New website

Hey guys!

So finally I can let you all in on my news!  Progressionofme has a brand new home and the website will go live tomorrow!  So please check back here then for the link so you can head on over and check it out!  I am super excited to be moving in a slightly different direction and eventually I hope that the website will align with my career.
This blog will still be here for a while but will no longer be active after tomorrow – so please subscribe to the new page.  I will be updating it more regularly than this site has been and there are a few surprises too.

Until tomorrow!

Cheers!

Week Three Weigh In

I’ve decided to write a post each Wednesday as that day is the 12WBT weigh in day.  That way I can update you all on how the 12WBT is going; if I have faced any challenges along the way and also to celebrate any successes.  You can also check me out on instagram [ @vixxtaa ] and see my progress there too!

4 Weeks Down!

4 weeks ago I decided to give up chocolate…for 6 months.  And you know what?  It’s been easier than I thought…

photo credit: google images

Want an excuse to drink that extra cup of coffee?

Happy Hump Day!

For those who love their coffee and are trying to cut back, it may be worth thinking again….

Discretionary Food and Drinks

As I am now almost a week down on my “Detox Challenge” I thought I might try to provide some information which could surprise you (or at least make you think again about having that extra slice of cake!)

Chocolate, as most people should know is a discretionary food.  It does not fall into any of the five food groups.  The reason for this is that a discretionary food is not necessary for a healthy diet and it is too high in saturated fat and/or sugars, added salt or alcohol and low in fibre.  In the majority of cases these foods (or drinks) are also very high in kilojoules, whilst they contain little or no nutritional value.

A diet high in these types of foods/drinks can lead to obesity, diabetes and many other illnesses.

Now here’s the scary part….

A serving of a discretionary food (because of the high amount of kilojoules) is generally much smaller than that of one of the other food groups (for example fruit/vegetables).  So take a look at some examples of ONE serving of discretionary food/drink:

• 2 scoops (75g) regular ice cream
• ¼ cup condensed milk
• 50-60g (about two slices) processed meats, salami, mettwurst
• 1 ½ thick or 2 thinner higher fat/salt sausages
• 30g salty crackers (a small individual serve packet)
• 2-3 sweet biscuits
• 1 (40 g) doughnut
• 1 slice (40 g) plain cake or small cake-type muffin
• 40g sugar confectionary (about 5-6 small lollies)
• 60g jam/honey (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1/2 small bar (25 g) chocolate

• 2 tablespoons (40 g) cream
• 1 tablespoon (20 g) butter or hard margarine
• 200 mL wine (2 standard drinks (note this is often 1 glass for many Australian wines)
• 60 mL spirits (2 standard drinks)
• 600 mL light beer (1½ standard drinks)
• 400 mL regular beer (1½ standard drinks)
• 1 can (375 mL) soft drink
• 1/3 (60 g) commercial meat pie or pastie
• 12 (60 g) fried hot chips

When I look at this and think back to the last time I ate some hot chips or had a “few” biscuits…and the time I ate that Easter bunny, I dread to think just how many servings I was actually having….

It may also surprise you to see one or two of the items listed above categorised as discretionary.  The meat perhaps?

And we wonder why our society is getting more and more unhealthy.  Maybe foods need to be packaged differently?  In a serving sized portion perhaps?  I’d love to hear your thoughts.  And if you weren’t aware of this or think someone would benefit from the above, please feel free to share.

Note: Most of the information in this post was sourced from the Eat for Health website.

M.O.T.I.V.A.T.I.O.N

Can you relate to any of these?

Impatience – you analyse a plan according to how it’s “supposed” to work, and often conclude too soon that it’s not working for you.

Analysis Paralysis – you keep adding additional workouts and customizations to your program, and you end up exhausted, discouraged and perhaps injured.

Extremism – you throw yourself into unsustainable nutritional or supplement schemes that are beyond your budget or just not a good fit with your lifestyle and/or abilities.

Perfectionism – you’re prone to skipping workouts when everything isn’t “just right”.  Maybe you forgot your pre-workout, your music or a piece of gear for instance.  Same for nutrition – if everything isn’t perfect you take it as an excuse to eat junk.

Ambition – you’re unrealistic in your aspirations. You set goals that are too lofty or extreme for your abilities, age or the amount of time you have. Then you beat yourself up when you can’t achieve them.

If you can, then you’re not alone!  These are hurdles which the personality type “the thinker” has to overcome.  [Check out my previous post here]  And these hurdles are often the reason behind our loss of motivation…..

Earlier this week I posed a question on my Facebook page – Was there anything in particular my followers/readers would like to hear about?  It was suggested I write a post about motivation when getting back into fitness after a break.  What a perfect suggestion!  I’m hoping by giving others advise that it will in turn motivate me too 🙂