The truth hurts

Last week my wife and I went to see a dietician. Having studied Human Movement Studies and been actively involved in the health and fitness industry for a decade now I was pretty confident that my diet and fitness regime was pretty good. So I thought I would go as part of an interest piece I could write for the magazine.

Well I was right on one count – my exercise. The feedback on my diet was not what I had expected though, nor were my body composition stats. Granted I haven’t been that strict with my diet over the last two years, as exercise took a bit of a backseat while I recovered from a broken shoulder and two subsequent operations, but I still tried to stay active and eat relatively well.

Then 2010 rolled around and I thought the time is now to get back into my cycling, hit the gym once again and finally get my body into the shape it was all those years ago. And I must admit that things were going well – in my eyes at least. I did a few 100km+ cycle races, have been at gym at least three times a week since January and have also started running once or twice a week.

So I could be forgiven for thinking that my Body Mass Index, Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR) and body fat percentage was within acceptable standards. Boy was I in for a shock. Not to give too much away, but lets just say my body fat percentage was almost 10% out from what I thought it would be. My WHR is outside the ideal range and my BMI index indicated that I could lose at least 5kgs – luckily I have a fair amount of body fat to draw that figure from.

So with my undivided attention the dietician took me through her comments on my diet (we had filled in a questionnaire before the appointment). The main reason for my poor results was more about my portion sizes than the food I eat. All-in-all my diet was relatively healthy, all I needed to do was halve my portions (in some cases cut it by two thirds) and add some more colour to my meals.

The next day I had a new eating plan in my inbox and I have been trying to follow it religiously since then. It is nearing the end of day 4 of my new eating plan, and despite a small issue with my energy levels on Sunday when I was out riding I am coping pretty well.

The mental thing is the hardest to defeat. I have been plagued by images of junk food – KFC burgers, muffins, large juicy steaks – at strange times during the day. But I can safely say I have stayed the course. The portion sizes are taking some time to get used to, as my stomach will start grumbling about an hour before my next meal (usually at 3 hour intervals), but thankfully the eating plan is not restrictive.

What it has taught me is that just about anything in moderation can be incorporated into your diet without creating too many ripples. Its when you gorge yourself on several Lindt bunnies over Easter, or have 6 beers instead of three that the calories start adding up. The best thing you can ever do to assist with your healthy eating plans is to keep a food diary. Write everything you put in your mouth down. You will be amazed at all the little things you forget you ate, how many times you actually eat take-out in a week and how all this adds up.

My new mindset is that this is not a diet, so there is no “end” in sight – this is a lifestyle change that will stay with me forever, perhaps with a few adjustments and tweaks here and there. I think this is where the common diet falls short – it is done over a fixed period of time, and then all the old habits come flooding back and ruin all the hard work you have put in.

So we will see where this new eating regime takes me, and how well I am able to follow it in my everyday life. I can tell you one thing though, eating clean gives you a new appreciation for food in general – what the good stuff does for your health, and also how good the bad stuff can be. I will be savouring the next cheat meal I have and enjoy every bite – all in moderation of course!

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Success is in the preparation

If you have not figured it out by now, the secret to success lies in your preparation. In everything that you do… your success comes down to how well you prepare for it.
It doesn’t only apply to your diet and training, it applies to everything, from your career to your personal life.

If you want to turn your lifestyle around and aim for the goals you’ve set for yourself, then prepare for it.

Last week I set out to start my new diet and training routine. It all started off wonderful, cardio first thing Monday morning, eating clean…. but around Wednesday things started going pear shaped. Why? Because I didn’t plan correctly. I had a social event Wednesday night, and instead of “planning ahead” by having dinner before I get out the house, I let my rushed lifestyle dictate to me what I will be having for dinner. That led to the whole week going downhill. In general I eat clean, but it just made me lose the motivation to keep up an even cleaner eating plan all week long.

Due to me not even doing proper shopping for my ‘dietary needs’ led to me not being prepared – and how can you expect to stick to something if you don’t even know what you need to do to get to your goal.

Even the best intentions go south when you don’t prepare. My advice – map out a plan of what you want. Document your steps, that way you’re more likely to stick to it. And be prepared. Take that extra 20 minutes in the morning to pack food for the day, spend that extra few minutes on getting what you want. It’s all about you. A few minutes each day will make a huge difference in a few months. It’s time you’re investing in yourself!

Follow me through every day that I am trying to live by my own words – I’ll be blogging daily about how my real world mixes with training and, ultimately, achieving my goals.

Have fun ladies!

“Half of getting what you want is knowing what you have to give up to get it!”

The blogging begins…

Hello all you fitness girls! Today Fitness mag issue 25 went on sale with our top 32 cover model selected entries. It’s been amazing to see the response from this year. So many ladies entered, and the condition, tone and quality of photography is so much higher than what we’ve had before. It really is amazing and inspiring to see so many entries.

I hope, like me, all our readers will find inspiration in these girls. It’s not easy balancing your life with a fitness routine. I’m going through the same thing… Even amidst all the fitness lifestyle I am surrounded with, I too get “sucked into” a fast paced lifestyle where work and life just doesn’t stop. I hardly find time for myself, let alone my training and fitness routine. I might not have kids, but I manage a business and have other people depending on me. The team works hard, and, well – Fitness Mag isn’t our only mag we publish. So, work is like “my kids”… and it takes a lot of my time. And that’s just part of the bigger picture. Girls like to be in control of everything, and I’m no exception. Home life is important, and I’m sure you all know the responsibilities that comes with ‘running a household’. The shopping… cooking… all the frilly bits that girls do. And of course… your other half. That’s an important part – while working hard at every other aspect of your life, you can never neglect your man

So – in a nutshell, I’m where some of you might be now. I have taken my eye off the prize for a moment while I attend to my life. And it’s not just about that I have fallen behind with my fitness routine, it’s about life. We give so much of ourselves selflessly, and… well, we never focus on ourselves enough.

So I am taking it back! I’m putting myself 1st and hitting the gym. I’ve formed a bad habit of extending my work hours and blaming a back injury for not getting back into my normal routine. It all started today, and for the first time I’m really excited to jump head 1st into a new make-over! Get my fitness levels back, drop those nasty few kg’s and get energised!

Check out my progress, what / how I’m training, what my nutrition comprises of and…. what happens in the day to day life of a fitness editor! More fitness – More fun!

See you soon!
Tanja