Whats stopping you?!? My 1st Weeks workout, Diet, Weight Loss & Body Measurements

Well here are the details and stats after the 1^st week of my transformation. The whole week was amazing, even with 5x 1 hour cardio sessions in the morning, I still really enjoyed it. I don’t know about you, but I have never been a cardio person, EVER. But, this 1st week has totally changed my mind, I now crave my cardio sessions and look forward to them. So if you’re a cardio hater as I was, there’s hope for you still. JUST GET UP AND DO IT.

How I structure my week

I’m going to run through how my week was structured, with the cardio and weights sessions. I’ll also explain what my meal plan was and the times I had my meals. I found the diet and timing of the meals was vital, having the structure in place for my meals made everything else fall into place. I guess it just makes life easier. Remember, failure to prepare is preparing to fail!!!!

The week below may look like a lot of work, but I’m looking to totally transform my body and fitness level. Also, I’ve chosen to take on this challenge to help inspire and show you that anything is possible, if you put your mind to it. You need to train your mind and the way you think to achieve and not let anything get in the way of your goals. If you want something, then you need to take control and go get it.

Week 1

Day	AM	PM	PM
Monday	Cardio	Legs	20 min Cardio
Tuesday	Cardio	Chest & Triceps	20 min Cardio
Wednesday			20 min Cardio
Thursday	Cardio	Back & Biceps	20 min Cardio
Friday	Cardio	Shoulders, Calves & Abs	20 min Cardio
Saturday			20 min Cardio
Sunday	Cardio	Legs

AM Cardio:- 1 hour on the treadmill with a 15 degrees angle at a speed of 2.3MPH.

PM Cardio:- 20 minutes steady speed with no resistance, but achieve 65% Maximum Heart Rate.

Day 1. Legs

 

Day 2. Chest & Triceps

 

 

Day 3. Rest day, except for cardio sessions

Day 4. Back & Biceps

 

Day 5. Shoulders, Calves & Abs

 

Day 6. Rest day, except for cardio sessions

Day 7. Legs

 

 Food Plan

In regards to my food plan, I’ve made it as simple as possible to make it easier to stick to which helps me stay focused. I can prepare all my food on a Sunday night and a Thursday, then put it into loads of amazing Tupperware containers and I’m good to go. You professionals always say, “Its 80% diet and 20% gym” and I totally agree with that. The diet is vital as it fuels you and repairs the muscles. If your diet isn’t under control, it doesn’t matter how much effort you put into the gym or exercising, you won’t lose the fat, you’ll burn up your muscle and a only small amount of fat.

A typical daily food plan

8am Post workout 2x scoops Pro and 2x scoops Oat              48g Pro 70g Carb 584 Kcal
11am shake 1 scoop Pro & 1x scoop Oats                                   24g Pro 35g Carbs 292 Kcal
2.30pm 100g Chicken Sandwich and Protein bread              50g Pro 30g Carbs 461 Kcal
5.00pm 100g Chicken and 1x Rice Cake                                   27g Pro 8g Carbs 180 Kcal
7.30pm Post workout 1x scoop Pro & 1x scoop Oats              24g Pro 35g Carbs 292 Kcal
8.30pm 1x Tuna Salad with 1 TBS of olive oil & GGS            30g Pro 128 Kcal
11pm Protein shake                                                                        20g Pro 3g Carbs 98 Kcal

223g Protein

182g Carbs

2163 Kcal

Week 1 Weight Loss & Body Measurements

 

 

 

Just to confirm, all the measurements are made in Inches and weight is in Pounds & Stones. As you can see, in the 1st week I lost a total of 4.3lbs which I was really happy with. Obviously a lot of that was water that my body was holding, but a great start never the less. This has really helped to motivate me for the start of the second week. I also lost 2 inches from my waist and an inch and a half from my hips. It shows that hard work and dedication really does pay off.

 

NEVER GIVE UP ON YOURSELF OR YOUR DREAMS

 

 



 

 



 



 



 

 

 

What should I have for lunch? Why not have a spicey chicken romaine lettuce wrap

If you're looking for something delicious and light to have for lunch or as a snack, try this amazing spicy chicken romaine lettuce wrap. It truly tasty amazing and takes only a few moment to prepare, cook and eat, so its perfect for someone that got a busy life or on the run a lot.

So all you need to create these amazing wraps are 200g of chicken, 2x romaine lettuce leaves, 1 medium pickle beetroot, 4 radishes, some cucumber and 1/2 a teaspoon of smoked paprika, cumin and cayan pepper.
1. Mix slice the chicken into thin strips to allow easy quick cooking and season with the smoked paprika, cumin and cayan pepper.
2. Heat a pan on a medium heat until the olive oil is hot, once at good heat add the chicken and turn after 2 minutes so both sides cook evenly.
3. Whilst the chicken is cooking, chop up the beetroot, radishes and cucumber and add to the romaine lettuce leaves.
4. Once the chicken is cook, chop it up and add to the wraps and enjoy this amazing lunch that took you around 5 minutes all together to make.
5.Bon appetite healthy people

This is for one serving (2x wraps)

Always Remember

 

 

 

 

How to increase my vitamin intake - Try the Glowing Green Smoothie

The amazing Glowing Green Smoothie is a fantastic way to gain more nutrients and minerals from green leafy vegetables. With this smoothie will get a lot more vitamins and minerals than you would probably eat in a day without a doubt. The GGS is a powerhouse of a smoothie that’s packed full of these important nutrients, a normal portion of this smoothie contains over a whopping 3 cups worth of dark leafy greens. Amazingly, this is more than most people would eat in a whole week.

 

Green leafy vegetables have more nutrients in them than any other food group out there. You might be surprised to learn that greens even have high-quality, easily-assimilated amino acids. Amino acids are vital for muscle growth and repair, so this smoothie is idea for anyone that want to boost their nutritional intake, but also anyone that is training in the gym as it will help repair their muscle and relieve the effect of the dreaded DOMS. If greens work for gorillas, the most powerful pound for pound animal on the planet, then they’re going to be pretty great for us as well.

 

The beauty of blending all these leafy green vegetable up in a blender makes accessing all the nutrients much easier. When we eat food, we are meant to chew it until it become a cream like consistency, which most of us don’t do. What makes the smoothie so great is that once the cells that contain all the nutrients are broken down by the blender, it makes it much easier for our bodies to absorb them.  

 

If you are looking to boost your nutritional intake, I would recommend drinking around 250ml – 500ml a day. However if you’re looking to detox yourself, drink between 500ml-1l a day. This will give you a huge amount of nutrients within a 24 hour period, and a 500ml serving can be a meal. I’ve actually had a chicken breast on the side to eat whilst I drank my smoothie to keep my protein intake up at the same time.

 

Ingredients

1 head of Romaine lettuce or half an Iceberg lettuce

Half a head of spinach or 5-6 frozen cubes of spinach

4 sticks of celery

1 apple

1pear

1banana

Juice of half a lemon

400ml of cold water

 

This smoothie will give you more than 200% RDA of your Vitamin A and C. Vitamin A helps to clear up skin blemishes and it’s vital for cell regeneration. Vitamin A has even been found to clear up skin conditions like acne, eczema  and sunburn. Vitamin C however is amazing for boosting the immune system and even helps to fight viral infections. On top of this, it helps with healing wounds again, so it will help with the regeneration of any scares or blemishes.

All in all this is a must for any person that wants to boost their immune system and help clear up their complication. Apart from being amazing for your skins health and skins appearance, its packed full of your dietary fiber so helps promote a healthy inside as well.

I just wanted to let everyone know I found this smoothie on http://kimberlysnyder.net/ and it’s also in her fantastic book “The Beauty Detox Solution” which is packed full of meal plans and other smoothie ideas. Its well worth a read as it give you a huge insight into nutrition and how it also affects your health and complements your skin health and condition.

 

Morning Cardio - Interval Hill Training, plus a selection of healthy meals

Well today started with a fresh filter coffee, followed by a trip to the gym for my morning cardio session. It consisted of 60 minutes of interval training on the treadmill at a comfortable pace. I made sure that I was able to control my heart rate at between 119 bpm too 123 bpm so I maximised my fat burning potential. After the 60 minutes the treadmill dial said I burnt 514 cals, the best part of seeing that is knowing my body carries on burning calories for the rest of the day because of it.

I was advised by a good friend of mine to do my morning cardio before I have my breakfast, as I will be burning fat instead of the food I would have just eaten. If anyone has any other opinion, please feel free to give me some feedback and your opinion.

In regards to diet, its been really clean and packed full of good quality whole foods such as tuna, rice, vegetables and fruit. You can see below what I had and what each of the meals consisted of and the benefits of each of the items within them. I thought it would be helpful for people to understand what's so great about these food items and why we really should be eating them.

Breakfast

I had probably the tastiest breakfast in ages today, porridge with goji berries, raisins, cashew nuts and honey. It was the perfect way to start the day and get myself ready for the coming year, the plus is it was amazing and packed full of goodness. You can see below the benefits having all of these below.

 

Goji Berries

Goji berries were eaten in ancient China to prolong life. Now days they are eaten because they’re packed full of antioxidants and vitamins, especially Vitamin A. Vitamin A is important for the immune system, eye sight and cell preproduction.

Raisins

These are perfect for people to eat to gain energy, they are packed full of natural sugar and antioxidants. Plus if you’re craving something sweet, then some raisins are idea to snack on.

Cashew nuts

So packed full of protein are these nuts that they’ve been consumed by heath enthusiasts and bodybuilders for years. On top of helping to maintain and increase muscle with the protein in them, they are also great for your heart as they contain the good Monounsaturated fats our body needs. All in all, these are amazing.

Honey

Well this stuff has been used for over 4,000 years, even the Egyptians were using it, but not to eat, they used it to treat wounds. We even use it to help with a bad throat, it’s that versatile. It tastes delicious and is actually packed full of natural sugar and Calcium.

Oats

Oats have been part of people’s diets for years, mainly because it’s a complex carbohydrate that provide a great source of energy. They are also fantastic as they contain beta-glucan which helps fight plus prevent heart disease and diabetes.

Lunch

I have had to change my mind set to remind me I need to be eating healthy again because I have been eating pretty badly for a few months. So today I had a delicious tuna sandwich with lettuce and cucumber. Plus I had 2 carrots, some radishes and a Coxs apple. The sandwich was pretty dry because I don’t eat any spreads or butter, but with the tuna and everything else it wasn’t as dry as it could be.

 

Tuna

Tuna is a great source of Protein and is idea to fit into anyones diet, especially as it can come in a tin pre-cooked and ready to eat. It also contains the key omega fish oils our body needs to transport Vitamins and minerals around our body. On top of that, its seriously tasty and can be flavoured with pretty much anything.

Multi-seed Bread

Multi seed wholemeal bread is always my 1^st choice, it’s been eaten for thousands of years as it’s rich in complex carbohydrates because it’s made from the whole grain. The seeds are also great as they contain those all-important natural oils that we need.

Lettuce

This is a great item to add to any salad or meal, its high in Vitamin A and especially in Vitamin K which is found a lot in green vegetables. Vitamin K is vital for the body as it helps with blood clotting, so if you are hypoglycaemic try to eat foods that are high in Vitamin K. Plus it has a high water content so it also helps to keep your body hydrated. There are many types of lettuce out there on the market, so its really a good idea to go out and try a new one or two each week to find the ones you most like as they can vary in flavour.

Cucumber

Is extremely high in water content but also has a crunch to it when eaten so it too is ideal to add to salads and sandwiches. Like the lettuce it contain a large amount of Vitamin K, it is important to mention that if you are taking warfarin, a large increase in Vitamin K could counter the affect.

Carrot

These are a fantastic source of Vitamin A, a cup side portion could give you up to 482% of your RDA, which makes these a vital part of anyone’s diet. They have a sweet taste as they contain natural sugars which make them a nice alternative for a healthy snack. Plus they have a good crunch and can be eaten simply when cut into sticks.

Radish

Are a great vegetable to add to a salad or even to cook. Not many people with use them in their cooking but they really are amazing cook. When rare they have a peppery taste to them and are crunchy like carrots. They contain a good amount of Vitamin C which the body uses for maintaining connective tissue within the body and cell health.

Apple

Are once again a great source of Vitamin C and also contain a large amount of natural sugars that make them sweet. These are once again a great idea for a snack as they can provide a quick intake of energy from the sugar.

Dinner

So tonight was a treat meal as it’s my girlfriend’s birthday and she wanted to have chili for dinner. However I did cook a healthy version as we are sticking to the fitness and weight loss goals. It was so nice to have chilli, especially because it was all fresh with organic produce. So I used extra lean steak mince with organic kidney beans and organic chopped tomatoes as they contain the most nutrients. For the flavour I used cumin, Cayan pepper, garlic and smoked paprika so I could control the spice level, but I like it hot. A benefit of Cayan pepper is that it heats up your core temperature which helps to increase your effectiveness of burning calories.

SORRY NO PHOTO, IT WAS EATEN WAY BEFORE THE CAMERA COULD EVEN COME OUT!!

Steak mince

Beef is naturally packed full of vitamin B, almost 35% of a person Vitamin B intake is actually through the consumption of meat. Compared to vegetable, meat has a higher content. Beef doesn’t have the highest content of protein, however it still contains a good percentage. It’s also great for building muscle as it has a good level of natural fat.

Tomatoes

Are a great source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C. Like carrots, tomatoes are packed full of Vitamin A which is especially important for the immune system, eye sight and also keep internal organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys functioning well. Vitamin C though is used as an antioxidant, it also helps with the production of collagen and helps with wound healing.

Kidney beans

These are packed full of protein and are a great source of energy.  They are ideal for someone who’s looking to keep a high protein diet even if they aren’t eating a huge amount of protein rich meats. They are also packed full of Vitamin B1 is important as it is used to convert food into energy, this is why kidney beans are such an effective food item.

Brown Rice

Without a doubt brown rice in my opinion is the best option of all rice. It contains all the nutrients in the husk unlike the processed white rice that has been stripped of almost 80% of its nutrients. It’s a complex carbohydrate so it is a slow digesting carb and is a great source of energy that will be absorbed slowly. Plus it tastes fantastic which helps. Ideally I wouldn’t normally eat a complex carb after 6pm as I’m trying to lose weight, but tonight was a special case.

What's coming up In tomorrows post.

I will be explaining about the workout routine I will be following. I will also be updating the weights I'm using etc so I can keep track and document my gains over the coming weeks. As well as my workout details, I will be posting all of my body stats such as weight, measurements and BMI.

What protein powder should I use? All explained here

This is a very simple and easy to understand explanation of protein powder on the market. I personally used to get confused a lot when I first started using protein powder, I never knew what the difference between them was or when best to take them.

Below is a brief breakdown of the proteins and the best use for them, so I hope this helps to clear up any questions or worries you may have had.

Whey Protein

Whey protein is derived from animal milk and the most popular protein power on the market. It is also known to be the best all round protein, because of its tasting, its high quality of protein and also being the cheapest to produce. On top of all this, it also helps to enhance the immune system and is high in calcium.

Whey Concentrate has a very low lactose level and can normally be consumed by people sensitive to lactose. It is low in carbs and fat, so a good option for someone that is looking to keep to a specific calorie diet. What makes Whey concentrate a firm favourite with gym goers and athletes is that the body absorbs it very quickly.

Whey Isolate is considered to be the more superior of the two usually it has a higher protein level. It is ideal for people looking to eliminate as much fat from their diet as it’s virtually fat-free. On top of it being virtually fat-free, it’s typically lactose free, so would be the best choice for someone who is sensitive to lactose. In regards to the taste, it’s viewed as slightly better than whey concentrate, but has a thinner consistency as it has no fat in it.

Best Uses: This is ideal for a pre/post workout shake, meal replacement and also first thing on waking up.

Casein or Milk Protein

Like whey, casein protein is another milk protein derivative. The key difference between whey and casein is the absorption rate. Casein protein is absorbed slower, and a great option if you are looking for a slow but steady release.

Best Use: This is idea to take in the evening before bed or with a blend of whey concentrate for a meal replacement or post workout shake.

Egg White Protein

This was for many years the number one protein supplement used, until whey protein took over due to cost. Like whey and casein protein, egg white protein is virtually fat and cholesterol free. Being a non-diary product, it’s perfect for people with a diary allergy.

Best Use: It is idea as a pre or post workout shake as it’s absorbed very quickly into the body.

Vegetable Proteins (Soy/Hemp/Pea/Rice)

These are relatively new to the market but are proving to be of high quality like the milk derived proteins. The Soy and Hemp especially are viewed as the best because they provide all 8 essential amino-acids, the rest will be missing at least one. Soy also provides antioxidants and have heart health benefits. Sadly for these vegetable proteins, the taste suffers as it is hard to cover up the natural taste they have.

Best Use: To be used by vegetarians and vegans as they are all derived from vegetables.

 

Some of the best option I have used are listed below.

+Myprotein Impact whey protein - http://www.myprotein.com/sports-nutrition/impact-whey-protein/10530943.html

+Myprotein Impact whey isolate - http://www.myprotein.com/sports-nutrition/impact-whey-isolate/10530911.html

+Myprotein Milk protein (casein) - http://www.myprotein.com/sports-nutrition/calcium-caseinate/10529260.html

These are 3 of the best value for money protein powders I have used on the market, they really are great in taste and mix ability.

 If you wanted to spend a little more Dynamix Nutrition provide a fantastic range of supplements and protein.

http://www.dynamixnutrition.com/whey-protein-advanced-formula-p-43.html

 

 

 

Goodbye 2013 its been emotional, now lets set some goals for 2014

So today is the last day of 2013, whether it was a successful year or one you would rather forget, its now drawing to an end. However, 2014 is literally around the corner and its filled with awesome challenges and goals. So lets let our goals and challenges down so we can see what we WILL achieve in 2014.

I was thinking last night about this long and hard, really thinking about how I could make a change that would be different to last year. I'm sure you are the same, you've said this is the year I will "make the change" or "this is my year", but honestly have you or I achieved what we wanted? To some extent I have, but in regards to my appearance and fitness levels, I have failed with a Capital F.

This year my goals are going to be:

1. Loose 44lb of fat
2. Run a Reebok Spartan Race +Spartan Race
3. Run a Tough Mudder Race +Tough Mudder
4. Create Fat2Fit Blog
5. Start my Dietetics & Nutrition degree.
6. Start playing rugby again +Folkestone Rugby Club
7. Put some ideas together for writing a book.
8. Start producing my own fitness clothing brand
9. Be the best I have ever been.

I know this might sound like some different or unusual ideas, but everyone has their own goals. Your goals are personal to you, no matter what other people think of them or say, they don't understand them like you do. Sadly you will find people along your way and throughout your journey who will say "you cant do it" or "what's the point", but remember they're like that because they listened to the people who told them they couldn't do it. You are stronger than them, you have the determination and drive just like I do to succeed, we can and WILL reach our goals this year and every year onwards because we are ready to make the change, NOW.