Go for blue!!!!

Ever wonder why McDonald’s colour scheme is yellow and red?

We are naturally drawn to red, yellow and orange in our dining area or restaurants because psychologically it stimulates us to want to eat — and eat a lot. Studies show if you put your food on blue plates it can cause you to eat less.

I feel like a fraud

Over the last few months I have blogged about gym, weight loss and healthy eating but yet I haven’t been following my own advice. I have only gone to gym once or twice a week, always having a sneaky sweet or packet of chips and then trying to appear to you all that sticking to this healthy lifestyle is easy.

I have felt so guilty about it that I’ve even stopped posting updates as often.

I think my first step to getting back on track is to admit my mistakes, come clean about my bad habits and then start taking steps back in the right direction.

Looking in to mirror this morning I could see how the past few months had changed my body already. I hadn’t got to my goal weight yet but I was still looking good and now I feel fat and frumpy. Tonight I went to my usual spinning class but pushed myself back into action.

It’s going to take one step at a time to get back on track but im not throwing all my hard work down the drain so I am going to make sure I get back to the motivated person I was a few months ago.

It’s tough love time!!!

Every child tries to avoid eating vegetable or brushing their teeth even though they get told day in and day out that these things are good for them and keep them strong and healthy.

Let’s face it we are just as stubborn! Every day we tell ourselves we need to eat healthy and exercise, but we seem to try avoiding it like a plague, but once we are in the routine of going to the gym our going for the walk around the block after work and you start feeling great there is usually no stopping you.

So while you wait to get into a routine and waiting for all those lovely endorphins to start motivating you and making you feel good you need a bit of tough love!

I have had to give myself a little of it in the last few weeks as my motivation went right out the window but now with a little tough love I seem to be getting back into the routine of it all.

A simple yet YUMMY snack!

I have been on the search for a quick and easy snack to take to work that I could nibble on in the afternoon. I was taking a few small things but noticed that I was always looking for more. Not really a huge meal but little things that I could snack on over a longer period of time.

SNAP PEAS AND HUMMUS is the answer!

It’s really simple, and I promise you its really tasty! I can’t believe how much flavour they have when you put them together.

It’s also so much better for you then the chips and chocolates we all tent to sneak in at least once a week.

Getting back on track

This year has started off very bumpy, my personal trainer moved back to Brazil and since then I have found it hard to get back into the swing of things. I also went home for a few weeks in February and found myself eating out every lunch and dinner. Now trying to eat right again is proving to be very difficult.

I have tried everything to get back into it but nothing seems to work. I have gone from going to gym every day to maybe twice a week.

Does anyone have any suggestions that would help me get back on track?

Sunny South Africa

So I’m just over half way through my holiday in SA and loving it. I’ve manage to skip all the snow inLondonand soaking up the sun here.

With all the visits to friends and amazing restaurants I am eating a little to much so decided to pop into the gym for a good workout to get the blood flowing. I popped into the Virgin Active and joined a Retro Aerobics class. Wow, so much fun! They have put together an aerobics class collaborated with 70’s and 80’s music and some very funky old school dance moves.

If you can get yourself to one of there classes it’s a must.

Walk the line…

I know I can’t speak for the English but I’m sure most South Africans can agree that one of the hard things about living in London is the lack of wide open spaces. Yes I know there are a lot of parks and commons to take a stroll in but sometimes it would be nice to see a horizon in the distance and not the next sky rise building.

I have recently learnt that there are thousands of miles of former railway lines open to the public, offering traffic-free, family-friendly routes.

The air is crisp and the only sound is birdsong or perhaps a stream running alongside the path. The pleasure of stretching your legs and enjoying the fresh air is even sweeter because there are no cars around, no large buildings blocking your view.

There are plenty of historical interests to. Look out for the signs along the way explaining the history of the line and the area.

The closest route in London is the Parkland Walk, London

A four-mile treelined route known as the Parkland Walk. The route is mostly flat but there are a couple of slopes due to tunnel closures. It can be muddy.

It is London’s longest Local Nature Reserve, with more than 2,000 wild flower species recorded, as well as hedgehogs, foxes and the occasional muntjac. It is also part of the Better Haringey Walking Trail, a 12-mile circular walk around the borough of Haringey.

You can access the walk at the following points:

• Finsbury Park, N4
• Oxford Road, N4
• Florence Road, N4
• Lancaster Road, N4
• Stapleton Hall Road, N4
• Blythwood Road, N4
• Crouch End Hill, N8
• Crescent Road, N8
• Holmesdale Road, N6
• Cranley Gardens, N10
• Muswell Hill Road underpass, N10
• St James’ Lane, N10
• Muswell Hill Road, N10

Visit: tinyurl.com/railwayparklandwalk

What do I need?

• You don’t need any special equipment– just comfortable shoes or boots.
• Most railway line walks are easy to navigate, so you won’t always need a map. But do consider taking an Ordnance Survey or Sustrans map if you think you may need help finding the start of the route, or to help you work out where the nearest café, or other destination, might be.
• Take a bottle of water with you. If you’re going on a longer walk, you may also want a snack such as a banana or some sandwiches.
• Choose a rucksack with padded straps, which is easier to carry than a carrier bag or handbag.
• Wear layers that you can take off if you get too warm, and take a hat and gloves and a waterproof jacket just in case.

Get your diet on track.

I hope by now everyone has started the 2012 fitness plan and is well on their way to a healthy year. In order to reach your goals faster and have the energy to keep active and not be tempted to eat all those naughty foods you also need to make sure your diet is on the right track

I’m sure you can see how pointless it would be if you went to the gym and let’s say burnt 500 calories in a spin class but then went and had a lunch at KFC with the average meal being about 1300 calories.

The key to my success has been to educate myself in what my body needs and how much of it to give it. Your diet should not only be about how many calories you are eating but are you giving your body the nutrition and energy it needs. A slice of cracker bread may be low in calories but it’s not giving your body any nutrition. Swap that for a handful of nuts and a cup of green tea and you will have more energy and be filler for longer.

I’m currently on a 1400 calorie diet; I try eating 500cal for breakfast, then a 1oocal mid-morning snack;. 400cal for lunch with another 100cl snack in the afternoon and then 300cals for dinner. If I’m still a little hungry before I go to bed I have another 100cal snack.

Take some time to put together a weekly eating plan for yourself, this will help you to eat healthy and keep you on track.

I’ve added one of my eating plans below to give you some guidelines to how I do it.

Winter munchies

As we creep more and more into the winter months I’m finding it harder and harder to stay on track with my healthy eating. To stick to the healthy meals is not so tough, I just find myself wanting to snack a lot more between meals. A lot of the time I am snacking on the wrong things.

I assume with winter comes the need for your body to keep itself warm, this may mean that it needs more energy than it did in the summer months, more warm meals.

I’m going to take some time and redo my eating plan to suit a more winter menu, once this is done ill post it so you all can see, and keep you all posting on if its helping with the snacking problems!

Nutrition

As most of you have probably been told nutrition is a very important part of anyone’s diet but if you want to be fit and HEALTHY nutrition has to play a major part in yours.

There is a huge difference between eating healthy and just eating things that are low in calories and fat. A slice of cracker bread for lunch might help you keep the weight off but it has no nutritional value to your body. If you’re going to put all the effort in trying to mould your body into a slimmer, healthier you why not take the time to eat the right things. Not only will this help with your weight loss goals it will give you the energy
to work harder at gym and keep you healthy especially through these flue ridden winter months.

 

I have put together a three week eating plan for myself, it keeps my meals healthy and fun. Because I rotate on a three week cycle I never get board of my diet. I also calculate the calorie content of every meal so I know how many calories I eat daily which has been great for my weight loss goals.

 

I have put mine together based on a 1400cal diet, I’m also a veggie so had to take that into account. Ill post my eating plan up this week so you can get an idea and I’ll share all my favourite websites for great meal ideas.