It’s that time of year again. Christmas, New Years and a host of other parties in between. That’s right its the silly season! And if you are looking to gain back all the weight you have worked so hard to lose then follow these 5 simple steps.
1. Skip Breakfast
A sure fire way to help you put on some weight. Chances are that you will end up eating more total calories by skipping breakfast because you will be snacking more and craving bad food choices for the rest of the day.
2. Eat a Massive Dinner
Doing this, especially when combined with skipping breakfast will make sure that you get that weight back onto your stomach. Lots of food sitting in your stomach while you are sleeping is the perfect recipe for weight gain!
3. Skip Training
You’re busy, so your health and fitness can take a back seat for the next few weeks. Miss a few sessions and you’ll find that the weight will creep back no worries.
4. Drink Like A Fish
So drinking to excess might not be that healthy, but it’s the silly seasin right?! And when you are trying to pack on some unsightly body fat, there’s nothing better than high calorie alcoholic drinks. Combine this with some big late hours eating and you’ll guarantee your weight gain!
5. Reduce Your NEPA
Non Exercise Physical Activity such as taking the stairs, walking to the shop or walking the dog is a great way to keep active and burn extra calories without much effort. Being Xmas and all, you have the perfect excuse to just sit on the couch watching other do all the hard work. Add this to the other four and you’ll be at your top weight by the New Year for sure.
So if your goal this holiday season is to pack on the pounds just follow these simple steps.
If it’s not your goal, then do the opposite.
Eat breakfast, eat a moderate dinner, make every training session (this will give you more energy and kill the stress), be sensible when drinking and get moving during the day (a 20 minute walk after each meal, or chasing the kids with their new toys, or walking your dog will do the trick).
Don’t let the silly season be the reason you go back to square one or even worse. Start the New Year in front, not just spinning your wheels trying to catch up!
I am always looking to find ways to add good fats, fibre and nutrients into my diet and nuts are a great way to do all three.
The thing with nuts though, is that it can be easy to over consume them and bump your daily calories up too high.
Enter almond meal, or any other nut meal really. (The best to work I have found are almonds, cashews, walnuts and hazelnuts)
It is very versatile and can be added to salads, used to make a paste (just add some seasoning and olive oil) for flavouring meat, thicken up your beef chili or even to add to your shakes.
You don’t need much as it works really well with other flavours.
Check out the video for a quick how to in the kitchen.
Is low carb beer healthy? That’s the question I was asked this morning and it got me thinking.
Why would someone think that low carb beer is healthy? The obvious answer is because it has to be better than normal beer. But is it really any better? Clearly the marketing department at the major beer companies have done their research and worked hard at exploiting a vulnerable, cashed up market!
Let’s have a look.
Beer is made from the brewing and fermenting of starches derived from grains. It is one of the most popular drinks in the world after water, tea and coffee. So you can see that there is a lot at stake for these large corporations.
Most full strength beers have and alcohol content around 4.6%. This combined with a carbohydrate content of around 10 grams for every 375ml means that can that you are drinking you are getting between 35-42 worth of rubbish calories each time you knock back a can.
Compare this to the low carb beers that are quite fashionable these days. These low carb beers have an alcohol content of 4.6% which is the same in comparison to their full strength cousins. Now the lower carbohydrate content means that you are getting around 28 calories per 375ml can which is less but not a significant amount of difference.
From a health perspective it is better to drink less alcohol and take in fewer carbohydrates. So from this point of view it would be better to be drinking a light beer which has less alcohol (and similar calories) than either the full strength or low carb beers.
The reason these beers have been produced and promoted is because with a small amount of knowledge, the consumer believes they know what is good for them. If they hear a message that limiting processed carbohydrates will make them healthier and leaner then ‘of course’ the low carb alternative will be better for them.
These marketers know this and it’s all about their bottom line, not yours.
So the verdict.
If you are serious about losing weight, especially belly fat, then the best thing to do would be skip the alcohol altogether.
I can’t recommend the low carb beer over normal beer because the difference is so minimal.
Check out this new workout I have used with some of my clients this week.
Last week I was talking about how getting stronger can make your fat loss efforts more productive. This workout will cement that idea in your psyche. The more you can lift through this workout, the more calories you will be burning (during and after the workout) and the closer you will be getting to achieving the body of your dreams.
It starts off with a Crossfit inspired combo. Here you want to use a weight that is challenging (question why you’re doing it challenging!) and rest as little as possible. Check your time on the stopwatch and try to beat it next time.
Then we move on to three mini circuits working the whole body. Keep the rest short and intensity high.
A1) Clean + Press
A2) Dumbell or Kettlebell Swing
21 reps, 15 reps, 9 reps for time (Rest as little as possible)
B1) Front Squat
B2) Push Up Rotation
4 sets of 10 reps with 60 seconds rest (ie B1, B2 rest 60, B1, B2, rest…)
C1) Romanian Deadlift
C2) Swiss Ball Jack Knife
3 sets of 15 reps with 60 seconds rest
D1) Bulgarian Split Squat
D2) Chin ups (or pulldowns)
4 sets of 8-12 reps with 60 seconds rest
