It's not all about Cardio

For many reasons a lot of us believe that Cardio workouts are the only way we can go about burning calories and losing weight. Whilst it is important to have several cardio sessions a week in our exercise program, it is just as important to have at least 2 sessions of strength training, using weights, as well. During cardio sessions, we burn calories whilst we are actually doing the exercise, strength training workouts have the added bonus of continued calorie burning a few hours after we have worked out. Strength training has so many other benefits such as boosting your metabolism, increasing bone density (which is especially important for women once they hit their thirties and beyond) and it is great to help reshape your body.

The aim for this sort of training is to combine upper and lower body, complete 8-12 reps, with the last few reps requiring all your effort, and completing 2-3 sets of each exercise. Some examples include bicep curls, tricep extensions, shoulder press, chest press and leg press just to name a few. These exercises can be incorporated with squats and lunges as well to get that full body workout by working more muscles at the one time.

To start with many people find it easier to use the machines at the gym and then move onto free weights. If you're not able to access the gym, you could purchase various size dumbbells or even just using cans of food you have in your kitchen.

So why not give it a go, venture into the "other" side and give strength training a go. Good luck :)

Goal Setting - To make it hard, easy or somewhere in between?

Setting goals for your fitness journey can be challenging.  You need to sit down, with your trainer if you have one, and focus on what you want to achieve.  This could be something as simple as "I want to exercise to have some "me" time" or something more complex like "I want to exercise to lose 10 kilos and improve my health".  Neither of these are easy goals.  Sure the first goal may sound nice and easy but how hard is it to actually get out of the house to exercise?  The problem with the second one is time - you have to realise that it is not going to happen overnight.

It is important when you are setting goals that you are REALISTIC in your goal setting.  We like to suggest that people use the SMART system when setting goals:

S - the goals have to be SPECIFIC - I want me time is not specific enough - I want 30 minutes of ME time 4
times a week is!
M - the goals have to be MEASURABLE - I want to lose weight is not measurable - I want to lose 5 kg is!
A - ATTAINABLE - I want to lose 5 kgs in 2 weeks is NOT attainable - I want to lose 5 kg in 6 weeks is!
R - RESULTS ORIENTATED- when I lose 5 kg I will treat myself - not so good - when I lose 5kg I am going to have a facial
T - TIMELY - put a time frame on your goals - I want to lose 5 kg or I want to exercise to have ME time is not right - You need to put a time frame on it - Starting today I am going to have ME time by exercising - Starting today I am going to start to exercise to reach my goal of 5kg lost in 6 weeks.

Also remember that it is important to reassess your goals frequently as even the best laid plans can be derailed.

Till next time

Gwen and Deb

Are you having trouble getting started????

We know how hard it can be to start an exercise program. 

There are many ways to get started, the thought that "gee if I pay $500 for a gym membership I will HAVE to go" - we all know that this doesn't always work, then there is the "if  lay my exercise clothes out BEFORE i go to bed at night I will definitely get up early" - yeah right!

One of the easiest ways to ensure that you DO go and complete your exercise routine is the simplest one - schedule it in.  I can hear you say, "but I don't have a diary", this may be true but I am guessing that you probably do have a phone that you can place appointments in, an email program that has a diary component or a calendar hanging in the kitchen - some of you may have all of these.

Once you begin to treat your exercise as an appointment, you will form a habit and then you will no longer be sitting there saying "tomorrow I will start my program" because you will have already started!

Have a great day

Gwen and Deb

Stressed Out

Just a quick blog this afternoon!  If you are feeling stressed or down in the dumps we have the solution for you!

Go to the cupboard and put on your joggers, grab your ipod/MP3 player and go for a walk.  When we exercise we release endorphins which make us happy!!!!

So next time you are not feeling the happiest grab those shoes and get those endorphins flowing!!!

Till next time

Deb and Gwen

Early Mornings are best!

Being the busy mums (and dads) that we are, most of us struggle to find any time to scratch ourselves, let alone get some exercise done. Early morning workouts are great! Yes it may mean getting yourself out of bed half hour or an hour before the kids, but that time will then be all yours. Whether it be an early morning walk so the other half can look after the kids, or pop on an exercise dvd in the lounge, or set yourself up a mini circuit of exercises. Once you get started you will be amazed how quickly the time goes and before you know it you're cooling down and feeling fantastic, ready to start the day. By doing your workouts in the morning, you know that they are done and nothing else can get in the way throughout the day to stop you from getting time. Most of us are exhausted by the end of the day to even think about hitting the gym or pounding the pavement. Another benefit also is that if you're able to do your workout before you have some breakfast your body will be burning the fat stores big time. Good luck and stay tuned for more hints and tips.
Deb and Gwen

Its a New Week - Let's get Started!

If you have been thinking about making a change in your life - the start of a n week is an excellent time to start.  Remember it is easier to do baby steps than radical change - this is particularly true with your nutrition. 

A great place to start with your nutrition is to write down everything - including the odd Tiny Teddy that you take from the kids - and you can see just how much food you do actually eat.  We recommend a website called Calorie King - www.calorieking.com.au - this site is great you can record what you eat and it will breakdown the calories into fat, carbs, sugars etc. - it is amazing to be able to see just what the food you consume is made up of.

On the exercise front - if you have kids why not go for a walk with them to the park - it may not seem much but this is actually exercise with the bonus of having fun with your children and family at the same time - pushing the kids on the swing = an excellent upper body workout - if you push them with a split stance (one foot forward one back) it is a great backside workout too!

Till next time!

Gwen and Deb

I don't have time to Exercise

Does this sound familiar?  We all suffer from lack of time.  We suggest that you set aside 30 minutes a day dedicated to YOU and your fitness. 

If 30 minutes in one blaock of time is too hard we suggest that you set aside 2  x 15 minutes blocks or even 3 x 10 minute blocks of time each day.  I can hear you thinking - how is this going to help me, I don't have any equipment, I don't have the time or money to go to a gym.  We are here to tell you that you can use things from your own home to get started on your fitness program!  It does not have to be hard - one 10 minute block could be simply stepping up and down on a step - there is 10 minutes of cardio done and dusted! You can do pushups on the kitchen bench while you are making your morning cup of tea - crunches and stretching while watching tv at night - the options are endless!


Stay tuned for more ideas and welcome to our Blog - we hope you find it enjoyable and helpful!

Deb and Gwen