Awesomefication - building strength takes guts!

So last week one of our trainers set a daily activity challenge to boost our activity outside of the training sessions This led to me going for walks at lunch time and generally trying to get up and away from my desk throughout the day at work. You can find out more in a wee video I recorded: I kept everything else that I have been doing the same. Same macros, same amount of training (3x1 hour sessions of strength & conditioning).   I had felt like my progress had slowed over the last 2-3 weeks. So I was more than chuffed when I took my measurements this morning. Total inch loss = 4.5 inches Weight loss = 2lbs So what did I learn last week?! 1. If things aren't progressing go back to basics Ask myself if I am getting all of the basics right. Am I hitting my macros? Am I eating a good variety of fruit and veg? Am I applying myself and putting effort in at training? Am I moving around enough throughout the day? Am I being c...

What makes them x-rated? I hear you say! Well, one, they look downright sexy. And two, the noises you make when you eat it will be x-rated ;) Surfing around on Pinterest looking for some new breakfast recipes to try I came across a few variations of baked eggs. Some are called Turkish eggs, others use Moroccan spice mixes to add extra depth of flavour. The dish is really versatile so you can adapt the flavours to suit what you fancy. I made mine a spicy breakfast version which you could easily make for dinner as well. Rich and moreish  it is packed full of protein, low on calories, filling, and super tasty. It's a winner all round. This is my recipe for 2 portions. Bear in mind that you can chop and change ingredients for what you have available: 3 muscle food chicken chilli sausages  Handful frozen onion Handful frozen peppers Half can haricot beans Carton of passata Half tsp frozen chopped garlic Tsp paprika Tsp Sriracha (use chilli or chilli...

I luuuurvve pizza! Up until a few months ago we used to order a pizza from the takeaway at least once a week. Garlic bread mozzarella stuffed crust, bbq sauce, pepperoni, chicken, crispy bacon, onions, pepper, extra cheese ... my mouth is watering just thinking about it. Needless to say it was one of the weekend rituals I ditched when I started to make changes to my nutrition and fitness regimen, and I missed it like crazy. But at 2000 kcals a pizza it was basically a no go area and I wasn't willing to test my self restraint at stopping after a single slice! So elimination was the only option. However, I have started experimenting and by making my own at home with a few tweaks, pizza is back on the menu. It can be a healthy option that feels indulgent. I now have a new Saturday night ritual, coming up with new topping combinations! Check out the video and method below for more info: For the base I used Musclefood's high protein gluten free pizza bases (300 kcal...

So I check in with my nutrition coach Simon every week. I weigh and measure myself, take outputs from my fitness pal to send onto him, and let him know what is and isn't going well. He keeps a eye on how my nutrition is moving along and will advise on any adjustments he thinks I need to make, as well as answer any of my questions. As the weeks are moving along I can see that this routine is as much for my benefit as it is his. It gives me a window to ponder, recognise and record my progress. On average I lose around a pound to a pound and a half a week. Some folks might think that's not much, however, that pound and a half signifies so much more than just the weight on the scale. Anyone who has done a diet or slimming club where a weekly weigh in is involved will know that they generally measure your progress on the scale alone. In my experience I would lose a few pounds one week, zero the next, put on, lose a few... you get the idea. No consistency, up and down like a yo-yo....

My legs are aching and wobbly, my arms are rebelling each time I lift them. But I am revelling in the comforting ache knowing that I am sore because I worked hard at training last night . I've missed that feeling. 5 years ago I had a great breakthrough in my weight loss and fitness regime. I was moseying along nicely, loving life. I had shifted over 4 stones in weight, I had a new job, I was loving my new found passion for exercise and good food. Everything was going great! Better than great, life was awesome! Then...KABLAM!  Life totally sucker-punched me in the guts. I fell pregnant and unfortunately it resulted in a miscarriage. Needless to say I was distraught and felt completely lost for a long time afterwards. When it happened I was the healthiest and fittest I had ever been. The pregnancy was a surprise, and at the time I felt like it was the most amazing gift that my husband and I had ever been given. When I miscarried I felt like my body had just let me down. I bla...

This week I have been on a bit of a high.  I've been walking around work with a perma-smile, which seems to have prompted some strange looks and questions from colleagues. Someone asked me the other day what I was smiling about, and I didn't actually know why.  I just felt good. Nothing out of the ordinary has happened to prompt such a good mood, just the same old really.  The only thing I can put it down to is exercise. So, as my mind often does once it has an idea, I felt the need to go and garner some knowledge on the topic and do some reading on the effect exercise has on the brain.  It made some very interesting reading (interesting to me at least! If you are bored easily you may want to switch off .... now!) Memory Did you know that exercise can actually help improve your memory?  Apparently, it triggers the creation of new neurons in the hippocampus (get me with my big words!), which is the brains centre for learning and memory.  Not only does...

To weigh or not to weigh? That's the question I am asking myself these days. I'm talking food by the way, not my body weight (we'll get to that later in the week!) For a while now I have been in the habit of reading the nutritional values on packets for the calorie and fat content. I've become aware that I've turned into one of those women you see in the supermarket who reads the packet of every item she picks up, one of those women I used to spot, feel sorry for them then call them a saddo for being so consumed with what they were eating. How times have changed, I'm like a walking-talking calorie content reference book nowadays. In recent weeks, following the nutritional information provided by the Fight Camp trainers, I have stopped counting calories and weighing out my portions. It's a surprisingly hard habit to break. It goes against everything I have programmed myself to do. I now go with how much noise my stomach is making and stop eating once it shuts...

I'm not talking about the perfume, I'm talking about the obsession I have with my lifestyle of healthy eating and exercise. I'm not ashamed to admit that it has become an absolute obsession , and one of necessity. If someone asks me then i'll quite happily talk about my exercise regime, what's for dinner, food shopping, cooking, magazine articles, anything until I notice them getting bored and I get the hint that i've went too far yet again! All of the changes I have made and live by these days have consumed me, and I can't see any way around it. If you are reading this and you know me, no doubt you have been subjected to my incessant chatter on the topic at some point. I'm not apologising, just want to say thanks for listening and putting up with me! If you make a major change in your life, commit to it, set yourself a goal, find that you love it and it makes you feel great, how can you avoid becoming obsessed with it. If it becomes something that ...

Exercise! Exercise! Exercise! I think it's no secret from everything I've posted so far that I love my exercise these d ays. If it was classed as a drug, I'd be an addict! Friends and colleagues will agree that I am completely obsessed with it. A very different story from this time last year, actually, ever! I used to do the occasional Body Pump class, go out for a r ide on the mountain bike every now and then, force myself to go to the gym or go for the odd walk on a Sunday morning, but that was about the extent of it, and that was only when i was on a fitness kick. That would last a couple of weeks and then I would go back to my slovenly ways. Sara 7 months ago! (";) hehe But something gradually changed. I started trying various types of exercise, from working with my trainer, to trying an assortment of classes. From doing this I found things that I enjoy and challenge me (or causes me pain! Apparently, I'm a bit of a masochist!) In finding something that ...

What is it that drives you to keep going? How do you do it? Again, these are questions that people have been asking me. Believe me, there's been more than a few occasions when I have felt like jacking in my efforts to get fit and lose weight. There are days when I can't b e bothered and quite frankly, I cannot face going to the gym or to a class. Days when I don't want to get out of bed half an hour early so that I can get a quick workout in before I go to work. There are nights when I don't want to have to think about what I'm going to be eating the next day. Days when I've got PMS or work is getting to me and all I want to do is go home and bury my face in a big dirty bowl of pasta. But I make myself do what I need to. I have found that if I didn't shift my lazy butt and get on with it, I regretted it afterwards, not a good feeling! I usually have a quick word with myself or a little pep talk, reminding me how good I will feel once I actually get...