I just wanted to present to you  some of my thoughts about what you can eat and how to eat better.

Think about what you have had to eat today ;

Did it come in a wrapper/package?

Did it contain sugar?

Did it have a list of ingredients on the back, half of which you have never heard of?

For a lot of people the answer to those questions will be YES.

It’s getting harder these days just to get real food, people think they are eating a ‘healthy’ snack bar, but look on the package and find sugar in there somewhere or some other ingredient which is damaging our health, yet promoting a very different message! A handful of nuts will be a lot more beneficial!

I’ll admit it is an effort to really, and  I mean REALLY eat clean. When I first started I was wandering around the supermarket checking labels for sugar, wheat, gluten, e numbers etc and only came out with half a basket of food! I was thinking how the hell do I survive on this?!

I went about it the hard way just cutting out anything with more than 1 ingredient , I found it difficult making meal times more adventurous than just meat and veg. By following some recipes I found online, and coming up with some of my own, I now love meal times and actually geek out about what to have!

During this time I went through a phase of boycotting supermarkets, as I dislike their manipulative ways of having all the biscuits and chocolate aisles  near the checkouts so, as your waiting, the cookies are just sitting there innocently alongside the family sized chocolate bar waiting to be added to your basket, whilst the veg and meat are at opposite ends of the store, so you have to pass everything they have to offer on the way! Really annoying! But I know this is just great marketing skills from their part.

I decided to try shopping at nearby farm shops and markets to get local produce until I realised even some of these establishments didn’t get their produce locally!?

So finally I went back to a supermarket and opted for the fairtrade and organic where possible,. ‘Try what works for you’ I say this often and I stand by it, if there is a market nearby try it out, but first lets get on with the actual article of ‘small steps’!

Whether you drink 5 cans of coke a day or eat relatively ‘healthy’ I’m here to help. Every single person is different and this is where we find out what works for you. You might have to try new things and experiment with different foods or more unusual ways of combining your foods and for now just make small additions to your existing day, so…. if your willing …read on!

Have a think back to what you have eaten today (again!) and lets start from there, have you had a glass of water or did you start your day with a coffee?

Take small steps, if you know your nutrition isn’t really up to scratch don’t panic and start thinking ‘arghhh I’m going to have to cut out this food and never drink that again’ lets focus on what you can add into your existing daily food intake.

Lets start with an extra glass of water a day for a week, simple as that.

The following week add some green veg like spinach, broccoli, kale, courgettes, green beans, peas etc to at least one meal a day.

If your not very active start with just going for a walk before dinner. Keep it simple just start moving around a bit more!

If you get a lot of fruit & veg each day, try some you haven’t done so before. Experiment with them raw or in smoothies!

Smoothie! Now there’s a topic, I won’t spend too long on this but what I will say is the smoothies I recommend people concoct are REAL food, not powered shakes, weight loss shakes or slimming drinks. They contain real ingredients and are super good for you, here is the most common one I recommend which I first heard Joe Rogan speak of;

250ml Rice Milk (sometimes I just use water though)

1 Banana

Handful of Kale

Depending on your blender I’d leave it a good few minutes to really get rid of any lumps! Also if your new to greens, just a small handful of kale to start will do the job just fine.

So there you have some small tips, to take small steps, which in turn lead to big results. Everyone has to start somewhere and at some point so start today, start thinking more positive, surround yourself with positive people and the whole process will become a hell of a lot easier!

I hope this helps you take some small steps!

Here is part 4 of my training videos!

Slapping planks exercise for today, if you have a sledgehammer lying around and know how to use one get swinging that!

Thanks,

I’m back again with part 3 of my training tips to build strength! I hope you enjoy it!

Pull ups are great, if you can do these that’s great, increase the resistance with added weight, if you struggle with these switch to recline rows, can also do dumbell rows.. but I prefer to get people used to pulling about their own weight!

Thanks,

I’m just sharing part two of my training tips to build strength without having to put on size.

Push! Push ups, KB Floor Press, Med ball push up, ring push up… Personally I prefer ring push ups and either elevate feet higher each set or add a weighted vest/rusksack, also KB floor press is brilliant, easier to increase the weight with heavier kb’s also do them unilaterally to engage the core!

Thanks,

I’m just sharing some of my training tips to build strength without having to put on size.

Girls look at me I’m clearly not bulky and shredded but I am pretty strong Lads remember these tips are for you too get on it!

Thanks,

It is with great pleasure that we can announce our first sport ambassador Lanchana Green who is going to be writing monthly articles on a host of subjects!

Hi everyone,

My name is Lanchana Green I’m a Strength & Conditioning coach from Darlington also specialising in female only training where I run sessions specifically for ladies called  T.U.F.F. – The Ultimate Female Fitness. I also train and compete in both Thai Boxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

So, Thai Boxing has been a huge part of my life for the past 8 years  after just looking for something to keep me fit after leaving school and more recently for the past 2 years I have been practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ), my partner has been doing this for years and eventually got me to try it when he said a couple of girls were coming along to the class so I wouldn’t have to get up, close and personal with sweaty blokes! (if you do BJJ you’ll understand! It’s a lot more close contact than the Thai boxing I’m used to!).

I really enjoy both, simple as that. If I enjoyed swimming that’s what I’d be doing., I think it’s majorly important to train in a sport you enjoy  therefore it becomes a lifestyle, not a chore. I train each day, sometimes hard sessions, sometimes technical but my body knows when it needs a rest so I’ll take a day off when needed.

Somewhere in the middle of all that I was introduced to Strength & Conditioning and man what a find this was! During studying for my degree I had to complete a placement at any establishment I wished, after hearing great things about an S&C coach in Sunderland I decided to try this place out, what was meant to be a 40 hour placement turned into a place to train, learn, help out and now I’ve landed assistant coach there at Grapplefit, home to Barry Gibson a fab coach especially for combat athletes which suited me down to the ground!

After graduating, spending a lot of time up at Grapplefit, learning and gaining experience from my mentor Barry I decided to take a huge step into the real world and work for myself. I have been coaching for just one year now, from MMA fighters, to BJJ players and ladies looking to shape up I’d say I’m producing great results as I continue to learn from the best and my own experiences which carries over to my clients.

When I haven’t got a specific competition coming up I like to attend boxing/Thai boxing sessions, BJJ classes and work on strength, power and endurance workouts, in fact even with a comp coming up this is pretty much the same except I’ll just focus more on either Thai or BJJ! Each session improves my game, I learn new skills or I become stronger, fitter and more mentally tough. I take care of my own nutrition, over the years I’ve read up on and tried different methods and found what works for me and that I like to keep things simple!

I eat well, I train well, I sleep well, I think well, I perform well….at least that is my plan! Some days are harder than others, some sessions don’t go quite as planned, we all fall off the wagon every now and again, what’s important is we smile, pick ourselves up and carry on, stronger than before!

Speak soon!