Monday, January 19, 2009

Power Circuit

Running short of time? Can't get to the gym? Find an outdoor area with a step and try this 20 minute power circuit to inject some movement and energy into your day.

Complete the following exercises for 1 minute each then repeat the circuit twice:

Squat
Push ups
Lunge (one leg then the other)
Triceps dips
Step ups
Sit ups
Shuttle run
Reverse Crunch
Star Jumps
Prone Hold

If one minute feels too long to begin with complete for 30 seconds then change exercise - repeat this circuit four times.

Work hard and enjoy!!!!

If you have recently had a baby it is wise to wait until after your six week check up before beginning an exercise program of higher intensity. Be aware of your own limitations especially where jumping is concerned.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Bec Update.

This week had been pretty horrible for me. The little man is pretty sick and it’s so horrible to watch him feeling bad and not be able to make it go away. I realise now that Mums mean it when they say they’d do anything to make things right for their babies. I’ve been sleeping in his room in the feeding chair so that I can let him sleep upright and make it a bit easier for him to breathe.

I’m checking in to see how I’ve gone this week and I’m pretty happy. I’m on track with food and exercise and looking forward to another good week. Last week I did miss one of the training sessions I’d planned. I didn’t got to BBB training because I don’t want to pass this nasty bug around. All I think I’ve done pretty well, and I’m looking forward to another week of good progress. I’ve got a dress fitting in two weeks so that’s working as a good short term goal to keep me working hard despite the severe sleep deprivation.

Well that’s all for me, I’m off to check on the bub and then I’m into bed to get some well earned rest.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Food Diary

Hey there! Hows your food diary going? Let's look at mine for the last couple of days;

Wednesday

0700 - Few slices of Veggie luncheon (before the gym)

0830 - Muesli, Cottage Cheese, Yogurt and berries

1130 - Protein bar

1300 - Two wraps with beetroot hummus, veggie luncheon, lettuce and tomatoes

1500 - Two veggie sausages

1900 - Omelet with salad, BBQ sauce

1930 - Jelly

Thursday

0830 - Muesli, Cottage cheese, yogurt and berries

1030 - Two veggie sausages

1230 - Two wraps with veggie luncheon, beetroot hummus, lettuce and tomato

1500 - Protein bar & few pieces dried mango

1900 - Two veggie sausages and salad, a little low fat cheese (no dressing)

1930 - Jelly

Not a bad couple of days - I think I could have eaten a little more, I have been on the run a lot so I need to really concentrate on consuming enough good healthy food.

Jelly is a great dessert. Make sure you buy the low fat low sugar version - Weight Watchers is good. It comes in crystal form and makes 4-5 small tubs. Perfect for that after dinner hit. You can even add a few berries or other fruit depending on the flavor you use. I know it helps me avoiding reaching for the chocolate, well that and the fact that I just don't keep it in the house because it wouldn't last five minutes!!!

Monday, January 12, 2009

New Year, New You

So Bec is back from her holidays and rearing to go - we kicked off with a Body Beyond Baby group training session this morning and it was great to see so many keen mums and their little bubs ready to launch into the New Year with lots of energy and commitment.

I have entered the new year with a one way ticket into the world of purees, sticky fingers and messy floors - our journey into the world of solids has begun. Its so cool to introduce Marley to his first foods and it really instills the need to ensure he has the best and healthiest of options. Why is it as adults we allow these needs to go out of the window? Filling ourselves with second rate foods, some of which have absolutely no nutritional value at all?

I can be guilty of this, sometimes that chocolate bar, bag of lollies or burger seems just too tempting. This is why its always a good idea to pull yourself back in from time to time and what better time than the start of a new year? Pull out that food diary or start one if you've never done it before - record everything that you eat and drink along with when and really look at it to see if you are eating the right foods at the right time.

Tune tomorrow for my food diary.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Down to business

Back in Sydney safe and sound!! The last few days of our holiday were spent watching a cyclone come through and wondering if we’d ever get home. But here we are and I’m surprised at how happy I am to be back – it’s just so much easier to be at home with the bub and have all his things at hand.

Quick update as follows; exercise was great for last few days, wish the same could be said for food. I’m starting to get palpitations when people talk about how close the wedding is. Thankfully, it’s all motivating. Today I wrote a meal plan for the week and did the groceries…there will be no more treats, cheats or anything of the kind. Being on holidays was great but not so great for the diet.

Plan for the week is as follows:
Monday - Body Beyond Baby Training
Tuesday - Rest day
Wednesday - Body Beyond Baby Training
Thursday - Training at the gym (weights)
Friday - Run with the pram
Sat - Training at the gym (cardio and weights)
Sun - Aim for a run without the pram but we'll see how we go.

Wow! That sounds like a lot, but it's no more than I was doing on holidays while I had constant babysitters. Here's hoping I can keep it up. Training starts up again tomorrow and I’m really looking forward to sweating it out, so I’m off to bed. Hopefully Hugo will allow me some sleep!

Friday, January 2, 2009

Introducing Bec

I'd like to introduce you to Bec. Bec is taking part in her own 12 week challenge to discover her post baby body with the added motivation that she is getting married in March this year. Stay tuned to Bec's ups and down, challenges and achievements and come along for the ride. I will still be adding posts of my own so expect some helpful tips coming your way in 2009.

"So here I am finally writing something for a blog I committed to doing sometime ago. I've been a mum for five months and my little boy Hugo is just pure joy. I got back into training about two months after Hugo was born and I am still shocked at how much the baby carrying thing took out of my body. I've always felt strong and upright and all of a sudden I felt like jelly and my posture was hideous.

The Body Beyond Baby training and some extra sessions here and there has really started to make a difference to how I feel, but I wouldn't say I am where I want to be in terms of fitness and body shape. Jen approached me before Christmas and suggested I take on the twelve week body challenge - its a great thing for anyone to do but considering it also happened to be twelve weeks before my wedding it would have been mad to refuse. So I said yes and felt I was on my way...... if only it was that easy. Here I am ten weeks from the big day and I'm only getting started.

I figure new years day is as good as any day to start, and with Christmas, my birthday, New Years and a bout of mastitis behind me I am rearing to go. So my aim from here on in is to really make the challenge work for me and to use this blog as a tool to keep me motivated and accountable.

I'll keep you posted

Bec xxx"

Too much or too little?

Happy New Year! I hope it was a good one and you are feeling good and positive about the year ahead. Its always good to start the new year with plans of what you intend to do. I challenge you to figure out what you would like to achieve this year. Set you sights high but keep things realistic, goals should be realistic but challenging. Check back in to posts right at the beginning of this blog to discover effective goals setting strategies.

To help you on your way I thought I'd touch upon what quantities we should expect within our packaged foods. Reading nutritional labels can be challenging if you don't really know what you are looking for.

When comparing products:
  • Always read from the per 100g column
  • Check the serving size - some things look like they are 1 serving but are actually 2 or 3, this is how they get away with being low fat or low in sugar
What is a little and what is a lot?

Per 100g of food

Sugar: High= 10g or more Low= 2g or less
Fat: High= 20g or more Low= 3g or less
Saturates: High= 5g or more Low= 1g or less
Fibre: High= 3g or more Low= 0.5g or less
Sodium: High= 0.5g or more Low= 0.1g or less
note Sodium is often listed in mg's 1g =1000mg so 0.5g =500mg & 0.1g=100mg

When you have decided upon which product buy, paid for it, taken it home and are now sitting down to eat it wouldn't do any harm to pull out those kitchen scales and actually measure the recommended serving size. Do this for a couple of weeks and get a true idea of what a serving size of each food looks like before you pile it onto your plate. Many people make the mistake of eating healthy food but eating way too much of it. At the end of the day no matter what you eat if you eat too much your body will store it as fat.