You are what you eat...

You are what you eat is such an underrated phrase in my opinion. You hear it all the time but how often do you actually take into account what it means?

I will be honest when I heard that phrase I would think yeah if you eat unhealthy processed high fat foods continuously then you will feel awful, be overweight and generally feel like crap, flip side if you eat healthy well balanced diet you feel wonderful - am I right?

So lets rewind to last summer, around May time 2016. A rash starts appearing on my body, a really red, sore rash on my legs, under arms and side of my stomach, I didn't notice it much until it started getting really painful and really obvious! 

Now I have super sensitive skin, it has taken me ages to work out my skin care routine and get the balance so I don't break out, and now something has tipped the balance.
So I tried changing my deodorant, my washing powder, cleaning products used around the house, even down to my exercise trousers, and nothing changed! 

Fast forward to September, winter is on its way and I am about to change to winter breakfast - summer is eggs and toast, winter is porridge with almond milk. I also take out a morning coffee as I find the porridge to be really filling and can't manage a coffee as well. 
After a few weeks I notice some changes, I am less bloated and also my rash is looking a little less red not by much but it looks like it is clearing up. 

So I start to consider that the phrase you are what you eat might have more meaning to that I originally thought, now I think about it I don't even know why I didn't think that the food I am putting into my body would effect the outside, my diet was always 80% clean 20% dirty, so I didn't think think that my diet would ever effect my complexion. 

So I looked at everything in my diet that contained dairy and took it out. Cheese (crying), milk products, yogurts, butter, chocolate, pizza etc and started from scratch. 

Since then the rash has completely cleared up, I had a flare up over Christmas, further confirming that any dairy product is going to effect me, the way I feel and also my complexion. 

At first it was a bit of a pain if I am totally honest, sometimes I would eat things and immediately feel sick, bloat out to looking 6 months pregnant, or break out- so I knew that had to leave the food group. Now I read every ingredient before buying and consider what might be in the meal when I go out to eat. After a few weeks of food shopping I pretty much knew what I can and couldn't have in my daily diet. I am pretty regimented with my eating, always the same thing every day, makes macro counting easier as well! 

I also look for alternatives - so pizza is my ultimate food I love it, so now I look at the free from section and making things from scratch, home made pizza is actually way better and the difference is SO much better. 

The free from aisle is now my favourite section, for foods that contain dairy they have the alternative, the only thing that is really not the same is cheese. Free from cheese is awful, so now I just don't eat it all, it makes me so sad because I love cheese, one day my body will change its mind I am sure.... ;)

So if you are having a similar problem I would highly recommend looking into your diet and thinking more about what you eat. 
Keep a food diary and if you have any reactions from bloating, feeling sick to hives make a note of what you ate and also at what time, and how you felt that day. 


Looking for nutrition plans, advice or eating tips email us barbellasandbuns@gmail.com for more information! 

I just can't get enough...

Food! 

Upping my training meant I was working alot harder and obviously I was going to be tired, but after week 3 I started to feel exhausted, like really exhausted and was finding it hard to function normally - but why? I was sleeping enough so that couldn't be it, so I turned to the foods I was eating. 
Now I briefly touched upon this last week but eating is SO important!! Sounds obvious right? But really it's not. I thought I was eating enough, but when I tracked for a day I was around 1000 cals under my eating, my carbs were too low and I was not getting the right amount of energy in for the energy I was putting out. 

So I logged into good old My Fitness Pal and reassessed my goals, my training hours and weight, hit save and up comes my calorie allowance of 2750... wow! I don't think I have ever eaten that much in one day unless it has been Dominos cheat meal!!
So I began logging my food for the day making sure I was eating enough carbs - still working on this, enough fats again still working on this, hitting my calorie goal or at least near it to make sure I have the energy and nutrients I need to function. 

Eating this amount of food is harder than you think, sure I could stuff my face with high calorie foods for 3 meals a day and hit it, but that it is not effective and will not benefit me in anyway! One of my fellow gym goers said it doesn't matter what form it goes in you just have to eat... even if it means takeaways and Burger King... no just no. If you are looking to get fat and basically undo the hard work you are putting in when in the gym then sure go for it, but I don't recommend following this advice at all! 

I want to be lean, muscular and have low body fat, so eating clean is a high priority to me, my boyfriend eats 3000 cals a day of healthy clean food, carbs and fats included, he is working on bulking so experimenting with food to see what works best for him - I can assure you it is not Burger King! 

So if you are looking to track your calories and see how much you are eating or not eating I highly recommend My Fitness Pal, it has a great online community as well!

How to get the best results from your training

You train everyday, eat healthy, do everything you are supposed to do and yet you are not seeing results... does this sound familiar? You are not alone, we have all been there where we are doing everything we have been told to do and yet nothing! Frustrating isn't it! 

So lets have a look at what factors could be effecting your training and what you can do to make sure you can achieve your maximum potential. 

Eating 
If your goal is to lose weight then a calorie deficit needs to be made, but make the calories to low and your body will begin to hold on to the little food that your are putting into it. 
Your body needs energy and the energy comes from the food you are putting in, you can't expect a car to run on empty so why would your body?
I have recently upped my training routine, starting Crossfit and Olympic lifting, and for the first 2 weeks I was feeling so run down by the end of the week, so using My Fitness Pal I changed my stats to reflect the training I was doing now and the hours I am putting in and it turns out I was eating under than what I needed by about 1000 calories... no wonder I was feeling run down! So now I am enjoying eating more, feeling energetic and training harder!
Carbs are also key! They help with the healing process after exercise and also with your energy levels, don't fear carbs, embrace them! 

Training 
How long have you been doing your routine, is it the same old same old, used to it routine, doesn't really excite you? 
Then change it! I change my routine every 8-10 weeks to keep it fresh and make sure I don't hit an exercise slump. 
Even if you have the same routine change the days you do it to make sure that your body is kept active, it doesn't get used to what your doing and basically surprise it! 
If you are a cardio lover who doesn't enter the weight section then change this up and add in some resistant training to the routine, it won't make you bulky and will help tone and tighten your body and also continue to burn calories after your routine. 
The heavier you go the more effective the training is, but start and exercise safely to avoid injury! 
Equally if you spend all your time in the weights section and never do any cardio you might want to change this! We all need exercises to get our heart rate going and the blood pumping, 20 mins of HIIT 3 times a week will keep your heart in shape and also your body in shape! 

Sleeping 
Sleep is vital to getting the best out you, you cannot perform to your full potential when your run down and exhausted, trust me! 
I always make sure I go to bed about 9 on a week day as I get up at 5 so I try to make sure I get at least 8 hours sleep a night to make sure I am well rested for the day ahead,I am rubbish without sleep so early nights are a must! 
Weekend bedtimes are obviously a bit later... sometimes, but always making sure I get in 8-9 hours sleep. 
Rest days are also important to make sure your body recovers from the training you are doing. 
I am not a fan of rest days... but I am getting used to them, I use them to write my blog and study for my PT exam. 
I also use rest day as my cheat day - 1 cheat meal a week to reset my metabolism and also to make sure I dont deny myself of anything completely.  
You are more likely to stay on track with clean eating and training if you allow yourself a treat every now and again! 

So have a look at your programme and see the tweaks you can make to ensure your training to your best potential!

Fasted Cardio and Clean eating - the results are in

So 6 weeks ago the fasted workouts and clean eating began, and the results are in.

The changes are subtle so I will be continuing after holiday but I am feeling good! I have lots about 1.5kg, gained muscle and gone down a dress size, and most importantly I feel pretty good about myself and also healthy eating and fasted workouts are no longer a chore, I am used to it and to be honest far more enjoying the healthy foods I am eating! 

 Week 1-3

 Week 4-6

Week 1-6

All taken at the same time each week, and even if the changes are not fully noticeable I can feel it with my clothing and the way I feel! 

I highly recommend the fasted workout and obviously the clean eating, I also upped my training going heavier on weights and more HIIT workouts. 

If you have any positive thoughts I would love to hear them, but keep the negatives ones to yourself ;) 

Eating out - to cheat or not to cheat!

Going out for dinner is one of my favourite things, good food is also one of my favourite things so when I go out for dinner I like to make the most of it! 

I used to use it as an excuse to eat loads of food, feel stuffed and basically crappy. 

Now I use it to eat good food, enjoy what I am eating - maybe have a small treat but know my limits. I am on a no cheat meal at the moment because of holiday so when I go out I choose the healthier options when I am eating out such as salads, a starter or a dessert - not both - and go from there.

Usually I would make this my cheat meal of the week so I would choose a burger with a bun or have a sweet instead of a starter. 

I have been out for dinner a lot lately with birthdays, evenings out etc I have tried to stay on track and opting for meals with side salads, no chips, and no desserts.

When I went out for my boyfriends birthday I chose the vegetarian option of a spring roll with sundried tomato, ratatouille and side salad and it was amazing! With a started of bread and houmas it was one of the most delicious meals I had eaten in ages, drinking water and a small amount of alchol I left the restaurant feel full, satisfied and did not touch a chip! 

I like opting for healthy foods not because I have to but because I want to! I don't like feeling overly stuffed and like I cant move for a few hours - I save those for my once every six months epic pizza cheat, when I am at home in my pjs - it was nice to enjoy my meal and still feel like I am on track to my goal! 

It is true that you don't have to be strict all the time and that once meal won't mess up your hard work but there are certain sacrifices you have to make to ensure you stay on track and meet your goal - if I have to give up chips and chocolate etc everyday then so be it because I have been working hard for so many years to get into shape and honestly I want abs god dammit!! 

Spicy Salsa Chicken

Sometimes you need a little spice in your life and food is a good way to do it! 

This spicy salsa chicken is a perfect light summers meal that can be made as mild or as spicy as you like! 

Serves 4 

Ingredients: 

• chicken breasts x4 
• Red pepper x2
• Spring Onion x5
• Mushrooms
• Chorizo
• Salsa sauce 
• Chopped tomatoes x1 tin 
• Nandos mild sauce 

Prep time - 10 minutes, cooking time - 30 minutes

• Chopped all veg into chunks and put into a pan with some cooking oil 
• Whilst the vegetables are cooking dice the chicken into chucks 
• Add the chicken to the mixture and cook through
• Once the chicken has cook through add in the chorizo and continue to stir until everything is cooked
• Add in the chopped tomatoes and salsa, stir the sauce into the meat and vegetables 
• Add in a few drops of Nandos sauce and stir into the mixture 
• Leave to simmer for about 10 minutes to allow the flavours to soak into the chicken 
• Serve with either pasta or rice 

It is a really simple recipe but so tasty and ideal for lunches or dinner. 

I have started cooking in bulk to this actually served as dinner and 2 lunches for me last week! 

The beauty of this meal is that it is versatile so you can add in different spices and favours depending on how hot or mild you like it! 

 

Time for tea!

Lets talk about tea for a second – tea is my favourite kind of drink, tea is relaxing, refreshing, warms you up if its chilly, and basically just an all round good drink.

What it doesn’t do it make you loose weight.

I have been seeing all these weight loss teas advertised lately on a lot of social media, and I will be honest at first it made me curious – could it really help you loose weight? So I tried it, I wont mentioned brands of course, but a friends of mine has been using it and said it worked really well for her friend… so why not, what’s the worst that can happen?

So I bought some tea and began the detox, I will be honest I was terrified of the first night as some one had said it gave them the runs for days!

But I woke up on the Friday, no dodgy tummy or anything phew, so I had my morning tea at work, went about my day again terrified the dreaded ‘runs’ would get me, even more worried as I was going out for dinner that night! But nothing.

In fact let me tell you, and sorry if this is too much information for you, but I had nothing for a few days! Yea nothing, that is NOT fun!

I also noticed my skin was looking awful! So spotty and this is unusual for me, I don’t have perfectly clear skin but I do pride myself on having nice skin most days of the month!

I also felt bloated – probably the side effect from not going to the toilet for a few days, but as far as detox goes I felt gross!

So I stopped drinking the tea – I lasted a week, I couldn’t even bare the taste for the full 14 days, thank goodness I only bought for 14 days worth, and I felt better switching back to my trusty peppermint tea or lemon and ginger.

So in conclusion the only tea I highly recommend is the herbal kind, my personal favourites are peppermint for after meals – this does reduce bloat, it settles my stomach, and is refreshing, lemon and ginger is a great early morning tea, light and refreshing with a slight ting to it, lemon water has become a new favourite of mine great for clearing the toxins out of your system and doing a cleanse.

So do yourself a favour, next time you see a model or celeb holding the tea saying how great it makes them feel you can almost put money on the fact they have been paid to say that and it has never past their lips!

Stick to clean eating, training hard and looking after yourself and the weight will take care of itself!