Fit ‘n Glam

“Thank God–every morning when you get up–that you have something to do which must be done, whether you like it or not. Being forced to work, and forced to do your best, will breed in you a hundred virtues which the idle never know.”
~ Charles Kingsley ~

I only consumed 1200 cals today, it is almost 10pm in south Africa and my time to sleep and I am craving oats and almond butter…Yummy, the fridge is calling my name…I am not going to give in…I am in control

I am training on my own these days and designed my own workout, I love training shoulders and love to feel the burn, so I have a fantastic workout today, here goes:

AM: 1 hour low-medium intensity cardio

PM: 7 min warm-up on the elliptical trainer

1. Shoulder Press: 22kg x 15 reps, 30kg x 15 reps, 37.5 x 12 reps and 45kg x 10
2. Upright Rows: 15kg x 15 reps, 20kg x 15, 23kg x 10 - and drop sets of the same weight for the last set - shoulders were on FIRE
3. Side lateral raises: 4kg x 15 reps, 5kg x 15, 6kg x 15 followed by 3 set of drop sets with the same weights
4. DB Shrugs : 9kg x 20 reps (way too light) 11kg x 20 and 13kg x 15 reps
5. Bent over rear delts: 4kg x 15 reps, 5kg x 15, 6kg x 15 followed by 1 set of drop sets with the same weights

It’s being a long time since I blogged, I guess I allowed life to happen, I have been soooo busy with the business that I have kinda let myself go…I have been training but not as hard…Nonetheless, I am back…

I did back today:

• Dumbell rows 4 sets x 12kg - 16kg
• Lat Pull Downs 4 sets x 25-35kg
• Seated rows x 3 sets x 27-45kg
• Deadlifts x 3 sets x 20 - 40kg

Followed by 20 minutes on the recumbent bike (sprints) and 20 minutes on the treadmill at 15% incline, level 3.5 - 6

Don’t forget to be AWESOME

I had to share this article, I got it from the Mind Power website, I have practised Mind Power for over three years and have had the most amazing results in my life - you can achieve anything you put your mind to once you understand Mind Power.

February 2009 - Article

I recently sat down with performance coach Jim Murphy to discuss how athletes use the mind to attain peak performance. Jim has a long and successful career (almost twenty years) training top professional and Olympian athletes to get the very best out of themselves. I respect Jim for his knowledge, his ‘track’ record, and his integrity as an individual. He is presently working on a book, which will be published in the fall, and he has agreed to do a monthly topic for us at that time to further elaborate on his techniques for maximum effectiveness. Some of them will surprise you.

We can learn valuable lessons from the world’s greatest athletes and apply these lessons in our own life with equal success. The physical practices will of course be different and sport appropriate, but the principles and practices of the mind are exactly the same for all top level achievers. “Peak performance has a few common characteristics,” says Jim. “Passion. Enjoyment. Heightened awareness. Getting caught up in the moment-to-moment focus. Full engagement. All top athletes have commonalities when they perform at their best: a clear mind and unburdened heart, a positive focused energy, and powerful beliefs.” “What you think is crucial. It is, in fact, the core of a champion—who they are, how they train and how they compete comes down to how they think.

The thoughts you repeat over and over in your mind, whether these are positive or negative, will create your beliefs. So an athlete wanting to perform at his peak needs to develop powerful beliefs about himself. Every thought you have has energy, and, as an athlete, you know that focusing your energy is a top priority.” I asked him to elaborate on what he meant by focusing energy, and his reply was fascinating: “The amateur athlete has three to four times the amount of thoughts as an elite athlete. The elite athlete works years to control his thoughts and feelings, developing a powerful focus—a presence. The amateur has his mind filled with thousands of random, useless, and worst of all negative thoughts. This cluttered mind I call ‘the monkey mind,’ and it is one of the biggest obstacles to peak performance.” I couldn’t agree more. In my thirty years of teaching Mind Power there are common denominators that seem to distinguish those who are successful from those who fail. While the ways of using Mind Power are similar and available to all, the ability to implement them varies widely from person to person. Martial Arts Master George Leonard has a saying that summed this up perfectly: “The master of any activity is undoubtedly also a master of practice.” The master of practice! I love that phrase because it echoes what I teach my students over and over again. The power of daily practice. I know well from teaching Mind Power for thirty years that most people work with Mind Power techniques for a few days or weeks and then fall into lazy habits. They dabble with it. Regular, consistent practice is the mark of a champion. You must first know what to do, but then equally important is that you must do it. Implement your knowledge with daily practice. The power of practice is further summed up by Mark Spitz, winner of seven gold medals at the Munich Olympics. His quotation heads up the final chapter my book Mind Power Into the 21st Century.

“We all love to win, but how many of us like to train?” I shared Spitz and Leonard’s quotes with Jim. “Absolutely,” he replied, “you must practice internally and externally, but you must practice and practice regularly. One thing that helps with this is creating daily routines—routines in all areas of life, physical, nutritional, mental and spiritual. The best athletes have routines the night before a game, on game day, pre-game, during the game and after the game. Over time they’ve created a ‘recipe’ for success that enables them to perform their best, and they stick to the recipe.

Negative thoughts have less room to take hold when athletes focus on their routines.” Jim went on to also talk about self-image. “Peak performance comes in large part by having a self-image that is consistent with peak performance. Self-image is determined by your repeated thoughts and images. Every day you’re creating, reinforcing or expanding your self-image, whatever that is. Peak performers are constantly at work to expand their self-image to that of the next level, in every area of their lives. When you have powerful beliefs and regular routines, you play from your heart and you have a presence about you that comes from a positive focused energy. You’re then inviting the zone of peak performance. And not just peak performance, but more peak experiences in all areas of your life.

Call it mental toughness, call it emotional toughness, call it full engagement—it’s all of those, but in the end it’s the journey of a great life.” Jim and I have developed a very close relationship since we first met when he attended the four-week Mind Power training system. I have always been intrigued with the similarities between excellence on the sporting field and that in life. I hope this month’s topic has revealed to you some of these secrets. We too can, if we choose, become athletes—athletes of the mind, and in this regard through our daily habits we will become either amateur athletes or elite professionals. We can choose to train a little, a lot, or not at all; it is up to us. But make no mistake, your life will most certainly reflect the choices you make and implement on a daily basis. Become an athlete of the mind and train for peak performance, excellence and success.

John Kehoe

The most destructive habit ——- Worry. - The greatest joy ——- Giving. - The greatest loss ——- Loss of self respect. - The most satisfying work ——- Helping others. - The ugliest personality trait ——- Selfishness. - The most endangered species ——- Dedicated leaders. - Our greatest natural resource ——- Our youth. - The greatest “shot in the arm” ——- Encouragement. - The greatest problem to overcome ——- Fear. - The most effective sleeping pill ——- Peace of mind. - The most crippling failure disease ——- Excuses. - The most powerful force in life ——- Love. - The most dangerous pariah (outcast) ——- A gossiper. - The world’s most incredible computer ——- The brain. - The worst thing to be without ——- Hope. - The deadliest weapon ——- The tongue. - The two most power-filled words ——- “I Can”. - The greatest asset ——- Faith. - The most worthless emotion ——- Self pity. - The most beautiful attire ——- Smile. - The most prized possession ——- Integrity. - The most contagious spirit ——- Enthusiasm - The most powerful channel of communication ——- YOU. — Author Unknown

If you will recall, on 7 January I started a new diet and I am quite pleased with the results. I re-introduced the shakes I found it very difficult without the shakes, had creatine for about 4 days in total. 2 days ago I had dairy yoghurt and muesli and it was not sugar-free and it TASTED SO GOOD. I followed it 95%, and I plan on eating in this manner for a very long time, the rest of the family now eats 70% of the way I eat, we will get there…

It has been a week now since you started the diet and it is going so well, and I am still following it and have not cheated once.  I am reaping rhw benefits of having eliminated a large amount of toxins from my system. I have a lot of energy, it is through the roof infact, better concentration and feeling like I can take on a lot more without getting tired so easily. It doesn’t feel like a diet anymore and it is all so Effortless.

I have had some compliments at the gym, I wore shorts today , my skin and nails look wonderful…I am very grateful for this experience.

Since I have cut out the processed foods, sugars, wheat, dairy and everything else not designed by mother nature, I feel so good. I actually also stopped taking my protein shakes (last Thursday), and I have had to prepare everything myself, I never thought that I would survive without my shakes, but I am fine. The reason for cutting the shake it is because sugar is not allowed in the diet, and although it is "sugar free", it has all these unprouncable words, it is also sweet so since I have no idea what the manufacturer has done to sweeten it, I decided to play safe and to stop taking it.

I don’t knw if the shake contributed to me feeling bloated before, but I am fine now, no bloating. I cant wait to post my latest pics, hubby has been so busy with work, he hasn’t had time to take my pics.

Training is also going well, I am off creatine, fat burners, whey, MRP’s - I am training much harder than ever and have all the world’s strength and energy within me.

My current supplements: Fish Oils, Udo’s Oil, Multivitamins, Green tea extracts (caffeine and stimulant free), BCAA and Glutamine.

Someone at Church told me that my skin looks goods and that I am radient, and that my eyes sparkle. I am really enjoying my new eating habits and I feel good. My energy levels have increased. I am also grateful that I have stayed the course so far and I have been incredibly disciplined.
 When i told a friend about the foods I have eliminated from the diet (caffeine, processed foods, wheat, dairy, sugar) she said: ‘What is it that you eat then, there can’t be anything else then to eat"? There is so much to eat, I hav been shopping at health shops, buying organic and free range where possible and there is so much variety and so much to eat, I have also been quite creative with my meals, which has been so much FUN for me
 

I am so looking forward to this week.