Don't get me wrong, I love my gym at uni - it's part of The Gym Group and is open 24/7, really good price for your membership & has great facilities etc! However, my gym at home is always quieter at the times I go, which is always nice because it means you have the equipment to experiment with and for me, it means I can go in the 'heavy weights' area without being scared! (Deadly serious..)
As a "training journalist" it sounds silly to say I feel intimidated crossing the barbell boarder at The Gym in Nottingham, but it is intimidating when there's groups of lads buffing up their summer bods, then little old me popping in in the background..no thank you!
Any who, I'm back & raring to go! I hit the gym pretty much every day this week except Tuesday (day off - always needed!) I know sometimes, because I've been there myself, that you can get disheartened when you don't start seeing the results you want straight away, whether that be your image, your weight but I want to encourage you from my own experience the ways you can see you've improved from when you first started!
Everyone's obsessed with social media these days - myself included, I've got instagram, Twitter, Facebook etc etc..and image has become such an obsession, with both boys & girls - lads want a ripped six pack like Zac Efron or Joel Corry, and girls want a Victoria's Secret model's abs, but it's about more than that!
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| Summer 2015 |
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| May 2016 |
It was around this time last year, that I began focusing more on my body, doing more fitness and trying to lead a more healthy lifestyle..well, 80% of the time! Being fit is about more than just looking good, but feeling good as well!
I'll be the first to admit that, yes, I do look at old photos & compare myself but it's about so much more than that! I didn't get from left to right without transforming my life as well as exercising & I certainly didn't get there measuring everything out to the tee.
Although I'm still not where I want to be, the progress I've made so far is incredible and I want to remind you that although I think it's a good thing to physically see how you've improved, image is the only way!
Over the last year I've began to improve because my lifestyle and way of living has. Living a healthy lifestyle has been the transformation, which is something I've realised over the last few months more so as I've began properly putting my heart into training.
One of the most important things to remember when wanting to improve yourself, is track your progress. Otherwise you can get lost in the scheme of things & sometimes be disheartened if you're not seeing the results you want.
So many people, myself included at one point, check their progress on the scales. A lot of dieting companies such as Slimming World and WeightWatchers track your progress this way, however from personal experience when 'dieting' (which should become a lifestyle not a restriction) AND training, the scales are probably the worst tracking method you could use - like I said, from personal experience.
Personally, I now think it's a bad way of tracking yourself because muscle and fat are two completely different substances and you may work hard at the gym & eat well but see no difference in the number - you're wrong! You've probably lost the fat, and gained muscle in it's place - a good thing! Here's a gentle reminder next time you feel disheartened & hopefully will encourage you to measure yourself in a different way..
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| Mix it up! Scrambled eggs, parma ham & asparagus! |
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day - it kickstarts your body for the rest of the day ahead of you, so if you make sure that you fuel yourself correctly first thing, the rest should come naturally!
I've learnt from PT's I know, online coaches, Instagram accounts & famous faces that it's important to incorporate plenty of protein, good fats& carbs every so often in your diet!
In the past, I'd have porridge every day! Which does get really boring, so mix up your breaks & you'll see a difference!
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| Salmon Fishcakes, Smashed Avocado & Carrot Chips |
One of my fitness inspirations, as you know, is Alice Liveing. She's just released her new book The Body Bible - which I bought. Her food and fitness is incredible & I think she's amazing. But she is a great example of why you shouldn't base transformation looks on the scales - in my opinion she looks amazing & I'd love to have her body! (body envy coming up!!!) Her new book is full of foodies, exercise & her story of how she got to where she is now, which is one of the reasons I've changed my clean eating using her inspiration!
One of other the ways I track my progress is simply through my training - when you can do more reps at the same weight, you're improving, when you can run that little bit further, you're improving and when you're finding it tough - remember it's a challenge and if you're anything like me, you keep going until you can say you've done it.
A personal example from my training is during my workouts, I've strengthened myself so much over the last year. When I began with my PT a workout to do with a 4kg med ball, I now do with a 7kg med ball. I never thought that I'd be able to do that, because I couldn't even do it with a 4kg this time last year!
Another thing to manage your progress and achieve your goals is change. Being back at my quieter gym at home has the benefit of utilising and experimenting with different pieces of equipment and I've found so many other things that enhance my workouts and target different areas and I'm really seeing a difference in my training and my strength.
A favourite of mine at the moment (and i'm not sure why I've not used it before..) is a swiss ball! At the risk of sounding like a saddo, knee tucks are actually really fun once you get the gist of it!
So, although you want to look good, start measuring your transformation in positive ways of progress - you're stamina, strength, amount of reps, there's so many ways but don't dishearten yourself with weight because it's not a maintainable if you want to look and feel good! X
Follow me on Instagram - @aprilalexandrax and Twitter - @aprilalexandra1
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