Best Practice Living

The Bread Debate

Jeames Gillett — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:40:34 +0000

Going to the shops these days, you have a myriad of choices when it comes to bread. The advertising on each loaf will have you thinking that each one is the best for you. Below is a link to a great video posted on the Today show with expert dietitian Susie Burrell. Definitely worth a watch with some surprising results on your favorite bread.

http://today.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=874920

It’s like money in the bank

Anthony Gillespie — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:55:22 +0000

I think exercise is to the body as saving is to finance. Every time you do a workout you are investing in your health and building credits up that you can draw on at any time. If money creates freedom then a consistent training program creates a life worth living.

You can diversify your investment plan thereby spreading your risk. Most people start with a tried and true low risk cardio training program and walking is a good start. As people become more sophisticated with their investing they start to see the benefit of core training methods like Pilates and yoga…..and then with even greater knowledge understand the powerful currency that strength training with weights is.

These activities are part of the arsenal of the wise investor! Remember that you can’t keep withdrawing from the bank, you have to make regular deposits. This metaphor holds true for relationships and perhaps even more so. So start your ’savings’ plan now, it is never too late to make a difference but the longer you leave it the less you will enjoy the power of compounding interest and the satisfaction and joy that come from having built a solid base over your life.

Exercise of the week

Anthony Gillespie — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:56:37 +0000

The age old push up is one of the best upper body exercises you can do and the coolest part about it is that you can do it anywhere. If you want a strong chest, great shoulders and toned looking triceps then this is the exercise for you!

But probably the easiest way to learn is to watch this video observing the form and learning some great variations.

Food Hierarchy!

Jeames Gillett — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 05:53:56 +0000

With SO much information out there on nutrition it is hard to know where to start and what to eat. Some say avoid carbs, some say avoid fat, some say eat everything in moderation but what is the best way to eat. When you think of putting together a meal at ANY time of the day use the following order and you cant go wrong.

Start every meal with some form of Protein (Lean steak, chicken, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds and lentils). Sure to help building the all important muscle and have you feeling fuller for longer!
Fibrous Carbs- Think Vegetables and lots of different colours. High in nutrient value and low in calories
Good Healthy Fats - Omega’s found in fish
Fruit - at least two every day
Starch Carbs - natural starches and grains (breads, pastas, rice etc).

Plan your meals rather than reacting when you are hungry and make sure this process is followed. You cant go wrong. Remember if you are on track to losing weight nutrient dense, high satiety foods (makes you feel fuller quicker and for longer) and calorie sparse is your aim!

Exercise of the month

Anthony Gillespie — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:27:02 +0000

There are some exercises that are a waste of time. Just go to any gym and see someone sitting on a pec dec machine and you will see a classic example of wasted time. Why is it wasted time? Well it has two things wrong with it, it puts the shoulder joint in to a vulnerable position under load and unnecessarily increases risk of injury. It also targets a muscle group in a decidedly non- functional way, which means it engages nothing that will lead to useful strength in the real world unless you are trying to improve your hugging strength in a seated position……not likely I am guessing, unless you are feeling very loving!

So the exercise of the month to replace that one is the chest press on a swiss ball. Check the link about below for a demo of this done well. Remember this exercise only makes sense in a balanced program because, chest strengthening is not as important as back strengthening in the average person.

Always email us if you have any questions. We are here to help!

Body fat solution

Anthony Gillespie — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:18:06 +0000

There is a solution and whilst we will always tell you it is simple, you will agree it is certainly not easy at times. There is a brillant book that we recommend every fat loss client of ours read. It is called the Body fat solution by Tom Venuto. It is clearly written by someone who has both the theory and the practical absolutely down pat. He starts the book by dealing with the importance of goals and the mental approach required, smart man. We will harp on about that ad infinitum because verbal reinforcement can lead to implementation which leads to the holy grail, behaviour change and it all starts in the head.

Here is a link to the book, go to it and get hold of it any way you can. If I could get reselling writes I could be a rich man because it is the last word on the solution to body fat and you don’t need me to tell you there is a high need for the right information in this area of health.

It is no quick fix but it will, if followed properly lead 100% to the result, guaranteed. Trust me, I know that he knows what he is talking about!

www.bodyfatsolution.com

The brain that changes itself

Anthony Gillespie — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:40:05 +0000

If you ever thought that the postive thinking fraternity and Anthony Robbin’s style teachings were bogus get prepared for some serious science to back most of it up.

Read this and stop doubting!

http://www.normandoidge.com/normandoidge/MAIN.html

The ultimate functional exercise

Anthony Gillespie — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:35:37 +0000

The humble chin up is probably the greatest measure and challenge of someone’s relative strength. When I say relative I mean ability to move one’s self. I guess when it comes to useful fitness, being able to move yourself well is the ultimate goal. Sure it might be nice to be able to lift a car but I mean how often will you need to be able to do this? But when it comes to getting your own body weight up a set of stairs or getting up off the floor or pulling yourself up on to a rock when you are bushwalking, now that is no so uncommon.

So how do you get to be able to do a chin up? The best way to start is with the lat pulldown. That exercise uses predominantly the same muscle group. Progress this up by doing a weight that allows you to do 12 reps only and then build it from there to a weight what you can do maybe only 4 or 5. (hey quick disclaimer here: only do this if you have doctor’s clearance and have seen a health professional first! Hopefully that is enough to keep the lawyers at bay!).

Lat pulldowns
Negative chins (that is lower yourself with control)
Do jump chin ups (use your body weight with the momentum of the jump to get up there)
Attempt to pull yourself up (use underhand grip)
Do full proper pull up. (from full hang position, slowly pull yourself up to get your chin over the bar, lower yourself down with control)

You are now in an elite club! Check out this link for a great idea on how to start.

Fat burning myth?

Anthony Gillespie — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:18:36 +0000

It is amazing how new information can change how we think and ultimately what we do. There used to be this idea in the fitness industry that it was better to exercise at a low intensity if you wanted to burn body fat, low intensity being a heart rate of 120-130bpm. Depending on your fitness level this is probably a walk. New research of late suggests that greater amounts of fat are burnt post exercise for longer if you do higher intensity bouts of exercise.

So who is right? Will it all change again?

The way I look at these things is to do weigh up where most research is and then serve up a combination of methods that are likely to first: do no harm and secondly give the client the most chance of achieving the goal they are after. The bottom (not trying to be funny!) line as usual for optimal fat loss is to simply use up more energy than you consume on a daily basis and the only way to track this is by regular measuring and a good understanding of the energy densities of the foods that you eat and the energy output of the activities that you do.

You old school teacher was right, mathematics does make the world go around!

Febfast

Anthony Gillespie — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 06:59:47 +0000

This is a bandwagon you should jump on. There is no downside, only endless good news for your body. I really like to see patterns broken because they are usually associated with lazy thinking and boring repetitive behaviour. It is human nature to battle change so why not change something this month that could be holding you back at best and damaging your brain big time at worst? If nothing else you will have exercised some valuable self discipline which has the major benefit of reminding you that you can do something you set your mind to and this belief is vital for true success.

I am talking about not drinking alcohol at all in February, the shortest month by the way! Below are a few snippets taken off their website.

Participating in FebFast delivers real health benefits: 60% of past participants said they felt healthier after completing the month, and one in five reported losing weight. (Based on 2008 survey).

FebFast provides an opportunity to feel better about yourself, reflect on past consumption behaviours, reduce your waistline and save some money!

That all sounds like it fits in with what we all are trying to achieve this year. I am about to register and would like to have a best practice team. Email me if you are in and I will tell you what we need to do or do it by yourself.

Go to http://www.febfastfundraising.com.au/event/febfast2010 and see what it is all about.

I would love to hear from you!