I've got goals to kick - what are yours?

Some of you may know I spent the weekend at the AusMumpreneur conference and awards dinner on Saturday night.  I had such a fantastic weekend surrounded by some wonderful women and learned of some great businesses.  The sessions were really informative and my head is now swimming with what to do and how to do it.  I think sometimes you just need to be surrounded by people that are all aiming for a similar goal.  Obviously we are not all aiming for the 'same' goal but all of the women around me had their sights set on a bigger and better place.  It is going to take time and hard work to get there but I could tell that the determination and enthusiasm would carry us through any challenges - there was one woman there raising SIX children and running her business - my hat goes off to her!

I guess my point is that it can sometimes be easy to take our eyes off the prize - to lose sight of what is important and this can be the same in our personal lives as well as that or business or work.  Hopefully when we embark upon our business or health goals we have an end in mind - we know what we aspire to, we know the heights we want to reach and we know the body we want to walk around in.  BUT it can be all too easy at times to get off track, fall by the wayside and have trouble picking ourselves up and moving forwards.  This is where it becomes invaluable to surround yourself with like minded people; have a place you can go to that will recharge your batteries, pick you up and put you back on track.  And if you are not off track, even better, as weekends like the one I just had can really give you that extra big push and send you off into the stratosphere and prime you to push even harder, reach further and achieve more than you ever thought possible.

Use your training sessions in this way, as your recharging station, being able to spend that one hour of YOU time surrounded by like minded women who all have fitness goals to kick.  Get yourself on track and pointed in the right direction, then carry that energy into your week - engage with your fitness goals and if you've never set them NOW is the time.  Let's all put a mark on the place we want to be, know what we want to do and how we want to look and collectively strive to reach our goals together.

I will be making a vision board of my business and personal goals to keep them in the forefront of my mind, to keep me focused and to pull me back on track in times of need.  Focus and determination with a cause (for me it is my children) can be a strong strong force.... lets see what we can achieve.

Guest Blog: Getting The Right Nutrition When Losing Weight

When a mum decides to lose her baby weight and shape up after the birth of her baby it is important that any weight loss is done in a healthy safe way. The demands of mother hood can leave mums' exhausted and coping with a lack of sleep and a crying baby can leave us making poor food choices and reaching for junk to give a quick energy fix but junk foods send blood sugar levels sky rocketing and will leave mums' feeling even worse.  It is important for all mums to feel healthy and energised when looking after babies to cope with the daily demands and this is especially so if embarking on a weight loss campaign so that they are not drained from a lack of calorie and nutrient intake.

The key to losing weight is a combination of in taking the right nutrients and diet and combining this with exercise.  Achieving cellular balance by eating the right nutrients will ensure that the cells in our body operate to the best of their ability - but to achieve this cellular balance we need approximately 30-40 nutrients at each meal which in this day and age can be hard to achieve.  This cellular balance is also disrupted by external factors such as stress, a lack of sleep, environmental pollutants and medication that we take and when we have this cellular unbalance it can lead to weight gain, the inability to lose weight, a poor immune system, poor digestion and a sluggish immune system.

So how do we achieve this cellular balance? At each meal you should try and include as many different nutrients as possible and where you can buy organic we recommend you do as a lot of non organic food is lacking in minerals (due to the soil it is grown in) and have also been treated with pesticides. You should aim to have lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, legumes and lots of filtered water.  If you can't always eat a nutrient packed breakfast, lunch and dinner then you can consider a nutritional supplement that can make up any deficiencies you have and a good suggestion is to have a smoothie for breakfast which has a nutritional supplement in and a good recipe for a breakfast smoothie is:

·      1/4 cup of blueberries

·      1/4 cup of raspberries

·      1 tablespoon of oats

·      1 teaspoon of Chai seeds

·      250 low fat milk (use dairy, rice or soy milk but opt for non genetically modified varieties if you are using rice or soy milk)

Once you nourish your body with good nutrition your body will start to work better naturally and weight loss will be a by-product of this and if you combine this approach with daily exercise then your weight loss will be steady, healthy and effective

Thank you to Rhian (who is also a finalist in the AusMumpreneur Awards - congrats Rhian) from www.losebabyweight.com.au for writing this great article on the importance of getting the right nutrition to aid your weight loss.

August Mum of the Month - Meet Alison

One of the best parts about what I do is getting to spend time with the wonderful women in my groups.  Women that may be playing mum now but come from all walks of life and that commit to getting themselves and their babies to training week after week to do something positive for themselves and ultimately their little ones and families.  I have decided to celebrate you and today I am excited to introduce you to our first ever Mum of the Month. 

Meet Alison 

How long have you been training with Body Beyond Baby?

Since Feb 2010, so around 1 1/2 years, since Zara was 5 months old

How has BBB changed the way your approach your daily diet and exercise?

It has totally changed it, there is no point exercising without eating the right foods and there is no point eating the right foods without doing any exercise. Also with being a mother it has taught me that no matter how busy or tired we are we all deserve a little time to exercise. I am only at my best when I have done some exercise, its a great example to Zara and means for a happier family. I didn't grow up with this positive example of regular exercise but I plan on changing that for my daughter.

What is your favorite BBB exercise?

Took a while to think of an answer to this one and it isn't burpies! There are a few, but I love the work with the bands - rows/ squats etc. And whilst I am not a great runner I like having someone to push me to run around the oval as otherwise i wouldn't do it.

What would your advice be to new mums wanting to get fit?

As new mothers we often feel like we are being selfish when we take time out for ourselves. I hate when I hear this! This best thing you can do for yourself, your child and your pelvic floor is to do some regular exercise.

Would you like to add anything else about your BBB experience?

I don't know what I would have done had I not found Jenny/BBB. My greatest fear with having a child (besides child birth!) was the weight I was going to put on, as my mum used to blame having kids of being out of shape. Exercising with other like minded mums has been so positive, as has having the caring nannies to look after the babies. It's on my most difficult days that I make sure I turn up as after the session is over I always feel rejuvenated. Despite moving out of the eastern suburbs last year I still turn up - there is no excuse. 

As a thank you and congratulations for being our Mum of the Month Alison receives a $60 voucher for pram cleaning with complimentary collection and delivery from Pronto Pram.