I have always been naturally slim however when I reached 18/19 I found that I couldn’t carry on eating the way I did without exercising. I used to hate going to the gym and the thought of an exercise class turned my stomach! I used to get so bored and just ended up watching TV on the treadmill which was due to not knowing what I was doing.
Fast forward to now and I do 6 exercise classes a week, attend the gym and do home exercises and most importantly….I enjoy it. I wanted to share my tips and advice with you to hopefully inspire you! If you have any questions please feel free to ask as there is no such thing as a stupid question!
Like anything there is no quick fix, no instant results and it takes time, commitment and dedication. Instead of weighing yourself I would always recommend taking progress pictures and measurements as this is the best way to track process.
So first of all lets talk food…
I really don’t believe in fad diets. It’s all about clean eating. Chuck away the processed foods and start making your own. I follow Clean Eating Alice on Instagram who posts pictures her food which look absolutely delicious and have just brought her book called The Body Bible which I would recommend. (Also brought Fearne Cottons which has some fab recipes!) She believes that good clean food should taste great and you don’t need to use fancy expensive goods to eat healthy.
I take my hat off to those who have eggs and broccoli for breakfast like Alice but this personally makes me gag. I would love to be able to eat this for breakfast and hopefully maybe one day I will but for now below is what is on my current list! Eating a good stable breakfast is extremely important as it sets you up for the day – bin the sugary cereals and try one of the options I have listed below. Start with just changing one meal a day to begin with.
Breakfast ideas
Overnight Oats
1/2 cup or 45g oats
1/2 cup almond/coconut milk or skimmed milk
choice of fruit – bananas, blackberries, blueberries
Combine and leave in the fridge overnight
Protein Pancakes (Makes two)
1 egg
30g oats
1 banana – mashed
1 scoop unflavoured whey powder
Combine, spray some coconut oil in pan and cook until golden brown. Serve with spoonful of greek yogurt and berries.
Egg on toast
2 poached eggs
1 slice of toast or rye bread
1/2 avocado
Boil water, spin the water with a fork, crack eggs in and poach for 6 minutes. Cut avocado into two and use a fork to mash into your toast
Omelette
2 eggs
Onions
Tomatoes
Feta
2 strips parma ham
Pop some coconut oil in a pan and fry onions and tomatoes. Crack two eggs in a bowl and add to your pan. Once one side is cooked place the parma ham and feta on top and place under the grill for a couple of minutes until cooked. Optional to add seeds and rocket.
Snacks
I love snacking and this is where I would normally head for the chocolate. Fruit and nuts are a great options – I always cut my fruit up and use tupperware for my nuts/seeds as I tend to think it makes it a little exciting the biting into an apple and it makes it last longer. Greek yogurt with fruit is also very tasty!
Lunch/dinner served warm or cold
Sweet potato, chicken, veg or salad
Chicken, rice, veg
Chicken wrap with salad
Poached egg on toast with avocado
Exercise
Just over a year ago I did my first exercise class and it was the best thing I ever did. They are brilliant for dealing with stress and great for meeting new people as I can now call people in my classes my friends. Below are the classes that I do during the week, with classes your body can get used to the certain routines so it is important to always push yourself and attend the gym too. Recently I have just started running which I am really enjoying. I am running 2.7 miles in about 10 minutes which isn’t the fasted but I am able to track my process on an app called Strava. Doing a balance of cardio/hiit and weights is the best way to get in shape for example instead of doing 40 minutes on the cross trainer or treadmill at one speed do interval training by increasing the speed for a couple of minutes then 30 seconds rest.
I have filmed two great workouts on my youtube channel for your abs & butt which are great for anyone looking to tone. Try to complete these 3/4 times a week.
Classes I do
Monday
Body Pump
Tuesday
Body Attack
Wednesday
No class
Thursday
Body Combat, Body Pump
Friday
Body Pump
Saturday
Body Combat
Sunday
No class
There are so many great fitness channels who upload workouts targeting all of the body – below are a few of the ones that I follow. The best way to start with exercise is to find a workout that is achievable and start by doing it once a day for a week. After you’ve completed it for a week change the routine and add another workout in too…eventually it will become habit, even pop it on during the break of your favourite tv programme! Gradually build in going to the gym once or twice a week – always plan your workouts as it will keep you focussed and you will achieve better results!
Sweat with Kayla is a great app to download but is quite pricy at £14.99. It gives you meal and a fitness plan to follow but as it is expensive you really need to be committed to get your monies worth. Kayla uploads some fantastic process pictures from the women who follow the plans which I find a real inspiration. I personally found it hard to follow the fitness plan due to making excuses that I haven’t got time and I did not follow the food plan but after using it after a week I did start to see results. If you have some spare money one month I would suggest downloading it as you can always cancel it at any time.
Motivation
Getting motivated is incredibly hard but with exercise you just have to remember how great you feel after. Nothing bad can come from exercising where if you stay at home you will just feel sluggish. My advice would be to keep updating your playlist on your iPod or phone and have some great tracks that will make you want to do a great workout and start playing the songs while you are getting ready for the gym – To read more on how to get motivated please click here
