Saturday 11 July 2015

The health and fitness lies you are fed

Yesterday I wrote about the need to eat well, exercise to show respect for your amazing body. The problem is many people pay attention to long standing fallacies that plague an industry with some pretty amazing minds. So here's a quick post to put a stop to the nonsense based on my study in health, anatomy and physiology, fitness programming, strength and conditioning.

A quick education into health and fitness

1. Fat is good. Well good fat is good.
Dose up on it. I'm talking nut oils, omega 3 fats that come from fish, avocado- all the very best foods. These foods will help improve your mood as well as help you lose weight.

Eat foods with omega-3s. Foods like avocados have omega-3 fatty acids that contain a myriad of benefits. Don’t get turned off by the word fatty. These acids help regulate blood sugar and inflammation, which can help keep your metabolism steady. |  Boost Your Metabolism hack

2. Fat, protein, carbs- the chain of energy burning command.
This means that your body will burn fat first and then protein and so on. This is why people tell you to ease off on carbohydrates (like pasta) but carbohydrates are your friend you must have them in your diet. You just can't have a diet solely of carbs without an active lifestyle.

3. HIIT (high intensity interval training), tabata, Fartlek training and crossfit are your friend. They work on maximum effort in shorter bursts increasing thresholds (aerobic and anaerobic- movement with and without oxygen) whilst developing a range of muscle groups. These types of fitness are the forms you want to participate in to create a body transformation. Not regular straight, slow paced cardio. Ok? The bonus is these training methods fit perfectly with our time poor world (and over scheduled lives) and therefore leave no excuse for respecting our bodies and making that healthy change. Make it a priority.

Tone in Twenty Workouts- 5 do anywhere HIIT style plans! #fitness #workoutplans #healthy

4. The method of training purely dictates the physical outcomes.
If you complete exhaustion training (repetitions until failure) you will build muscular endurance and lean muscle mass. If  you work to intervals you will increase aerobic, anaerobic capacity, ability to clear lactic acid from the muscles and develop tone. If you do heavy weights with small repetitions focusing only on power and strength with long recovery periods in between you will be working to build your muscle and increase it's size. If you are running on a treadmill, riding your bike you will work your aerobic or lung capacity, maybe  your legs if you go fast enough or if you hit hills frequently at pace.

5. Women who lift weights will NOT end up looking like men. This is probably the biggest fallacy of them all. I'm not sure whether its simply weak minded men coming up with this notion or women who are scared they'll surprise themselves with how capable they truly are. Personally feeling strong physically is empowering in more ways than one and from experience, men (especially those with great character) do look at you differently and its not about your physical appearance- that I think is something worth striving for. So remember ladies...and men...strong women who lift weights they are those women that men ogle over in the movies. Toned, lean, confident and healthy.

Image on Hiit Blog http://www.dailyhiit.com/hiit-blog/social-gallery/c7e6de87160f81c7-mornign-exercisepreview-3

6. Your muscles operate in pairs. Therefore if you work your biceps for example and not your triceps you will end in an injury. Similarly if you hold weight in your stomach your back will always be week. Furthermore men who work on their chest, arms and back and never their legs not just look disproportionate but they are also putting unnecessary pressure on the lower half of their body. Bottom line- Marvel characters can run with an excessive V shaped body humans not so comfortably.

7. Weight on a scale means nothing. Measurements are what you should go by. Why? When your measurements shrink it is because you have increased your lean muscle mass. The only concern is for women...do not measure yourself around the time of your period. Many of us bloat at this time, there's no point losing motivation over a monthly body ritual.

8. Skipping meals DOES DECREASE your metabolism and will result at some point in overeating which entirely defeats your mindset about skipping a meal in the first place. Just eat.

9. Rest days are the key to success. Rest includes things you mightn't consider as 'nothing' like walking barefoot and singing or meditating with your feet up against a wall. Without your rest days your workouts are ruined, so rest.

Take time to rest...your body and soul need it.

10. I have to work out for a long time to get the effects of exercise. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Again it depends on what you want. Yes you can easily do a few hours pumping weights no issue to have a low to medium intensity and control of your muscles is essential but if your focus is blasting fat and conditioning 3 hour gym workouts aren't for you. You need to think about what you are trying to achieve and as you are improving alter what you do. Don't start with 30 minute medium workouts if 30 minutes is easy for you- change the intensity or change the duration of your workout. Remember if it doesn't challenge you it certainly won't change you. So get sweaty!

11. I can never eat anything I want. Rubbish. You can, you just need to understand that the more you eat that has high calorific content the more you need to exercise. If you don't have time then re-evaluate your food choices.

12. Sleep. The key to nailing your life. Invest in it. I mean an expensive bed, duvet, linens, pillows all of it. Investing in your sleep will be the best investment you ever make.

“This is my sleepsuit. I’m just, like, getting prepped.” | 21 Animals Who Will Definitely Not Stay Up Until Midnight

Any questions? Hit me up.

Till next time...stay happy and healthy!

Jules....
Be healthy AMEN...you reflect on the outside..the way you feel on the inside...

Tuesday 7 July 2015

The latest

Writers block. I'm starting to think that we only get writers block when we choose not to write about the things we feel most strongly about. Everyday I write. Everything counts and I celebrate the ability to write although it doesn't mean I give the work I have the right to be published- even on this blog. I'm not sure whether that's the perfectionist in me or whether I'm just afraid because I know the power of words.

25 Quotes That Will Inspire You To Be A Fearless Writer | “Write what disturbs you, what you fear, what you have not been willing to speak about. Be willing to be split open.” —Natalie Goldberg

Two weeks ago I met an artist Nic Joly in person, we chatted and spoke about what inspires creativity in all artists, whether they create sculptures or scripts. In our conversation it was so pleasing to meet someone who so passionately sees his work as a medium to confront or change the world. His latest exhibition, of which I desperately hope I can purchase my favourite piece from in the near future, The Pen is Mightier than the Sword, showcases the duality of light and dark that exists in all of us. If you live in London you must make a point of seeing it at Castle Galleries in Covent Garden or Canary Wharf. If you do not jump online and read about Nic Joly or check out his Facebook page here.

'the pen is mightier than the sword'

In any case the conversation I shared with Nic instantly inspired me and made me realise how complimentary artists creativity is to each other. A few minutes after meeting him I also met a screen writer. The difference was he didn't reveal his character until the end of the conversation when he filled me in on a rom-com he had worked on a bit more than a decade prior. It was such a pleasure to talk to a man who allowed the conversation to be just about creativity without any preface to his title or success. Though I must state I thought it was hilarious to say what I do and the amount of short stories I have written when you compare it to a man who's film is known to everyone my age or older. What was nicer though was that I could share my creativity without being considered a 'nothing'. Had the conversation been different or perhaps had I met Kanye West in disguise I bet the conversation wouldn't have gone past 'I'. 

"Create what sets your heart on fire and it will illuminate the path ahead." // lovely ink via print & pattern

For about a week after these encounters I wrote anything and everything and I brought out some old pieces that I previously had not published and decided to prepare them for the blog. Overall these little events made me realise that as writers we choose to censor our own words at times. We mustn't do that. The world, individuals, groups, ideology and dominant discourse seeks to censor us on a daily basis, our words matter, they mean something not just for the benefit of keeping ourselves sane, for sharing our gift and our thoughts but also as a vessel for change. We do not need to listen to critics, jealous types nor naysayers we simply need to have a little self belief and an attitude that no one has the right to censor who we are. To showcase my commitment to my words, over the next week or so you are going to see posts I previously censored from the spotlight, I hope you enjoy them as much I had enjoyed writing them.

Till next time...


25 Quotes That Will Inspire You To Be A Fearless Writer