#TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife

Week of the 22nd of February.

PLAN, PUT IN ORACTICE AND ASSESS

MONDAY 5-6.30am BJJ Technique, leg drag, leg weave, knee slide.

4 times 1'/15" rest

Wk1: 5 push ups, 2 Bu, 10 JS

Wk2: 5 BU, 5OC,5JS, remove a rep each round.

WK3: 3' row 867m

Repeat wk1 and 2 3 times then row 990

8-9pm: BJJ SPARRING

Tuesday and Thursday

5-6.30am BJJ techniques

We worked from the closed guard and that led us to develop a new drill. From  closed guard to arm bar attempt, to back take and arm bar submission or switch to mount. We are improving our controls all the time and really getting into the details, it is scary to think that some people get to that level of mastery that one mistake and it is over. 

I had 2 extra* REST DAYS *Friday, Saturday and *Sunday. On Friday my training partner Luke couldn't make it, so I did some reading instead of training. I also rested on Sunday to give me a chance to fully recover from my knee and lower back injury. Monday will tell if, it worked as planned

Conclusions:

Fitness, rest and work:

Fitness: It was not a good week in term of fitness, as I could hardly train. Nevertheless, I am not here to cry... What is the lecture or even the positive I can rescue from this bad week.Firstly, I had more time to rest, it is not what I planned but sooner or later you have to give your body a rest!Secondly, it has provided me some precious time to assess better what I was doing and make some adjustments to avoid the same situations in the future.In term of injury prevention, I now know that I have to vary my BJJ sessions to avoid putting unnecessary pressure on my knee and more importantly, I MUST KEEP MY EGO AT BAY AND NOT LIFT HEAVY WEIGHT WHEN NOT PROPERLY WARMED UP!!
Rest: As mentioned above, I did give my body a break, which was i am sure highly appreciated. On the other hand, I am simply better with my sleep management. I go to bed, early to get up early or late to get up later.
Work: Everything we do is connected, if you put order in your life, consequently you put order in your work. I am better organised, less fatigued and getting more knowledge and practice in what I am doing.
"PLAN, PUT IN PRACTICE, ASSESS":
There is a famous quote from Einstein about sanity, which states something along these lines. "The human being is the only being that expects different results by doing the same thing=INSANITY"I sadly have to admit that I am insane!
I have a very high metabolism and I train a lot, I also eat A LOT! When I train and eat, I manage to get away with not being strict with my diet. Being strict means to reach 3500 calories, with anything below, I create an energy deficit and lose fat and weight...
During the week of the 14th-21st, I managed to eat the same or more than my calorie allowance States, forgetting that I COULDN'T TRAIN, as I was injured!
From the 22nd-28th I put the concept "PLAN, PUT IN PRACTICE, ASSESS" in place.

Nutrition:

I planned my meal, cooked and constantly assessed and adjusted.

Daily Calorie allowance for the week was 3000 calories, as I couldn't train a lot.

Breakfast, 700 calories and 300 for a snack.

Lunch, 700 calories and 300 for snack.

Dinner, 1000 calories.

This was the plan, the reality was slightly different, but by putting the food in MyFitnessPal app right after eating them. I could manage my calories and make the adjustments for the following meal.

It is a simple but fundamental step, you need to be on top of the food. It is so easy to derail!

I almost forgot! I started the week on Monday at 87.6kg and finished on Sunday at 86.5kg. I was 86.5kg on Sunday morning, but my wife cooked that meal for dinner, sour chicken with a kind of  doughnut...it was so good that I ate 4 of them plus...

Hence I was 87kg on Monday morning lol...+500g overnight, lol...

Nevertheless, the positive reading is that I managed up to that point to lose 1.1kg just by planning my meals and sticking to the game plan.

Family, Learning and Spirituality:

All positive really as I have now decided to make of the weekend " The Official Family Days".

On Saturday and Sunday my wife and I spend quality time with the boys (without having to think about work or anything). We go to soft plays or take part into activities where the 4 of us are involved.

My wife and I keep to ourselves on Saturday evening, when the boys are in bed. We also agreed on making of Sunday a "slow"day. After doing whatever, in morning and afternoon, we sit in the lounge to sip a hot drink and chat.

Learning: During the weekend, I spend time to learn, read or watch all the things I like which are not related to fitness.

Spirituality: On Saturday, I now spend time to learn things related to my religion. As I mentioned in previous posts, we have different interests and what makes us happy is enjoying all the things we are interested in. In order to do so, we need to make the time and have priorities.

As of now every Monday I will post #TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife, a snapshot of my week, which look very much like what you just read.

As explained during this post, the idea is to demonstrate that the TrainForLifePhilosophy #TrainForLifeWayOfLife is to believe in oneself, in an healthy, balanced, harmonious and simple life.

WHAT IS TODAY MESSAGE?
The message is a simple one that applies to your life in general. You need to "Plan, Put in Practice and assess".This simple concept above was taught to me back in 2006, when studying for my degree in "Business Management".In all the compartments of our life we can apply that simple concept. Stop yourself from rushing from A to Z. You need to sit down, plan your meals, go to buy what you need, cook and eat.Plan your fitness goals then your training sessions...
Read more on www.trainforlifeuk.com

I had the altitude mask on set for 15000 ft, I could hardly talk, breath... I was light headed. Next week I will start working out with it starting at 3000ft and moving up... I am excited about the idea! 

#TheTrainForLife12BestResistanceTrainingExercises

3. The Barbell Good morning (BGM)

The 3rd place goes to the BGM, funnily enough, I knew it was a very good exercise and started to include it in my conditioning routine ahead of other exercises I like more.

I first saw the BGM as a back up exercise, one of those secondary" exercises which make you better at performing other "the main exercise".

The BGM makes your squat, deadlift, and posture better.

For the above reasons, the BGM makes you "stronger". In fact, if my posture, my base is solid, it is as being on track or using a resistance machine, there no extra movements and the lift follows its natural and perfect path.

As an example, 1 year ago I used to squat 5 times a week and hit my 1 rep max at 150kg. My legs were strong and I managed the lift but could feel my lower back giving way, which led me to slightly lean forward. 4 months ago with way less leg work, but with BGM in my routine, I managed to lift the same 150kg with a better form. The second time round, I had "weaker" legs but a far better posture!

The above example made me rethink my training routine and I decided to include that exercise that involved the majority of our muscle posterior chain.

The BGM is a neglected exercise, even by the strength athlete. Its benefits as well as the muscles involved when performed are ignored by the vast majority.

I knew the BGM was really demanding, but when I researched I realized to my own amazement how many muscles were actually involved.

Targeted Muscles:

Most of us, including me saw and see the BGM as a lower back exercise, or at least it is performed to strengthen this area of the body. Many people realize that it pulls a lot on the hamstrings, a similar feeling to the one felt when doing the stiff leg deadlift.

 

The hamstrings: They are the agonists or the prime movers, the first muscles.

The BGM primarily involve the hamstrings on the upper rear of the legs.

The hamstrings are responsible for flexion and rotation of the knee as well as extension of the hips. Hamstring strength is important to a number of sports and activities because it supports all movements across the knees. As well as, for simple balance, all the work done in the front of our body as to be balanced by the work on the back, to avoid muscle imbalances and weakness in general.

The second group of muscles involved in the BGM are the gluteus Maximus (butt), and the adductor Magnus (inner thigh).

These muscles are a synergist muscle group, they assists another to accomplish a given movement. The gluteus maximus is responsible for extension, rotation and inward and outward movements of the hips. The adductor magnus is a small muscle that also assists in all movements of the hips.

The lower back as you already knew is involved in the BGM:

Due to its central position between the load (the bar) and the hamstrings, we tend to focus on it and pay little attention to the other muscles working.

How to perform a BGM:

To make it easy to understand, you have to perform the BGM as its name state, a formal greeting. In fact the motion could be summed up as bowing with good form.

1. Grab a bar and place it on the back if shoulder, where you normally have it when squatting. I personally placed it slightly lower and my grip is a wide grip (a snatch grip), while my grip is shoulder width when I squat.

2. Your chest is up, lower back straight (neutral spine), your feet a bit more than shoulder width and your legs slightly bent.

3. You bow in a controlled manner till your torso is parallel to the ground, keeping head neutral and looking in front of you, you come back to the standing position.

4. It is a slow and controlled movement in which your all body is in tension

How do I do it and the variations:

I normally do the BGM first, as part of my warmup exercise, before my squats and deadlift.

I perform the BGM as above, I really. Keep it simple, some people have wider stance, others keep their legs straight. I don't, in all my training exercises I promote a slight bent at the level of the knees, so I apply the same concept in the BGM, my legs may bend more as the weight I am lifting increases, but as soon as I master the weight and my body got stronger, I can feel myself bowing more and straightening my legs slightly.

The variations:

1. I do paused BGM, when I am comfortable with the weight. I bow and stay in the bottom position for 3" and come back up. This way of lifting gives me the endurance, mental toughness as it mimics a heavy squat execution where I am stuck and I have to fight my way up inches by inches without losing the posture.

2. I lift heavy in 4 sets of 8-10, the tempo is 2121 (2" to go down, 1" at the bottom, 2" back up and 1" starting position) I simply lower the bar smoothly and come back up with the same speed.

I lift heavier in 4 sets of 6-8 when I managed to do 10 reps at a certain weight. The tempo  will be 3121 and the range of motion will be slightly shorter, as I am struggling with the weight

The Benefits:

The BGM as well as the SQUATS, THE DEADLIFT and their variations are "Superior" exercises. These are the exercise that make make you a stronger person, athlete.

I was once told that, in order to be stronger, we need to strengthen our mid section, in particular our Lower Back. What these 3 superior exercises have in common is a focus on the Lower Back area, translated by a muscular tension throughout the whole body. Consequently, a supposed leg exercise turns into the complete whole body workout.

For anybody, females, males, younger, older...

It is simple to perform and it is a functional exercise used on a daily basis. We squat, we deadlift and grab kids off the floor...

For weight lifters and bodybuilders:

In regard to weight lifting the BGM is a plus, as it helps lifting more with good form. The BGM forces your core and upper back to contract isometrically to maintain a good arched position with your chest up. This is the same position you want to be in while cleaning, snatching and squatting. It also strengthens the glutes and hamstrings and helps develop hip drive for the deadlift.For body builders will also develop big, thick glutes and shredded hamstrings.

Give it a try and tell us the improvements in posture, deadlifts and squats!

Greg in action, as you can observe his legs are bent, torso parallel to the ground, his back and head are  netral.

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

February 15-22nd the HighFatHighProteinLowCarbs approach reached its third week.

I started on the third week of February at 85.5kg and ended it at 86.5kg  on the 21st of February. A negative week! What happened...

Let check my week weight curve:

Monday: 85.5kg

Tuesday: 86.2kg, up 700g

Wednesday: 86kg, dropped 200g

Thursday: 86kg, maintained

Friday: 85.9kg, dropped 100g

Saturday: 85.9kg, maintained (REST DAY)

Sunday: 86.5kg, increased 600g and got bloated and constipated. I GAINED 1kg in comparison to Sunday the previous week.

My strength levels:

The exercises I use to check on my strength are the Back Squat, Good Mornings, Thrusters, Deadlift, Jerk press and Front squat.

In terms of fitness, I had a bad week as I had a swollen knee since Tuesday 6pm.

Right after the 5.15-6pm Kettlebell session, I felt a slight pain in the back of my left knee. This pain stopped me from squatting and doing any jumps or cardio exercises that involve the use of the legs.

I also injured my lower back on Friday evening, nevertheless I managed to do good mornings with a lighter weight and deadlift. I altered my weight routine and performed the exercises that I could handle.

Back squat: I couldn't squat at all during the week.

Good Mornings: I managed to do some on Friday and Sunday but executed sets of 5 with 55kg instead of sets of 7 with 60kg.

Thrusters: I couldn't do any this week.

Jerk press: I could not do any this week as I had a very sore back.I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 60kg.

Deadlift: I increased the weight 4 sets of 10 with 100kg deadlift and  managed 4 sets of 5 with 105kg.

Front squat: I couldn't do any this week.

My mood: has been great, and is great. I truly felt more positive about everything. This positive atmosphere led me to lower my guard and believe I had everything under control.

Nutrition is like training, you have to stay on top if it, you have to plan and execute. I simply didn't plan, as a result I gradually and consistently over ate during the week. I normally get away with it as I train a lot.

Unfortunately, my calories output was at its lowest this week because of my injuries. I missed Tuesday spin, Wednesday HIIT, Thursday Kettlebell, and Sunday spin...but haven't missed a meal or dropped my calorie allowance.

My conclusions and general sensations:

I sincerely believe that this way of eating works for me and can be adapted to anyone. That diet is not restrictive, so not hard to stick on and it is what I believe people need. In order to draw my own conclusions I will carry on properly, by respecting the calorie allowance until mid March then I will share my results.

Nutrition:

It has been a negative week, with a total loss of control of my food intake. This is a reminder: The number one rule is plan. There is no room for improvisation, you have to be organized and plan and prepare your meals. This is what it takes to stay on track.

The starchy carbs:

I did over the weekend ate a lot of carbs and for the first time in months I felt bloated and constipated.

Energy levels, fitness and strength:

If not for the injury, I feel strong and see myself moving forward. I look forward to be over my pains and get back to squat.

Mental health and sleep:

I am voracious, any occasion is an opportunity to read, learn and write. I organized myself better so I do actually rest more than I used to so I feel less tired.

Read more: www.trainforlifeuk.com

To come on the 2nd of March :

Week 4 of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowFat trial, 22nd-28th February

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Back to work and back on track... 

#TheTrainForLife12BestBodyWeightExercises

3. The Jump Squat.

The third place in my body Weight list goes to the jump squat. Once again, we are talking about a simple exercise, one of the basic ones. We squat all the time, so squatting is a familiar motion for us, but as soon as we add a jump to the squat we create a deadly combination.

Through my experience as personal trainer and gym instructor, I got to respect and fear the jump squat, even more than the Burpees and the push-ups.

In fact the Burpees are really hard, but while your legs are in motion your arms are resting, which makes it doable...

The push ups are the kind of exercise you can or cannot do, as soon as the lactic acid has built up you just have to stop.

The jump squat is dynamic, explosive, concentric and shorter than the Burpee.

This means that, unlike the basic squat you are jumping, which is a demanding explosive movement, you then have to control the landing, squat down and repeat.

These motions are quite taxing on the legs muscles and the glutes. On top of that, being a short motion, you hardly have time to rest between reps unless you stop.

You end up building a lot of lactic acid, like when you were doing the push ups, but on top of that as you are using bigger muscles you also get out of breath.

In my classes and with my clients the jump squat is in any form always present.

To perform a jump squat:

1. You stand with your feet shoulder width apart (more or less), toes pointing forward or out (what feels better).

2. Your chest is up, your lower back straight ( neutral spine), your arms along your legs. You bend your knees keeping your feet flat on the ground, till you complete a full squat or your hand touch the floor.

3. Now, you jump up (few centimetres), bringing your arms above your head, reaching for the ceiling. Then, You repeat as many time as necessary.

What I like to do:

Variety and focus are a must, depending on what you try to achieve, you will change few things in the execution of the movement.

Power: I will execute the jump squat as explained above, nevertheless, I will jump as high as I can. After a set of 6-8 reps, I will give myself a 1-2" rest.

Strength endurance: I will, depending on the workout I am doing, do as many sets and reps as the workout requires. Generally, after 30-40 reps the lactic acid builds up, and from then on, I am obliged to stop every 10-15 reps.

Open-close squat: It is a variation I lately introduced in my workouts. I follow the steps 1, 2 and 3 but I start with my legs together and straight, then I jump into a wide squat "Sumo squat" and spring back to the initial position.

This variation places more emphasis on the gluteus and aloud to work on hips and groin flexibility.

The benefits of the Jump squat:

Muscle builders:  Your body weight providing the resistance, the quads, the glutes and hamstrings are fired up. As calisthenics proves, we don't need weights to be ripped, toned and strong.

Increase in strength: As mentioned above the squat action followed by the explosive jump motion helps you become stronger and more powerful. One thing is to move some weight another is to do it fast. The definition of power is strength at speed, so jumping will increase your strength and power.

Improvement in ankles, knees and hip mobility as well as balance: The squat helps in building the hip joint mobility. When we jump ( the take off and landing) work our balance as well as our ankle and knee joints which have to work hard in order to cushion the landing and make it stable and safe.

Fat burner and mental toughness: The jump squat does not only work on your muscles and stamina, it also work on your mental toughness.

It provides an intense and "hard" workout, when the lactic acid builds up in your legs, it takes more than just fitness to keep on jumping. You need to fight the pain to make it happen..

They are Versatile and FREE...

Test yourself by performing 150 jump squat, tell us how you feel and how long it took you.

Give it a go.

Carl in action, or the art of the jump squat... 

#TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife

Week of the 15th of February 2016.

MONDAY5-6.30am BJJ Technique, leg drag, leg weave, knee slide.

4 times 1'/15" rest

Wk1: 5 push ups, 2 Bu, 10 JS

Wk2: 5 BU, 5OC,5JS, remove a rep each round.

WK3: 3' row 867m

Repeat wk1, 2 3 times then row 990

8-9pm: BJJ SPARRING

Tuesday

5-6.30am BJJ 5.15-6pm Kettlebell. Started to spin at 6pm but had to stop as I felt pain in the back of my left knee.

WEDNESDAY

5-6.30am BJJ: we discovered some new half guard pass and controls. We diagnosed some new drills that fit better our games, we are getting in details with everything. We are working slow and control.

6.45-7.30am: I tried to do the HIIT class but it my groin hurt so I gave it a miss.

THURSDAY

5-6.30am BJJ: I realised that my knee and hip discomfort may be caused by the BJJ, more concretely the techniques we wen through during the last month.

I didn't take part in the Kettlebell class and gave myself another day of rest, to be on the safe side.

Friday 5-30-6.30am Conditioning:

4 10 100kg deadlift

3 10 45kg FATZ GRIP DEADLIFT

3 10 18kg 4010 seated shoulder press

3 8 40kg arm row

After the last days set back, I didn't know how deadlift would go and it went well. Don't write off a session before trying.

In the evening, I almost injured myself by deadlifting a 95kg barbell with no warm up. Stupid EGO...

Saturday: REST DAY

Sunday:

3 7 55kg Good morning (GM)/thrusters

4 5 70kg Front Squat (FS)

4 10 50kg Front lunges (FL)/10 21kg high pull

3 6 105kg deadlift.EASY

A positive session as I managed to squat without being held back by left knee and groin. The deadlift was fine, rear deltoids on the right side were a bit tight but held on. I felt t generally strong. My sore lower back didn't stop me from training.

Conclusions:

Fitness, rest and work:

I had a good week mainly because I did listen to my body needs and took the right step to stop a problem from becoming an issue.Last week I was overloaded, I had too much on my plate with little sleep, physical and mental rest.I had a chat with Lisa one of my client and she actually told me off during the rest period of her Pt session. "I don't like to be told off", I listened to her, explained my point of view and made the adjustments.When you do too much, something has to give, my family, my training are there to stay, the problem is and was the work. I needed to organise myself better and make some adjustments.The first one was to simply do less, as I have no set due date for some of the projects I am working on, I can be more flexible. Secondly, I decided to either stay up an hour later and consequently get up an hour later or the other way around, sleep earlier and get up earlier. These little changes have made a massive difference. I feel fresher and more energised.
Listen to your body:To listen to my body foremost applies to training, on Tuesday after the Kettlebell class, I started the spin class on the bike and 10 minutes in the session I felt a slight pain behind my left knee, I stopped and gave myself a rest.The next morning after my BJJ 5-6.30am, I started the 6.45-7.30am HIIT session with doubts, less than 1 minute in the session I felt something in my left groin. I stopped and decided to rest also on Thursday.After assessing my weekly routine, I came to the conclusion that I haven't changed anything in my routines apart from the BJJ. In fact, since my return from Lisbon on the 26th January my BJJ sessions were focused on leg attacks, knee bars...I did basically put on a daily basis a lot of stress on my left knee (operated on in 2007)and after almost a month, I was starting to feel it in the form of dull pain.

Nutrition:

A note of caution, it takes a while to implement new habits. I have been a "chaotic" eater all my life. I would say that I sometimes eat by impulse, or out of boredom.

This translates by losing focus and overeating, my metabolism being quite high, it is not too bad. However, I could and should be better, by applying my training focus in my nutrition. In short I will focus on my nutrition in the last week of February.

Family, Work, Learning and Spirituality:

Everything is better, nevertheless it is important to stay focus as we easily get distracted and start doing things at the wrong place and time.

As of now every Monday I will post #TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife, a snapshot of my week, which look very much like what you just read.

As explained during this post, the idea is to demonstrate that the TrainForLifePhilosophy #TrainForLifeWayOfLife is to believe in oneself, in an healthy, balanced, harmonious and simple life.

WHAT IS TODAY MESSAGE?
You have to be alert and pay attention to what happens to you, as a fall or successive headaches, migraines, feeling tired or pain are signs that something is happening. Being able to interpret, to read and understand the signs given by your body will keep you away from prolonged set back, injuries or time off from the gyms or work.
Read more on www.trainforlifeuk.com

Be in touch with the Nature, with your surrounding and most of all listen to your body... 

#TheTrainForLife12BestResistanceTrainingExercises

Chapter 2 of 12: The Deadlift

The second place in my resistance training exercises list goes to the deadlift. I used to dislike the exercise for two main reasons. On one hand I was not too sure about my technique, so I used to avoid it. On the other hand, not doing it was making be bad and weak when performing the exercise. 

Then I started to read about the deadlift benefits and I saw it as a complement of the squat. The squat is my favourite exercise by far, nevertheless I can know say that the deadlift ranks almost as high, as it provides the same challenges and benefits as the squat.

With deadlift, things are simple, you lift the bar or not, you lift it properly or your lower back screams, you challenge all the little joints of your body from ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows to wrists.

It is safe to say that the deadlift is more than a leg exercise it is a whole body exercise that makes your lower body stronger dynamically in both the eccentric and concentric phase of the lift while your upper body gains more isometric strength.

Fix your deadlift form

Several simple step to have it right.

1. Start standing with an empty bar of 10-20kg

- Feet hips with apart, can be pointed out, legs slightly bent, almost straight.

- Your hands place slightly more than knee width, holding the bar. Your grip should be almost shoulder width apart. Don’t fully extend your arms at the elbow to avoid placing too much weight on your elbow joints.

- Chest up, which creates a slight curve in your back (neutral spine). AVOID ROUNDING YOUR BACK!!

2. As we deadlift we want to maintain as much as we can the posture of point 1.

- Lower the barbell in a straight line, the barbell should travel inches in front of the legs and knees.

- Once the barbell has passed the level of your knees, you bend your legs and connect your shins to the bar. As you are bending your legs you need to maintain your chest up and the neutral spine position.

- In the bottom and final stage of the lift, you will find yourself almost in a squat  position holding a bar in front of you.

A TIP: Imagine you wear a top with something written on the front at the chest level, if you deadlift with a good posture you should be able to see the writing all the way through the lift.

If you can't see it, most possibly, your will have your chest parallel to the ground, which means a broken posture and lots of pressure on the lower back. Consequently, possible lower back pain and injury.

3. Once comfortable with the points 1 and 2.

- Load a bar with some plates.

- You will squat to grab the bar maintaining your chest up and the spine neutral.

- Put your feet hips width apart (pointing to the outside) under the bar.

-  Your shins will touch the bar.

- Your hands place slightly more than knee width. Slightly bent elbows will distribute the weight throughout your arms and body without placing to much strain on the joints.

4- You will initiate the lift by stretching your legs gradually.

- Make sure to keep your knees out of the way, as the bar goes up and down in a straight line.

- At the top of the lift, squeeze your butt, then your shoulder blades and repeat the whole motion.

The benefits of the Deadlift:

For all ages and gender:

The deadlift is in some extent easier to do than the squat, as personal trainer I can see that 6 people out of 10 struggle generally with the squat. They generally, squat on their toes, or have ankles flexibilty issues.

2 people out of the 6 need to squat with a  medicine ball behind their backs against a wall to manage to squat.

It seems easier to grab something off the floor than to bend with something of your back.

Taking this into account the deadlift seems to be safer and friendlier for the elderly population.

Deadlift has always been the "males" leg lift, most of the guys deadlift heavy, very few squat and deadlift heavy.

Nowadays the deadlift has become the ladies favourite, in fact it is a good exercise to recruit the glutes muscles and it is rewarding.

If you deadlift often you will see immediate improvements and will be able to lift heavy in no time. 

Core Strength:

The core are the muscle which go from the bottom of the hamstrings to your cervical spine, in the front and the back of your body.

As you deadlift all these muscles are activated, making you a stronger person.

The lower body is worked dynamically during the concentric and eccentric phases of the lift. On the other hand, the upper body muscles are working hard isometrically to maintain the posture and move the bar.

Functional strength:

It is a functional exercise, which has direct implication in our everyday life. You squat and deadlift every time you go to the shop or play with the kids, get the bins out...

Muscle mass:

In order to grow several conditions have to be present, use big muscles and lift heavy.

The deadlift is a complex compound exercise that use big muscles such as the legs, however the little muscles are involved has a backup.

We suddenly found ourselves performing a whole body exercise!

And when you combine that with heavy lifting, you naturally release growth hormones that induce muscle development.

Strength Gain:

The deadlift such as the squat is one of those few exercises that make you generally  stronger.

As mentioned previously, when you deadlift your whole body is involved. In short, you are strengthening other parts of your body while you deadlift.

More powerful:

The definition of power is strength at speed, if you follow a well designed training plan, you will encounter the following steps.

Stabilisation phase: You will learn the technique and work your posture and core. High reps, up to 25 with very light weight.

Strength endurance: You will perform many reps with more weight, around 60% of your 1 rep max. Still high rep, 12-15.

Hypertrophy: this stage is not necessary, it depends on your goals. Up to 85% of your 1 rep max for 10 reps.

Maximum strength: 1-3 reps at 95-100% of 1 rep max.

Power: It is the last and hardest stage as you lift as much as you can but at the highest possible speed. In order to do so, your technique must be bullet proof or you may simply get injured.

Heavy deadlift boost your power to execute other less complex movements.

Guys time to hit the gym floor and Deadlift! 

Next chapter:  Good Mornings and High pull

 

Joanna in the bottom phase of the lift with shins to the bar, almost in a squat position...

Joanna in the Final phase, butt and shoulders squeezed with chest up. Upper Body full contracted.

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

Week 2 8-14th of Februry.

I started on the 1st of February weighing 87.5kg, 86.3kg on the 8th and 85.5kg on the 15th of February.

Let check my week weight curve:

Tuesday: 86.9kg, dropped 600g

Wednesday: 86.4kg, dropped 300g

Thursday: 85.3kg, dropped 900g

Friday: 84.9kg, dropped 400g (EXTRA REST DAY)

Saturday: 85.6kg increased 700g (REST DAY)

Sunday: 85.6kg, maintained weight. NEVERTHELESS I LOST 1kg in comparison to Sunday the previous week.

My strength levels:

The exercises I use to check on my strength are the Back Squat, Good Mornings, Thrusters, Deadlift, Jerk press and Front squat.

Back squat: I work it in 3 different modalities

4 sets 1-3 reps 95% of 1rep max, I managed 4 sets of 3 reps with 120kg, Set 1, 2, 3 and 4. I did 2 reps had a break then the last remaining rep.

4 sets 6-8 reps with 3" pause at bottom of squat, I now managed sets of 10 with 90kg.

4 sets 10 reps 85-90% of 1 rep max, I did 4 sets of 10 102.5kg  UNBROKEN. I CRIED IN 3rd set as it was challenging and I had to give my whole.

Good Mornings: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg and did 4 sets of 5 with 60kg on Sunday.

Thrusters: I was at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg on Thursday and did 2 sets of 3 60kg thrusters on Sunday.

Jerk press: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg.

Deadlift: I managed 4 sets of 10 with 80kg, so moved up to 3 5 95kg deadlift on Wednesday. Sunday I increased the weight and did 5 sets of 3 with 100kg deadlift.

Front squat is now 3 sets of 5 with 60kg.

My mood: has been great, I truly felt more positive about everything. I didn't have to worry about food. I did overeat because of a lack of planning and not because I was hungry or desperate to eat.

Feeling good helped to spend better quality time with my almost 4 and 2 yo boys, Milo and Noah. I can enjoy better the time I spend with my wife and I am more focused in my BJJ and my work in general.

My conclusions and general sensations:

Nutrition:

It has been a very positive week, with a better control of my food intake. The number one rule is plan, then divide your days in meals and allocate a calorie top for each meal.

In my case, a breakfast, a post workout meal, a lunch, 2 snacks and dinner, and  the calorie allowance for each meal is as follows.

1000 calories for my dinner, it is my most important meal, the one my wife cooks, so I want to enjoy.

Breakfast and lunch 700-800 calories each.

Post workout and snacks 250-400 calories.

My daily calorie intake oscillates between 3150-3550.

These numbers are slightly below my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) so in the long run I will still be losing weight anyway.

The dairy:

I need to double check if the increase in my consumption of full fat milk and cottage cheese is upsetting my stomach. I have felt slightly different this week, more "GAZY"...

I will on Saturday cut my dairy intake and see if is the source of my discomfort

Energy levels, fitness and strength:

I was simply on fire, super motivated, felt really strong and "alive". All my training sessions were positive.

I lifted more weight, I was stronger and faster in the classes, winning almost all the possible workouts in the HIIT and Kettlebell classes.

All that being sleep deprived, I slept less than usual as I had many posts to write for my blog, I also had  all my personal training slots booked and I am spending more quality time with my sons. They are demanding and noisy like their Mum and Dad.

As a result of being busy, tired but reaching my fitness goals, I decided to reward myself with an EXTRA REST DAY to make sure I start next week as well as I finished this one.

Mental health and sleep:

I am eager to learn, to be productive and the little sleep I have is quality. I sleep less than five minutes after I lay in bed.

Read more: www.trainforlifeuk.com

To come on the 24th of February:

Week 3 of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowFat trial, 15-21st February

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Everything I do, or achieve is for them, they motivate, inspire me and remind me of my duties... 

#TrainForlLife12BestBodyWeightExercises

2. The Push up

The second place in my body Weight list goes to the push ups. The push up is one of this basic exercise that you will see performed everywhere, no matter the sport, the age or the gender. Push up has been there for ages and is here to stay!

Nowadays in my daily experience as a personal trainer and instructor, I can see an interesting trend, the girls are getting stronger in general and more interested in all the strength exercises such as squats, deadlifts, chin ups and push ups.

In my classes and with my clients the girls show interest in that bodyweight exercise that provide numerous benefits.

To perform a push up:

1. Lie on the floor face down and place your hands about 2.5-3 feet (75-90cm) apart. Hold your body up at arm's length while balancing on your toes (Maintain a plank position).

2. Bending at the elbows, lower yourself downward until your chest or your chin  touch the floor. Breathe in.

3. Now, exhale and push your upper body back up to the starting position, squeezing your muscles in your chest as you rise.

After a brief pause, repeat for as many repetitions as needed.

Tips for beginners:

Phase 1:

1. Lie on the floor face down and place your hands about 2.5-3 feet (75-90cm) apart. Your elbows will be bent.

Now Bend your knees (almost bring heels to your butt) and gently kick your toes to the ground, as your toes make contact with the ground stretch your arms and leg at the same time and push up.

FOLLOW STEP 3 ABOVE AND RESTART.

(Note as you start that you will find yourself bending your legs quite significantly in the start position in order to create that momentum and elevate your body. As you get better, you legs will intervene less).

Phase 2:

Follow all the steps of phase 1 and just reduce the action of your toes when they make contact to the floor. Eventually, you will after not a long time, (it will depend on how many times a week you work on them), you will be able to work your way to the "real push up".

I reckon 4 sets of 5 phase 1,  4 times in a week should lead to phase 2.

The same amount of sets and reps should lead to the "real" push ups, then it is a case of working on your range of motion and make sure you go low when you complete your push ups.

What I like to do:

The push-up is a complex compound move that works your chest, biceps and core. There are even a few tough variations open to you once you get to grips with the exercise.

I use different variations depending on which upper body muscles I want to focus on.

Shoulder and upper chest focus: I will do "feet raised" push ups in order to have stronger shoulders and eventually perform hands stand push ups.

Place your feet on a high surface such as a bench or a few steps up the stairs and start your reps. This increases the resistance and targets the upper chest muscles more.

Core and shoulder focus: I will do Hindu push ups, as the execution of the exercise requires extreme shoulder control and keep the lower back tight.

Triceps focus: I will perform diamond push ups. Just brings your hands together and make a diamond shape, you can also add a few inches gap between your feet for a better stability. Once set,  perform your push up as usual.

Explosiveness and maximum strength: I will perform plyometric push-up , the famous clap push-up . It develops explosive upper body power.

Use your standard push up setting, but push quick and hard to create enough distance between your hands and the floor.

A gym mat can be used to take away some strain off your wrists and you may also have your feet more separated than usual to help with stability.

The Benefits of the push up

Universal test of strength and fitness:

As they are a body weight exercise, push-ups are useful to test your fitness and strength, in a gym or even to enter the army or police forces.

Test yourself by performing push ups for three minutes.

Rest as much as you need, but don't stop. Strength coaches consider 55 to be "average", 75 "good".

GIVE IT A GO!

All ages and Genders:

Our bone density declines with age, after peaking during mid late 30s. Performing weight bearing exercises like push ups will strengthen  your wrists, forearm, elbows, upper arms and shoulders.

Push up as bodyweight training is in fact a wonderful upper body resistance training, as your own bodyweight provides the resistance needed to increase your strength and eventually to reverse the loss of muscle mass and bone density due to aging.

It is a challenging exercise at first for the majority of the females but after her a short while they condition their body and mange to do as well as the males.

Upper body conditioning: 

The main muscle used while doing a push ups are the chest muscles, shoulders and triceps. Doing push ups on a regular basis will strengthen and improve your physique and performances.

Core Strength: 

When you perform push ups, keep your spine neutrally curved and rigid so that any load is safely distributed.

To keep your spine properly aligned is the job of your core, "the mid-action muscles".

As you do push ups you are strengthening your core.

They are Versatile and FREE...

Push ups... 

#TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife

Week of the 8th of February

MONDAY

5-6.30am BJJ Technique, leg drag, long step to side control, leg lock to back take.

Tabata 6.45-7.30am

4 times 1'/15" restWk1: 2 Hindu pushes, 2 Bu, 10HK

Wk2: 2 snatches and 1TGU EACH side

WK3: 5 JS, 3OC,2 Bu, SR

Wk4: 5 High pull,5 JP, 5 Jump SquatWk5: 3' row 860m

Tuesday

5-6.30am BJJ AND 6-6.45pm SPIN
WEDNESDAY

5-6.30am BJJ, leg lock and leg drags technique.

HIIT 6.45-7.30am 3 10' workouts

Wk1: 10 burpees, 10 open closed squat, 10 X back lunges, Shuttle Run. Remove a rep every 2 rounds. Round 1 to repeat twice the workout with 10 reps, round 2, twice with 9 reps.I managed to reach round 4 and 8 burpees.

Wk2:1 clean and jerk, 2 thrusters, 3 jerk press and 150m run inc 2%, 10,11,12,13,13.5kmh run

Wk3: AMRP 5 lunges, 5 deadlift and 5 burpees in 5'.Big day as I managed to run for the first time on the treadmill, I felt strong but didn't want to push my luck.

THURSDAY

6-6.45am Conditioning:4 7 60kg GM( good morning) /2 Thrusters. Big progress as I managed 4 sets instead of 2 last Sunday. 4 2 130kg BS (back squat) Set 1 2 reps, S2 & S3, S4 1-1. Hard but done, an increase of 10kg in the last 2 weeks, as the max I ve done was 120kg for 2 reps.
6.45-7.30am Kettlebell 3 10' workouts

Wk1:5 AS, 5 burpees, 5 OCS and 5 calories on rower. Add 5 each Round

Wk2: 1TGU, 1 snatch, 2 swing and clean, 3 jerk presses 150m run incl 4 speed 14kmh. Feel more confident and strong.

Wk3:1+2

FRIDAY

5-6.30am BJJ techniques
SATURDAY

3 sets 5 60kg jerk press. completed but I need to sort out my Technique...4 5 100kg deadlift. Getting there, satisfied
SUNDAY

4 7 100kg deadlift. definitely feeling stronger4 5 120kg squat. S1 2,111. S2 222. S3 2121. I did suffer, I felt the deadlift I ve done prior to squat. My legs didn't respond.1h Spin, the class was easier for my characteristics as there were a lot if high resistance tracks instead of sprints.

Surround yourself by the right people:
This week I was reminded that important part of anybody well being. When you are surrounded by the right people life is easier, better.I am a blessed person as I am content. I am happy with what I have and when I am not, I just put myself at work in order to get what I want.I have a nice family,a wonderful wife (time to time), wonderful sons (hard work), a good Family, some good friends, and The Train For Life community.I will add that some member of the community have become real friends. After 9 years in Norwich, I can say that the majority of my friends are HERE IN NORWICH and I identify myself with the place, and the people.Not to talk about my training partners Luke, Josh, Tom, Tomek, Mike D, Mike P and my coach Steve and my Maestro Ze Marcello would be missing on important people in my life. Theses guys as well as my family, my friends and the member of the Train For Life community make me a better, athlete, a better person.

Conclusion:

It has been a positive week again, the motivation, the drive and the focus are high. I am reaching a better balance between the important thing in my life. Nevertheless, I am struggling with my sleep. I have to sort out my hours and make more time to rest.

Fitness:

This week has been as good as the first as I generally improved, all my weights are on the high. My workouts are better designed, shorter, with a better focus on my goals. The results are a clear improvement in strength and recovery time between workouts.

Nutrition:

I am now two weeks in my new Diet and it is becoming an easy ride. I plan better my meals and have a better understanding if which food to eat and when. I have almost a clear picture of what my breakfast, snacks and lunches should look like.

I introduced more fish in my diet, it is a cheap way to add variety and quality.

Cheap? Effectively, I give myself a budget and get 2kg roughly of fish worth a maximum of £10 and I have for 4-5 meals.

I also made important adjustments in regard to eating with my sons, I now eat after them, like that I can include their leftover which are mainly carbs in my meals.

Family, Work, Learning and Spirituality:

Family: I made some big progress this week as I keep most if the time the IPad and phone outside the living room so I can give my sons my full attention.

With my wife we enjoy as much as we can the time we create for us, by getting the kids to sleep earlier and making things easier for each other in general.

Work: I realized that I could not become slave often of my passion, I tried to do too much and suffered as I was getting tired and under pressure.

I decided to slow down, do less but make sure that I convey the messages I need to convey.

Learning and Spirituality: this is a daily basis habit, I keep myself sharp and open to what interest me by reading everyday and focusing on my duties as Muslim.

As of now every Monday I will post #TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife, a snapshot of my week, which look very much like what you just read.

As explained during this post, the idea is to demonstrate that the TrainForLifePhilosophy #TrainForLifeWayOfLife is to believe in oneself, in an healthy, balanced, harmonious and simple life.

Stop complaining and take responsibilities for your life, IF THERE IS SOMETHING YOU DONT LIKE CHANGE IT. LIVE LIFE ACCORDING TO YOUR BELIEFS.

We generally  get what we deserve, if you work on your family life, your relationships, your job, your spirituality, general knowledge, your fitness and nutrition, YOU will be happier.

There is no secret formula, HARD WORK pays off. Each and every time I was focused and willing to pay the price, to sacrifice in order to achieve a goal. With no fail I Achieved it.

The Train For Life Community is a group of people who share the same values and what is applicable to fitness can be in our daily lives. "Together We Are Stronger".

My training partner, becoming a friend. We spend a lot of time talking, sharing, growing together  

#TrainForLife12BestResistanceTrainingExercises

My 12 fantastic resistance training exercises, as surprising as it may seem, is based on this list of 12 basic exercises. 

I hardly add new or flashy exercises in my routines, the exercises below apart from a possible bench press* work directly all the big muscles of the body and indirectly the little ones, such as arms and calves.

* If not for incompatibility, I would bench press. Unfortunately, I have a shoulder injury that keep me way from that exercise.

Just check below my 12 fantastic Resistance training exercises, and in the number 1 spot, we find the BACK SQUAT.

Chapter 1 of 12

1- The Back Squat

The Squats is the king of the resistance training exercises, it works almost every muscles of your body directly or indirectly.

As well as your balance and flexibility. It is a challenging and demanding exercise loved and hated at the same time. In this article my focus is on deep squat or "butt to the ground" with the full range of motion.

The only time I may consider doing a half squat would be to break a plateau and get my body used to a heavier load, if not all the way down!

Before talking about the benefits of the squat, I will highlight how I squat.

A- Normal squat would be at 2011 tempo, my natural speed. I would lower the bar in 2", and with no break at the bottom, get up as fast as I can, then rest another second and start again.

B- My second favorite is the 3" hold at the bottom or 2311 tempo, I lower the bar in 2", hold in the bottom position for 3", raise the bar as fast as I can and start again.

C- The toughest is by far the 4010 tempo, I love and hate that modality as to lower a heavy weight is a tough one. I tend to do sets of 10, so if the work is well done, we are talking about 50" under tension... It hurts.

D- Finally, one modality that I rarely used is to squat light and fast to get that quick reaction of legs and glutes.

Now that I shared my secrets, WHY SHOULD YOU SQUAT?

The Top 8 Benefits of Squat

What makes squats such a fantastic exercise?

1. Builds Muscle in Your Entire Body

   Squats obviously help to build your leg muscles (including your quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, and butt), but they also create an anabolic environment, which promotes body-wide muscle building.

   In fact, when done heavy and properly, your lower back, core muscles are also active. In order, to better your squat generally people strengthen trapezius and lower back.

   So squats can actually help you improve both your upper and lower body strength.

2. Functional Exercise Makes Real-Life Activities Easier

   Functional exercises are those that help your body to perform real-life activities, as opposed to simply being able to operate pieces of gym equipment. Squats are one of the best functional exercises out there, as humans have been squatting since the hunter-gatherer days.

   "What babies and toddlers do first and best is to squat!"

3. Burn More Fat

   One of the most time-efficient ways to burn more calories is actually to gain more muscle! For every pound of additional muscle you gain, your body will burn an additional 50-70 calories per day. Secondly, the legs are the biggest muscles of the body so the best way to burn more calories and melt fat is to Squat.

4. Maintain Mobility and Balance

   Strong legs are crucial for staying mobile as you get older, and squats are phenomenal for increasing leg strength. They also work out your core, stabilizing muscles, which will help you to maintain balance, while also improving the communication between your brain and your muscle groups, which helps prevent falls.

5. Prevent Injuries

   Most athletic injuries involve weak stabilizer muscles, ligaments and connective tissues, which squats help strengthen. They also help prevent injury by improving your flexibility (squats improve the range of motion in your ankles and hips) and balance, as noted above.

6. Boost Your Sports Performance -- Jump Higher and Run Faster

   From toddlers to professional athletes, everybody squat, no matter the activity the athletes is involved in.Specifically, squatting helped athletes run faster and jump higher, which is why this exercise is part of virtually every professional athlete's training program.

7. Tone Your Backside, Abs and Entire Body

   Few exercises work as many muscles as the squat, so it's an excellent multi-purpose activity useful for toning and tightening your behind, abs, and, of course, your legs. Furthermore, squats build your muscles, and these muscles participate in the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity, helping to protect you against obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

8. Help with Waste Removal

   Squats improve the pumping of body fluids, aiding in removal of waste and delivery of nutrition to all tissues, including organs and glands. They're also useful for improved movement of feces through your colon and more regular bowel movements.

The Proper Way to Perform a Squat?

There is a debate regarding how low we should go when we perform a squat.

The answer is look at any baby or toddler squatting, they go as low as they possibly can. This is the right way, the natural way!

What happens is that we lost our flexibility, or we have muscle imbalances that we have to sort out in order to squat low.

Squats have long been criticized for being destructive to your knees, but research shows that when done properly, squats actually improve knee stability and strengthen connective tissue.

1. Stand with your feet just over shoulder width apart pointing outward
2. Keep your chest up this will keep your back in a neutral position.
3. Slowly bend your knees, hips and ankles, lowering until you reach a 90-degree angle or below.
4. An important point, your weight, your balance has to be on your heels and butt, not your toes. You can look forward or upwards. NEVER DOWN, REMEMBER THE BODY GOES WHERE THE HEAD, IF YOU LOOK DOWN YOU WILL GET A ROUNDED BACK, COMPROMISE YOUR POSTURE AND NOT BEING ABLE TO LIFT THE BAR.
5. Breathe in as you lower, breathe out as you return to starting position.

Ok, time to put in practice  

To come On next Thursday 18th, chapter 2 of 12: The deadlift  

Aaron performing a deep squat, feet slightly more than shoulder width apart, breathing in on way down.

Aaron from a different angle. Chest and shin lines are parallel, head neutral, facing forward. 

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarb

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

February 1-7th, the HighFatHighProteinLowCarbapproach officially starts. There will be a weekly release every Wednesday of the month.

In each and every weekly chapter, there will be snapshot of my week, my weight, my strength level, my mood and my general sensations will be checked, analyzed and assessed.

At the end of the February trial, some comparative numbers, pictures as well as my body fat percentage will be displayed and compared in order to assess the Pros and Cons of the #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs.

My weight: I weigh myself each and every morning as I get up, on an empty stomach.

I started the week on Monday the 1st of February at 87.5kg, heavier than usual. The reason being is that from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st of January, I ate, binged what I wanted, which include a lot of peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches (my favorite) and dark chocolate.

As you see I am not immune to cravings. Nevertheless my body was kind to me for 2 days.

In fact on Friday I weighed at 86.6kg, 86.1kg on Saturday and 86.6kg on Sunday. Despite having a bad Friday my weight went down on Saturday but as soon as the bad eating turned into a BAD HABIT, 3 days in a row, my body said "BASTA" and I started to balloon, the end result being 87.5kg on Monday the 1st of February, an increase of 1.5kg in 3 days.

Let check my week weight curve:

Tuesday: 86.9kg, dropped 600g

Wednesday: 86.4kg, dropped 300g

Thursday: 85.3kg, dropped 900g

Friday: 84.9kg, dropped 400g (EXTRA REST DAY)

Saturday: 85.6kg increased 700g (REST DAY)

Sunday: 85.6kg, maintained weight. NEVERTHELESS I LOST 1kg in comparison to Sunday the previous week.

My strength levels:

The exercises I use to check on my strength are the Back Squat, Good Mornings, Thrusters, Deadlift, Jerk press and Front squat.

Back squat: I work it in 3 different modalities

4 sets 1-3 reps 95% of 1rep max, I managed 4 sets of 3 reps with 120kg, Set 1, 2, 3 and 4. I did 2 reps had a break then the last remaining rep.

4 sets 6-8 reps with 3" pause at bottom of squat, I now managed sets of 10 with 90kg.

4 sets 10 reps 85-90% of 1 rep max, I did 4 sets of 10 102.5kg  UNBROKEN. I CRIED IN 3rd set as it was challenging and I had to give my whole.

Good Mornings: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg and did 4 sets of 5 with 60kg on Sunday.

Thrusters: I was at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg on Thursday and did 2 sets of 3 60kg thrusters on Sunday.

Jerk press: I am now at 4 sets of 5 with 50kg.

Deadlift: I managed 4 sets of 10 with 80kg, so moved up to 3 5 95kg deadlift on Wednesday. Sunday I increased the wright and did 5 sets of 3 with 100kg deadlift.

Front squat is now 3 sets of 5 with 60kg.

My mood: has been great, I truly felt more positive about everything. I didn't have to worry about food. I did overeat because of a lack of planning and not because I was hungry or desperate to eat.

Feeling good helped to spend better quality time with my almost 4 and 2 yo boys Milo and Noah. I can enjoy better the time with I spend with my wife and I am more focused in my BJJ and my work in general.

My conclusion and general sensations:

Nutrition:

It has been a very positive week, with a better control of my food intake. The number one rule is plan, then divide your days in meals and allocate a calorie top for each meal.

In my case, a breakfast, a post workout meal, a lunch, 2 snacks and dinner, and  the calorie allowance for each meal is as follows.

1000 calories for my dinner, it is my most important meal, the one my wife cooks, so I want to enjoy.

Breakfast and lunch 700-800 calories each.

Post workout and snacks 250-400 calories.

My daily calorie intake oscillates between 3150-3550.

These number are slightly below my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) so in the long run I will still be losing weight anyway.

The dairy:

I need to double check if the increase in my consumption of full fat milk and cottage cheese is upsetting my stomach. I have felt slightly different this week, more "GAZY"...

I will on Saturday cut my dairy intake and see if is the source of my discomfort

Energy levels, fitness and strength:

I was simply on fire, super motivated and felt really strong and "alive". All my training sessions were positive.

I lifted more weight, I was stronger and faster in the classes, winning almost all the possible workouts in the HIIT and Kettlebell class.

All that being sleep deprived, I slept less than usual as I had many posts to write for my blog, I filled all my personal training slots and I am spending more quality time with my sons and I swear they are demanding and noisy like their Dad and Mum.

In the end I decided to reward myself with an EXTRA REST DAY to make sure I start next week as well as I finished this one.

Mental health and sleep:

I am eager to learn, to be productive and the little sleep I have is quality. I sleep less than five minutes after I lay in bed.

Read more: www.trainforlifeuk.com

To come on the 15th of February:

Week 2 of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowFat trial, 8-14th February

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Back in 2009, at that time I was just on cardio and bodyweight training. I also cut fir a shirt period onpeanut  butter and Nutella sandwich which made me Unhappy... 

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

Chapter 5 of 5

Thoughts 9 & 10

This the final chapter before we move on to #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs February month trial.

We will then know if eating fat makes you fat or lean!

9. Food quantity approach:

To start with, before talking about quantity let talk about calories. I do believe that to know your BMR (Basal metabolic rate) and TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) are compulsory. Let me use that analogy, " it is the same as going for a long journey in the car without knowing how much fuel you have in the tank".

You need to know how much calories you can consume in a day otherwise you will overeat.

The food quantity and the macro nutrients repartition. Divide a plate in 6 slices of equal size. 1 slice will be for the starchy carbs, 2 slices for your protein, and 3 slices for the vegetables. What about the fat? The fat takes care of itself, it will be present in the protein, eventually the sauce or dressings.

10. The Drinks:

The king of the drink is the water, 2-2.5 liters of water have to be drunk everyday. Green tea is highly recommended and coffee and milk consumption bring a diversity of opinions. Some gurus will tell you not to drink coffee or milk, others will recommend to have black coffee or coffee with cream.

I personally switched from black coffee to white coffee, it is less bitter and increase my protein intake.

The milk is for me a valuable source of protein and fat, so I only consume full fat milk.

The juices, fizzy drinks and alcohol:

Even a natural fruit juice loses part of its benefits when the pulp is lost in its preparation. Eating an orange is more beneficial than having an orange juice.

The fizzy drinks and alcohol are empty calories with very little to no benefits and on top of that they are very high in calories and low in goodness.

To come #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbsTrial it will be divided into 4 chapters corresponding to each week of the month of February. The first 5 chapters of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs initial goal was to explain why I switched from a calorie restrictive and "unsustainable" diet to a high fat and high protein food pattern that seem to fit better to my needs.

This is a trial, in which I will share my sensations, set backs, discoveries and many failures. At the end of the trial I will state my position in regard to what I think is the a healthy way to approach food.

I will post weekly on Wednesday 10th, 17th, 24th of February and 2nd of March.

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Cook from scratch and stay away from processed food

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

 #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

Chapter 4 of 5

Thoughts 7 & 8

The idea of writing about nutrition comes from the confusion I experienced. I am a level 4 personal trainer and half way to get my nutritionist certification. The truth been told, there is so many contradictions when it comes down to food that you don't know who to believe.

I think that reading and trying on myself is the best way to understand and to make sense of the information I gathered.

I am gonna talk about fat and start by saying that Lorain Cordain, Ph.D and author of "The Paleo Diet" states that saturated fat is bad for us while Barry Groves author of "Eat Fat Get Thin!" does say the exact opposite!!!

7. The fat:

I started a week ago a high fat high protein diet. I passed from ingesting 2500-2700 calories from the 28th of December to the 22nd of January 2016, to a whooping 3500-3700 calories since the 1st of February 2016.

Since the first of February my fat intake is as its highest, I introduced mayonnaise in my  menu, I eat more fish, such as kipper, herrings, sprats, eggs, butter, coconut oil and dairy, milk and cheese. On the other hand I have reduced the amount of nuts and seeds in my diet.

In other words, I am having more saturated fat than mono or polyunsaturated fat, I cook with butter or coconut oil and I "now" drink coffee with milk. I used to drink black coffee.

My weight oscillates around 85.3 to 86.3kg. In contrast a month ago I was 85-85.5kg, unhappy, starving and eating 2500 calories worth of healthy mono and polyunsaturated.

To be honest, I am confused, I eat more, I eat what I want and I weigh more or less the same without calorie restriction. My energy levels are high, my mood is optimum and I enjoy eating. On top of that my physical appearance is the same... I am not growing a belly...

8. Food compatibility list:

This point is important, I learnt that we react differently to food. This means that some food will have a positive effect on me while others will just sap my energy.

As a matter of fact, the bread is a food which does not work with me. If I eat bread, I crave more bread and I keep on eating without control, on the other hand the scrambled eggs do satiate me and make me feel good.

It is important to know which food is compatible with you. As soon as you feel discomfort after eating a certain food, you should eat that food again. When your suspicions are confirmed you simply remove that food from your menu.

To come in chapter 5 of 5

9. Food quantity approach

10. The Drinks

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

Looks good, taste awesome...is it really good?? 

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs

Chapter 3 of 5

Thoughts 5 & 6

Thoughts 5: The relationship with the starchy carbs is complicated.

Before talking about starchy carbs, let clarify what are the carbs. The idea is to make it simple, carbs come in different shapes, texture and colors. From fruits, to vegetables, nuts, beans, grains...

When we talk about starchy carbs, we are mentioning bread, pasta, couscous, rice, flower, quinoa, the breakfast cereals, oats, and other grains like rye and barley, as well as legumes, peas and beans.

The kind of carbs mentioned above are different to our cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts... Or our salads and fruits.

The starchy carbs do leave us, depending on the level at which they are processed with a mixed feeling. Some do satiate us and other do actually make us feel more hungry.

5a. The way they make you feel:

When eating processed starchy carbs such as bread with Nutella and peanut butter, I feel like my appetite has no end. I can simply eat with no hunger.

As a matter of fact, Sunday 2 weeks from now, after having a roast dinner, I decided to have as a desert of two slices of bread with Nutella and peanut butter.

Bear in mind that I was not hungry as I just had my lunch plus my sons left over. Nevertheless, I managed to eat 5 slices of bread with Nutella and peanut butter for an extra 1500-1700 calories!

Firstly, there is no need to be hungry to eat starchy processed carbs and secondly, you feel low, down after the feast and you may also end up with an upset stomach.

On the other hand, chickpeas, lentils are more filling, more natural, so you don't binge on them. The end result is that you feel satiated and in control of the quantities you eat.

5.a The Weight goal.

The starchy carbs are in most of the popular diets, Atkins, Paleo diets or High fat and high protein diets, the food which is severely reduced or eliminated. All the diets above recommend for different reasons the diminution or elimination of starchy carbs. In short, their diminution or elimination is associated with weight loss.

5.b The glycogen stores.

A simple explanation of glycogen stores would be on those lines, our body can store energy from the carbs we ingest. That energy comes from the carbs, preferably the starchy carbs.

If the starchy carbs are reduced or eliminated our glycogen stores are depleted, this leads to a significant weight loss

6. The protein

A lot could be said about proteins. Let make it short, the protein increase your metabolism and slow your appetite. They help repair the cells and create or build muscles.

So why are we eating so much carbs, cereals or toasts, followed by sandwich or crisps and pasta or pizza to finish the day...

To come in chapter 4 of 5

7. The fat

8. Food compatibility list

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

How much protein in that breakfast?? It is the diet that leads The UK to have 67% and 57% of the male and female population of the UK is overweight...

#TrainForLife12BestBodyWeightExercises

1. Burpees

The number 1 exercise in my Body Weight is the Burpee, I hardly imagine a bidyweight routine without burpees. Burpee is king, it give so much and take away the same or more to the people who can't handle them. 

A few minutes of Burpee conditioning will quickly convince you that your own natural bodyweight provides plenty of resistance for an ass-kicking workout that blasts your stamina and fat loss through the roof.

To perform a Burpee:

1. Begin in a standing position and reach for the floor with your hands in front of you.
2. as your hands make contact with the floor, Kick your feet back to a pushup position and lower your chest to the floor. At this stage you will be chest down on the floor in a push up position.
3. Immediately return your feet to the squat position.
4. Leap up as high as possible from the squat position.

Repeat, moving as fast as possible. You should maintain a fast pace for this exercise. Strive either for maximum height with each jump or maximum speed.

Most athletes will average between 12 and 15 repetitions per 30 seconds.

The Benefits of Burpees

The burpee is the ultimate full-body exercise. It is so good that the elites sportsmen, such as boxers, martial artists, American football teams, CrossFit practitioners, and military forces use them in their workouts. Just one simple movement tests both your strength and aerobic capacities. 

Strength. The burpee is a full-body, strength training exercise. Each repetition, will work every muscles from your cfront deltoids, chest, arms, quads, hamstrings, and abs. 

Fat burning. It is a full "explosive"  body performed at high speed and maximum  intensity. This makes of it one of the best exercises to burn fat. Studies have shown that high intensity Interval training is one of the best way to burn fat and exercises, like burpees, burn up to 50% more fat than conventional strength training exercises (you remember "Insanity"). They’ve also been shown to speed up your metabolism which helps you burn more calories throughout the day. If you’re looking to get rid of that spare tire, step off the elliptical machine and start doing burpees.

Conditioning. Burpees are an effective exercise for developing the conditioning and endurance, they are the perfect balance between upper-lower body exercise with a twist of cardio. In fact a Burpee could be seen as push ups, and a jump squat performed at high speed.

Free. There are free and set you apart. All you need is your body, a floor, and an iron will.

Burpees are just the best, from elite Martial artists, Crossfiters, soldiers and the TrainForLifeCommunity, we all do burpees.

#TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife

Practice what you preach

Still in Lisbon, after the BJJ European Championship, I was thinking on ways to reinforce the TrainForLife Phylosophy.  

What was the best suitable vehicle to transmit an idea, my energy, a movement. The answer came to me remembering the comments of Lisa, Aaron, Josh, Sue and others. They told me that they were following my #cuttinghtheweight diary. 

As a result I decided to open a window to my daily routine, to demonstrate that fitness is not a destination, it is a Direction, "A way of life". 

As of Monday the 1st of February, I will write about my daily fitness routines and my state of mind in general.

This process should help you guys to understand the importance of goals setting, planning and the importance of a balance between, work, fitness, and family life. 

I will not focus much on the specificity of the exercises or get in details about the food I eat. The focus is more on what keeps me going, what I can improve, add or remove in order to be fit and happy.

Nevertheless if you are interested in knowing why I favor a type of training, a choice of exercises instead of other, let me know and I will explain about it. On the other hand concerning the nutrition #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs 5 chapters that I started in parallel should answer your questions On the subject.

Rise and shine: I am generally up between 3.30-4am and in bed at 9.30-10pm on average from Sunday to Thursday and 5-6am till 10-11.30pm Fridays and Saturdays.

Week of 1st of February

Monday: 

5' Row

5-6.30am BJJ Techniques

Tabata 6.45-7.30am4 times 1'/15" rest

Wk1: 5 OC (open blouse squat) ,3 BU,10Moon Walker Shuttle Run

Wk2: 5 thrusters-3 BU

WK3: 5 Jump Squats, 10 high knees, 2 Burpees, Backward run

Wk4: 5 JS, 3 JP,6 LUWk5: 2 snatches and 1 Turkish get Up on each side

Tuesday

5' row

5-6.30am BJJ techniques  

6-6.45pm Spin class

Wednesday

Conditioning 6.15-6.45am

4 3 120kg squat, Set 1,2,3 and 4, I managed 2 reps followed by 1 after a short break.

3 5 95kg deadlift

HIIT 6.45-7.30am

Wk1: Format AMRP, 3 Hindu push ups, 6 Xback Lunges, 10 Jump squat

Wk2: 5 thrusters, 5 Good Mornings, 5 high pull, 250m row

Wk3: 21 LUNGES,DEADLIFT,BURPEES-15-9-3 finished in 8'40"

Feeling strong, won all the workouts.  

Thursday

6.15-6.45am

4 10 102.5 BS (back squat) UNBROKEN. I CRIED IN 3rd set as it was dam hard and I was in the zone.

6.45-7.30 Kettlebell 3 10' workout

Wk1: 1 snatch to squat, 2 OHS (overhead squat), 3 JP (Jerk presses), 4 BU (burpees), 5 open close Squat.

Wk2: 21 double arm swing, Burpees, jump squats and 21 calories row, then 15, 9, 3. Completed with in 9'23"

Wk3: Wk1+wk2. I started round 3 did 1 snatch to squat, 2 overhead squat, 3 Jerk presses, 1 Burpee.

I feel strong again, and managed to win the 3 workouts. Still weak in regard to shoulder but my fitness is on the high.

Friday

Extra Resting day as I am having a good week but lacking sleep.

Saturday  

RESTING DAY

Sunday

6-6.30am Conditioning

4 5 60 GM/3 a Thrusters. I stopped after 2 sets ax I failed to do the thrusters in 3rd set.not strong enough!

5 3 100kg deadlift

Conclusion:

The main thing is planning, you need to plan your nutrition, you need to plan your workouts, you need goals, a purpose. Without goals it is really difficult to achieve anything. " Don't be afraid to Dream Big". 

Your goals, your ambitions are the reasons why you get up in the morning ready to Conquer. 

I Always go to bed Thinking about what I will do the next day and I am always eager to start the day, even if that means being up at 3.30am (weekdays) and in bed 9.30-10pm. 

Fitness: 

My first week back has been really positive, as I planned most of my workouts. I managed to increase the weight in each  and every sessions. I am also fortunate to have come back from Portugal "injury free" and highly motivated.

 Nutrition:

After a month of diet, I am changing my culinary habits, you will be able to know more about in my coming #CalorieRestrictionVSFat&HighProtein and #HighFatHighProtein#LowCarbs.

I had a bad weekend, a chaotic one. I ate a lot and not the right kind of food... a lot of Nutella and peanut butter... a lot...

The main reason I did so bad is that "I didn't PLAN" my food diary. PLANNING IS KEY .

Family, Work, Learning and Spirituality:

We are more than bi dimensional, life is not just fitness and food, there is more to it. We need the all package in order to be happy. 

Without getting in details, I can say that I have long busy days, between my family life, I look after my children 5-8h depending on the day, I work everyday of the week, from a spiritual point of view, I have  my duties as a Muslim and finally from a mental and personal perspective, to improve, to strive for better means that you NEED TO LEARN, TO READ, TO RESEARCH, TO TRY FAIL AND TRY AGAIN.

In all honesty, being busy keeps me going, I love any parcels of my life and strive on a daily basis to improve in each and everyone of them. 

Make sure to give to your beloved ones the attention they deserve, in my case they are the reason why I go to work and I strive for a better life. It will be meaningless if I cannot share my blessings with them. 

As of now every Monday I will post #TheTrainForLifeWayOfLife, a snapshot of my week, which look very much like what you just read. 

As explained during this post, the idea is to demonstrate that the TrainForLifePhilosophy #TrainForLifeayOfLife is to believe in oneself, in an healthy, balanced, harmonious and simple life.

Stop complaining and take responsibilities for your life, IF THERE IS SOMTHING YOU DONT LIKE CHANGE IT. LIVE LIFE ACCORDING TO YOUR BELIEFS.

We generally  get what we deserve, if you work on your family life, your relationships, your job, your spirituality, general knowledge, your fitness and nutrition, YOU will be happier.

There is no secret formula, HARD WORK pays off. Each and every time I was focused and willing to pay the price, to sacrifice in order to achieve a goal. With no fail I Achieved it. 

The Train For Life Community is a group of people who share the same values and what is applicable to fitness can be in our daily lives. "Together We Are Stronger". 

Instructing, leading by example is the TrainForLifeWay

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbS

Chapter 2 of 5

Thoughts 3 & 4 

Thoughts 3: I could not keep up with such restriction in calories.

Thoughts 4: I have a better understanding of my relationship with food. Some work well or better with my body and some others interfere with the well functioning of my body.

Before discussIng the points 3 & 4, I refer you to the first chapter of #TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs to get a better understanding of what I intend to achieve.

In the first chapter, I mentioned my difficult relationship with food while I was in an aggressive calorie restriction diet. 

This difficult situation led me to do what I explained below.

Thought 3: I could not keep up with such a calorie restriction.

As simple as stated above, to think about food everyday at all time is an uncomfortable and really difficult situation. During the 27 days trial(check #cuttingweight), I did in all honesty "only" managed to stick to 2500 calories 7-10 days maximum. The rest of the time, I managed to be just below my TDEE, which explain why I still manage to lose fat and weight.

I try to use common sense in everything I do, and the truth is my body and mind did not cope well with the 1000 calories cut. The smartest way to act was to maintain the calorie deficit cutting on the starchy carbs intake. 

Thoughts 4: I have a better understanding of my personal relationship with food. 

As performing the #cuttingtheweight diet, I tried different food combination to know how they affect me. I learnt for example that lentils, chickpeas and beans give me a sense of satiety. These food make me feel good. Nevertheless, despite the fact that they are low in calories after eating this food my weight was increasing. In other words, no matter if I comply or not with my calorie allowance, after eating food rich in starchy carbs my weight was going up.  

In the last two days before traveling to Lisbon for the BJJ European Championship, I did a "carb loading". In other words, I reintroduced the starchy carbs in a significant quantity in my diet. 

The result was an immediate increase of 1-1.5kg in weight, this almost destroyed the results of three weeks of sacrifice. 

Nevertheless, it was valuable information as I know now that depending on my goals, which food I can ingest and which one I have to skip. I also learnt recently that some starchy carbs, like bread make me eat more while others like chickpeas calm my hunger. 

To come in chapter 3 of 5

Thoughts 5: The relationship with the starchy carbs is complicated.

5a. The way they make you feel.

5.a The Weight goal.

5.b The glycogen stores.

6. The protein

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views.

October 2011 (36yo), a HIGH carb diet adept. I was younger, in good shape but far from the results I achieved in 2016 (Almost 42yo)

#TheHighFatHighProteinLowCarbs-Thoughts 1-2

The calorie restriction vs the HighFatHighProteinLowCarb approach

During my preparation for the BJJ European Championship, I was on a calorie restriction diet with a medium to high protein, medium to low fat and carbs approach. This diet aloud me to get from 89.9kg to 85.5kg in 27 days.

During The 27 days calorie restriction trial:

My BMR, body metabolic rate (the calories I need to function) was 1726.66 calories and my TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) 3677 calories.

In short I could eat 3667 calories a day without putting on weight, as I wanted to lose fat, I dropped my calories intake of 30%,  to 2500 per day.

At the end of trial:

My body fat was 10.9%

Weight: 85.5kg

The results were amazing considering the little time I had, nevertheless, I feel as I failed for several reasons. I believe that the calorie restriction approach is a good way to start but it is necessary to keep an eye on how it works for you.

Pay attention to mood swings, energy level, stomach upsets, food cravings and becoming obsessed by food.

Find below my thoughts and sensations while going throw the Calorie restriction approach and why I believe there is a better approach.

My thoughts:

Thoughts 1: Iwas thinking of food all the time:

Being in a calorie restriction diet with high protein, low to medium fat and carbs was hard for several reasons. To start with, till I started the diet I was a carb eater, a starchy carb eater to be precise. In fact I would have porridge in the morning with a banana followed by some almonds. Later during the day some vegetables with chicken, I would snack on peanut butter and Nutella and finally the dinner would be whatever my wife cooks with some rice, pasta, couscous or sweet potatoes...MORE STARCHY CARBS.

I was having starchy carbs from morning till night. Did I feel good or bad about it? My answer would be i don't know, as I didn't try a different approach.

When for the #cuttingtheweight trial (check on my website:www.trainforlifeuk.com), I reduced severely my starchy carbs intake and could feel some massive changes.

The changes were positive and negative.

The positive outcomes were that I slept better, my energy levels were high despite the fact I was eating less, my fitness performances were on the high and I had no stomach upset.

The negative was that I was thinking of food all day long. I had craving for things such as porridge or a piece of toast. I was moody, and I felt hungry. Not that I was hungry, but thinking about food makes you believe you are hungry when you may not be.

Thoughts 2: I managed to stick To the calorie allowance only few days.

That trial was really hard on me due to several factors, firstly I had a deadline and I had to keep on with the BJJ European Championship preparation as well as with my job and my duties as a father and husband.

The factors above may have played an important role in how difficult it was to stick to the diet, on the other hand, everybody will be in the same situation, as nobody stop living their daily lives just focus on their diet.

The biggest failure was to my understanding not to be able to consistently stick to the calorie allowance. I had 1 excellent day, 1 bad and 2 average. An excellent day would be being below the calorie allowance of 2500cal, a bad day to be over 3500 and an average day would be between 2700-3000 calories.

To summarize this point, my general weight and fat loss is due to the fact that overall, I managed a calorie deficit. I managed to be below my TDEE of 3667 calories but a 30% cut in calorie intake was ambitious and really hard to sustain, as demonstrated.

This is the first part of a serie of five chapters that aim to explain and justify the reasons that led me to change my approach towards #TheHighFatHighProteinLowFat approach, I want to make sure that you understand where I am coming from by sharing my thoughts, sensations and conclusions.

To come, thoughts 3-4

Thoughts 3: I could not keep up with such restriction in calories.

Thoughts 4: I have a better understanding of my relationship with food. Some work well or better with my body and some others interfere with the well functioning of my body. 

Please guys feel free to comment and share your views. 

Back to 2007, I was 33yo, Bulky, younger but far to be chiseled or trimmed...

#TheTrainForLifeBodyTransformationSystem

The High fat, high protein trial. 

I started on Wednesday 27th of January a High fat-high protein, low carb diet. I came off a drastic calorie restriction Low Starchy carbs, Low to medium Fat and High Protein diet that I followed from the 28th of December to the 22nd of January. 

That diet gave me great results as I passed from 89.9kg to 85.5kg in that short period of time. 

The formulas and numbers:

HARRIS BENEDICT EQUATION for BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate or the energy needed for my body yo function daily).

BMR=66+ (13.7 x weight in kg)+(5xheight in cm)-(6.8 x age)

MULTIPLIER ACTIVITY LEVEL FOR BOTH GENDER
SEDENTARY= BMR x 1.2 , little or no exercises, desk Job.
Lightly active BMR x 1.375, light exercise or sports, 3-5 days per week.
Moderately active BMR x 1.55, moderate exercise, or sport 3-5 days per week.
Very active BMR x 1.725, hard exercise or sports, 6-7 days per week.
Extremely active BMR x 1.9, hard daily exercise or sports and physical labour job or twice a daytraining.

TDEE is the Total Daily Energy Expenditure

TDEE= BMR x MULTIPLIER ACTIVITY LEVEL

FAT LOSS LEVEL

Maintenance weight or no loss= TDEE

VERY CONSERVATIVE FAT = -15% of TDEE

CONSERVATIVE FAT LOSS= -20% of TDEE

MODERATE FAT LOSS= -25% of TDEE

VERY AGGRESSIVE FAT LOSS= -30 of TDEE

MY DATAS:

Step 1: BMR CALCULATION

66 + (13.7 x 89.9)+(5 x 178) - (6.8 x 41)= 1297.63+890-278.8=1908.83

My BMR was 1908.83 calories.

Step 2: MY TDEE

BMR x activity level= 1908.83 x 1.9 (extremely active)=3626.77 calorie allowance per day. 

Step 3: The fat loss level

I decided on very aggressive fat loss of 30% = 3626.77 calories x 0.3=1088.03 calories.

It is a drop of 1000 calories a day for a final daily calorie intake of roughly 2500 calories a day.

The results and datas of the calorie restriction diet: Diet ran from 28th Decmber to 22nd January 2016. 

Age: 41yo

Height:178cm

Starting weight: 89.9kg

Final weight: 85.5kg

Starting Body Fat: not registered but was in double digit as it corresponded to the after Xmas period and I could hardly see my abdominal muscles.

Final Body Fat: between 5-12% measured with a ski fold caliper

Muscle loss & stamina: I believe I didn't lose any lean body mass and I did gain strength and stamina. This is a subjective data, nevertheless, during my Physical preparation I wrote a diary #cuttingweight day... In which my my physical improvements are recorded on a daily basis. To add to that all my opponents at the BJJ European Championship made mention of my "superior" conditioning level.

Mental state: 

The diet I went through was a Quick fix, a boost, an aggressive approach for a short term deadline. It is an aggressive approach that demands focus and compliance.

I lost 4.4kg of body weight, without losing lean muscles, dropped my body fat level to the range of 5-12% and was moody and stressed.

The truth been told, my mental state was highly influenced by the competition I was preparing and the high training routines coupled by the work commitment and family life with little sleep.

Nevertheless, I was craving starchy carbs all the time. I believe that I complied with the diet calorie allowance 7-10 day out of 27 days. The rest of the time, I was slightly above my calories allowance.

The conclusions of the Calorie restriction Low Starchy carbs, Low to medium Fat and High Protein diet are: 

The results are positive as the goal has been reached, nevertheless the focus on low Starchy carbs, Low to medium Fat and High Protein didn't work well for me.

I need to find an approach that aloud me to forget about being hungry or simply to feel that I am dieting, I need to find that magic formula that aloud me to lose fat by switching to food that make me feel good and keep me healthy, lean and strong. 

After reading and researching I came up with some changes to my approach and I will embark in a month trial of High Fat, High Protein and Low Starchy Diet. 

My data have changed slightly. 

MY BMR IS NOW : 1862.25 calories

MY TDEE IS NOW: 3538.275 calories

MY Maintenance Level equates my TDEE, There is no more "strict" calorie counting, nevertheless I need to remain below my TDEE, over wise I will put on weight.

The Trial was officially meant to start on Friday the 29th of January.

The truth been told my "Long weekend " has been really bad, I thought that having so many calories to  use would make of being consistent something easy.

In fact, there is only one truths, YOU NEED TO PLAN YOUR MEALS, otherwise it does not work. From Friday to Sunday I was on average 1000 calories over my daily allowance, simply because I did not have a meal plan to follow.  

Nevrtheless, this is some valuable information, as I also could see how my body react to high intake of starchy carbs, mainly bread.

The results was interesting, I felt bloated, sluggish and had digestion issues and a bad tummy (full of gas). Another important point was that I was hungrier, as an example, on Sunday we went to eat a roast dinner at 1.45pm and I decided to have peanut butter on toast with 2 mince pies, 2 slices of bread with Nutella and peanut butter. After eating the 2 first slices, I went for another 3. 

I was not hungry, but quite happy to keep on eating. On the other hand, when I eat protein or fat my body just stops me when it feels satiated.

After that "terrible weekend" the experiment officially starts on Monday the 1st of February.

There will be a weekly post each Wednesday during the whole month of February, explaining you about what is happening, the way I feel and a comparison of datas. 

Guys follow the tale and please feel free to comment or ask questions. 

Wednesday 27th January, weighed at 86.5kg body fat measured 14% 

#BJJEUROPEANCHAMPIONSHIP2016

The journey

In my last post, I spoke about the trip to Lisbon. Tonight I want to close this chapter sharing with you my physical and mental journey.

I was promoted brown belt in October, and had my first competition in November, I lost in the first fight...A blessing in disguise. On that day I knew I had to work hard and harder to be ready to compete in the European Championship 2016. 

My plan was the following: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 5-6.30am BJJ DRILLS and Techniques with my Friend and Purple Belt training partner Luke. Monday 7-8pm and Saturday 12-1.30pm BJJ Sparring at Icon BJJ Norwich under the supervision of my coach black belt two stripes Steve Cowan. 

Conditioning with the Train For Life Crew on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 6.45-7.30am. Spinning on Tuesday 6-6.45pm, Friday 6.45-7.30am and one hour either Saturday or Sunday.

Heavy lifting wednesday 6-6.45am and Saturday or Sunday 6-6.30am.

On top the training, I had to do something I do not recommend to anybody. I had to lose 5kg in 25 days. I had to lose the little fat I had accumulated over Xmas. I am quite a lean person so I don't have a lot to lose anyway, so it was really hard to be on a diet, to put up with the training, my job, be a good father and a good husband.

I failed as a father and a husband, I was a shadow at home...I am a driven and focused person, so in order to achieve my goals I had to prioritise. It is hard to say but it is the truth, you cannot achieve your goals without being obssessed. 

The obssession, the drive the focus lead to the pressure, the responsibilities.

My trip to PRESSURE LAND:

When you train so much, you seem to only think about your competition. You feel external and internal pressure.

External pressure comes from You guys, the people who care for me, see me training on a daily or read my tale on Facebook or Instagram. Your support is priceless or actually does have a price... I felt OBLIGED TO REPAY YOU BY ACHIEVING SOMETHING BIG.

That payback leads to the Internal pressure.

THE INTERNAL PRESSURE: 

I competed in over 20 BJJ tournaments and won beyond 80% of my over 50 fights including 2 Gold, 1 silver at  European Championship, 1 Gold and 1 Bronze at the British Open, 3 Gold at the English Open....

A long story short, the PRESSURE I felt during the preparation of this tournament was hardly sustainable. 

I wanted to win so badly that I was doubting of myself, I was scared, nervous. I was like a novice, like someone who was competing for the first time. But it wasn't MY FIRST TIME, I WAS BORN A COMPETITOR, I COMPETED MY WHOLE LIFE. I COMPETED SO FIERCELY THAT I BECAME A CHAMPION, WITH HIS PRIVILEGES AND HIS DUTIES. 

What I have been suffering during the last week is the weight of my duties.

I have to be a role model, a source of inspiration a True Leader and A WINNER. 

What competing taught me over the years is that the pressure disappears as soon as the competition starts. Guess what...I felt good as soon as I get in the venue. I felt free and ready to fight as soon as I was facing my opponent. Once in front of him I was ready to die to make things happen. 

Once I reached the semi-final, I was at peace with myself as I completed my part of the deal which was to bring a medal home.

In all fairness the guys who did Silver and Gold were better than me today. I will be back to train on Tuesday as I plan to beat them the next we meet. 

That Bronze feels like Gold, my hardest battle so far...