If your planning on getting the best results, ensure to surround yourself with positive people. Negative people will drag you down and restrict your progress,making it harder for you to lose weight and get your results, there are enough obstacles in your way so don’t make this one of them
Zumba. This is currently one of the biggest trends in global fitness. HIghly recommended, its a fun, healthy way to get fit and gets the cardiovascular system working hard. Just ensure that you are also making changes to your diet too, to help you get the best results.
The a-z of weight loss, a real , no nonsense guide to helping you get the best results, if you even take one of the points away , you will be on the right track to getting the best results of your life!
