Snack vs Grazing!

We all know that feeling; it's just too hard to get through the day without nibbling on something, usually something we shouldn't! If  you are simply hungry during the day, snacking can be a second nature and not always a good one!  While snacking generally gets frowned upon, grazing is typically recommended for many healthy diets. But like most things in life the key point is not to over do it.

Check those nutritionl Labels!

Snacking vs grazing are different things. Some of us get into the habit of the afternoon snack like a few biscuits with a tea or late night snack (big bowl of cereal was my Achilles heel) and we are so routine that it doesn't matter how hungry we are or if we are not- we're going to eat that snack no matter what as that's "what i always do".Try looking at low calorie foods, and small amounts. Such as a few Brazil nuts, great source of protein and wont spike your blood sugar. Plan your main meals so you don't over eat, use lean ingredients such as chicken and fish, such as Tuna or cod. Little and often is the key, so your body has time to metabolise that fuel! They say as a general rule you should eat six fist size meals a day. I know that sounded amazing to me too, six meals!
It is best to stick to a very low calories amount so that you don't end up sabotaging your healthy diet. For example, instead of a biscuit, packet of crisps, try low calorie carrot sticks with some cottage cheese. If you make the right choices It will help you lose weight and maintain it, helping the body with the correct food will ensure your body is more functional using your energy sources and stop it being stored!

Plan your days food intake.

Plan- The night before plan those grazing snacks through the day. Cut up those carrot sticks, pack that apple or handful of Brazil nuts. Also use a water bottle and set  the target of drinking it through the day to increase your water intake. We have all done it rushed about in the morning and as a result forgot something. Then during the day resort to vending machines or shop bought food that's pre packed. By planning your diet, you not only save money but ensure a healthy diet. A win, win situation!
Foods you like  - Use foods you like! I am as guilty as anyone, when I first looked to do a healthy diet, I tried to include foods I didn't really like for healthy snacks, so eventually I looked to avoid it and slipped!
Weigh - use those scales to weigh foods in their dry weight. This makes sure you can portion control, especially foods it is easy to over eat, like pasta and rice.


Did you know on average we use 28-30% of our bodies blood sugar just to run, so if you don't eat right then this can effect our mental performance. So we have to keep energy levels up without inputting too much energy, basically not eating too many calories!
http://www.body-aid.co.uk

Sports Massage Course - What a start!

Our new Sports massage course started this weekend, and started off at an extremely high standard. We offer two sports massage courses, one at level 3 and one at level 4. The students began this weekend on their level 3 and showed lots of enthusiasm and drive. We started with the basics, such as postural analysis, Client assessments and consultation's and Rang of movement tests. All of which help to develop you as a therapist and give a complete service. Sports massage is becoming increasingly popular and as a result a you can really add earning potential to your business if you are a successful therapist.

So what is Sports massage?
Sports massage is a deep tissue massage aimed at reducing muscle tension and fatigue, reducing swelling, improving and promoting flexibility, preventing injury and enhancing athletic performance. Within the world of elite performance, Sports massage is rapidly becoming a vital treatment and training aspect for high performing sports men and women.With the stresses put on the body by sport and athletic activities, Sports massage uses specialist techniques that helps treat individuals who are more susceptible to injury.

Who benefits from Sports Massage?

In everyday life we all suffer from muscular aches and pains. The stresses of everyday life, muscular tension and fatigue can affect everyone no matter what level of sport you play or take part in. From busy mums to stressed office workers and executives, gardeners you’ll find massage relaxing and therapeutic. Sports massage uses deep tissue techniques that can be immediately felt after your treatment session and help flush out waste products from the body, giving you a enhanced feeling of well being. Helping you with those everyday aches and strains.

What can you benefit from Sports Massage?
Pre-event massage stimulates circulation, calms nervous tension, and prepares the athlete for optimal performance while minimising the chances of muscular and/or tendon injury. Post-event massage relieves soreness and assists in the removal of waste products such as lactic acid. It improves recovery time periods between training and competitions, reducing the strain and discomfort of chronic muscle strain patterns. Sports massage enables the athlete to recover more rapidly from myofascial injury, lessening the chance of reoccurring chronic problems. Sports massage helps mentally boost an athlete, supporting and improving levels of performance. It enhances a preventive approach to athletic training whereby soft tissues are free of trigger points and adhesions, contributing toward the improvement of peak neuromuscular functioning.

With all this to learn and the students start, we could be looking at some exceptional therapists! http://www.body-aid.co.uk

Diets just dont work!

Diets seldom work, its a fact. You deprive yourself of everything you think is "bad" for you and stave yourself to the point of exhaustion. Then after you have lost a stone or maybe more, you slowly put it back on after your will and initial commitment for the diet fades. What works is something that lasts, something sustainable that you can actually work with during everyday joys and stresses! So here are some helpful hints that can help you on your way!
Plan your diet - If you look ahead and prepare your food, its alot easier to keep to. You wont panic buy that sandwich meal deal. Chop up veg for the next few days and store in the fridge, so you have ready made ingredients for lunch. Its also important to balance your meals. Just carb based lunches such as baked potatoes spike your blood sugar and basically make your body more readily store fat! So add some protein such as a lean meat like chicken. This helps balance blood sugar levels and keeps you fuller for longer!
Time - It sounds silly, but make sure you plan time in your day for eating. If you stave yourself all day and gorge at night, then your body is more likely to store unused energy sources such as that dreaded word FAT! Look to space your meals out during the average day and look at what time of day you are eating certain foods. A basic rule is don't eat most of your carbs late at night, look at protein based foods and veg for later in the day or evening. Take most of your carb intake in the early morning period. Basically because your body has longer to use this energy source.
Size - Try to make your meals the correct size. Try weighing out your ingredients in their dry weight such as brown pasta or rice. Look at the back of packaging, for basic size guides!

Help with exercise ideas?

Personal training - If you struggle get a personal trainer. It might sound drastic but they can help with exercise ideas, short term goals and help improve your motivation. Eventually this will help you be self sustainable in terms of a fitness routine, but a personal trainer can definitely help you on your way.

Personal training success!

Great personal training session today in Peterborough! Made some real progress with clients goals and motivation seems to be on the increase. Just shows the importance of setting small goals to start with really does work!
We started with a warm up then looked to build on the previous sessions time on a treadmill, working within an aerobic zone, we tired to increase time to ten inutes and 30 seconds rather than just a straight ten minutes. With success, both myself and the client were extremely hapy with this achievement and the motivation continued through out the session. Well Done!
Next up we looked at resistance work aimed at muscluar endurance. Looking at problem areas such as the back of the arms and legs. Keeping it light and our form to a high standard, the client felt the benfits straight away and had really motivated her to continue with body weight exercises between sessions! We discussed a body weight circuit that could be completed at home and everthing seems on the up.
This is our third session and the measurements we took at the start of our training already look like a distant memory!
The client has stuck to the little changes we have made to their diet and we discussed future changes such as reducing half a sugar in their tea to none, adding a protein to carb based foods to help reduce blood sugar levels, and increasing their water intake by drinking two extra cups. Making small changes seems to be working, if we made too many drastic changes then the client would find this harder and harder to stick to. Thats why crash diets seldom work, if we are all truthful everyone has tried this type of diet and they are so difficul sticking toot! Eventually you just slip back into old habits, I know in the past I have!
We finsihed with some core work such as plank for sets of 30 seconds and used the fit ball for sit ups and some balancing exercises, even had time for a dead bug! What a session, really pleased with the clients progress and has put a real smile on my face!