Shorter Workouts

Eating for fat loss & eNERGY

Exercise will help build muscle and increase energy levels. On it’s own it won’t make much difference to body fat because food and stress play a bigger role.

Small Changes to YOUR Diet

Small changes to your diet can make a big difference to your body fat levels:

• Eat protein with every meal - aim for at least 75g per day

• Reduce the amount of carbs you eat. Keep your favourites in (bread) but cut right back on ones you are prepared to let go of. This includes fruit and anything with sugar.

• Aim to eat 3 filling & nutritious meals a day. The goal is to stay full enough to last until your next meal without snacking. Eating too little is stressful and causes fat gain around the middle.

• When you are eating enough your energy levels will feel stable throughout the day, stress levels reduce and your body will gradually start to burn more fat.

• To hit 75g of protein eat 200g fish and 150g chicken breast as part of your daily meals

STRESS MANAGEMENT & BALANCING STRESS

Constant low-level stress (being constantly busy and having things on your mind, feeling overwhelmed and tired) raises cortisol and this increases abdominal fat. During peri-menopause, as estrogen levels fluctuate fat levels can increase because fat is a weak source of estrogen. Peri-menopause puts the body under more stress and is a time when we find it harder to cope with things that we’ve been doing for years. This combination of stress and fat as a source of estrogen is why many women find it hard to shift the weight they are accumulating by dieting and exercise. So it’s really important to become aware of how stressed you might be and look at how you can make more time to relax and recover. Effective techniques include:

• Mindfulness & meditation

• Gentle exercise: walks in nature, relaxing yoga or stretching

• Prioritising sleep

• Taking time out to do hobbies and things you enjoy

• Massage, facials etc…