I for the Engine

Individuals

What works for you might not work for others and vice versa!
You can't assume that yoiu will get the same results by using hte same place as your mates.

Realise that you are different - even if only in a small way.
Eat
Train and
Rest
For you.

Want help finding the right plan for you?
You know where to find us!


Iodine

It used to be applied to small wounds as an antisecptic but not so much now!

However, we still need it in small amounts in our bodies. It's good for maintaining thyroid function and hence metabolism.

Best food sources? Seaweed, seadfood, eggs, you can also buy iodized salt.

Seaweed is one of my favourite snacks - little squares of Nori available at the Chinese supermarkets and in the health food sections of large supoermarkets and in healthfood stores. It may be a little different from the more common crisps but is high in protein and fibre - go, on...go try some!

Michelle 'mermaid' Day



 Iliopsoas

With a bit of practise I can say it - Iliopsoas.

That's our word, or should I say muscle for today! Or should I say two muscles as it's actaully the refers to the combination of the psoas major and the iliacus at their inferior ends. These muscles are distinct in the abdomen, but usually indistinguishable in the thigh. As such, they are usually given the common name "iliopsoas" and are referred to as the "dorsal hip


 Investment

Apologies for the lateness of Friday's email - when I was free the mailchimp server was down and vice versa!!!

So - I just invested in me!

I bought a new pair of shoes for the gym.
Lifitng shoes
To improve my squats
They weren't cheap for something that will get used for one thing only
But they weren't Jimmy Choo prices!

Why is this an investment rather than just a purchase?
It will help me lift better and in doing so improve my fitness.

Don't see money spent on fitness and health (including good food) as a cost, change your thinking and realise that it is an investment in your life. Time spent working on you is not time wasted or something to fit in when you can or a chore. It's time invested too.

Not sure what/how to invest in you?
Come and see us - your fitness investment advisors!

Michelle '30 min investment in running ocmig up next 'Day

H for retiring

Hy-giene

No, not a hello to a new client but a word about your gym kit...
Please keep it clean folks, the warm damp sweaty environment of your workout clobber is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. Bacteria that can cause nasty skin conditions - I've seen the odd case of 'gym rash' before and it's not nice.
Make sure you wash you kit well and often. Don't use fabric conditioner on wicking materials mind you - they won't work as well if you do.
As well as looking after your skin you'll also please your gym buddies too - or at least their olfactory sense!
Michelle Day
PS - Merino wool is the one expection to the 'wash every time' rule. It has anti-bacterial properties and can be reworn without smell or danger to skin for, well I trialled mine for a fortnight until my hubby kindly asumed it needed a wash even though it stilled seemed fine!


Habits

As a kid I loved watching Ronnie Barker in Porridge - he was the habitual offender in the title!
His habit was burglary!
I hope you have healthier habits!
Eating good food regularly - fruit, veg and meat
Exercising often - be it walking the dog, running or any indoor fitness pirsuits
Getting plenty of sleep - 6-8 hours a day, starting around 10pm.
These habits will keep you healthy. But you need to work at it to make them habits, things don't always 'just happen'. Sometimes you need a little push, sometimes it's more than once!
Keep at it and it will pay off!
Just had my habitual protein smoothie for breakfast - tastes great, it's easy to make and very portable. I just need to plan to make sure I have the right fruit and veggies in store and some vegan protein powder. Not much of an effort really now is it?
Michelle 'choco-raspberry smoothie' Day  


How do you make a hormone?

No, not a queue for a bad joke but a question that will now be answered...
 

Hormones are secreted from the endocrine glands in the body, directly into the blood stream Some of the major endocrine glands in the body include:

• Pituitary gland
• Pineal gland
• Thymus
• Thyroid
• Adrenal glands
• Pancreas
• Testes
• Ovaries

These organs secrete hormone in microscopic amounts and it takes only very small amounts to bring about major changes in the body. A very slight excess of hormone secretion or slightest deficiency in a hormone can disease and poor health.
In the cases of hormone deficiency, a synthetic hormone replacement therapy may be used and in cases of excess hormone production, medications may be used to curb the effects of the hormone.
And what do they do?

Hormones are chemical messengers telling the organs to exert their functions. There are many types of hormones some of these include:

• Development and growth
• Metabolism of food items
• Sexual function and reproductive growth and health
• Cognitive function and mood
• Maintenance of body temperature and thirst

It's important that we look after our bodies to ensure correct hormone balance (as far as we can). This includes not giving our livers too much to do - that detox idea? It's designed (when done properly) to assist the liver to perform it's function to the best of it's ability.
This is especially important if you are going through any major hormonal changes such as in pregnancy, menopause or puberty. This even extends to the skin care and cleaning products you use - which can also disrupt normal hormone balance.
This is a big area of study - just ask us for more support if needed.
Michelle' perfectly balanced' Day
Extra material from: http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-are-Hormones.aspx 


Be Happy!

Yep!
Do it!
Smile and be happy!

OK! OK! I know it won't solve everything and sometimes you just can't face it but exercising with a clear purpose and doing it regularly will increase production of hormones that lift mood and may you happier. Even getting out into the sunlight will have an uplifting effect.

So, maybe what I should have written was, exercise and be happy! Lack of knowing what to do/how to do it or a clear purpose holding you back and making you feel down?

You know where we are when you need us...

Michelle 

G for Get it!

It all went a bit 'Pete Tong' this week (or two) and I almost did ForGetIt!

Grehlin
Our first 'G' is Ghrelin - pronounced GREL-in.

This is the hunger hormone. When your stomach is empty it's secreted and when your stomach stretches secretion is stopped.

It also plays a part in energy distribution and rate of use by regulatng the amounts sent to fat or glucose storage or to muscles to allow them to work.

Ghrelin production is actually lower in people with more fat stores (except in the case of rare medical conditions) so no - your hormones are not making you fat in this case!





A week and a bit later I started again...

Good Morning again folks and apologies. I've been a little remiss on the daily email front.
TBH I was struggling to find good posts for 'G' and them there was a big pile of
work related stress and I sort of gave up on the emails.

Sorry, you didn't deserve that.
But I'm back now.

So what is todays 'G'?

It's is G for 'Good Morning'. A good morning will tend to follow a good nights sleep. Whilst we all need different amounts of sleep it's best for almost everyone to get to bed by 10 or 10:30.

Switch off your iphone, TV, radio and relax, put down your book/Kindle.
Thick curtains or blinds will help shut out any excess light.
Writing down your thoughts before sleeping may help to clear your busy mind.

Lack of sleep can be linked to obesity and depression amongst other ills - get good sleep and have a Good Morning!

 
Guilt
Food guilt?
Overrated!
And no help whatsoever to your fitness and diet efforts.

There are two other choices:
1. Don't eat/do it in the first place - no guilt
2. Do it and don't worry - no guilt

Feelings of guilt will only maked you stressed, raise your cortisol levels and hold onto more fat!


 

F for Vessence

Six weeks in and this may be becoming a habit!

Fitness
People ask me to help them get 'fit' but what do they really mean?
Fitness has many components, in this email we'll look at it from 5 perspectives.


1. Muscular Strength

What can you lift or carry? How heavy is that shopping bag?

2. Muscular Endurance

Endurance, ah yes we've just looked at that one (last week). This is the ability to keep going, for the muscles to contract time after time for a long time.

3. Cardiovascular Endurance

The ability of your heart and lungs to deliver and keep delivering the fuel and oxygen you need to continue your workout.

4. Flexibility

This one is often forgotten. You may be able to run for miles but can you move easily and bend and stretch without effort? Tomorrow we'll look at how to increase this component.

5. Body Fat Composition

How much fat is in your body? Deposits of fab in and around organs can be dangerous and you might still have thse even though you look slim. Get you body ft checked out - are you skinny or skinny-fat?

And so to 'F'

Fasting
Some religions practise it
Sometimes you have to do it for medical reasons
In truth (unless you get up every few hours during the night) we all do it.

Fasting is taking a break from eating, not just a usual, between meals or 'I'm full' couple of hours break but longer periods.

The 8-10 hours between you last meal in the evening and first the next morning is a period of fasting. It's easier to fast when you're asleep too!

Breakfast is called break fast because you are breaking the imposed (by sleep) nighttime fast period. (In my world breakfast is the first meal of the day, whatever time you have it, it's not always an early morning thing.)

Fasting for longer periods, regularly , say once or wice per week can be a way to get your body to start burning body fat for fuel.  It also works well as a method of reducing calorie intake as long as you don't make up for it on your other meals of course! Some believe it gives your body a rest from constantly digesting and processing food. Allowing it to recover and repair more effectively.

It will not harm you (unless you have a medical condition that precludes fasting - check with your doctor before trying if so), it is natural and your body can cope wth it. As a way to help fat burning and calorie reduction I've personally found it very useful.

Try doing your cardio workout in a fasted state to increase the fat burning effect - it's hard and feels horrible but it works!


Fear - it's stops many of us from doing many things

Fear of failure
Fear of looking silly
Fear of what your friends might say
Fear of taking the first step
Fear of what success might bring

We know, we see it all the time. We help, we support. We feel it too.
Dont be scared - we're here to help. Whether you've never been in the gym before, or never done exercise or you're going for a personal best, we're here for you.

Take a first step by contacting us via our website or facebook - you don't even have to make a call. Fill in the form and we'll take it from there.

Feel the fear and do it anyway!


Fat
Don't call yourself FAT, say you have too much of it perhaps but don't define yourself in terms of a macro nutrient folks!

Anyway, less of that and more of what is it and what is it for!

Well as I said, it's a macro-nutrient along with carbohydrates and proteins. You should be ingesting it, you need it to absorb vitamins A, D, E and K. However, fats have the highest number of calories per gram at 9, protein and carbs have 4 in comparison.

Now, before you panic and stop eating fat - remember my first point, you NEED to eat it. Also, unlike carbs it does not produce the spike in insulin that would case the storing of energy as fat...yep, fat does not make you fat.

Like all things, eat fat in moderation and make it the right fats. A little bit of yellow marbling on your steak is going to add to the flavour afterall.


Flexibility
Can you touch your toes without bending your knees?
Can you grab the fingers of one hand with the others, behind your back?

No?
Most of us should be able to.

Maybe you need to work on your flexibility?
It's not just a 'party trick' to be able to place your hands flat on the floor whilst standing but that one may actually save you from some back pain - tight hamstrings can lead to that too.

So how do you get more flexible?

The first answer that might come to mind is to stretch.
However, make sure that you have help to ensure you are stretching correctly,
Or even doing the correct type of stretches (no static holds on cold muscles please),
Do them often,
Progess (may them harder) them.

You could take a stretching class - specific classes do exist (we have one at my gym) or take a Yoga or Pilates class.

Drink more water - yep, lack of hydration can damage your flexibility too so get the water in!

And whilst your in the kitchen filling your glass make sure you eat well too - veggies, fruits, meats and fish.

E for Adam

Now in our fifth week our A-Z of fitness and wellbeing

Vitamin E

You'll see a lot of moisturising creams shouitng about their contents - Vit E being one of them often.

Why?
It's for it's anitoxidant properties - it reduces cell damage.
What else can it help with?
A healthy immune system
Circulation and heart
Lipid (fat) balance
and fertility
are amongst the effects

Vitamin E rich foods are sunflower seeds and oil, safflower, sesame, peanut, and olive oil, also spinach, salmon, oatmeal and wheatgerm, and carrots.

Porridge with seeds on for me then!



Beans!

Edamame beans  - I love them
These immature soy beans, are popular in Japan and available here in Japanese restaurants and, increasingly in the frozen section of supermarkets.

The can be eaten fresh (if you can get them, I tried growing them in my garden - the slugs liked them a bit too much!), as well as steamed, boiled or microwaved in the pods.

These little pods pack a great nutritional punch containing protein, fibre, folate, manganese, phosphorus and Vitamin K. Try them with a sprinkling of sea salt or chilli as a starter or as a side dish.
 

E is for Erector Spinae

 

The muscle group that runs up the spine and helps you to stand up straight, return upright after bending forward or to bend over backwards.

 

To help prevent back pain or injury these muscles can be workd and developed using:

Supermans

Back extensions

And (my favourite for lots of reasons) deadlifts

 

Go on, put your back into it!!

 

 

 E is for endurance today, the long run, haul, the whole 9 yards, going the distance...

But what is it?
And how do you train for it?

Well, if you're running 5Ks an endurance session would be anything longer than that - say 8, 10, 42K! If you lift one weight once only endurance would be lifting it a few more times. If you can hold a plank for 20 seconds then a longer hold will be it.

It's all relative. Marathoner's may consider a marathon simple to complete but and an ultra-run (anything over a marathon) to be much harder. Endurance is as much in the mind as the muscles. We need to believe that we can go further, lift one more time, hold on a little while longer.

To train to do this you need to gradually increase you distance, lifts or time. Don't try too much too soon. Do push yourself a little each time, improvements come from stretching yourself.

Michelle 'with you for the long haul' Day

www.inspiringfitness.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/InspiringFitness.UK/?ref=hl

 

D for ential

Week 4, here we come!

Time to be strict...
No, not to be a dominatrix (although that does begin with a D of course!)

It's 'Stricly Come Dancing' - Dancing is the D here.

It's not always thought of as exercise but it can get you as out of breath and help you work up a sweat too.

Whether it's Zumba, Clubercise, Swing, ballroom or even 'shaking your booty' to your own record collection, if you like to dance this could be your way to a fitter lifestyle.

Enjoy the dance, (The closest I get is a bit of Boxercise!)



Muscle time...
The deltoid muscle is named, due to it's shape, after the greek letter Delta, both are triangular.

So, this D is for deltoids.

On the top of the shoulder sitting like a 1980's fashion statement - we loved our shoulder pads in the eighties we did!

This muscle helps in the movement of the arm away from the body and both forwards and back. It's pretty useful then so how can we exercise it?

Lateral raises
Shoulder press
Reverse flys

These are a few useful ones, look them up, perform them safely, or ask you local trainer:

www.inspiringfitness.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/InspiringFitness.UK/?ref=hl



A bit fat juicy semi-dried Mejdool date that is, not a night out with me!

Date palms are the oldest cultivated trees and and are high in potassium (assisitng with proper muscle contraction) and fibre. They are also high in sugar but these are released more slowly than some fruits. Just don't eat too many!

Most dates we get in the UK are dried or semi-dried but the fruits can be eaten fresh too. I love a date stuffed with a teaspoon of peanut butter as a post workout snack.

Make a date with dates!



D is for...

It's DIET.

The word now only seems to apply to slimming diets but it's full and orignal meaning is:

'The kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats'

It's a simple as that - what you usually eat. So what do you usually eat?

Or are you always 'slimming'?

If that's the case you will need to run a calorie deficit of 3,500 per week to to lose a pound. That's 500 less than your suggested intake per day.

However, if you have too little food very regularly the first thing that will happen is that your body will recognise it's being 'starved' and go into a self preservation mode and start using less calories to live, storing some away as fat for later use when you're really hungry.

 

So, you don't lose weight and you get fed up and you go back to normal eating but your body is still wary of the starvation issue and still stores fat and you put more weight on. Sound familiar?

When calorie restricting your diet it's a fine line between losing weight and causing problems to your body so don't expect or try to achieve to much too soon. Take it slowly and follow advice - MyFitnessPal will work out a good calorie average for you based on your goals - or your local trainer could help you!

Need advice?
You know where we are!





This weeks info-mails were brought to you by the letter D.
In keeping with previous weeks we'll begin with a vitamin.

Vitamin D is needed to absorb calcium (for strong teeth and bones!) effectively. Without enough Vit D your bones will be soft. Just google 'rickets' a disease which was almost eradicated in the UK but has been making a comeback recently.

Why?
Fear and Xboxes!

You see we synthesise Vit D in our skins on exposure to the sun and modern day kids just don't get much sun, they stay in and play games or are kept in by their parents. Oily fish and eggs are also good sources of vitamin D and given that D is a fat soluble vitamin it can't help but have some of those in your diet anyway!

Don't fear the outdoors but take care not to burn in strong sunlight.

B for mutton

Week two of our A-Z and we're on to B!

B Vitamins...there are so many of them that it's worth me taking 2 days to cover them so here goes.

B1 - Thiamin
Releases energy, promotes growth, regulates appetite and a healthy digestive and nervous system. It's destroyed by light and heat and although wheat initially contains it the milling process can destroy it hence the addition of B vitamins back into bread.

It can be found in Marmite and other yeast extracts, wholemeal flours, sunflower seeds, liver and some nuts as well as brown rice and pork, beans, buckwheat and rye.

B2 - Riboflavin
Combines with protein to regulate breathing, helps with growth and promotes healthy skin and eyes. Also unstable in light hence the dark packaging of most supplements!

Found in yeast, liver and kidneys, almonds, wild rice and egg yolk as well as oily fish.

B3 - Niacin
Like B1 it's required for energy release and good digestion and nervous system and like B2 is good for skin. It also is required in the sythesis of steriods and fatty acids. This one is more stable.

It can come form the sources listed above and also lean meat and poultry.

B5 - Pantothenic Acid
Regulates carb and fat metabolism and helps with resistance to stress and as other promotes a healthy immune and digestive system. Lots of this one can be lost in many processes such as those involving heat or freezing or canning.

Sources include many of those mentioned above and also broccoli and avocados.


As you can see a lot of the sources of these B vitamins are animal - these are the vitamins that a lot of vegetarians and vegans lack. A varied diet is great for all especially those who don't eat meat, in order to ensure they get a good intake of all of these B's.

I take a B supplement for stress reduction - I've noticed a real difference since taking it. However, it may indeed be better for me (and you!) to indentify the food sources and try to manage any issues that way if we can.


Day two on that huuuuuge group of vitamins known as B:

B6 - Pyridoxine Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate
This one metabolises carbs and protein and sythesis hormones and fatty acids like B3. As with many of the others it promotes a healthy nervous system and it also aids with hormone balance. It's very unstable so eay to lose in cooking, on exposure to light or in milling.

Sources include yeast, sunflower seeds, bananas beans, pork avaocados, egg yolk, soybeans, wholewheat flour and oily fish.

B12 - Cobalamin
An important vitamin in creating red blood cells, lipids and helping a maintain a healthy gut and for DNA synthesis. You can't get this one from plant sources at all. If you're a vegan you MUST supplement for this one.

Sources are all animal proucts - liver, shellfish, kidneys, oily fish, egg yolk, lamb, beef and cheese.

Folic Acid
Like B12 is involved in the creation of new blood cells and DNA synthesis, also RNA synthesis. Promotes a healthy gut and nervous system too. Another very unstable one and supplementation is advised before and during pregnancy.

It can be found in yeast, black-eye peas, soy beans, liver, kidney, green leafy veg, figs and avocados.



Again we see that B's can be lacking in a plant based diet. You may also be suffering low B's if you experience high stress and feelings of panic frequently.

A varied diet containing lots of green leafy veg, meat and oily fish and beans will go towards ensuring that you have enough in your diet although as we can see heat often destroys them so cooking will need to be gentle - don't boil your veggies to mush, try a steamer and leave them with some bite!






The berry that is often touted by fitness and health blogs etc is the blueberry - well I'm not going to go on about that one as it's actually native to North America and we're in the UK and I would prefer to get fresh, indigenous spieces. In saying that, if you live in the North of the UK you may find a very close relative of the blueberry growing on hills and moors - the bilberry, it is native and looks like the blueberry but is not exactly the same.

The berry that most of use will see, even in hedges in suburban areas is the blackberry. Although please be careful as blackberries picked near busy roads, they may indeed have a high lead content due to the use of lead in petrol for many years prior to late 90's.

So, what are they good for and how do you get/use them?;

Your skin and gut will benefit from these berries as will you heart as thye contain a substance similar to aspirin. Fresh berries are best - so go pick some yourself out in the country and use within 3 days. You can now get packets of berries from the supermarket but there is little guarantee that they have not been in cold storage for a longer period than that leaching out there goodness.

Blackberry leaves can also be used to make tea - which was a traditional remedy for diarrhoea, mouth ulcers and bleeding gums. The berries are also great in a crumble with apples, and make a nice vinegar for use as a dressing or to soothe a sore throat.


I remember trips out into Northumberland to pick berries and the lovely crumbles and blackberry jelly made by my Nan. They're tiny little pockets of tastiness those berries!


What other muscle do you think of that startd with B afterall!

Biceps - Bi = two parts.
It flexes the lower arm i.e. moves it closer to the upper arm.
It's seen as a sign of masculinity in mnay cultures - just think of Popeye!
But guys - remember to work it's opposing pair - the tricep on the other side of the upper arm that does the opposite job!

Bicep curl video