Blinco Built personal training

Category: weight loss

  • Add your way to weight loss

    Add your way to weight loss

    Does losing weight make you think of all the things you’ll have to give up? 

    That might not be the best approach.

    Read on to see why

    One of the principles we live by, getting you results without giving up the lifestyle you love

    That’s the promise we make to all of our personal training and small group class members

    Now that’s not to say that you’ll be doing exactly the same thing and losing weight

    It just means that you maybe the best way to start, is by adding something in

    Rather than taking away 

    A good example is adding a side salad to dinner

    You still eat your bolognese with spaghetti, and enjoy it!

    The salad is added on top

    “Won’t that increase my calories?!”

    Probably not, by eating the salad you’ll be adding fibre which will likely increase your feelings of fullness

    Not the mention all the extra nutrients which will make you feel better and more energised

    You could also add more protein to the sauce

    So instead of bowl full of pasta and a scoop of sauce

    Halve the pasta and double the sauce

    Once again, increasing the amount of nutrients, increasing feelings of fullness 

    While still enjoying your pasta!

    A fruit bowl to the kitchen bench is another great example of adding rather than subtracting

    We’d much rather start by adding with our personal training and small group class members

    The great thing is that it often makes the subtracting easier in the long run

    And you’re less likely to feel like you’re missing out 

    Need help? Reach out

  • The power of adding your way to weight loss

    The power of adding your way to weight loss

    Does losing weight make you think of all the things you’ll have to give up? 

    That might not be the best approach.

    Read on to see why

    One of the principles we live by, getting you results without giving up the lifestyle you love

    Now that’s not to say that you’ll be doing exactly the same thing and losing weight

    It just means that you maybe the best way to start, is by adding something in

    Rather than taking away 

    A good example is adding a side salad to dinner

    You still eat your bolognese with spaghetti, and enjoy it!

    The salad is added on top

    “Won’t that increase my calories?!”

    Probably not, by eating the salad you’ll be adding fibre which will likely increase your feelings of fullness

    Not the mention all the extra nutrients which will make you feel better and more energised

    You could also add more protein to the sauce

    So instead of bowl full of pasta and a scoop of sauce

    Halve the pasta and double the sauce

    Once again, increasing the amount of nutrients, increasing feelings of fullness 

    While still enjoying your pasta!

    A fruit bowl to the kitchen bench is another great example of adding rather than subtracting

    We’d much rather start by adding with our personal training and small group class members

    The great thing is that it often makes the subtracting easier in the long run

    And you’re less likely to feel like you’re missing out 

    Need help? Reach out

  • Eating a donut doesn’t make you a bad person!

    Eating a donut doesn’t make you a bad person!

    If there’s one lesson I hope to teach all of our personal training and small group class members, it’s this:

    As a coach, I am not the judge of your goodness or badness

    No one gave me the keys to the pearly gates, I’m not St Peter

    And besides, eating a donut doesn’t make you a bad person

    Mother Teresa would’ve loved donuts, I’m certain 

    Hitler was a vegetarian (as was Mother Teresa) 

    The food they ate doesn’t separate them

    This worry about displeasing your coach is a sign though

    It’s a sign that you’re linking your self worth to your success

    To what you ate for lunch

    Take a minute to think about that

    Does that actually make sense? 

    And this isn’t to say that if you dumped your homemade salad and ended up getting a burger and chips for lunch that you shouldn’t be disappointed

    Maybe you should be

    But it doesn’t make you a bad person

    And it has to be taken within the whole context of what you’re trying to do

    1. You’re learning new skills, that takes time and patience
    2. Society is built to make you want to consume, so you’re fighting against something much bigger than just yourself
    1. This is about improving your health for good, one lunchtime is a drop in the ocean
    2. Sure this didn’t go well, can you think of 1-3 ways you’ve improved this week or month compared to the last? 

    Start to think of failure as feedback and not judgement

    You’ll not only make things a lot easier on yourself

    It’s future proofing your efforts, it helps you learn, adjust and move on a lot faster

    Meaning you’ll spend less time passing judgement on yourself

    And more time moving towards your goals

    If that’s all true, and if you’re still reading you probably agree that it is

    Then failure is a good thing! 

    Need help turning failure into the rocket fuel you need to smash your goals? 

    Reach out

  • Pick a challenge that moves you towards your goals

    Pick a challenge that moves you towards your goals

    Are you picking a challenge that moves you towards your goals or away from them?

     

    There are many options to take for moving towards your goals

     

    Figuring out portion sizes is hard.

     

    Cutting out carbs is hard. 

     

    Both will work. At least in the short term

     

    Project out to 12 weeks ahead, which one is still really hard and which one has gotten easier with time? 

     

    Cutting carbs works, for a very short time

     

    Then you fall off the wagon (and into a huge pile of cinnamon scrolls, who the hell put them next to the wagon?)

     

    You learn that cutting carbs is incredibly hard and not sustainable

     

    12 months later, you’ve forgotten enough about how hard it was, and your memory has put the rose coloured glasses on, and you’re ready to get hurt again

     

    Back on the wagon. You’ve put on 10 kgs since you last did you carb cut, you need to lose that just to get back to your old weight


    What about controlling portion sizes?

     

    Well, in 12 months you’ve probably gained some skills and tactics to keep your portions sizes under control

     

    At the least, you will have learned how to recognise when you’re going off track and need a little kick up the bum to get going again

     

    You’ve slowly lost 10kgs, had a couple of plateaus, life got hard at some stages, some snacks creeped in

     

    Got back on, still ahead of where you started

     

    The peaks and troughs of weight loss are smaller, more consistent

     

    You realise you’re able to live a lifestyle you love AND have the body you want

     

    Maybe it’s not portion control, maybe it’s planning out your dinners and lunches each week, it could be walking into a gym for the first time, or going for a walk everyday 

     

    Instead of picking hard things that will take you AWAY from your goals, swap them for hard things that will take you TOWARDS your goals 

     

    Three good questions to ask yourself when deciding:

     

    1. How long will this goal take to achieve?
    2. Will this action plan be sustainable for that long? 
    3. What is my plan once I’ve achieved my goal? 

     

    Answer those and you’ll be in a much better place in 12 weeks and 12 months 

     

    For more posts on improving your life outside of the gym follow our instagram at https://www.instagram.com/blinco_built/

    If you’re ready to take the first step in your fitness and health journey then contact us at:  http://blincobuilt.com.au/

  • A better way to start losing weight

    You just need to get better at preparing your week of lunches for work on a Sunday

     

    No, you do not

     

    How has that worked for in the past? 

     

    Well, I hear you say

     

    Good. Why aren’t you doing it now? 

     

    What makes a nutrition solution sustainable isn’t what type of foods you eat, it’s whether it works with your lifestyle

     

    If you don’t often have 3 hours on a Sunday to devote to meal prep, then stop making that an important part of your nutrition

    Do this instead:

    Make it easier

     

    What about spending 5 minutes writing out the meals you’ll have, do you have 5 minutes on a Sunday? 

     

    Or, creating a traffic light system for take away options close to work

     

    Green options like salads with the dressing on the side, orange options like a chicken wrap with sauce on the side, or red options like a burger, chips and pint

     

    Stick with mostly green lights and you’ll be better than not having a plan at all

     

    You could order a dozen freezer meals, like MyMuscleChef and keep them in the freezer

     

    None of these options are perfect

     

    They also don’t take much time and are WAY easier than meal prepping

     

    And can enable some pretty incredible results

     

    It doesn’t have to be hard work

     

    There are many ways to lose weight and keep it off without making things harder

     

    Honestly, when has the solution to a problem in your life been to make it harder for yourself? 

     

    Don’t want to have to get up to change tv channels? Someone created a remote so you don’t have to, easier

     

    Don’t want to saddle your horse to head into town, great, here’s a car. Easier

     

    Solutions that last, always make it easier

     

    How can you make it easier, that’s the answer

     

    Looking to get started on sustainable weight loss? Read this for more help: http://blincobuilt.com/looking-to-clean-up-your-nutrition-start-here/

    If you need help coming up with solutions to make it easier, reach out

    If there’s someone you care about, you think this could help, share it 

    How we can help:

    For more posts on improving your life outside of the gym follow our instagram at https://www.instagram.com/blinco_built/

    If you’re ready to take the first step in your fitness and health journey then contact us at:  http://blincobuilt.com.au/

  • Why carbs AREN’T the devil

    Why carbs AREN’T the devil

    CARBS ARE THE DEVIL

    How often have we read this in the last 10-15 years? I’m pretty sure we’ve all genuinely believed this in the past

    After all, carb intake has dramatically increased over the past 40 years in line with obesity so how could you not?

    Then again, so has fat and protein intake, so where does that leave us?

    In CALORIC SURPLUS

    Thermodynamics can’t be ignored, calories in vs. calories out rule weight loss or gain

    When looking at the dramatic increase in carb intake it’s also worth noting that a lot of processed

    So called high carb foods actually also contain a lot of fat as well

    take Doritos for example, of course everyone knows corn chips are a high carb food, right?

    Actually, over 50% of the calories in Doritos come from fat – mind blown!

    Low protein + low fibre = eating heaps without getting full! Absolute dream for food manufacturers 💸

    So why do low carb diets work so well when it comes to weight loss?

    Firstly, you take out an entire macronutrient without any plan to replace it

    Meaning you drop your caloric intake

    Secondly, your body converts carbs to glycogen which also takes water in order to store it in the muscle

    Meaning when you deplete glycogen you will also drop a heap of water weight in the short term

    Does this mean you should avoid low carb diets?

    Well, no, I still use them with my clients, they can be great for a kick start

    Early results are a significant determinant of whether you will continue with a program or not and the biggest thing with any long term health plan is consistency!

    If it’s going to help you stay on track then use it!

    But you can still eat carbs and lose fat and keep it off, if you stick to some guidelines:

    1) Choose predominantly whole food options like fruit, vegetables (yes potatoes are okay, just not always fried 😉

    2) Treat processed options as a sometimes (less than 1-2 times a week)

    3) Consider what you eat with it, eat whole carbohydrate sources with a source of protein and good fats

    Personally I don’t eat carbs with my first meal

    Not for a fat loss goal but because I find my energy is better throughout the day

    Go and experiment and see what works best for you!

    For more posts on improving your life outside of the gym follow our instagram at https://www.instagram.com/blinco_built/

    If you’re ready to take the first step in your fitness and health journey send us your details on the contact us page http://blincobuilt.com.au/

  • What to do when weight loss plateaus

    What to do when weight loss plateaus

    You’ve been losing weight consistently for weeks, feeling great about your progress, then BAM! 

     

    There’s a week where you do EXACTLY the same thing you’ve been doing that’s been working for, or maybe it’s even been a better week than usual and…. 

     

    Nothing, or worse, you’ve put on a little weight

     

    It’s really hard not to be disappointed, so don’t fight it, actually allow yourself to be a little disappointed

     

    And move on quickly, because it’s not the end of the world, if you look at the whole picture you’ve still made progress and nothing works forever

     

    Before you go changing everything though, make sure you read these 3 tips for when the inevitable plateau happens:

     

    1. Has your weight actually plateaued? 

    One week of no loss or slight gain is not a plateau, wait for at least 2 weeks of no change before changing what you’re doing

     

    One week could be your cycle, or it could be a salty meal, an extra glass of wine the night before

     

    There are so many reasons you could have an off measurement that one time

     

    I actually recommend at least 3 weeks of same weight, or slight increase before adjusting anything

     

    1. Add calories

    What?? 

     

    Yup, have you lost a significant amount of weight (more than 10kgs), or you’ve been restricting calories for longer than 8 weeks?

     

    It might be time to give it a rest for a week and add a few extra calories, nothing crazy, but a couple hundred extra calories will tell the body you aren’t starving and give it a bit of a reset

     

    You might actually find you lose weight again due to your body up-regulating your unconscious movements like fidgeting and walking a little faster than usual, due to the “excess” of calories after a long time in restriction

     

    1. Is there anything you could easily change? Or have you gone away from what was working?

    The way we approach weight loss is to make the smallest changes possible first, so that you’re expending as little effort as possible

     

    Get great results doing that, then when things plateau you’ve got HEAPS of options to continue with

     

    Hopefully you’ve followed a similar approach so you’ve got easy options to move onto to

     

    It’s also a good time to assess yourself and see if you’ve let old habits creep back in, it happens to all of us from time to time

     

    Maybe this was a good kick in the bum to get back on track

     

    Hopefully that’s helped, whatever the reason don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater, even though you feel disappointed

     

    This is one of the major benefits of having people in your corner to keep you on track

     

    Not only can they be the shoulder to lean on and sit with you in your disappointment but also get you back on track and back in the game when the time is right

  • Have your wine and drink it too!

    Have your wine and drink it too!

    Losing weight WITHOUT giving up alcohol

    You would lose weight but you like red wine too much

    What if I told you it was possible to have both?

    A glass of red win a night is not going to stop you from creating a body that you love, one that gives you the energy to do the 150 things on your to-do list each day, that makes you feel confident in your own skin

    In fact, any health change that tells makes you give up all the things you love won’t last, fad diets, meal plans, they don’t work because they suck the fun out of life

    There is better ways to start feeling amazing in your own skin

     

    Make sure any nutritional change you make includes the things you love, like red wine and meals out with friends!

     

    If you have to cut out all enjoyment from the plan, no matter how well it works, you won’t stick with it, because it won’t be worth it!

     

    If you need help creating a plan that allows you to live the lifestyle you love while also having the self confidence you crave, get in touch and we’ll be more than happy to help!

  • How to eat during the holidays

    Just relax, eat whatever you like, drink, be merry 

     

    Look, it’s not bad advice 

     

    It’s the holidays after all, you should be relaxing

     

    The key though, is whether you actually find that relaxing, you might not 

     

    It might be that eating enough to make you feel like you’ll burst isn’t your idea of a relaxing afternoon

     

    Eating so much that you can’t jump in the pool with the kids or play beach cricket might not be your idea of a day well spent

     

    Don’t feel bad for that, you aren’t neurotic, and it’s not like we live in a society where it’s hard to eat in excess 

     

    Modern culture isn’t exactly lacking for opportunities to eat cake and drink heaps

     

    You haven’t been waiting 12 months to do those things

     

    If you don’t want to go nuts, don’t 

     

    And if you do, awesome

     

    A better bit of advice might be that you should make a conscious decision to either eat in moderation or to go nuts BEFORE you do it

     

    If you’ve made a conscious choice you are much less likely to feel guilt come January 3rd
    Sitting there wondering why you’ve done this to yourself again

     

    Make it conscious, make it a meaningful choice, be clear on your own reasons why you are or aren’t

     

    It’ll make your holidays that much more relaxing and you’ll have a much smaller hangover

  • Is your comfort zone holding you back from incredible results?

    You’ve heard of a comfort zone, but do you truly understand the effect it’s having on you? 

     

    If you’re not careful your comfort zone gets smaller and smaller over time

     

    You know this, how awesome was $20 when you were 15

     

    The same is probably not true now

     

    With a family and bills to pay, to have $20 in your account could be devastating

     

    The comfort zone actually works in two ways
    Either, you fall below your acceptable level of wealth, you’ll scramble to get back into your comfort zone

    Or, you go too far above, and you’ll spend your way back down again

     

    That’s why 97% of lotto winners have not only lost their winnings, but are actually WORSE off 3 years after their win

     

    Your health is no different, most people are looking for a magical sustainable diet and training plan, when really, everything is sustainable and also nothing is sustainable

     

    Depending on whether it nudges the top of your comfort zone and keeps you from falling below it

     

    You see that nudge is important, it slightly increases your top zone over time without making you feel wayyyy out of your depth

     

    It allows you to slowly change beliefs over time, you know like the belief that you HAVE to drink at least two bottles of wine to have a good time

     

    Or you HAVE to eat until you feel sick at family dinners 

     

    To have someone rip that away from you in one week, it’s too much, it’s unsustainable

     

    Instead what if you slowly made changes to the things you are happy to change
    The things that will increase your self confidence without taking away who you are a person

     

    Until with time, you become a different person, a person that is more fun with less wine

     

    Who finds it more pleasurable to have a little bit of everything, and still be able to run around with the kids after lunch
    It shouldn’t be complicated, the changes you make should be ones you are happy to make
    The ones that will give you the great result with the least amount of pain

     

    What changes could you make right now? Need help, reach out, this is what we do