Sounds simple!  Why don’t we all just massively restrict what we eat for a period of time and lose weight then?!  Because – LIFE! Events happen, special occasions occur, we are short on time, we opt for convenience, temptation is all around us and it’s bloody HARD to be hungry all the time!  

Tracking calories (i.e. logging what you eat in a food diary) is commonplace these days – everyone has heard about it but not everyone does it…  There are apps such as My Fitness Pal (MFP) which you can use to track your calories.  When you join MFP, it will ask how much weight you’d like to lose per week and if you are overweight, the temptation will be to plug in the highest number you can – that’s just human nature – but this will result in the app calculating your target calories to be ridiculously low.  

Technically, there’s nothing wrong with this as the science makes perfect sense.  Keep your calories low and your output moderate and you will start to lose body fat, that is true, but for the vast majority of people (who still want to have a quality of life) it is unsustainable in the long run.  

Keeping calories really low for a period of time results in hunger, low energy, tiredness, low mood and poor cognitive function.  It’s basically no fun for anyone!  And periods of low calorie consumption often lead to high calorie food binges.

Say, for example, you somehow managed to stick to 1200 calories per day all week, Monday – Friday.  By the time Friday night arrives, you are likely to want a break!  You’ve been ‘good’ and you’ve restricted yourself all week, so what’s the harm in a takeaway, or a few drinks, or some of that ‘treat’ (high calorie, high sugar) food over the weekend?  The harm is that too much is often consumed…  A weekend off is around 33% of your whole week – if you have over-restricted during the week, you are likely to over-eat at the weekend and that will essentially put you back at maintenance calories, meaning you are no longer in a weekly calorie deficit, meaning that you don’t lose any weight overtime because you’ve effectively ‘eaten back’ the calories you ‘saved’ during the week.  I wouldn’t recommend this approach to anyone – it creates a poor relationship with food and encourages a binge/restrict cycle, which may not necessarily result in weight gain, but it will affect an individual’s view of how they consume food.  

Instead, I encourage all of my clients to eat within a sensible calorie range ALL OF THE TIME.  I will set calorie targets based on my own calculations and those targets will ensure you are eating within a calorie deficit, but not to the extent that you feel completely restricted with what you can/can’t eat.  No food is off the table (literally).  You can eat whatever you like within that calorie range and you will lose weight over time.  Yes, the rate of weight loss will be slower, but it means clients can still have the flexibility and freedom to live an enjoyable life.  

The difficult part is learning to accurately track what you’re eating and understanding how to stick to calorie deficit effectively, over the longer term.  And it’s this part which I can help with.  There are a number of strategies we can employ to ensure a client’s diet is nutritionally balanced, without feeling restrictive and once this is nailed, it’s easier to stick to, leading to much more successful and sustainable weight loss over time.

The long game wins out here – and it’s much more effective than the binge / restrict cycle so many of us get caught up in.

I offer coaching to clients who struggle implementing this.  Thrive in 5 involves setting targets around calories, but also around movement, nutrition and workouts.  It provides a structure for you to follow and I do this based on your individual circumstances.  It’s a 5 week initial programme where we work on your mindset and make you more aware of your lifestyle choices… I will encourage you to make small, incremental changes which make you feel GREAT and over time, this focus becomes second nature.  

Please feel free to message me about coaching and how I can help you get started on your health and fitness journey.  

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• I started this insta account over 5 years ago when I recognised that fitness was a big part of my life and I thought I might have some useful tips, ideas, motivation, workouts, etc, to share with others… I had a corporate job, a new baby and zero fitness qualifications, but I knew fitness was a passion of mine and I had a strong belief I could  somehow help others.
• I’d always liked the idea of teaching fitness and helping people physically, especially as I used to work out on my own in the garage! Throughout Covid / Lockdown I set up some WhatsApp groups which were originally meant to serve as motivation for friends to workout, but I got a buzz from it! Soon enough I was working out with friends occasionally and finding that I really enjoyed it. It made me wonder ‘what if…?!’
• I let a coincidental event push me into doing something totally outside my comfort zone… My husband returned from the gym one evening after attending a sub-par spin class saying “I think you could teach a better class than that! It was rubbish!” 🤣 At the same time, I’d just started following a spin studio who was advertising their new spin course qualification… So I took it as a sign to say yes. I signed up for the course and I did it! And it was bloody hard! But I did it!
• After my spin qualification, I got my Level 2 (gym / class teaching) qualification – again, quite an intensive course, studying/learning most nights once the kids were in bed – but I had a vision. I wanted to teach a couple of classes a week alongside my corporate work. I thought that would give me a sense of achievement and freedom, so that’s what I worked towards.
• I took opportunities which arose after that – I was made aware of a spin teacher vacancy so I went for it. I was contacted about an opportunity to teach classes in a hotel gym… which I accepted… and which later led to the suggestion I should do my PT qualification…
• I knew I wanted to work in the fitness world but I wasn’t brave enough to take the leap into it whilst I still had my corporate job. There were many benefits in my role, there were drawbacks too, but leaving it was waaay too much of a risk. And I quite liked the kind of hybrid approach!

Until July. I was made redundant. Boom. Out of nowhere. It was a complete shock, yes, but it’s in my nature to see the positives in situations, so although the redundancy wasn’t ideal, I also knew it was a huge opportunity to make a career for myself, doing what I absolutely love! So, watch this space… as I draw a line under one chapter and start a new one, I wanted to reiterate my mission to help as many people as possible feel great about themselves, build self confidence and mental resilience and live their lives in a way which puts them in control and gives them increased energy and vitality. And I will do this in 3 ways…

1. Online coaching – work with me on a 1:1 basis to build better habits, become healthier, happier, stronger and more positive through regular habit tracking, mindset work, personalised goal setting and individual weekly check ins.
2. Personal Training – I can arrange 1:1 or 2:2 sessions in a lovely boutique, personal training gym in Chester.
3. Come to a class! I’d love to get to know more people and understand what your goals and aspirations are – classes are a great way to feel part of a team and they are always full of the nicest people!

MY TIP based on the above reflections… follow your passion. If you believe you can help people, or if you feel you have something others might find useful, do something about it! Start small. Start the insta account, create a facebook group, find out about other local people who might share your passion. Do it because it makes you happy, there doesn’t have to be another reason.

The post A personal blog… Reflections on turning 40… How did I get here and what’s next? appeared first on Kaye Louise Fitness.

And what we eat has the biggest impact on our body composition.

If you’re over weight, it’s usually as a result of a small over consumption of calories over a long period of time. If you consume excess calories, your body stores that energy as fat, and we get bigger as a result…

You do not have to over eat by a lot for the impact to compound over time. The general rule of thumb is that 3500 calories = 1lb of fat. So by that maths you’d only need to over eat by 500 calories every day to put on a pound of fat a week!

Likewise, you don’t need to eat a lot under your caloric requirement to lose body fat over time either. That will also compound too, meaning the larger the deficit, the quicker the fat reduction, but the deficit needs to be consistent. That’s it. Continued calorie deficit = fat loss. The bigger the deficit, the quicker the weight loss. Simple?! Yes. Easy?! Well no! It’s not! Not in the world we live in! It’s why we need to find the balance between enough of a deficit to lose fat, but also not being over restrictive at the same time. Because let’s face it, life is for bloody living.

And that’s where I come in.  There are many ways and principles I work through with my clients in order to make a sustained calorie deficit easier.  The science is still the science – that doesn’t change – but it doesn’t necessarily mean that changing our diet and eating healthier is an ‘easy’ thing to do – at least not at first!

In summary, let’s not be scared of the word ‘diet’ – it’s just what we eat!  And if you need any help understanding what kind of calorie deficit and diet will work for you, please don’t hesitate to contact me, I’d love to help.

The post Calorie deficit explained and why we shouldn’t be scared of the word ‘diet’ appeared first on Kaye Louise Fitness.

I want to help busy working Mums lead a healthier, happier life through offering a personalised one to one service, focussing on a combination of fitness, nutrition and mindset – WITHOUT you having to make huge sacrifices.  I truly believe with the right mindset, you can have it all.  You can go for meals out, eat the food you enjoy, have drinks with friends and enjoy life whilst making progress towards your goals.  

My 5 week programme will help you develop the basic strategies you need for a long term, healthier life – no fad diets here!  I offer real, no-nonsense, practical advice, plans and support which will help you create the best version of you and I promise to do this in a way which isn’t overwhelming.

I will find out about you, about your history, about what you struggle with and what your goals are and together we will design some targets to aim for.  Small tweaks which really add up to big changes over time. Making some lifestyle changes, having someone in your corner and being accountable for your actions can help you develop the habits you need for a healthier life and I want to help you do that.  

If you’re tried to lose weight in the past, if you’ve tried fad diets or cutting out whole food groups in a bid to lose weight in the past, then I’m here to help you get out of that short term mentality.  We are in this for the long game – that’s the key here.  No more over-restriction or yo-yo diets! Yey!

If this sounds like something you need help with, please reach out.  I’ve worked with a number of women who are all seeing incredible changes in mindset, fitness, health and wellbeing, which is ultimately where my passion lies!  This is not rocket science, but more often than not, if you focus on the health benefits and consistently apply the methods and habits we work on, then you will achieve your health goals, with weight loss being an added benefit!  

I’m inviting you to change the narrative, think of the long term and develop new habits over time.  We concentrate on different things each week, I will check in with you regularly and help you work through challenges.  I want you to win at life!  

In order to do this, you need to want to improve your lifestyle and your daily behaviour.  You need to be open to new things and be prepared to talk openly.  Weight loss and developing new habits isn’t always easy, it takes patience and discipline, but if you want it, I am here to help.  

If this sounds like you, and you’re keen to head to the ‘Get Started’ page and fill out the questionnaire here https://kayelouisefitness.co.uk/questionnaire/

I’d love to hear from you! x

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