Fit Freedom Blog
Welcome to the Fit Freedom Blog. Here you can keep up with news of our latest workshops and our tips and advice to help you with your own fitness goals.
A snapshot of my eating plan
Don't hold back - if it's healthy!
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Exercise alone won't do it
Have some healthy treats. Scallops, anyone?
I thought it might help some of you to get your eating habits back on track if I shared my typical food plan for a week. This is not a plan for everyone, though, it’s created for me and my goals, but you may get some snack ideas from it.
Also, don't forget that eating plans change, as do exercise programmes, depending on what you're aiming to achieve. I've just started training for the British Natural Bodybuilding Federation (BNBF) competition on 24th June 2012, so my plan is specific to me and specific to this goal.
After another month or so, I'll change my training programme and also my food intake, so I'll update you then!
As you'll see from my plan, I still enjoy life - and wine and pizza! I've been living like this for years so I hope that I'm living proof that you, too, can achieve sustainable fat loss. I hope this inspires you, ladies...
Livia’s eating plan* - It’s not that scary!
My key rules:
• I think of these as meals, but don't follow the typical breakfast, lunch and dinner schedule - I eat when I need to
• I avoid fat and sauces so I bake and steam meat and veg (I call it ‘eating clean’)
• I avoid wheat where possible (except for the muffins!)
• Drink water, drink water, drink water
MONDAY
Porridge and egg white omelette with 1 yolk & a cafe latte
Protein shake
Wrap with chicken, pesto, spinach and hummus
Melon juice 10 mins before training
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Turkey rice and salad
Muffin and cup of tea plus a few nuts
Roast lamb, roast potatoes, parsnips and steamed veg
TUESDAY
Porridge and egg white omelette with 1 yolk & a cafe latte
Chicken breast and broccoli
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Coffee, chicken and spinach
Chicken hummus salad and sweet potatoes
Protein shake
WEDNESDAY
Greek yogurt, muesli and chopped banana with toasted gluten free roll and coffee with milk
Chicken green veg carrots and cucumber
Melon juice 10 mins before training
TRAINING
Pro Recover protein shake
Chicken and vegetables
Large milky coffee taramasalata, pitta bread and broccoli
Pizza Express:1 large glass of merlot, bowl of olives & 1 regular Florentine pizza
THURSDAY
Soya yogurt, muesli, gluten free toast and soya milk coffee
Chicken, spinach and curly kale
Croissant and cafe latte
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Chicken spinach and curly kale
Salmon and green veg
FRIDAY
Porridge and egg white omelette (1 yolk) and milky coffee
Salmon, curly kale and 35-50g brown rice
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Chicken, broccoli and brown rice
Milky coffee
Salmon and spinach pasta
Bowl of chilli con carne with dollop of Greek yogurt
SATURDAY
Porridge and egg white omelette (1 yolk) and milky coffee
Chicken and veg
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Chicken and veg
Tatziki, potatoes and chicken
Roast pork and crackling, apple sauce and veg roast parsnips and potatoes
Fruit and nut choccy bar
SUNDAY
Banana
DOG WALK
White coffee, one piece of brown toast with butter 2 fried eggs, baked tomatoes & 2 slices of bacon
Double espresso followed by an apple
TRAINING
Pro Recover shake
Salmon and green beans with 1 table spoon of gnocchi bacon sauce
DOG WALK
Salmon with salad feta cheese and 2 olives
Pitta, taramasalata and spinach plus cup of tea
* PLEASE NOTE
This is my plan that works for me when I’m training for something specific. If you want a food plan created for your goals, contact me or call on 07931 771 457
New Year, New You… Or maybe not!
Well, hopefully you survived the temptations of Christmas and have settled into the motions of 2012. So many people commit to New Year’s resolutions and there’s real pressure to have more than one!
But I do suggest that if you’re going to put pressure on yourself, don’t do everything at the same time. Your goals need to be realistic and sustainable; there’s no point giving up everything that makes you happy at the same time! What’s the point of life, if you do?!
I suggest you keep on track with what you’ve been doing, but perhaps try and improve on one particular area. Once you see the benefits and improvements, you’ll probably pick something else to improve on and so the ball keeps rolling – you’ll be perfect by the end of the year!
So, to pick up some of the tips I gave you at Christmas, just put these 5 into 2012, fit them into your schedule and you’ll reap the rewards:
1. Keep moving and lose weight
Small changes in your daily routine can significantly increase the calories burnt throughout the day. Consider cycling to work, using stairs instead of the lift, taking the dog on long walks, being more active with the family over the weekends… It’s all doable. You just need to do it!
2. Don’t blame your metabolism!
Seriously look at the amount of food you are actually consuming throughout the day – if you’re eating more than your body needs, the excess is stored as fat. Most of us under estimate what we eat, so why not keep a diary? And if you finish the kid’s food off their plates, write it down! :o).
3. Exercise regularly
Find something you enjoy doing and doing it regularly. Combine it with a weight training programme and when you see the results, you’ll find you look forward to your sessions! Don’t forget, too, that regular exercise goes on burning fat even when you sleep... Now that’s tempting…!
4. Eat regularly and don’t skip meals
It can be easy to ignore the rumbling of the tummy and hunger pangs when rushing around with work and kids. But try not to. You’re not helping yourself. Your body needs energy and if you feed it a little and often, you’ll find your pangs are less and your energy levels are more stable.
5. Protein Helps!
Eggs, meat, fish, beans and lentils are all very high in protein. As long as you don’t cook them in breadcrumbs, batter or oil (!), they’ll help to stave off your hunger pangs, so add some chicken or fish to your salad; some beans or lentils to your soups or stews and you’ll really see the difference.
Let me know how you get on – or if you’ve got any tips you could share with us!
Top Tips for getting through Christmas!
If you're tempted, make sure you count them!
Go for protein-rich canapes
A hearty bowl of soup!
Go out and about when you can
Everything in moderation!
1. Weight train and exercise regularly
Even if you can't manage to keep up your full regime through the Christmas period, try to keep active over the holiday season with walks, games with the kids and dog and even ice skating! As you know, regular exercise means your body will continue to burn fat whilst you're sleeping.
2. Eat regularly
Don't fall into the trap of 3 huge meals per day! Keep your meals small and consistent, eating every 2-3 hours.
3. Don’t skip meals
With so much temptation around you this season, you won't be able to refuse if you're hungry! Keep your meals regular.
4. Cut down on alcohol consumption
These excess calories will get stored as fat - you know this! If you're drinking socially, have a glass of water after each drink and always eat something with your drink.
5 Use smaller plates
It so easy to pile on the food at this time of year! So control your desires with a smaller plate... :o)
6. Count your calories
Although this is a discipline many don't enjoy, it's an eye opener. You really learn what yopu're eating; what keeps you full and what result in 'empty' caloried, making you snack again soon after. It's a good gauge to see what you keep reaching for!
7. Soups will keep you fuller for longer
Soups are fabulous at this time of year! Especially if they're homemade... warming, healthy, and filling, you know you're getting your 5-a-day! Some suggestions:
Tomato Soup: Fry some chopped onion in some olive oil until the onion is soft, add a tin of tomatoes and some stock and heat through . Add a smidge of salt and pepper and blitz in a processor until smooth - that's it!
Spicy Spinach Soup: Fry some chopped onion in some olive oil until soft and add a bag of fresh (or frozen) spinach with salt and pepper. Add cayenne or chilli pepper and some cumin to taste and when spinach has wilted, blitz in a processor - that's it!
8. Eat your Protein!
With so much pastry, bread, potatoes and other carbs around at this time of year, it's often easy to grab something stodgy. But if you're eating processed carbs (white bread and pastry), these won't keep your hanger pangs at bay as well as protein does. So if you include eggs, any meat, fish, beans or lentils in your meals, you'll stave off your hunger for longer.
9. Low fat dairy will help you store less fat
Few of us can survive this time of year without cheese and cream (and custard)! So simply switch to low fat versions and you'll be helping yourself!
10. The wider the choice of food, the more you eat
We're always so worried we're missing out, aren't we?! We need to try everything! Hhhmmm... Actually, you don't 'need' to... Avoid buffet-style eating and canapes as much as possible this season, as they're very deceiving! You think it's only a couple of mouthfuls, but 20 canapes in and you've had a full blown steak and kidney pie all to yourself! Just think which options would be best for you, before you accept.
Happy Christmas, Ladies!
Livia x
Fit Freedom at the Business Mums Summit 2011
Fitfreedom would like to thank Business Mums Summit for a fantastic networking day on Monday 10th October 2011. The venue was ideal and the atmosphere enthused many a dynamic lady to promote her business further into the future.
The key note speakers delivered informative speeches on how they grew their businesses from scratch and hopefully inspired other ladies to follow in their brave footsteps. I know that I felt positive after listening to their words of wisdom.
We were pleased to see some of our clients there as well as welcome new visitors to our stand, keen to learn more about fat loss and the feedback was very positive. It's all possible, ladies!
We hope you enjoyed our water bottles in your goody bags and for those of you that entered the prize draw, we're pleased to announce that the winner is Eleanor Beeton!
Eleanor will hear from Gay Richardson at Style me Confident very shortly, so she can organise her mini colour session and get her free colour chart and pashmina. Have fun, Eleanor!
Having the chance to meet other Mums out in there business world, I am greatly inspired to go against the flow of the media, suggesting doom and gloom every where, and join forces with like minded women to take the positives from the day and plunge that enthusiasm into their businesses!
As a result, FitFreedom is partnering with nutritionist Nicola Langdon to host a fun evening where you can learn more about the best methods of fat loss for women. Join us on 2nd December2011 at MyHotel, Brighton, bring your friends and let me know how many of you are coming!
It'll be fun!
Thanks to you all for the inspiration and I look forward to seeing you on the 2nd December
Livia
x
Liv’s Top Tips: Shape your Body and Keep it that way this Winter
It's cosy time!
Go for a nice, bracing walk
Salads can be hot and tasty
Darkness and cold looms over the country and our enthusiasm for exercise dwindles as we wrap our bodies up in cosy clothing and hide our figures from the hallway mirrors!
But even in winter we have to keep the long term approach to losing our baby bellies and regaining our oh-so-wanted figures.... Keep up the eating plans and regular exercise – don’t waste all your efforts!
My philosophy is simple – Understand the training methods to arrive at the results. So bear a few things in mind over Christmas:
1. Fight cellulite with sensible eating and regular systematic training – nothing overly dramatic!
2. Plan ahead and schedule your training sessions around kids’ holidays and Christmas events
3. Do not starve yourself or attempt any kind of low calorie or fad diet. Losing weight on a diet involves losing fat water and lean tissue - a major contributor to the slowing down of your metabolism. When you start eating normally again you will end up gaining MORE fat than before the diet!
4. Instead, eat a light snack or meal every two to three hours. Eating frequently speeds up your metabolism; your body will burn fat more efficiently and store less
5. Eat a little bit of everything that you enjoy. Keep it healthy, selecting the foods that you eat carefully. Cutting out the food and drinks that you love is likely to lead to bingeing within a few days or weeks. So enjoy the mince pies and desserts and by planning ahead, you can eat well and still keep in shape over Christmas
6. Do not cut out carbs, especially over winter. Just eat reasonable portions and vary the type and amount of carbohydrates that you eat. Avoid massive plates of pasta – instead try half a plate of vegetables /salad and then half pasta or rice... Go easy on the sauces!
7. Weight train regularly to decrease body fat and define your figure – you won’t become too muscular! Weight training increases your metabolism and ensures body fat is burnt - even when you’re not exercising
8. Keep your cardio at a reasonably low intensity; ideally longer workouts at a lower heart rate. Invest in a second hand exercise bike, place it in front of the TV and use it every couple of days over the festive period
9. High intensity fitness training is not a viable weight loss tool – most gym goers cannot sustain the frequency and intensity of these workouts needed to lose weight long term. I recommend one session every 10 days
10. For the best figure shaping results, do your cardio and weight training on separate days
11. Avoid crowded gym classes where instructors cannot monitor your progress or correct your body alignment when exercising. Injuries cause most gym goers to cease exercising, which is exactly what you do not want to do.
12. Don’t compare your body to other women’! Every one of us has a different shape and metabolism so work within your own limits and always be realistic!
13. Remember that your fat took a while to build up and it will take a while to lose it. There are no quick fixes. Aim at 1 – 3 years to regain your pre pregnancy figure as it entirely depends on your genetics, how large your babies were, how your skin survived the stretch and how it has reshaped around your abdomen, whether you had a c-section or natural birth and how resilient your skin is now you are slightly older. Persevere and you will reap the rewards. I promise!
Slow weight loss and gradual body shaping will not happen overnight. So don’t let it all go just because it’s dark outside! Remember – regular workouts are essential, eat healthily and frequently.
Be patient. Be vigilant. Be healthy. Be positive. Be gorgeous. Be yourself.
Livia holds regular seminars to guide and advise ladies on the best approach for body shaping and fat loss. For details on her next seminar, or for more information on fat loss and body shaping programmes, visit the FitFreedom Facebook page
First published in ABC Winter 2011