In Dieting We Need To Keep A Journal of What We Eat

easy diet plan
Here’s another review for my book, this time from the American Amazon website.

It is amazing what we can accomplish with the help of our smartphones these days. We have yet another use for them in this book. It is a great idea to use your phone to take pictures of what you eat. In order to be really successful, I think, in dieting we need to keep a journal of what we eat. What better what than to use our phones as a tool to help us accomplish this? This is a great book with explanations of how to achieve these objectives.

M Jackson

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How To Turn Love Handles into Solid Muscle

Anthony Chapman personal trainer
Here’s a rehash of a blog post I did almost two years ago to the date. It describes the workout I had done earlier that day for abs.

I did a 3-exercise circuit for the oblique muscles (love handles) each exercise was performed back to back in a circuit fashion with no rest between the exercises.

The first exercise was a Swiss ball oblique crunch using the cable machine for resistance. The best handle to use for this exercise is a single rope attachment, if you don’t have access to this kind of equipment a dumbbell can be used instead. Or if you are a beginner using just your body weight will be sufficient enough. I prefer to do this exercise one side at a time rather than alternating sides as I work through the set. I aim for 8 to 12 on each side.

The second exercise I did was a side flexion on the Swiss ball holding a weight plate at chest level for resistance. If you are working the right oblique on this exercise the right side of the body needs to be doing the bending. The other side of the body needs to stay in position throughout the set, in this case the left hip needs to be on the ball at a 90-degree angle and the left knee should also be at 90 degrees. On the side doing the bending the ankle, knee, hip, shoulder and ear needs to remain in line throughout the bending/side flexion for good alignment and posture. It is wise to use a mirror to keep checking your technique as you progress through the set. Initially, using just your own bodyweight will be enough to get a good response if you are not used to this exercise.

The third exercise I did on the circuit was a Russian twist lying on my back with straight legs. You need good flexibility in your lower back for this exercise. You can also do it with your legs bent at 90 degrees. To target the right hand side the starting position for the legs need to be to the left hand side of the body on the floor. Bring the legs up to the midline of the body and then back to the floor before repeating. Resistance can be used for this exercise by placing a small medicine ball between your knees or feet.

The rep range I used for all the 3 exercises were between 10 and 12. I completed 3 rounds. If you try a circuit similar to this your sides will be toned in no time.

Remember when training oblique muscles to always do both sides.

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Which Group Do You Belong To – Slimming Club Or Weight Loss Club?

You may be thinking that slimming and losing weight is the same thing. This may or may not be true. The fact is that the majority of dieters have a tunnel vision approach to dieting and getting in shape. They rely on numbers to fix their solutions and fall into the vortex of numbers. They think all of their problems will be solved if the weighing scales tell them a number they want. If you adopt this approach to dieting you will end up like the majority of dieters and keep on going around in circles and getting nowhere. You will be forever chasing numbers and putting all of your happiness into what the weighing scales tell you.

Ok, I know what you are thinking, I need to lose weight and I need the scales to reflect this. It is true the scales should move in the right direction if that is your goal but there are many factors why people can’t drop weight fast and keep it off, too many to mention here.

You have to ask yourself what you want to look like, saying that you want to weigh X amount simply won’t cut it. If you reach your goal weight who’s saying your love handles and belly won’t protrude through your tight clothes? Where’s the guarantee that you will feel great and feel full of energy and be happy? Numbers don’t offer a guarantee so it is worthless investing all of your effort into assuming certain body weights yields a certain look and solution to your problems. If you could line up ten people of the same body weight I could guarantee there wouldn’t be anyone with the same body shape and quality of life. The take-home message is to be the best version of yourself you can be, I hope this gives people something to think about.

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Do You Want To Change Your Body Shape? Change Your Habits!

“Insanity is doing the same thing in the same way & expecting a different outcome”
- Old Chinese Proverb

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Are You Lacking Results So Far This Year?

If you’ve been working out since the beginning of the year and have yet to see results then it’s time to re-evaluate your exercise routine and diet.

What you can do
Get some professional help by hiring a personal trainer. They will be able to quickly get you on the right track and tell you exactly what you need to change to achieve your goal.

Set realistic goals

If your goal is an ambitious one, break it down into smaller mini-goals so that you are continuously making progress. Small steps lead to big changes.

Choose healthy
 foods
Look at your diet and eliminate all the foods you know will be harmful to your goal. If you are not sure what they are grab a copy of my kindle book Photo Diet: How To Diet Using Your Smartphone for a step-by-step approach to changing your eating habits for the better.

If you commit to eating a clean diet most of the time your efforts in the gym will be much more noticeable and quicker.

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3 SNACKS for a Flat Belly


I’d like to share with you Dr. Johnny Bowden’s super-easy to make snacks. They have the OPTIMAL combination of fiber, fat, and protein that keeps your fat STORAGE hormone insulin under control while optimizing your fat BURNING hormones at the same time.



1. First up is a FANTASTIC snack called “with a smear”. Take some hearts of celery and fill in the groove with organic almond or peanut butter. This snack travels well in Tupperware and makes a TERRIFIC pre-workout snack. The overall calories are low and this REALLY fills you up WITHOUT slowing you down. GREAT for “slow-release” energy.



2. Next up is “The Double A”, which stands for apples and almonds. The apple is the PERFECT food for a snack, especially if coupled with some fat and or protein. Try combining it with about a dozen almonds. The fat and protein slow the entrance of the sugar into the bloodstream for sustained energy, and keeps hunger away.



3. Ok, the last one is – whey protein (but it needs to be used before exercise).

According to one French study, consuming whey before exercise supports fat burning and may help with gaining or maintaining lean body mass. I suggest a protein shake made with either water alone or with frozen berries. The berries add fiber, nutrients, some extra healthy carbohydrates, and make for a more delicious drink.



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10 Lies and Misconceptions Spread By Mainstream Nutrition

Many mainstream nutritionists are guilty of spreading dietary myths and misconceptions that lead to poor health outcomes. Here are 10 of the most widespread lies that have been refuted by science.

The National Academies’ Institute of Medicine recommends adults to get 45–65 percent of their calories from carbohydrates, 20–35 percent from fat, and 10–35 percent from protein. This is an inverse ideal fat to carb ratio that is virtually guaranteed to lead you astray and result in a heightened risk of chronic disease.

Most people likely benefit from 50-70 percent of calories as healthful fats in their diet for optimal health, whereas you need very few carbohydrates to maintain good health. Although that may seem like a lot, fat is much denser and consumes a much smaller portion of your meal plate.

The low-fat myth may have done more harm to the health of millions than any other dietary recommendation as the resulting low-fat craze led to increased consumption of trans-fats, which we now know increases your risk of obesity, diabetes and heart disease—the very health problems wrongfully attributed to saturated fats.

Most people use artificial sweeteners to lose weight and/or because they’re diabetic and need to avoid sugar. Ironically, nearly all the studies that have carefully analyzed artificial sweeteners show that those who use artificial sweeteners actually gain more weight than those who consume caloric sweeteners. Studies have also revealed that artificial sweeteners can be worse than sugar for diabetics.

Fructose, soy, eggs, whole grains, milk, lunch meats, and genetically engineered foods are also victims of widespread misconceptions that threaten your health unless you get it right.

Click the link to read the full article: www.mercola.com

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What Did You Have For Breakfast This Morning?

Breakfast is important, you’ve heard it a thousand times all of your life but few people make the changes necessary to impact the rest of their day.

Your choice of breakfast foods, or your choice to not eat breakfast at all, sets up the day for dietary success or failure. You need significant protein at every mealtime. A large proportion of your daily intake of protein should come at breakfast.

Instead many of the poorest food choices are “breakfast foods” high in refined carbohydrates and devoid of nutrients such as sugar-laden cereals, wheat based products and fruit juices. If this sounds like your eating habits you are starving yourself of the necessary protein your body needs. This sets you up for a late morning crash and leads to a vicious circle of consuming stimulant rich beverages and snacks.

You can start tomorrow and focus on getting the right fuel at breakfast time. You need to include protein from natural sources in the best possible quality you can find, and don’t forget to include fiber.

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You Can Only Feel Better When You Lose Weight

Being dietary compliant will propel you to becoming a success story. Where would you rather be one month from now, a serial dieter or someone who looks and feels brilliant? We all have choices and some are easier than others, but in reality we all have the same choices to make in the same 24 hours everyday. We can either commit or carry on making excuses.

The choice is yours!

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How To Cure Boredom From Exercising

How do you cure boredom from doing the same workouts every week? Set a challenge! Just for something different, forget about doing your regular workout. Set a challenge that involves only your body weight.

Choose exercises that will work your upper body, lower body, and core. Aim for high reps or time under tension and you will have yourself an interesting and challenging workout that will breathe new life into your regular routine.

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