Obesity, weight loss and the media
29 Feb 2012 2 Comments
in Diet and Nutrition, Exercise and Fitness Tags: Biggest Loser, dieting, fitness, Health, Jessie Pavelka, Obesity, weight loss
One of my current pet gripes is with the continual somewhat exploitative media around obesity and weight loss. I understand that this is serious issue in today’s modern society but the unrealistic way in which these issues are portrayed, the gratuitous exposing camera angles and the high levels of emotion (just make sure they cry on camera seems to be the message!) just continue to perpetuate the myths around weight loss and fitness.
The Biggest Loser is, in my own opinion, one of the worst culprits, continually focussed on losing pounds without any of the explanations behind why any of the “contestants” – lets not forget this is an old-fashioned reality competition – are on specific diets, how their exercise routines are worked out or how much warm up, stretching etc goes on behind the scenes. All we get to see are humiliating intense routines where someone always has to fail, public weigh ins and eviction for those who don’t do well enough. Whilst, for those who take part it may seem like an extreme but effective way to lose the weight, I would question how many of those people are happy with the way in which they are portrayed on camera.
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A good day!
28 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in My Training Updates Tags: Business plan, fitness, positivity, studying
I have had a couple of really good and very productive days. Grabbed hold of my life by the scruff of the neck and finally made it submit!
Decision made on the name (it’s still a secret!); logo and branding design ordered, initial wording for strapline drafted, first idea for the website storyboarded. Put some feelers out to some of my contacts for someone to design the website for me and think I will be able to get that ordered at least, possibly this week but whilst its something I want to do, it’s not important or really urgent. So I don’t mind if I wait to get the website up and running as once I have the logo I can sort marketing and my new blog out.
Sent the fitness contract to my ex (if you are reading this Mike, you are a star!) to review – once he tells me he thinks its ok I will sign it so that’s another weight off my mind.
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How old is old?
27 Feb 2012 4 Comments
in Information, My Training Updates Tags: aging, beauty, Health, old age, weight loss, women
Like most women (and I suspect men) your 40s are an interesting decade – you feel exactly the same as you did at 20 or 30 but you are
right in the middle of becoming invisible to anyone younger than you and the younger they are the more decrepit they think you are!
When we were all children we looked at people past 20 and thought they were ancient and really couldn’t imagine living until we were 40 or 50 or more; as we get older we all push that boundary of how old is old back a bit further and these days no one really imagines that you have to give up on life when you hit 40.
Or do they?
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Tough week but optimism abounds
26 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in My Training Updates Tags: BFP, branding, fitness, Level 3 Personal Trainer, Tabata, training, weight loss
Its been a hard week in so many ways but to be realistic I think I am just juggling too many balls and every now and then I lose my balance a little – not dropped any yet but definitely a bit wobbly in places! Or as someone said to me it’s like I am holding 15 pieces of the a jigsaw, they all fit, but I only have places for 10!
Work (my real job) has been been ok but things seems to be so much busier or demanding than they were, nothing major just the usual political demands of a corporate role supported by yet another restructure. Def feels like it’s becoming more and more ‘jobs for the boys’ but I guess, disappointingly, I am so used to it now I don’t expect anything more!
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Positivity or how to inspire others
26 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Motivation and Positivity Tags: Health, Optimism, positivity
I saw this a little while back 18 ways to inspire people and it resonated so much with my own journey (oh god its that word again, I must buy a thesaurus!) of personal self discovery. My own favourite;
Be happy with who you are now, and let your positivity inspire your journey into tomorrow. Everything that happens in life is neither good nor bad. It just depends on your perspective. And no matter how it turns out, it always ends up just the way it should. Either you succeed or you learn something. So stay positive, appreciate the pleasant outcomes, and learn from the rest. Your positivity will help encourage those around you.
So, be positive, live in the here and now and enjoy your life and all it contains RIGHT NOW. Don’t think, when I am slim, fit, got the new job, met the man, whatever, that life will be good or better. Life is for living right now so go out there grab it by the scruff of the neck and enjoy every second of it.
Have a wonderful Sunday!
What is it with the fashion police?
24 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Information Tags: bullying, Clothing, Fashion, fitness, gym, Lycra, Spandex, thong, Wear, women
Looking around WordPress and the net I have come across several articles written by women criticising what other women wear to the gym; apart from the bullying nature of some of these posts I cannot believe that as grown women we still resort to playground judgements and hostility.
At the end of the day what on earth does it matter to anyone else whether someone wears a thong, bright pink lycra, full make up or a black goth T-shirt for that matter? None of us know their story, their background or how their day or week has gone, who are any of us to pass judgement? For those of you who have posted negative comments in the past about other women please, I ask you to just stop and think; how much do you really know about the woman on treadmill or weight station next to you? The woman in the full make-up may have come straight from work or just maybe, it’s the only thing that gives her the strength or confidence to walk in the door such is her insecurity. Or maybe the bright pink top was a present from a loved one or she has achieved so much that its her celebration outfit? Or maybe her husband has lost his job and the goth t-shirt is the only thing that fits and she can’t afford to buy anything else?
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Biggest Loser
23 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Diet and Nutrition, Exercise and Fitness Tags: Biggest Loser, Biggest Loser UK, Charlotte Ord, Kettlebell, Personal trainer
I have to declare from the outset that this is one of my most disliked shows on TV (yes I have watched half an episode of the USA version but had to turn it off in disgust after that) but I am very aware that opinions are completely polarised – you either love everything about it or, like me, dislike it intensely and all it stands for.
So, given my hostility I was very surprised when doing some research to come across Charlotte Ord as one the trainers on the UK version (which I must hasten to add I have NEVER watched, the combination of the premise behind the show and Davina McColl presenting are just too much for my taste!). Charlotte was one of the first female fitness presenters on TV that I watched especially as the programmes she presented were based around the stuff I was doing in the early days including TRX, Kettlebell and another couple about rest and recovery using foam rollers. I admired her training style and it was so useful to see normal people doing the Kettlebell exercises that I couldn’t get my head round. It inspired me and helped with tweaks to my technique, making it all that little bit easier.
Judging by some of the comments on her blog other people were surprised too that she agreed to train on the show; I can see what the show gets out of it, after all she was Personal Trainer of the Year 2010, and her style is very different to Jillian Michaels but apart from the exposure does the association with things like this damage a trainers brand or? Or, at the end of the day does that really matter as long as more people know about fitness, training and what you can offer?
Looking at her posts recently she does seem to be aware of how the show is portrayed and there is definitely a hint of disappointment that the hard work, training, stretching and rolling don’t make the final edit – all of which go to perpetuate the myth that weight loss is easy and all that matters is pounds lost. There is just so much more to it than that and it would have been good to have a trainer like Charlotte lead from the front and try to change some of the appalling myths that hamper people from healthier lifestyle changes.
This really isn’t meant to be a criticism of Charlotte Ord who I actually think is really good but rather my dislike of such an exploitative show and my disappointment, I guess, that someone I kind of admire is associated with something I dislike so intensely.
By way of a bit of balance, check our her blog above there are some really interesting articles on fitness trends for 2012 as well as bodyweight exercises at home.
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Five minutes with Paul McKenna
22 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Information, NLP Tags: BBC, Books, I Can Make You Thin: The Revolutionary System Used by More Than 3 Million People (Book and CD), NLP, Paul McKenna, Richard Bandler
Oh I wish!!! As far as I am concerned, the main is a genius.
I was lucky enough to attend the ‘Get the life you want’ seminar last year presented by Paul McKenna and Richard Bandler and to see the inspirational quality of their work was amazing. Paul knows how to hold a room but the experience of c1000 people being put into a trance at the same time was incredible. The positive messages he installed then have stayed with me and I cannot recommend him enough.
Check out the short BBC clip and if you have the chance try either of his books/CDs “I can make you confident” or “I can make you thin” even if you don’t follow all the exercises they give you some useful tools to start to think about
BBC – Five minutes with Paul McKenna
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Drink Diet Soda? You Might Want to Reconsider.
21 Feb 2012 6 Comments
in Blogs from other people, Diet and Nutrition, Information
If you are one of the millions of Americans who drink diet soda because you think it is a healthier alternative to regular soda, you may want to reconsider opening that next can of diet pop. A new study which has been published by the Journal of General Internal Medicine has shown that drinking diet soda on a daily basis increases your chances of having a stroke or heart attack significantly.
Goals, goals and more goals!
21 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in My Training Updates Tags: Bench press, Extraversion and introversion, fitness, goal setting, Level 3 Personal Trainer, motivation, NLP, Push Up, weight loss
Following my Homer Simpson light bulb moment last week I have been doing some serious thought about what my fitness or gym based goals should be. I seem to have given myself a whole load of other goals that I am happy with even though I know the workload will be intense, I also know that the sense of achievement as I tick each one off will be worth it;
- Pass my L2 PT accreditation exams
- Pass my L3 PT exams
- Complete my NLP Practitioner course
- Complete marketing and branding for new business
- Develop website with on-line library or resources for clients
- Start actually seeing clients
- Develop NLP therapy business as a complement to PT
- Complete NLP Master Practitioner course
- Develop my own coaching and training materials for NLP courses
So, given that I already have my hands full why on earth do I need to give myself the added pressure of developing another set of goals as well? Well, as a self-confessed introvert (see my post entitled Are you an introvert or and extrovert?) I am results driven and goal oriented – what makes me happy is seeing results, achieving things and given the level of dissatisfaction I have despite how much I have achieved this year, being clearer on what I really want can only a good thing!
In that case, what do I REALLY REALLY want to have achieved in fitness and/or weight loss in 12 months time – what is the real honest answer to that one? What would make me happy? What would make me proud and satisfied at my accomplishments?
