Things I love Thursday #12 That feeling

I have come so far in the past 8 months.  I have pushed myself, trained my mind and body and become someone I never believed I could be.  I am not only a lot stronger physically but also mentally.  I spent the first months really focusing on technique, making sure to get everything right so I would not hurt myself and get the most benefits possible.  Then once I had mastered the technique I started focusing on slowly increasing the weight.  It has been quite simple so far but the past few weeks I have noticed something.  When I go to start a dead lift, pick up dumbbells for a chest press or do any other kind of free weight exercise I stop and hold the metal bar before the lift.  This is something I have seen many guys doing in the gym but never really understood myself.  I was psyching myself up for the lift.


In the past I knew that what I was lifting wasn't that much but now what used to be my focus weight is now my warm up.  On Monday I was sitting on a bench with two 14kg in my hands, gripping tight and just looking at them.  It was such a rush but it was fear as well as excitement.  This was only the second time I had used 14s and I had to sit looking at them for a few seconds before actually smashing out the set.  It's the same feeling you get when you take a big jump, take a risk, do something that in the back of your head you know you shouldn't. 

I have always loved weight lifting but now I have more drive, more focus and that feeling that pushes me to keep going.  Its a passion and something I find great pleasure in.  When you find that feeling, no matter what it is you are doing, never let it go.  In life you get the opportunity to push yourself to fifill your dreams.  That feeling is what holds the dream up, don't let that go.  Its the passion that makes ideas a reality. 


Believe in your dreams and they can come true.  Hope you enjoyed this weeks "Things I love Thursday"!  Any questions or comments feel free to email me here or leave a message below!

Things I love Thursday #11 Aloe Gel

Today I am going to talk about something more health related rather than fitness.  The beautiful Aloe Gel by Forever Living.  I am amazed how much this has helped me and by how natural it is.  Forever Living is a company that helps people to start up their own business and helps them to create the lifestyle they have always wanted.  It retails products that are natural, kind to the planet, animal friendly, not tested on animals and benefit your health and wellbeing.  The Aloe Gel is the inner juicy part of the aloe plant and one of their best loved products.  It helps with four areas; your skin, bronchi, stomach and bowel.  I have seen a massive change in myself. I used to get stomach cramps and would “go” only once or twice a week.  I would pick up coughs all the time and it was horrible.  Now I feel normal!  My body isn’t constantly in pain, I get up in the morning and have energy, I just feel alive!  It has helped curb my cravings and cleansed my body.

 

This is defiantly a love and something I plan on taking forever!  These benefits are what I have experienced but Aloe Gel has helped my family and friends as well.  It has helped my friend who has fibromyalgia.  At one point her fibromyalgia was so bad that she had to use a wheelchair.  Now after physiotherapy and hard work she can walk again but her pain was still excruciating.  She started taking Forever Freedom that is specifically designed to help with painful joints and support fitness lovers.  Her pain is now minimal and she gets less flare ups. 

 

Forever Aloe is not a cure but it might make the difference that you need.  I believe that if something is safe and natural you should always give it a shot and see.  You never know it may be the best decision you ever made.  I know it was for me!  If you want to find out more information about Forever Living or Aloe Gel please feel free to drop me an email here or check out my online store here!

 

Hope you guys enjoyed this weeks Things I love Thursday!

Things I love Thursday #10 Bulk Buying

In the past I was a victim to the high costs of high protein.  I would buy protein bars at my local gym and by foods like chicken from supermarkets and butchers.  Trying to maintain a high protein diet its not easy on a low wage.  Yeah I could afford to buy food however it would be mainly bulked up by cheep carbs.  I have found two websites that are like Gods gift to the healthy.  One provides extremely low prices for meat and other food products but still maintains high quality and supports local butchers.  The other promises the lowest price for post and pre workout.  If you find something cheaper elsewhere they will lower there price!


Muscle Foods
Muscle  foods provide high quality British and Irish meat that is free range, organic and RSPCA monitored.  Its great for people like me who want to make sure that my meat comes from animals that have had a good life.  It is 100% the best meat I have ever tasted.  It is so fresh and has amazing flavours.  I normally buy my meat at the start of the month and it feeds two people for 5 weeks.  There is always a deal on.  For example today I ordered a hamper containing 5kg premium chicken breast, two 7oz Grass Fed New York Strips, two 6-7oz Grass Fed Hache Steaks, two 6-7oz Grass Fed Dragon Fire Steaks, 800g Southern Fried Diced Chicken, 800g Extra Lean Steak Mince, two 4oz Extra Lean Steak Burgers,12 x 57g Grass Fed Giant Meatballs, 6 x 75g Premium Chicken Breast Sausages and two 4oz Premium Chicken Breast Burgers all for £55.  Don't just take my word for it this place is amazing and you should really give it a look!!


Dolphin Fitness
Average protein bar costs about £2.50 from a vending machine.  When you buy in bulk from Dolphin Fitness its more likely to be £1.25! Now I know that still sounds like a lot but on a high protein diet you need an extra boost (or two..) and bars are a great alternative to high sugar snack foods.  In my gym they sell bars with more that 15g of sugar in them at £2.20.  These are pretty much chocolate bars.  At the moment I am eating PHD diet bars that only have 0.7g of sugar and taste amazing!  The other thing that is great about Dolphin Fitness is that the more of a product you buy the cheaper it gets!  One box might be £15.50 but if you buy two you get them for £14.99 each!  Also if you find it cheaper elsewhere they will lower there prices! 


A good tip when ordering food online is to follow their Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as they will always post information about good deals and discounts.  Cant see any discounts that work for you, Google discount codes or coupons.  Its amazing what is out there and available for people on a tight budget. 


Hope this was helpful!  I would love to hear about any places you know for good deals or your experiences with Muscle Foods and Dolphin Fitness.  Leave a comment below or email me here!

Things I love Thursday #9 Fat

"But fats are bad!" I hear you cry.  Well guys sorry to break it to you but cutting out all fatty foods is not the way to go when you are trying to lose weight.  Your body needs fats but the good kind.  Fatty foods are a rich source of energy.  They are vital when working out and exercising to lose weight. I have made the mistake in the past of buying low fat everything.  Your body needs good fats to survive and keep you going.  If you don't have good fats in your diet you are more likely to snack on foods high in sugar.  This is because your body is lacking in energy and sugary foods like chocolate give your body a quick boost. 


The recommended amount of fats for women is 70g and for men 95g.  This may seem like a lot but when eating the wrong kinds of fats this can go quickly.  During the day to keep me going I sometimes have some dry roasted unsalted nuts (average amount 40g).  These contain 17% of my daily fat intake.  Some people try and avoid foods like nuts, yogurt, avocados, humus etc. as they think that fats will give them body fat.  This is often when people begin to crave or eat foods that contain a higher amount of fat.  This will make it easier for you to go over your recommended daily allowance.  A croissant with butter and cheese that might satisfy your cravings but this is a massive 99.5% of your daily fat intake. 


You can quite quickly check the percentage of fat in packaged foods as these are displayed on the label.  Products with less than 3g of fat per 100g are colour coded green on the label.  This is good but you need to make sure you still meet your daily allowance.  Green foods are a good option to snack on to keep you going.  Products with between 3 and 17.5g of fat per 100g are colour coded amber on the label.  Amber foods are good for helping up your daily fat intake if you are running low.  Products with more than 17.5g of fat per 100g are colour coded red on the label.  These are products that you should try to avoid.  Have a look at the below table for some quick switch foods!

Swap	For
Whole milk, cream and full fat cheese	Lower fat dairy products like skimmed, semi-skimmed or 1% fat milk and reduced fat cheese
Fatty cuts of meat	Lean cuts with no visible fat
Roasted and fried foods	Grilled, steamed or baked foods
Butter, lard, ghee, coconut and palm oils	Oils rich in unsaturated fatty acids such as olive, rapeseed or sunflower oils and spreads made with these
Cakes, biscuits and pastries	A handful of unsalted nuts

Facts and figures taken from https://www.nutrition.org.uk Last reviewed December 2013. Revised February 2016. Next review due December 2016

Keeping an eye on your fat intake can be hard but its worth it.  If you want more advice or a meal plan please feel free to contact me here!  Hope you all enjoyed this weeks things I love Thursday!

Things I Love Thursday #8 Confidence

One day walking home from school with some friends, age fifteen, a boy walked passed me and commented on my jiggly legs.  That boy insulted me and will have forgotten about it in days. It stayed however, lurking in my mind; when trying on new outfits, putting on my gym clothes or getting ready to go out someplace.  Its a horrible feeling thinking that you must look so bad a random stranger decided to comment on how you look.  Even now when I pull on a pair of shorts I think of that day and question if I should go out looking "like that".


Last weekend my boyfriend bought me the cutest pair of shorts.  They are so comfy, fit amazingly and have pockets.  We were going to the gym the following Monday for international chest day.  I threw on my new shorts and thought;  This is it, they day I face my fears.  The whole time I was in the gym I kept looking at myself in the mirror to see if I looked ok.  Thing was, I did.  I looked good in my shorts and even more I noticed that other people were just getting on with there day, meeting there goals and focusing on themselves.  Yeah ok there might be some people judging my choice of clothing but I was confidant and happy in myself. 


When you can put on an outfit and a smile follows everyone will notice the smile first.  Having confidence in yourself is so important and not in just how you look.  This is something that going to the gym has helped me build.  Not just because now I look better but it has shown me with hard work you can progress and succeed.


Work to become the person you want to be, follow your dreams and don't let other peoples doubt get in the way.

Things I love Thursday #7 Burning Up and Stressing Down

Day to day life isn't always easy and I know that I get stressed quite a lot.  It wouldn't be a normal day for me if I wasn't worrying about one thing or another.  I have noticed that when I hit the gym, cardio, weights or classes I always feel a lot more positive about life afterwards. You often hear people say: "No one says they regret working out."  This isn't just because of their health or strength increases, a lot of it is the therapy they get from it.  On rest days I even notice that I am still carrying the weight of the day later on into the night.  I am not saying train every day, because your body needs a break, but giving your mind a break is important to.

 For example when lifting weights, let say squatting, do you ever fret about work or money or deadlines when you are squatting?  I know that I don't because I am concentrating on the task in hand (Not falling over is the main one!).  Giving your mind something else to focus on makes it harder for you to worry.  This can also work in reverse and I know this from experience.  Trying to work out when that worry cant be distracted can be very dangerous.  You stop concentrating so much on technique causing you to slip up and make mistakes.  When this happens my best advise is to take a break from whatever you are doing and focus on something easy or repetitive.  Getting on a treadmill and giving you time to calm your head might be the way for you (keep in mind to go slow and not get your heart rate up to high!). I however like doing circuits.  Slamming a ball onto the floor 15 times really helps take the anger and stress out of me. Its not something that you can forget all form for but something that is quite simple to do.

Whatever way it works the gym is there to help and at a much cheaper cost than a therapist!  Keeping fit helps you keep happy and full of energy and is the reason I am a gym junky.  If you ever want advice or someone to destress to drop me an email at amelia.gourlay1@gmail.com.


Keep it up and remember to give me a follow!  See you soon!

Thinks I love Thursday #6 Training Buddy!

For the first few months of my gym life  I was a lone wolf.  I hated training with other people.  Mainly because I only had a small amount of knowledge on my workouts that I wasn't able to switch and change things up for training with other people.  I used to get annoyed when someone showed me a different way to do something because that is not how I had been taught.  I am a grumpy toddler at heart.  Even though deep down I am the same stubborn brat things have changed. 


Going to the gym with someone now is a totally different experience.  Its like being with another member of the pack ready to show the world how it should be done.  This has changed because I have learnt something very important.  Just because its different, doesn't mean its wrong.  When I started out at the gym I was a novice.  I had been taught how to do an action or motion in relation to the workout I was doing, for my body at that time and to help develop a serration area.  Over time building knowledge of my body and techniques I am beginning to understand the difference between bad form and variations.  This is something that is very important when training with someone.  For example the person I currently train with is male, tall and has been training for a few years now.  The variations he sometimes uses are different to mine.  We both might be training legs however he might be isolating one area whereas because I am not as far on I might be working on my legs as a whole.  As a result of this we may be doing things differently. 


Right now I am particularly enjoying working out with my friends who are new to or don't have much knowledge of training.  This allows me to share what I know, and in doing so develop myself.  As people are different I am coming up with plans that suite both of us and using different variations to suite our bodies and levels.  It has also helped me to develop my skills in supporting people within a gym environment. 


Going to the gym with someone and working out together is something I would recommend to everyone.  Give it a shot because it might not be as bad as you think!  Remember to be open to new workouts and styles but make sure you keep your form on point and stay safe!


Hope you enjoyed my Things I love Thursday #6!  See you soon!