Fitness Matrix

You can do this by incorporating another exercise into your training programme.  Adding another aspect to your training, shakes-up your body and forces it to exercise in a different way, which makes your aerobic system and muscles work in a different way.

Spinning classes and Kettlebell training are two excellent ways to do this, as they are non-impact and provide a whole body workout, that puts more demands on your body than other forms of exercise.

Varying your exercise regime will keep you stimulated and interested for your main sport, while enhancing and complimenting it.

Give it a try and see the results for yourself!

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When the body reaches the age of mid-forties, the decline in level of fitness accelerates.  You can slow down this process by staying slim with good nutrition, don’t over-eat, reduce your intake of alcohol, don’t smoke and follow a structured exercise programme designed specifically to suit you.

If you pay attention to these minor areas, it can improve your quality of life and increase your chance of longevity.

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Most people fall-short in this area when training themselves, yet it is one of the most, if not the most, important area to focus on.  If your balance is not being challenged, then your training is not being maximised.

The best way to improve your balance and your core strength, which provides your body with strength and stability, is to exercise on unstable surfaces, with equipment such as a Bosu, a stability ball or something as simple as an inflated disc.  These types of equipment are largely neglected and often ignored in gyms, because most people don’t know what to do with them.

Training with equipment that provides an unstable surface, creates the biggest challenge for your body, as it must maintain balance and stability, which forces your core to work harder, thereby giving you inner strength and improving your balance.

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Ingredients

Sponge

• 4oz Butter
• 4oz Brown sugar
• 4oz Wholemeal self-raising flour
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 tsp Baking powder

Filling

• 250g Mascarpone cheese
• 4 x 125g Longley Farm vanilla yoghurt
• 2 tbsp Vanilla extract
• 150ml Freshly squeezed orange juice
• 100ml Grand Marnier (you’ve got to have a treat!)
• 400g Fresh raspberries
• 2 tbsp Brown sugar

Method

1. Cream butter and sugar together. Beat in eggs, then fold in flour and baking powder.
2. Pour mixture into a greased 7 inch loaf tin and bake on gas mark 4 for 40-45 mins.  When done, use half and freeze the rest for next time.
3. Simmer raspberries, sugar and a little water for 5-10 mins.  Strain through a sieve, pressing the raspberries to extract as much of the juice as possible.  Keep the juice to drizzle over the trifle before you serve.
4. Whisk the mascarpone, yoghurt and vanilla together until smooth.
5. Cut the sponge into fingers.
6. Combine orange juice with Grand Marnier, dip in the sponge fingers and place in a trifle bowl.
7. Cover sponge with raspberries, then mascarpone cream.
8. Repeat process of sponge, raspberries and mascarpone cream.
9. Place in the fridge for 1 hour to chill.
10. Indulge yourself with this heavenly dessert!

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It takes about 21 days of repetitive behaviour to form a new pattern in your brain and once this has been formed, it becomes an automatic behavioural pattern.  As you adopt and develop new healthy habits, they will slowly replace the old bad habits.  Maintaining these healthy lifelong habits, that have stood the test of time and been practiced by centenarians around the world, will invigorate and rejuvenate you.

Eat five small meals a day

It is much better to have five small meals throughout the day, rather than three large meals.  When you eat smaller portions, you give your body a steady stream of fuel and nutrients, providing it with a drip-feed of energy throughout the whole day.  In addition, eating in this way is less demanding on your digestive system, as you are not overloading your body with more than it needs, which reduces the stress on your heart.

Use the stairs whenever you can

The importance of taking regular exercise and the resulting health benefits, are well documented and cannot be over-emphasised.  Regular exercise can aid physiological well-being, strengthen your immune system, maintain joint flexibility and increase your energy level, which are just a few of the benefits.

During your day, when you can, choose the more physically demanding option.  Try walking or cycling instead of driving or taking the stairs instead of the lift, which will start you on the road to better health and fitness.  The best way to achieve better health and fitness, in a safe and structured way, is with a specifically designed training programme from a Personal Trainer.  Statistically, you have a 95% chance of realising your health and fitness goals, if you have a Personal Trainer.

Laugh all the way

Laughter has been proven to boost your immune system, especially the production of the natural cells that help protect the body from illness and disease.  Laughter also increases the release of endorphins, which are compounds that give a sense of well-being in the brain.  There is no doubt that happy, joyful people live healthier and longer lives.

Drink more water

Water is essential for a healthy, functioning body.  Centenarians around the world cite their native water as the source of their good health and longevity, which scientists endorse.  They all have in common a pure water source, which is located far from any city and free from chemicals and toxins.  Try not to drink water from plastic bottles/containers, as the polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) can permeate the water and can have a negative effect on your health.  Water from the tap and even from water filters is dead, acidic and is so resisted by the body, that is digests it rather than absorbing it.  The best water to drink is living water, which is alive, alkaline and loved by the body so much, that it is immediately absorbed and the body is quickly hydrated with life.  Wouldn’t you rather drink life than death?

May your life be long, strong, healthy and happy!

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Myth

If you exercise for longer, you will achieve better results.

Fact

It is not the duration of your workout that determines the results you achieve, it is the intensity.  You will feel and see more improvement in a shorter period, by increasing the intensity level of your workout, rather than extending the length your training session.

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In an article in the November issue of Womens Fitness, they state that celebrity cookbooks may be damaging to our health, according to a new report by the ‘Fat Panel’.

The study revealed that the saturated fat content of many dishes from celebrity chefs’ recipes, contained more than 100 per cent
of the guideline daily amount of saturated fat in a single serving (30g for men and 20g for women).  Sian Porter registered dietitian on the fat
panel, says “having a celebrity chef treat is one thing, but eating these dishes regularly could bump up your saturated fat intake considerably”.

Yes it could and it should!  Your body wants good saturated fat, as it is its primary source of fuel, supplying sustained energy and acting as a protector, because it provides the immune system with the fuel it needs to become strong, resulting in the body being more equipped to fight-off infection.  Good saturated fat is also vitally important for the body to properly metabolise all other nutrients and receive the best from the food ingested.

I realise that this is contrary to popular belief and that you may be thinking that saturated fat will be detrimental to your health, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.  The human animal has historically lived on good saturated fat for hundreds of years, but in the last century, we have been brain-washed by the media and the power of advertising, to believe that foods that are ‘low-fat’, ‘light’ and ‘healthy option’ are good for us, but this is not the case.  Some of the products that provide good saturated fat are; whole milk, butter, cheese, double cream, free range eggs, lard, beef dripping, goose and duck fat, which are natural products and benefit from not being tampered by humans.

For more information on good saturated fat, follow this link:  http://www.fitnessmatrix.co.uk/2009/04/good-saturated-fat-the-past-is-the-future/

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I was watching Countryfile (23 August 2009) and the item on red meat particularly concerned me.  While the argument for us to eat less red meat because of the global effects of the methane gas emitted by cows is valid,  shouldn’t the farmers be looking at what they are feeding the cows, that causes them to produce so much methane?  Afterall, whatever is emitted, is the result of what is ingested.  It was good to see that they are researching different types of grass that may alleviate the problem.

Alot of animals are fed antibiotics throughout their life, to prevent them from contracting diseases, which is not good for them and has a detrimental effect on the quality of the meat.  Do you want to be eating meat that is dosed-up on drugs?  I know that I don’t, which is why I buy all my meat directly from my local farm and the taste is so superior to any meat that I previously bought in the supermarket.    My main concern was the item ‘linking’ red meat to an adverse effect on our health.  We are animals that are meant to live of the land and red meat is a staple of our existence.  Red meat is full of natural goodness and provides our bodies with more of the fundamental vitamins it needs, compared with white meat.

When Countryfile’s chosen member of the public for this item received the results of his medical and discovered that his cholesterol was high, they only mentioned LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein), the bad cholesterol and not HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) the good cholesterol.  If his HDL is high, then that is good, as this is used by the body as a protector.  If his LDL is high, then that is not good, but it doesn’t mean that his high consumption of red meat is the cause.  Red meat is not the problem, it is how it is cooked that is the cause of high bad cholesterol.  Most people cook with one of the many oils that are available on the market today, but don’t realise that the oils turn to ‘trans fats’ (bad fats) when heated at high temperatures, which is one of the main causes of high bad cholesterol.  If people were to cook with a natural fat, such as butter or lard, they would be increasing their level fo HDL (the protector), as these products do not turn into bad fats, because they maintain their natural composite.  So, at the end of the report, when the guy was eating his meal in the pub that consisted of fish, chips and vegetables; while the chips and fish are nutritionally good, it’s not what he is eating, but how it is cooked.

Let’s not make red meat a scapegoat for the failing health of the public, when there are so many other factors to consider.

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I know that you don’t want to hear this and being an ex-serviceman, who get through their fair share of alcohol while serving Queen and country, I didn’t like hearing it either, but alcohol is fundamentally poison to your body.  There is no nutritional value in it and as soon as it is ingested, your body is trying to expel it, because it doesn’t want or need it!  In a regular pint of beer there are approximately 12 teaspoons of sugar.  So, the next time you have a few beers with your mates, think about how much sugar you are putting into your body, what it is doing to your body and where it is going.  Your body doesn’t want  that amount of sugar and certainly not on a regular basis, so it stores it, which results in people becoming obese, diabetic or suffering from pancreas problems.  I’m not suggesting that you stop drinking alcohol, just not to drink too much, because it dehydrates your body, which drains your energy resources,  making you sluggish and it also weakens your immune system, leaving you vulnerable to viruses and diseases.

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Most people that keep fit don’t realise, that it is vital to give your body the chance to rest and repair between training sessions, so that it can build to a higher level of performance.  The body only repairs itself when it is sleeping. So, if you don’t give your body enough rest and recuperation, it will breakdown from the inside and become weak (catabolic), rather than build and become strong (anabolic).  While it is good to push your  body to its limits in relation to fitness, it is only beneficial to do this if you ensure that you get enough sleep for your body to repair.  If you don’t, keeping fit can have a detrimental effect on the body and its health.  You can avoid this by enlisting the help of a Personal Trainer, as they will design a programme specifically for you, that will incorporate a structured training regime with rest periods, so that you get the maximum benefits from exercising.

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