For imjustthemaid: Some Health and Fitness motivation. | Step Talk

I'll be 43 in June. I started a health and fitness programme 16 months ago and I did it the HARD way. Eating right and exercising a lot. The older one gets, the harder it gets to shift those extra pounds and it has taken me this long to shed 30 Pounds. I have another 10 to go.

One thing that really struck me is that when trying to reduce one's size, 80% of it is what we put in our mouths and only 20% of it is exercise, so eating is key.

Here are a few tips:

Sustainability:

Whatever programme you choose to follow IT MUST BE SUSTAINABLE. If you are depriving yourself and not eating enough, YOU WILL FAIL. Make sure you eat enough. Your body will love you for it. It's all about choices.

A health and fitness programme should be viewed as an EATING MORE plan. Whith the correct advice and choices, you will find that your are actually EATING MORE of the good stuff. One should never feel deprived or hungry, it is not necessary, there are so many healthy food alternatives that are good for mind, body and soul and keep you feeling satisfied and your blood sugar levels in check. (This is why one should never cut any food group out of a healthy diet.)

When embarking on any health and fitness programme planning is key. Planning your shopping, taking time to plan your meals, taking the time to pre-pack your meals if you have to eat on the go and making the right choices. Failing to plan is planning to fail.

Eating:

Try and eat 5 small meals a day. (For me this is every two and a half hours).

Have protein with each of your main meals.

A note on carbs: All vegetables are Carbs, but not all vegetables are starch. Many of us confuse eating too much STARCH with eating too much carbs. I prefer to use the word "STARCH".

Do not avoid starch, your body needs it to regulate blood sugar levels. Starch also promotes that "feel good" feeling and your "mood" needs them too. Just moderate the portions and choose wholewheat or "brown" over white. Try and eat starches that are wheat-free like Buckwheat pasta, brown rice, sweet potato instead of normal potato, quinoe, Rye Bread, etc.

Do not eat any starch after 16h00.

Nothing less than five different fruit and veggies daily. Choose: green veggies, citrus, berries, apples and pears. Only a maximum of 3 bananas a week.

Eggs are fine, yes, even the yolk, but - if you have two eggs, only have one of the yolks. Limit eggs to six a week.

Eat lots of oily fish like, salmon, sardines, etc. (Note: naturally oily fish, not fish with oil added to it.)

Try and limit caffeine, choose caffeine free options rather.

Drink lots and lots of water.

Avoid alcohol.

Cooking:

My favourite appliance in my kitchen is my food steamer.

Steam or grill instead of frying meats.

Steam instead of boiling your veggies.

Boil your eggs instead of frying them.

Use fat free maynonnaise instead of butter.

Use herbs and spices instead of salt.

Use COLD PRESSED olive oil on your salad and always add vinegar as it breaks down the oil.

Any oil that is heated turns into a BAD FAT, even if it is olive oil or avocado oil. The heating process changes the properties of the oil. Try and use a dash of spray and cook as an alternative and only if frying is absolutely necessary.

Exercise:

Try and exercise at least 6 times a week.

Alternate exercise:

Day 1: Lower body weight training
Day 2: Cardio (High Intensity Interval Training)
Day 3: Upper Body weight training
Day 4: HIIT cardio training
Day 5: Lower body weight training
Day 6: HIIT cardio training
Day 7: REST DAY (and you must rest)

Then:

Day 1: Upper Body weight training
Day 2: HIIT cardio training
Day 3: Lower body weight training
Day 4: HIIT cardio training
Day 5: Upper body weight training
Day 6: HIIT cardio training
Day 7: REST DAY

And so you go on.

Weight training is important for muscle tone and it just eats up the calories, even when you stop training. Contrary to popular belief, you actually get smaller with weight training, not bigger.

Drinks lots of water whilst you train.

Eat something about 45 minutes before training and eat again within half an hour of finishing your session. PROTEIN PROTEIN PROTEIN after training especially on your weight training days.

Motivation:

Take your measurements the day you start your programme and record your weight. Take a photo in your favourite bikini, front side and back and use that as a reference whilst you progress. It is really motivating when you see the difference!

Measure your Chest, Waist, Hips. To measure your hips at the same place every time, place the tape measure 7cm down from your belly button and that is where you measure, otherwise, if you don't do the 7cm measurement, you may be measuring at different places which may give you a false reading.

The focus must be on the tape measure and NOT on the scale. The weight may very well go up for the first 8 weeks or so, but the centimetres WILL start coming down.

Set small, REALISTIC, goals, chunks at a time. It's like chipping away at a sculpture, it takes time, and over time, it takes form.

If you have a bad day, DO NOT BEAT YOURSELF UP. As long as you are consistently working towards a goal, put your bad day behind you, get back on the horse and move forward.

READ, READ, READ! To keep yourself motivated and educated on the subject. Subscribe to a magazine that is all about health and fitness. My favourite one is called "Fitness", I don't know if it is available in your neck of the woods as I am in South Africa. "Fitness" is packed with, exercise programmes, recipes, eating plans and nutritional advice.

REWARD YOURSELF!!! I love this one. I had no choice but to reward myself with a whole new wardrobe eventually as my old one did not fit! But along the way, reward yourself with a manicure and pedicure, or a new pair of shoes, or a cute outfit.

GOOD LUCK!

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