In order to achieve the best results from your Personal Training sessions it is very important to look at your nutrition. At Bodyline Fitness Ealing we encourage our clients to keep a food and exercise diary especially if they are training for a specific event/occasion or are looking to reduce body fat.
In this blog we have taken the food and exercise diary from one of our clients, Jane, who has been looking to reduce her blood pressure and lose 7lbs. Jane has had very high blood pressure in the past and has been on medication but has now decided to try and control it by eating the right food and increasing her exercise levels.
Jane’s food and exercise diary has been analysed by Emliy Fawell, nutrionist at www.4wellpeople.co.uk :
“If weight loss is the primary focus then she needs to cut down on her intake of starchy carbs, in particular bread, baguettes, and bagels. It is best to switch to unrefined carbohydrates (which she does do sometimes) and restrict herself to one slice of toast for breakfast, one bread roll, 1 wrap etc, and fill up on non starchy vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado etc. Unrefined carbohydrates (whole meal bread, whole meal pasta, brown rice) release their sugars more slowly, and have less of an impact on blood sugar levels, meaning that energy release is more stabilised and blood sugar lows are less likely.
One can of Red Bull contains 27g of sugar – that’s more than 5 teaspoons of sugar. The body stores any sugar that is not used for energy as fat. To lose weight you need to cut down on your intake of sugar, and this could be a big contributor. It is also very high in caffeine, which raises blood sugar levels and blood pressure (see below). Cutting down on sources of caffeine is something that I advise for weight loss as caffeine disrupts blood sugar levels, which can lead to cravings.
Other sources of refined sugar include chocolate brownies and vanilla ice cream – these should be avoided if weight loss is desired
Her alcohol intake is at least 10 units a week (possibly more as the wine glasses could be large). Alcohol should be reduced to no more than one unit a day (preferably none) for weight loss.
Artificial sweeteners: Your client has a fairly high intake of artificial sweeteners (Diet Coke, Splenda, possibly No Sugar Red Bull). Recent research has shown that artificial sweeteners contribute to weight gain, and leave people with a sweeter tooth than they may have had naturally.
As far as improving her blood pressure further my recommendation would be that she works to significantly decrease her caffeine intake (as caffeine causes arteries to constrict) – this would involve cutting down on Diet Coke, Red Bull and coffee, with an ultimate goal of only having one cup of coffee a day, and no Red Bull or Diet Coke. This must be done slowly – try to reduce from 3 coffees a day week one to 2 in week 2, 1 in week 3 etc.
On a positive note, many of her food choices are great: eggs for breakfast, bean salads, fillet steak, homemade fajitas, sea bass, green salad, salmon fillet, edamame beans, fresh mint tea, and greek salad.”
If you would like a copy of Jane’s Food Diary then please contact Roy directly at info@bodylinestudios.co.uk
If you would like Emily to anaylise your food diary you can contact her directly at www.4wellpeople.co.uk or call her on 07967 639347. Alternatively you can contact us at info@bodylinestudios.co.uk or call Roy 07921 777477