Caffeine as a Sports Supplement
Caffeine has many uses in the modern world, but what are the effects of exercise…
Caffeine has many uses in the modern world, but what are the effects of exercise…
Caffeine is not only found in Coffee and Tea, it is also used in chocolate, some soft drinks, and certain medicines including slimming pills and fat burning supplements. Therefore you could be consuming more caffeine than you thought. Too much and consuming caffeine after midday will most likely disrupt your sleep pattern. Sleep disruption is a well-documented side effect of caffeine
Just like some people will skip breakfast, some people will skip lunch! Too busy, not enough time, forgot! Too much to do and many more excuses why you have skipped lunch. I get a lot of resistance from clients when I mention they should be, eating breakfast, snacking and also ensuring they stop for lunch, and yes that means eating lunch.
Most of us do not drink enough water, we, therefore, live in a state of…
Snacking contrary to popular belief is good, healthy snacks around your main meals is a…
Most people would like to lose a few pounds, and it comes down to lifestyle, those that can manage their weight have a better and more productive lifestyle than those that struggle! Lifestyle is the activities we do, the things we do, and the food choices we make. Hands down one of the best ways to manage weight issues are to become more active and more than that it’s about training your metabolism to fire up earlier, to do that you’re going to need to get up & eat!. Yes eat!
Hands up, most of us at some point in our lives have been on a…
Salt is very important to our diets, in nature sodium and chloride are found together to make our favourite table condiment “Sodium Chloride” or Salt. Excellent at enhancing the flavour of our foods, it’s also plays an important role in maintaining water balance in the body for muscle & nerve function.
Certain physiological reactions and illness including excessive sweating, burns, server vomiting and diarrhea and kidney damage can lead to a loss of salt in the body which should be quickly replaced as low levels of salt in the body can lead to dizziness, muscle cramps and exhaustion and if not treated may lead to life threatening shock.
Salt however is generally not a problem, it’s in many foods especially processed meats, snacks and fast food. High levels of salt contribute to high blood pressure and heart disease.
Coffee is a habit of many peoples workday starting from when they get up and often continues well into the day but does this seemingly harmless habit that gives us such a boost affect our diet, health or fitness?
Coffee is a stimulant with the stimulation coming from ‘caffeine’ found in many drinks both hot and cold it’s an addictive stimulant. Caffeine however is not only found in stimulation drinks, coffee & tea, it has an active role in many weight loss pills and fat burners! The reason for this is the physiological affects it has on the body which are similar to light cardiovascular exercise without actually doing it.
Creatine pronounced (Kre’ah-tin) is becoming increasingly popular in the health and fitness supplements market. No doubt you’ve heard of it but it’s unlikely that initially you’ll have any idea of what it is or why it could help you achieve more and reach your goals.
Creatine is a supplement to primary increase muscle size, it’s not a weight loss supplement, creatine should be taken as per suppliers recommend guidelines together with a structured exercise programme for increasing muscle size and a balanced healthy diet.
It’s worth noting that it will only have any effect if you do indeed work out, it will have no effect if taken on it’s own without working out, other than increasing the amount of Creatine stored in your body which is useless as you are not working out.
Using protein supplements is often seen only necessary for males or those looking to gain…
Using protein supplements is often seen only necessary for males or those looking to gain huge bulk in muscle. However this is untrue as we all require protein in varying amounts depending on the demands we put on the body. Often the amount of protein our bodies require from training is more than what we can provide in our everyday diet. To enable full recovery of our muscle and maximize muscle growth that will tone and define, protein supplements might well be the answer. Here is a quick guide to protein for women.
If you have been on a diet or if you are on one now, trying to eat healthy of just lose want to lose a few pounds then more than likely you have heard someone say ‘don’t eat late at night’. This could be true for most of us, however it is important to take into context of the individual concerned. The important factor here is when you normally go to sleep and for most of us the following statement will largely be true. If you work daylight hours, going to bed and waking at what most would consider a normal time then eating & snacking past 7pm is a horrible idea, especially if you are trying to manage your weight.
You know this right!? well’ here is why!
Here are just a few of the benefits of adding coconut water into your diet.…
Eating breakfast is nothing new, I’m sure you have heard it all before, it’s likely someone has told you “you really should eat breakfast if you want to lose weight” a smart person they are too. The advice is often not received and I am baffled as to why? It makes no sense not to eat breakfast, well perhaps it’s knowledge that is the problem so let me help fill that gap and hopefully make some better decisions with your diet & nutrition.
Do you get the right amount of vitamins? If you have a very balanced and…
Each year over the Christmas period the average person will gain 2kg and really it should be no big surprise. We are eating more and doing less, science will tell you if you don’t burn as much as you intake, you’ll be in a calorie positive state and this will lead to weight gain, easy to put on, not so easy to shift.
Most of us are lucky enough to have a break from work over the Christmas period, this historically is also one of the least busiest times of the year for gyms and fitness facilities so it’s clear were not spending this extra time at the gym. Therefore we need to manage the positive calorie balance, this can be achieved through increased activity and more awareness about portion sizes and food choices.
Diet & healthy eating is a hugely confusing area with every book you read contradicting the last one, ditch all carbs, only eat protein or starve yourself 2 days a week. Nearly all complete rubbish, so why do we go for it? Because it’s easier than hard work! When people want to lose weight they pick up the latest diet book, there is a huge market for this stuff and no shortage of so called experts explain their latest diet. In this blog post, I’ll cover one of the most basic weight loss tools which is ‘actually eating’ and often.
My view on diet is that no one needs to go on a diet, unless morbidly obese in which case a massive calorie reduction diet designed by a qualified nutritionist is required. Therefore for the rest of us all we have to do is eat healthy, eat balanced portions and eat often, that’s it!
I know what your thinking! Orange Juice! Bad for me? Well, all in moderation however, it’s certainly something I don’t drink, it’s awfully sweet with a lot of sugar which is why people drink it like water!
“It’s OK, I drink 100% Orange Juice!” Wrong! This is still full of sugar and it’s not pure. The one thing we need to learn about diet is that if it’s processed it’s not going to be a healthy choice to sustain a long term healthy lifestyle. Orange juice is seen as the healthy option compared to other soft drinks but the truth is, it’s just as bad as the rest. The worst thing about Orange Juice is the combination of the consumers lack of knowledge about food labelling and the manufactures overwhelming desire to ensure you believe their drink is good for you. While keeping to the ‘legal’ food labeling guidelines, it’s still going to confuse you and look like a good choice by looking at the label.
Most Orange Juices will show No Fat & a bunch of Vitamin C! Good right! Well lets look at a popular Orange Juice Drink label
Don’t fall into temptation when trying to adjust your eating habits, you can only eat what you have in the house, if you don’t buy it, you can’t eat it!
Eating habits start with your grocery shopping! Reducing & maintaining weight is about changing your habits, this includes buying your food, food choices, when you eat, how much & how often.