The end of Laura's Ab-Mazing Adventure

For those of you who have been following my blog you will be aware of Laura who I have been coaching through an 8 week plan in pursuit of abs!  I also stupidly agreed to do a photo shoot with her at the end of the plan straight out of a bulk!

Today is the day!

Tan - Check
Hair - Check
Pump Up - Check
Clothes looked out - Check

Laura is my first client and both Nemesis first client to complete her journey with us!  Although Laura was coached by myself, Sharon has played an equal role in the journey with re assurance and support to Laura.

 Laura's journey with Nemesis does not end here!  Laura will be embarking on a reverse diet, and a new method of training, following a programme designed by me but using Neil Hills Y3T system.

The mirror always dictates how successful a plan is, but Laura's stats are fantastic and worth sharing!!!

Week 1 V Week 8

Weight:147lbs now 135.5 LBS
Body Fat: 18.6% now 15.5 %

Chest: 83cm now 80.5 CM
Hips: 83.5cm now 81 CM
Waist: 70.5cm now 66 CM
Biceps: 27cm now 26 CM
Quads: 51cm now 49.5 CM

On another note, although Laura and I have known each other for the past 6 months from the gym, I now think of Laura as one of my very close friends, and since she feels the need to share her poop issues with me I would like to think she feels the same.

Right now its time to get ready for this photoshoot!!!

Mince 'n' Tatties

This is my Italian Lean Mince recipe with the addition of peas and sweet potato.

Ingredients

750g of Irish Extra Lean Mince (Asda 5%)

1 Teaspoon of Himalyan Salt

325g of Mixed Peppers (Red / Green) Chopped

100g of Red Onion Chopped

2 Cans of Napolina Chopped Tomatos

25g of Tomato Puree

1 can of Garden Peas (Tinned Asda)

1 Kilo of Sweet Potato

1.  Peel the sweet potato and chop, then place in boiling water and cook until softened.  Drain water and leave to cool, then mash.

2.  Brown your mince, then add salt, peppers and onions

3.  Add the tinned tomatos and tomato puree (you could also add a tea spoon of mixed herbs).

4.  Add the Garden Peas (cook as per tin then add).

5.  Serve into 6 Tupperware tubs of equal portion.

Macro's per portion

Calories 416

Fat 6.2g

Carbs 48g

Protein 40.4g

Fibre 10.4g

This is a brilliant recipe for a pre workout meal consumed 1.5 - 2 hours before a workout!

End of Week 24 - Cutting Phase

I didn't manage to get an update done last Sunday, this was because I took a few days off work and had a nice long weekend!

The first week of cutting hasn't been too bad, however I have reduced my carbs quite a bit due to the photo shoot next Saturday.  I am running 3 different carb days for shoulders, back/ legs and then non training days.  I also upped my cardio this week.  Even though I have reduced my carbs, I am still on high calories, the boss man has been changing the ratio distribution of my macro's.

February has been a tough month for me, the lack of blog posts has probably been noted!  There is a possibility of job losses at work which has been playing on my mind, kick starting Nemesis and a flurry of new clients, I have had the flu, 'womans issues' and I have been away for 2 weekends in a row.   As always training never suffers... nutrition has been fine but I haven't always hit my macro's and it has shown in the measurements / mirror.  I have been eating clean but just not the greatest of food choices due to lack of cooking facilities. 

As mentioned I have my photo shoot on Saturday which I am really looking forward to!  I am so nervous for Laura this week and hope she is pleased with the photographs on Saturday! her commitment over the last few weeks has been amazing!  I have really pushed and challenged her and she has had a lot of low days and there has been some tears.  

Last night Laura and I went for a well deserved meal at chiquitos (since she is on peak week and starting to carb up!).  Laura will start to feel like her old self from this point forward as we start carb loading.  Last week Laura ran low and zero carb days, and she was mentally exhausted and drained - now its time to fill her up!

I must admit although I love looking fuller, I do miss being shredded mid section, and being photographed in my current condition scares me.  Laura and I built a pinterest board to give Jonathan an idea of the type of photographs we are after.  It was really hard to find photo's that would compliment me without having to get my 2 abs out or my love handles!   

Speaking of Laura doing fantastically.... I have several clients at the moment that deserve some recognition!  The commitment, passion and adapting to change has astounded me!  All of my ladies are getting fantastic results and I am super proud of all of them! Well done girls!

Protein Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini Loafs

Yup I know I have done this one several times, but I changed up the ingredients!  Better Macro's, Better Tasting!

You can make this in a loaf tin or a tray like I have that makes '10 mini loafs'.

The below macro's does not take into count the chocolate chips added in the loafs I made in the picture! These are optional to add!

Ingredients

125ml of Alpro Unsweetened Almond Milk

2 Egg Whites

1 Whole Egg

10g of Tiana Organic Coconut Flour

1 teaspoon of Baking Powder (Dr Oetker)

1 teaspoon of Stevia

50g of PHD Pharma Whey HT+ (Choc Mint Flavour)

75g Asda Smart Price Apple Sauce

40g of Superfast Oats

30g of Whole Earth Original Smooth Peanut Butter

10g of Green & Blacks Cocoa Powder

1.  Add all ingredients into your blender and blend (obviously)

2.  Pour into loaf tray

3.  Cook in oven at 150degrees for 20 - 30 minutes

4.  Leave to cool for 20 minutes then remove from tray.

SIMPLES

Macros

84 Calories per bar

3.5g of Fat

5.7g of Carbs

6.9g of Protein.

1.4g of Fibre

Cellulite

I have had afew people speak to me in the past few weeks regarding cellulite and how to get rid of it.  I use to be riddled with cellulite on my inner thighs and buttocks and now relatively cellulite free.  

Cellulite is prone in both men and female, and it is reported that around 80-90% of females have cellulite.  Cellulite is fat beneath the skin pushing against the connective tissue thus giving a bumpy dimpled appearance.  Contrary to popular belief cellulite isn’t just found in overweight people, but slim people can have cellulite as well, you know the saying ‘Skinny Fat’.

The contributing factors to cellulite is poor diet, fad dieting, slow metabolism, hormonal imbalances lack of physical activity, dehydration and body fat.  Cellulite also appears to be less noticeable on people with darker skin (self-tanning can reduce the appearance of cellulite).

There are cellulite creams on the market that assist breaking down the fat under the skin and give a softer appearance but in reality they are not going to make you cellulite free (irrespective of how expensive the cream is or what celebrity who endorses the product says about it.  Remember they need to earn a living! Doesn’t mean they necessarily use it or believe in the product!).  There is also no scientific evidence that these creams are effective against cellulite.  

One client asked me if Liposuction would rid her cellulite.  Liposuction is a surgical procedure to remove deep fat deposits from the body, it does not remove cellulite which is just beneath the skin.  The American Academy of Dermatology stated that liposuction may actually worse the appearance of cellulite by creating depressions in the skin!

Unfortunalty ladies exercise and good nutrition is what reduces cellulite!   I noticed radical changes to my cellulite over 20 weeks, when I removed convenience foods, simple carbs and take a ways from my diet.  My cellulite reduced even further the more nutritional knowledge I gained and the introduction of exercise.  You know the saying ‘you are what you eat’, if you make poor nutritional choices then it will reflect on your health, wellbeing and general appearance.  I also had regular massage treatments in the problem areas.  Massage is a great way to stimulate the cellulite, but again does not remove the cellulite, but will assist in giving a softer appearance.  

Simple Tips

-       Consume 2.5 to 3 Litres of water daily

-       Ensure you consume your 5 a day (more vegetables as oppose to fruit selections).

-       Reduce cakes, patisseries, white breads and pastas (refined / simple carbs) from your diet.

-       Reduce convenience / pre prepared meals and take a ways.

-       Reduce alcohol

-       Find alternative healthy choices to your favourite foods (visit www.nemesispt.co.uk) for recipes.

-       Walk! – if you have a desk job get up at lunchtime for a 15 minute stroll

-       Exercise at least 3 times per week.

Healthy Pizza Squares

Who say's you can't have pizza when on plan?  It's all about taking your favourite foods and coming up witH a healthy alternative.

For my pizza squares I took a Warburtons Sandwich Thin Square, split it in half!

Ingredients

50g of Red Bell Pepper chopped

50g of Chopped Chicken Breast

20g of Sainsburrys Tomato & Basil Pizza Topper

30g of Sainsburys Good to You 50% Reduced Fat Cheddar.

1 Warburton Sandwich Thin Square sliced in half to give you 2 slices.

Macros based on 2 slices

Protein; 20.1g

Carbs: 23g

Fat; 3.5g

-  Spread the pizza topper on both slices.

-  Equally distribute the ingredients over 2 slices

-  Cook in the oven for 10-20 minutes.

End of Week 22 - Off Season

I have 1 more week until I start cutting, but this week my carbs have dropped slightly - this is down to the fact am struggling to consume the amount of carbs I have now and eating is becoming a chore. The amendments are very little, but hopefully enough that I don't feel am force feeding myself.

I spent a few days in Vienna, it was a whistle stop trip, but I still found the time to train twice at 'TopGym' - highly recommend if anyone is in Vienna that they get a session in here.  I am gutted to have to go back to training at David Lloyds now after training there.

I notice some really good changes in my body, I am almost finished CYCLE 2 of Y3T (5 weeks in) and will post a progress picture of this mid week when cycle 2 is completed with a comparison against week 1.  One thing for sure my body is loving this type of training stimulus.

I plan to get in a really good 'treat' meal next Saturday prior to starting my cut next Sunday (funnily enough it was the same weekend I started cutting last year).

Laura has 20 days left on her plan and those abs are through now...  its going to be a tough 2 weeks for her prior to peak week and she's having to train on some very low carb days, she is strong she can do this!!!!

Nemesis has also seen a flurry of client enquiries and we are now at 7 clients doing long term change.  Brilliant news since we have done zero advertising other than a few posts on our own social media of our contact details.  Every client has been through word of mouth which is the best type of advertising you can get.  Big HI 5 to all clients who are making fab progress!

Hitting the 20,000 Page Views

Whooo 'ThisFitNutSquats' has now reached well over the 20,000 hits in just 6 months!

I will be updating this a lot more over the next few weeks.

Fitboutique - Brand Ambassador

Super excited to announce that I have been selected as one of the Brand Ambassadors for Fit Boutique owned by Hayley Smyth.

Fitboutique are the stockists of Brazilian Lycra which stretches up to 500% of the original size, and comes back to the original with no marks - perfect squatting leggings!!

New stock arriving shortly - for a further 10% off at the checkout use my discount code LS10.

www.fitboutique.co.uk

Follow on Instagram @fitboutiqueltd

End of Week 21 - Off Season

No progress photos - again!  I guess out of laziness really but I am trying to get out of the routine of doing weekly photos, and opt for fortnightly instead.

My weight has crept slightly up, however I am looking leaner, my measurements have went up in my biceps and quads, and went down in my hips and waist and thats with the added carbs!  The mirror shows I am getting leaner as well and I am feeling more happy with the reflection.

I am very impatient with my shoulder progress and have been constantly grumping to my coach about it, 'trust the process' - which I am but I can't help being impatient!

On Saturday my tall apprentice had her halfway point cheat meal.  I am super proud of her hard work, even though I have been really hard on her and given her grief when she has had a few hiccups.  Its less than 4 weeks to the shoot and to say I am very nervous about my condition on the day is a complete understatement!  I am really nailing every workout and hitting every macro at the moment.  We have been putting together photo ideas for the shoot on pinterest, hopefully we can get some amazing shots and most importantly that the mission is accomplished for Laura - to have more defined abs than last years shoot.

I also have some exciting news which I will be sharing with you mid week! #lipsaresealed