To cheat? Or not to cheat?

Hi all

Mark here from Alltone Fitness with this week's blog.
To cheat, or not to cheat?? Now before you jump to conclusions I'm actually talking about cheat meals. Are they OK from time to time? Should you avoid them? Will they undo all your hard work? I will attempt to answer the above questions.

You might be one of those rare individuals who can stick to your clean calorie and macro nutrient controlled diet all year round, though for the remaining 99.9% of us there are times where we feel like eating something naughty. This is what we call the cheat meal.

Believe it or not, a cheat meal can actually do wonders for your diet and continued weight loss.
Now don't get me wrong, this doesn't give you the green light to go and eat a family pizza or a 2 large big mac combo. However I will get to that later. There will come a time in a calorie restricted diet where the metabolism we come to halt and weight loss will cease to continue. A cheat meal can kick start your metabolism and resume your weight loss.  This is because when you eat a big meal which is calorie dense your Liptin levels increase. Liptin is hormone which helps assist energy output and suppresses food intake. It's reduced by low levels of body fat along with a prolonged restriction of calories.  A big meal that's high in carbs will assist in replenishing your Liptin levels and can kick start your weight loss again.

A cheat meal will also replenish your glycogen stores increasing energy levels helping you power through that high intensity work out.

So what should you eat for your cheap meal I hear you ask.
Well a cheat meal doesn't necessarily need to be junk food that's high in fat.
Love sweet potatoes? Have double the amount you usually have and add a tea spoon of butter to it.
You see a cheat meal can be something healthy though in a larger serving size. Always try and include something nutrient dense (healthy)  along side it. Going out for pizza? Order a salad as a side serving. Want that creamy bowl of spag carbonara?

Order a small bowl of steamed veg on the side. Remember this does not give you the green light to go to town and visit every Macca's drive thru you see.  Everything in moderation, that includes your cheat meal.

One last point to remember, we are not machines, it's ok to eat a meal high in calories from time to time. I like to follow the 90/10 rule. I eat clean and healthy 90% of the time. I usually allow myself that 10% on the weekends as a reward knowing I have been good all week. My cheat meal is exactly that, a cheat meal. Not a cheat day, or cheat weekend. Happy cheating!

Over and out

Mark

The importance of fitness assessments

Hi All

Mark here again, it's been a few weeks now since my last blog. Things have been hectic and I really wish there were more hours in the day.

This week I will be writing about the importance of conducting fitness assessments on new clients and how personal trainers have a duty of care to do so.

Getting your potential new client to fill out a PAR-Q is a MUST! What is a PAR-Q you ask? (Physical activity readiness questionnaire) This questionnaire will give your personal trainer important information regarding any medical conditions,  injuries, (past or present)  medications you may be taking, current fitness level and what it is you hope to achieve from your personal training. It will also assist your personal trainer in constructing a fitness program that is suited not only to your goals but also to your fitness level taking into account any injuries or bio mechanical issue's.

Next is measuring blood pressure and a weight in,  followed by taking girth measurements and conducting a body fat analysis. Girth measurements involves measuring certain body structures like the arms, chest, waist, hips, thighs and calves. We measure body fat with a hand held body fat analysis machine as this method is the most non invasive.  Taking both girth measurements and body fat percentage is a great way for tracking progress and really drives people in reaching their fitness goals. By comparing the two we can see if there has been a gain in muscle mass, a loss in body fat.. ect. The scales alone are not a good indicator on telling us how progress is coming along. Let me explain... Muscle weights more than fat, so if someone gains lean muscle mass thru resistance training without putting on body fat at or even losing body fat, then the scales may indicate they have gained weight. This can be disheartening for that individual as they feel they have gotten no where. However, that weight increase was purely muscle mass. I hope I haven't lost you guys!

Lastly, a quick flexibility and postural assessment to determine what muscle groups are short and tight or long and weak is important to assist your  fitness professional in prescribing the most beneficial exercises for you. These assessments should be carried out every 5-6 weeks to track progress.

So there you go, if you plan on commencing personal training please make sure your personal trainer covers all of the above steps. IT IS A MUST! Walk away if he/she doesn't!!

We offer personal training mill park, personal training greensborough and personal taining bundoora.

 Check out www.alltonefitness.com.au or www.bngbootcamp.com.au for more info

This is Mark, over and out

Introducing Matt Grose to the Butts n Gutts team!

This week I have the pleasure of announcing our new team member Matt to Butts n Gutts.

Matt will be assisting with the Saturday boot camp and is currently under going his studies to become a personal trainer and boot camp instructor.  Great to have you on board,

Hi guys! My name is Matt and I am very excited to be a part of the Alltone Fitness and Butts and Gutts team! I have known Mark for around five years and cannot speak higher of his knowledge and passion for fitness training.

I have been involved in customer service within the health and fitness industry for almost five years and am currently completing my Certificates III and IV inFitness. I am passionate about following a healthy lifestyle and my fitness related hobbies include playing tennis, swimming, running and weight training. I am also a keen cricketer and have played in the Victorian Premier Competition for eight years and had the chance to play professionally in the UK.

I can’t wait to work with lots of different clients to help them achieve their goals!

www.bngbootcamp.com.au

Butts n Gutts Photo Shoot on the 18/10/2014

Hi all

Mark here for this week's blog. Last Saturday we had the pleasure of having free lance photographer Michael Evans taking shots of Butts n Gutts boot camp. The weather was picture perfect (no pun intended) and the turn out was our biggest to date. Michael worked his magic and everyone pushed themselves that little bit extra. We focused on circuit fitness training with various drills which included - Battling rope slams, tyre runs and an 8 minute challenge where participants had to complete as many rounds as possible of certain body weight exercises. Everyone pushed themselves extremely hard and gave it 100%. We also welcomed some new members to butts n gutts bundoora

and would like to congratulate Melanie, Jacinta, Peter, Gloria and Chris for joining our team!

See you all at boot camp this week! 

Boot Camp greensborough, Boot Camp Mill Park 

www.bngbootcamp.com.au

Increase the number of chin ups you can do!

Hi all

Mark here from Alltone Fitness and Butts n Gutts Boot Camp.

In this weeks blog I discuss ways to help you increase the number of chin ups you can perform,
They are on the hardest exercises to perform in the gym. Great for building a strong and thick upper body along with giving your biceps a hammering as well. All to often I hear form clients "why cant I do one chin up" or "I have been strength training for a while now though I still cant do 1 chin up"

Lets have a look at the 3 most important variables involved with performing chin ups.

1. Body Weight
It's quite simple. The more you weight the more difficult it will be to lift your body up. Now your probably thinking doesn't strength come into it, and yes it does though it's not the number one factor. If you find this hard to believe then go to a meat head gym and see if a 120kg plus body builder can perform 5 or more ( good technique)  body weight chin up's.. There would not be many at all.

2.Body Composition

More muscle mass and less body fat will help. Fat is basically non functional and will not not help with performance or maintaining intensity levels. It has the opposite effect.

3. Strength.

Building gripping strength along with building muscle mass in the shoulders, arms and back will need to be a priority.There are a number of great exercises which will assist. For the back - Barbell Bent over rows , lat pulldown, for the shoulders - seated barbell shoulder press, dumbbell lateral raises. Focus on compound exercises as they incorporate the most muscle activation and build a good level of functional strength as well.  When it comes to sets and reps when trying to build strength, keep the rep range low between 1-5 reps and sets 5+ Intensity levels should be high 85% + your 1 rep max.
And lastly take longer rest periods between sets.

So there you go
Key points to take away

1.The more you weight the harder its going to be to lift your body weight to the bar
2.Reduce fat increase muscle mass
3. Get stronger, focus on building strength and lean muscle around the shoulder, back and arms

If you want to build strength and drop body weight then give either our boot camp bundoora or personal training a go. Butts n Gutts boot camp is held 3 times a week in watsonia north. Personal training in greensborough and bundoora

available as well.

Have a great day

Mark :-)

Personal Training at Alltone Fitness

Personal Training at Alltone Fitness

Hi Guys, Mark here for this week’s fitness blog. Last week we touched on the importance of squatting and why we should all be performing this functional move in our daily routine. This week I will discuss our personal training service we offer at Alltone Fitness Studio.

Does personal training seem a little daunting to you?  Are you intimidated by going to a big gym? Do you dislike pushy gym sales people or pushy personal trainers trying to book you in for a session everyday?  Well, this is where we come in!

Alltone Fitness is a private fitness studio and all our sessions are held in a private setting with just you and your personal trainer. Our number one goal is getting you results! We have no joining fees or membership fees.  Just exceptional pay as you go personal training and small group fitness in Bundoora and Greensborough.

On your first session we conduct a fitness assessment and it’s absolutely free.  This is a great opportunity for us to get to know you a little better. We discuss your fitness goals, any current or past injuries, medical conditions and prior exercise history. Because we always put your health first, we then measure your blood pressure and discuss in detail any prior or current medical conditions you may have. This will help us determine the type of fitness program to design for you.We then take girth measurements along with a body fat analysis. This a great way to track your progress while keeping

you driven and motivated. A flexibility and cardiovascular assessment will then follow to determine a base level of flexibility and aerobic fitness. The cardiovascular assessment is conducted on an exercise bike and is of a low to medium intensity which lasts for 5 min.

What makes us stand out from the rest is that each fitness program and personal training session is specifically designed for the individual. We love to incorporate resistance  and core training in our sessions which rapidly assist with weight loss and improving functional strength. So what are you waiting for? GET FIT NOW!

To book your free no obligation personal training session head to www.alltonefitness.com.au/booking

Personal training Greensborough - Personal Training Bundoora -  Personal Training Mill Park - Outdoor group fitness Bundoora -  Boot Camp Bundoora

Have a groovy week and stay fit!

Mark 

Butts n Gutts Boot Camp Week 3

Hi Gang, Mark here from Alltone Fitness

We are now well and truly into our third week of Butts n Gutts boot camp and boy it’s been an action packed 3 weeks with everyone pushing themselves and already starting to reap the rewards.

We love to mix things up at Butt n Gutts boot camp changing the focus from muscular endurance to cardiovascular efficiency, improving muscle tone and muscular strength from session to session.

A typical session could incorporate a number of drills coupled with challenging yet fun exercises. Working together in a team environment is a big priority at Butts n Gutts, this allows the group to bond and also feel a sense of achievement working together. All our sessions are carefully designed by our highly qualified and certified boot camp instructors. All our sessions cater for the highly fit individual to the injured or not so fit person making it the perfect exercise platform for everybody. Below is a typical circuit we would do during one of our boot camps in the Bundoora and Greensborougharea.

Working in Pairs

Person A) Squats while Person B) runs to a number of set makers, each maker has a specific exercise with reps. Person B performs those exercises and then runs back to their team mate and swaps over. If Person B is injured or has difficulty running then they will walk or slow jog to the makers.

This is repeated for 2 rounds.

There you go! Sounds fun hey lol…

Want to get fit for summer? Then Butts n Gutts is for you! Come and try our boot camp for free! You got nothing to lose… Actually you have plenty to lose, body fat that is lol

Contact us now! Butts n Gutts is held at Binnak Park in Watsonia North

www.bngbootcamp.com.au

Over n Out - Mark :-)

You need to start Squatting now!

H there, I hope everyone is having a great week!

Mark here from Alltone Fitness. In today's Blog I will discuss the importance of Squatting 

and why everyone should be performing them.

Just as we should all be eating the foods we were designed to eat, we should also be moving our bodies the way they were meant to move. This is where the squat comes into the equation. In a squat your hips flex, knees bend and ankles dorsiflex in order to rest comfortable. However in this modern world of creature comforts like chairs, sofa's ect ect we often forget this vital functional move we were designed to do. Now before you yell out "why should we squat when we now have chairs?". I know chairs are more comfortable though they do not challenge the way our joints move or place any effort on our glutes or core. Now I don't expect you all to ditch your chairs and squat in the office, that would be unrealistic. However, from time to time try squatting for a few mins instead of sitting and notice all the muscles that become engaged. Remember growing up a child? We would often squat and play on the floor for hours...

Squatting makes you stronger as it hits a number of muscles in the one move, strengthening your glutes, hamstrings, quads, core, lower back making this the perfect exercise to improve your functional strength. Squatting also improves bone mineral density along with strengthening the knee joints protecting you from knee injuries. This occurs as all the ligaments and tendons are forced to strengthen around the knee joint when squatting. So next time your in the gym make squats a staple in you program, your body will be thanking you for it. 

Want a fun and active boot camp in the greensborough, bundoora and watsonia area? 

Come and try butts n gutts boot camp for free! Visit www.bngbootcamp.com.au fpor more info!

Yours in health & fitness 

Mark

All Systems GO! Butts n Gutts has commenced!

Hi all

So far it's been a crazy week for me as Butts n Gutts boot camp officially commenced yesterday (Monday 15th September.) Despite the poor weather we had a great turn out and everyone was super keen to kick start their week on a fitness high.
Our first session consisted of a fitness test. After our warm up participants paired up where they each performed 1min of maximum push ups. Followed by maximum plank hold and finished off with the good old beep test. We then performed a square circuit consisting of strength training and body weight exercises. I was totally blown away with the enthusiasm  and how hard everyone was working. I am really pumped for the week that lies ahead and cant wait to meet the remaining participants. Anyway better run, too much to do.

Yours in health and fitness

Mark

MEET SARAH JANE - OUR NEW BOOT CAMP INSTRUCTOR!

Hi my name is Sarah-Jane, or SJ for short. I will be taking the Wednesday night Butts n Gutts boot camp. I am originally from Canada and moved to Australia to attend medical school at the University of Melbourne. I am currently in my final year.

Growing up I was an avid water skier, competing in the Canadian National water ski championships since the age of 7. I have won numerous Canadians title and set national records for my age divisions. When I was 18 I competed for Canada at the Can-Am games and was offered a full athletic scholarship to the University of Louisiana (USA). In addition to that I was the Alberta Provincial Junior Water Ski Coach from 2009 to 2010. In the winter I usually play ice hockey and competed on the top women’s team in my city back in 2010 prior to moving to Australia. Since moving here I have taken up field hockey but unfortunately due to an injury am no longer playing. This year my fitness focus has been on rehabilitation.

I have been involved in the fitness industry since 2010 when I got my Personal Training certificate in Canada through Can-Fit-Pro. I have been working as a gym supervisor/personal trainer at La Trobe University Sports Centre since 2012. Last year I decided to get my certificate in group exercise through the Australian Fitness Network. I also run boot camps, boxing and freestyle weight classes at Latrobe University.

.  I look forward to meeting you all at Butts n Gutts SJ J 

Butts n Gutts commences this Monday 15th Septmeber at Binnak Park in Watsonia North.

Visit www.bngbootcamp.com.au for more details or book your free session at www.alltonefitness.com.au/booking

Butts N Gutts Boot Camp

Well hello it's Mark here again for this week's blog.



It's finally here, no i m not talking about the AFL finals.

Im talking about spring! woohoo!

With spring comes warmer weather, and with summer being only around the corner now is the time to shed those excess winter kg's. Now be honest, who doesn't want to look and feel great in the warmer months? I do, that's for sure! With spring see's my personal training work schedule go through the roof, along with the commencement of our fun and active Butts n Gutts boot camp in the Bundoora and Watsonia area. I'm so pumped and can't wait for Monday 15th September as this will be the first boot camp for this Spring. Our boot camp training will consist of resistance, core, cardio, boxing and agility training, all rapidly improving overall fitness.

The response has been over whelming. My days have been long, though when you love your job it doesn't bother you at all. Preperatipons are well under way, I have started preparing sessions, emailing enrollment forms, ticking off final checklists ect. So very exciting! Checkout the website www.bngbootcamp.com.au

Anyways, need to run to much to do

Over and out

Mark - Alltone Fitness

Butts n Gutts Boot Camp

Hi all, Mark here from Alltone Fitness.

Butts n Gutts bootcamp ( in the Watsonia, Greensborough and Bundoora area)  commences in two weeks. (Monday 15^th September)

So, what is it you can expect from being part of this heart pumping, calorie burning boot camp?

1.       Strengthen and tone those stubborn areas like the hips, thighs and buttocks.

2.       Meet like-minded people.

3.       Experience a sense of achievement working together in a team environment.

4.       Weight loss, improved cardiovascular fitness, feeling and looking great.

 

Wow!! Now who doesn’t want to look and feel great for this Summer.

Come down for a free trial, I guarantee  you will be hooked! Suitable for all fitness levels.

 

Butts n Gutts commencing September 15^th.

BinnakPark Oval 16 Anderson Pde Watsonia North.

 

Mon: 6am

Wed: 6pm

Sat: 7:30am

 

Visit www.bngbootcamp.com.au for more info or book your free trial at www.alltonefitness.com.au/booking

 

Have yourself a cracking week

 

Yours in health and fitness

 

Mark

 

Why women should perform resistance training...

Hi there, Mark here from Alltone Fitness. In this week’s blog I will be covering the benefits and reasons by females should be performing resistance training.  

In the past, the general consensus was females performed cardio for fitness and weight loss and males generally hit the weights to pack on muscle mass. If I had a $1 for each time a female client said to me  - I don’t want to do resistance training as I don’t  want to bulk up, I just want to lose weight.  This couldn’t be further from the truth. Thankfully today our thinking patterns have changed and the importance of performing resistance training amongst the female population is better understood.

1.      The number one benefit of resistance training is for reducing body fat.. You might be surprised at this, though it’s true. Resistance training elevates your metabolism much higher than cardio therefore  it remains elevated for a greater period of time post training, turning your body into a fat burning machine.

2.      You will decrease your risk of osteoporosis. Research has found that weight training can increase spinal bone mineral density by 13 percent in six months. This, coupled with an adequate amount of dietary calcium can be a women's best defence against osteoporosis.

3.      Increase muscular strength. Now who doesn’t want to feel stronger? Your daily chores will become easier, from lifting the kids, to carting groceries around. You will depend less on others and feel better for it

4.      Reduced risk of heart disease. Researchers say resistance training can improve cardiovascular health by reducing LDL (bad) cholesterol and increase HDL (good) cholesterol. Couple this with cardiovascular exercise for added benefits.

5.      Reduce your risk of injuries and back pain. Resistance training not only builds stronger muscles, but also builds stronger connective tissues and increases joint stability. This acts as reinforcement for the joints and helps prevent injury.

Personal training, boot camps, or group fitness classes are great ways to include resistance training in your exercise regime. At Alltone Fitness we run boot camps in Greensborough, Bundoora,Watsonia. We also offer personal training in Bundoora, Watsonia andGreensborough. All our sessions incorporate resistance training along with cardiovascular training for optimal heart health.

Vistit www.bngbootcamp.com.au or www.alltonefitness.com.au for more details.

Take care and live life healthy

 

Mark

Allow me to introduce myself

Hi my name is Mark Frangiosa, I’m new to this blogging thing so be patient with me.
                   

Allow me to better introduce myself and tell you a bit about what I do. I am the owner and operator of Alltone Fitness in Watsonia North.

Alltone Fitness is a small fitness studio which caters to those who are intimated by the big box commercial gyms and are after that personal touch when it comes to achieving their fitness goals. We offer personal trainer greensborough, group fitness classes and boot camps  in the Bundoora and Greensborough area. I have been in the fitness industry working as a personal trainer, group fitness instructor and certified bootcamp instructor for well over 5 years.

When it comes to my own fitness training, I like to mix it up making strength training the foundation while also focusing on constantly improving core strength. I swim 3 times per week which is assisting the recovery of my back injury ( annular tear in L5) while greatly improving  my cardiovascular fitness along with lung capacity.

What I love: My wife, our two cats, good coffee, going to the Sunday market, strength training, electronic music, spending time with family and friends, summer and renovating and landscaping my house in my spare time.

What I dislike: Being late, staying up late, people who are late, winter, bad coffee!

Apart from offering personal training at Alltone Fitness we also run Butts n Gutts Boot Camp in Watsonia North. There isn’t a greater feeling in the world helping people improve their lifestyle and giving them a better quality of life. Hope to catch you around.

Anyway that’s about it from me.

Yours in health and fitness 

General Diet and Nutrition Info

Unfortunately we are all being bombarded with QUICK RESULTS hype and sales spin. I see it everywhere. Do this class and you’ll get QUICK RESULTS. Drink this potion and you’ll get QUICK RESULTS. Everyone knows it’s Bullshit. The gym would be full of Super Models and Greek Gods if it was only a matter of doing a class or using a particular piece of equipment.

You are smarter than that and you deserve more. Get yourself organised now and give it 100%. You are only letting yourself down and wasting a lot of energy.

If you only do 1 thing right. Get your portion size and amounts correct!

1.  DIET: When it comes to changing the way your body looks this is by far the most important thing you will do. Your new body is made in the kitchen and fine-tuned in the gym. You will get great changes in fitness but zero changes in body composition if you are not prepared to change the way you eat. I don’t sell dreams and hope I sell the tools to get it done.  

2.  TRAINING: Smashing yourself in the gym every time you train is unnecessary and leads to injury. If you think that unless you are smashing yourself every day you are not going to get results you are wrong.

3.  REST: Adequate sleep and days off training will actually help you grow lean muscle and burn more fat. You will not get overuse injuries and you’ll be fresher and able to enjoy the changes to your body.

DIET & NUTRITION

Eat Clean Foods Whenever Possible

·         Clean foods haven’t changed from their natural state

·         Don’t need added fake flavours

·         Don’t last for months and months

·         Don’t contain more than 6 ingredients

·         Don’t contain ingredients that you can’t pronounce or that you don’t recognise

·         Don’t list sugar as either their main ingredient, or as one of their first 3 ingredients

Reduce - Limit - Give Up

·         Sugar

·         Alcohol

·         Fizzy Drinks

·         Processed Foods

·         Processed Diet Foods

·         Excess Caffeine

Alcohol

Alcohol is full of sugar, which ages you from the inside and stresses out your whole system. It makes you fat, limit it to special occasions.

Sugar

Sugar makes you fat. In fact, it converts to fat quicker than fat itself. Sugary foods raise your insulin levels, which causes fat storage. If you are having sugary foods every day you will struggle to lose weight. Become a sugar detective. It hides in packaged foods both sweet and savoury! High sugar stir fry sauces are one to watch out for. Your healthy stir fry can quickly become a sugar bomb!

Fat Phobia makes you fat

Don’t be afraid of fat. I’m talking about good fat. Nuts, Avocados and Oily Fish. Trans Fats found in processed food is what is killing you ever so slowly! Eating good fats every day will help banish, sluggishness, craving something sweet after a meal, mid-afternoon energy dips and feeling lethargic and tired. 

Shopping List

Chicken (without skin)
Turkey (without skin)
Lean cuts of beef
Lean cuts of pork
Lean cuts of lamb
Lean cuts of veal
Eggs
Egg whites
Tuna
Salmon
Prawns
Lobster
Flounder
Sardines
Snapper
Swordfish
Trout
Crab
Clams
Scallops
Milk (2% or skim)
Cottage cheese (low fat)
Yogurt (low fat)
Tofu
Black beans
Chickpeas
Kidney beans
Lentils
Lima beans
Soybeans
Peanuts
Almonds
Cashews
Hazelnuts
Pecans
Pistachio nuts
Natural peanut butter
Pumpkin seeds
Sunflower seeds
Protein powder and  protein shakes (try to get your protein from real food were ever possible)

Brown Rice
100% whole wheat bread  
Whole wheat/whole grain pasta
Sweet potatoes
Yams
Oats
Buckwheat
Bran cereals
Lentils  

Apple
Orange
Plum
Banana
Grapes
Strawberries
Peaches
Pears
Cantaloupe
Pineapple
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Asparagus
Spinach
Lettuce
Romaine lettuce
Avocado
Cucumber
Eggplant
Tomato
Cauliflower
Celery
Turnip
Bok Choy
Mushrooms
Peppers
Green peas

Walnuts
Olive oil (extra-virgin)
Flax seeds
Flax seed oil      

BASE your meals around these foods

Serving Sizes

By far this is the biggest mistake people are making after eating highly processed food. By consuming too many calories whether they are from a hot dog or an apple you will NOT lose weight. As you get older your need for calories drops. If you have had trouble losing weight in the past there is a very good chance you are simply consuming to many calories.

Buy some kitchen scales if you don’t have any, and weigh and measure your food for a few weeks. You need to understand what a serve looks like. Many of you will be astonished at how little a serve is. Gym goers think they need more food to help them get through their workouts. If you are eating the right foods in small amounts you will still have more than enough energy to do all of your training and get through your day. Remember if you have 20kgs to lose that’s a lot of stored energy just waiting to be used.

4 to 5 Small Meals per Day

If you for go for more than 4 to 5 hours without eating anything your body starts to think that it’s being starved, so cortisol floods your system to prepare for what it thinks is a famine. Eating breakfast every day is a must. If 4 meals a day keeps you happy and you don’t find that by the afternoon you could kill someone for a mars bar then that’s fine. If you are shovelling in 2 extra meals that you don’t particularly want then I don’t see the point in it. Remember in the nutrition field a handful of nuts and an apple are considered a meal.

Protein Breakfasts

A couple of times per week have a mostly protein breakfast. There is a growing body of research which supports eating high-quality protein foods for breakfast helps maintain a sense of fullness through the whole day. If protein breakfasts agree with you, have them more often. Days that you do not exercise are perfect.

Examples: Homemade protein shake with berries or poached, boiled or scrambled eggs with wholegrain toast, Yoghurt with fruit.

Protein Supplements

Protein shakes are a good way of staving off the afternoon munchies. A small shake made with water will keep your blood sugar levels flat and satisfy you. I do not recommend any particular protein powder but you should look for one with little or no sugar in it. Ask for a sample at a health food store to have a taste test first if you are not sure and I recommend mixing it with a milkshake maker if possible. If you are not sure how much to take bring it in and show me. A shake with water is considered a meal. Use them sparingly. A calorie is a calorie, even if it comes from a protein shake. Do not rely on them.

The Cheat Day

Every seven days pick a 24 hour period when you can relax your diet. You will find when you start eating clean that a night of Pizza and Beer makes you feel bloated, tired and fat! It does not have to be over one day. It could start at 6pm Friday and finish at 6pm Saturday.

To Sum Things Up

The importance I put on diet is pretty clear. This needs to be become a way of life. Not a diet and definitely not a detox! There are no particular foods, supplements or magic serums that are going to have fat falling off you. When we eat and drink we need to think about what it is doing to us on the inside as well.

We offer personal training along with nutritional advice and can contruct a diet plan for you.

www.alltonefitness.com.au for more info

Benefits Of Bootcamp Training

  Why Bootcamps ??

Lets face it, boot camps are here to stay and are popular world wide.

The beauty is they can be tailored for the beginner right through to the highly fit individual. These military style workouts burn a heap of calories, can be conducted indoors or out with minimal equipment.  Traditional boot camps stem from a military back round however, with the popularity growing over the past 10 years we have seen this style of military training enter the realm of the commercial fitness industry. This has seen the traditional form of boot camp take on a more group training style class. Whether that is a good thing or not is a debate for another day.

Boot camps have been built on the fundamentals of improving muscular strength, cardiovascular fitness, functional strength and also give participant a sense of accomplishment by working in teams. They are in expensive to attend and a great way to meet like minded people.

If you would like to know more about boot camps then visit Butts n Gutts website at  www.bngbootcamp.com.au and even come down for a FREE TRIAL .