How do you define carbohydrates? When i speak to my clients, many define carbohydrates as starchy foods: pasta, bread, cereal and of course, the chocolate, chips, popcorn (all junk food)… They tell me their secrets and then they tell me <I am now on a no carb diet!> …
Really? Let’s begin by defining a carbohydrate! A carbohydrate is all foods digested as sugars!! And that also means FRUIT and VEGETABLES!!
Carbohydrates are the fuel in your tank. We NEED them… yet… We need the SMART CARBS! those that are high in fibre! Sugars are not all created equal!! let’s take a peak!
I’ve been receiving many emails of late, all about wanting to lose weight for the summer months. It’s that time of year when we begin to uncover ourselves from those big sweaters and finally take notice.  Weight loss is all about your metabolism.. let’s take a look!
Metabolism and weight loss
It may be tempting to blame your metabolism for weight gain. But because metabolism is a natural process, your body generally balances it to meet your individual needs. That’s why if you try so-called starvation diets, your body compensates by slowing down these bodily processes and conserving calories for survival. Only in rare cases do you get excessive weight gain from a medical problem that slows metabolism, such as Cushing’s syndrome or having an underactive thyroid gland (hypothyroidism).
Unfortunately, weight gain is most commonly the result of eating more calories than you burn. To lose weight, then, you need to create an energy deficit by eating fewer calories, increasing the number of calories you burn through physical activity, or both.
Where is my metabolism? How do I rev up my energy? How does it all work?  Let’s take a moment to discuss the process of metabolism..
Do you suffer from the gut? indigestion, bloating, constipation, reflux, chronic diarrhea? not a subject we like to talk about but the subject is very real for a large amount of people. Can it all be fixed easily? well.. it depends! It might that your intestinal gut is low on probiotics?
Have you noticed that in the last 3 years, there is a huge pre-biotic/pro-biotic campaign? It’s added to our foods, our doctors are talking about it, you can find them in all health foods stores and pharmacies… But what do they really do? Why do we really need them? Is it just another fad?
Have you ever worked with a coach? Have you ever experienced those AHA moments? Have you taken notice of when these moments take place?
I’ll let you in on a secret…. Coaching is not about having things done FOR you, it’s about learning to do them yourself. Those AHA moments only happen when you’ve experienced the learning curve on your own!
I’ve coached many women into a healthy lifestyle, it’s not always easy. Some of us have mounted barriers with every excuse on why it just can’t be done… My job as a coach is to break down every one of those barriers, one step at a time… Coaching is about giving you the tools to break free, to jump out of that comfortable box and explore the possibilities.
Have you tried diet after diet with no success? Or maybe, you’ve been exercising non stop and not really seeing any changes or have reached a plateau? There is a very good reason for that… maybe, just maybe, you haven’t yet made the connection between strong nutrition and exercise!
I’ll let you on the best secret… we always hear about it, but somehow, we tend to discount it…
It’s about doing BOTH!!! But wait!! There are tactics to this…
Are you fed up with those gym fees? Sometimes you use the facility, sometimes you don’t… Have you experienced those waits between exercise equipment? Or someone else’s sweat on the equipment?
Did you know that really, in a weight loss environment, you don’t really need to use the gym? Did you know that a full workout can happen with strength using your own body weight?
The hardest workouts I do for myself, are those when no equipment is put out. It takes a certain mindset to move the body in form without a piece of equipment to guide the move. And it’s not about the crunches!!! Have you ever tried to do a series of pushups, or lunges, or squats, … you have? Great! Have you ever tried to put them in a non stop circuit? Now there’s a challenge! You can lift your metabolism, burn fat by building lean muscle mass.. and … NO GYM FEES! NO WAITING! Read the rest of this entry »
Have you been loads of cardio work and have somehow plateau’d with your weight loss? It’s a frequent result…
The truth is that cardio does burn body fat, but the body gets used to the work and then, well.. it just doesn’t need to burn so many calories to get the work done. So it will slow down. As your heart gets fitter and stronger, the calorie burn lessens.
Here’s the one thing can change things up! Push Weights!!! If you want to lose body fat, it is essential to build muscle mass… Why? Because muscles burn fat on a 24 hour basis. Body fat is the number one fuel muscles need to stay healthy and strong, to work for you, to keep the metabolism heating on high, melting down that unwanted body fat!
Have you tried changing some of your old habits for a better lifestyle only to find yourself right back where you started in a very short time? You’re not alone, most of us are willing to start, most of us all well intended.. somehow life happens and it just all falls off… Somehow, we get right back into the old comfortable box of just doing what we have always done, because on some level, it works…
Here’s the secret to becoming healthy in a very short time! It’s not about making the decision, we do that every other week! It’s not about getting into a program, we’ve done that.. it’s not even about throwing everything out in the fridge!!!
Have you tried to track what you eat in a day? Have you tried keeping a journal of all of your foods and activities? Bothersome huh?
It’s all about the perspective! I have to agree that it’s a tedious task… Most of us start and just forget about it as we go along… why? Well, it’s tiresome!!! And it’s accountability!! And well… ugh!!!
Ok,, let’s take a good look at this… First of all, tracking is not the same as journaling.
Have you ever really stuck to your menu plan for the week? Does life just get in the way? Do you end up throwing food into the garbage? If you have experienced any of this, know that you are not alone!
Menu planning is great to use for the budget, for time savers. Only if you stick with it! The truth about menu planning is that most of us have a life, and that means changes as the week goes on! Activities for the children, last minute plans with friends… life happens, let’s face it!!
How do you define carbohydrates? When i speak to my clients, many define carbohydrates as starchy foods: pasta, bread, cereal and of course, the chocolate, chips, popcorn (all junk food)… They tell me their secrets and then they tell me <I am now on a no carb diet!> …
