The Elite Fitness

Healthy Living Book

Head office contact details Socialise with us…..

Elite Fitness Consultants

Wirral Studio

92 Banks Road

West Kirby

Wirral

CH48 0RE

Liverpool Studio

20 Knight Street

Liverpool

L1 9DS

T: 0151 668 0250

E: info@elitefitnessconsultants.co.uk

For More Information please contact us on 0151 668 0250 or visit

our website at www.elitefitnessconsultants.co.uk

Introduction

Congratulations on purchasing the Elite Fitness Healthy Living Book. I have written this book

to help guide you to a more healthy and active lifestyle. This book offers a clear path on

what things you should be doing to live a healthy lifestyle but also provides you with the

reasons why you should follow this guide. Many books focus on telling you what to do

without actually giving you the reasons why you should do it, which normally results with

you forgetting the information, or you simply don’t think it is worth doing.

As an Elite Fitness Consultants Trainer I want to give you more than just a list of things you

must do, I would like to provide you with a wealth of information that you can easily put

into practise and also then understand the reasons why it is beneficial for you to follow this

guide.

Regardless of your health and fitness goals, whether it is weight loss, fitness, a healthier life

or just for good wellbeing, this book will help you. So print off 2 copies of this book, keep

one at home and one at work and start reading. I recommend you read all of this at home

when you have some spare time and highlight the areas of interest and importance to you.

Then create a list of things to do in your life to make some changes and keep referring to the

book either at home or work to make sure you are practicing the guidelines I have given

you.

So how does this book work?

I have given you 5 categories to focus on which will give you a fantastically healthy lifestyle

and make you lose body fat, feel more energised, dramatically improve your health and

generally make you feel good. Out of the five categories choose one to focus on first and

start making those changes and once complete then move onto the next.

Good luck

Welcome

Remember the days as a child playing sport with your friends or at school, the excitement of

trying to win and the enjoyment of competing, or just running around after each other

playing games. Remember feeling tired but you kept going because of the enjoyment.

These are the days when we are highly active and for most, the fittest and healthiest times

of our lives. Exercise is nothing more than moving the body and being active with friends

and family, by doing sports and playing active games you can achieve all the results you

have ever dreamed of. Look at professional bikers, divers or gymnastics; most of these top

athletes will spend small amounts of time in the gym, with most of their hours spent doing

what they love. Imagine being out on the open road, racing through mountains and

meadows reaching exhilarating speeds, feeling the warmth on your face from the rising sun

whilst the crisp morning air washes over you, filling you with the smells and tastes of freshly

cut grass and the morning dew. How good does that sound?

Exercise is not limited to the super fit or the models of the world, it is for all to enjoy no

matter what the starting ability. So for those of you who are unsure or new to exercise,

take this simple but powerful bit of advice; Make a start today why wait another second,

take a 20 minute walk or a trip to your local swimming pool, why not even take the plunge

and join a beginner’s exercise class. The first step is always the hardest but once you have

made it you will enjoy a journey of change and development.

A tip for those who enter in at intermediate and advanced ability, consider the body’s

amazing capacity to adapt and overcome stress, when your body adapts to the training the

results stop and don’t progress. To stay ahead change up the programme, try to periodize

your training, set targets and goals to work towards, this adds progressive stages to your

training for example; 1st month movement and cardio, the 2nd hypertrophy (muscle

growth) and the 3rd month strength. Also have a look at completely changing what you are

doing, try circuit training, body weight exercises or intense fitness classes. Keep your

training fresh and your body guessing each month through different training methods and

systems, this will help you push past any plateaus and deliver more results for you.

We are designed to move in a 3 dimensional space so twisting, reaching, running, jumping,

grabbing, falling are what our bodies are designed to do. However, our lifestyles prevent us;

they tie us to office chairs or sofas. The body struggles with the lack of movement resulting

in negative affects with our posture, joints, moods, and energy. We become lazy, lethargic

and often end up unhappy and in pain. Exercise and sport offers a way out through

movement, affecting hormones such as cortisol which play a main role in conditions such as

depression, heart disease, diabetes and weight gain. Movement increases hormones that

make us happy, these hormones help us feel good about ourselves and most importantly

keep us lean and pain free. So you don’t really need the gym to exercise, get yourself out

there with a friend and start playing a sport that you love, be a kid again and start enjoying

it.

Exercise

The subject of nutrition can be deeply complex however the key to a good healthy diet is

very simple. Most diets these days tend to limit from a certain food group which means you

will be lacking in some areas that your body will need. The problem with diets is no

sustainability, dieting does not offer or provide your body with everything it needs such as a

healthy balance of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and macronutrients (protein, fat

and carbohydrates).

So let me explain what this means for the so called fat loss diet. If you starve/deprive your

body of energy or crucial micro/macronutrients, it has a knock on effect throughout the

body. Let us take an example like reducing calorie intake. In the beginning you lose weight

and may feel and look better, which is brilliant right? Not really. Let’s look at why your body

will start burning some fat but you will quickly notice a lack of energy; the body will see this

as a stress and starvation (not good). Your body is a survival mechanism and likes to store

fat for a rainy day as fat is a vital fuel source. Your body has a choice to burn fat or glycogen

(carbohydrates) as energy production, it will always favour glycogen due to how quickly and

readily available they are within your blood, organs and muscles. So by depleting your

calorie intake you will start to burn more muscle tissue as they store vast amounts of

glycogen. Eventually the tissue breaks down and you lose weight..... Not much fat. What

will also happen is your body will be running into a starvation mode as you are not

adequately providing what your body needs and survival becomes top priority (fat storing)

so you become a fat storing machine. So the second you return to normal eating your body

say’s thank you, let’s store as much as possible in case we are starved again, as a result you

put the weight back on, hence, why the majority of people yoyo with their weight.

Now we know what not to do, let me explain how to approach eating with a sustainable

attitude. Firstly, unless supervised by a specialist do not start a diet. Try using a healthy

eating plan which offers a balance of micro and macronutrients. So try having a good mix

on your plate, a piece of meat with a couple of handfuls of vegetables works well. If you

find you are hungry after only a couple of hours then you need to change the balance

slightly. You may need to increase the protein on your plate and decrease the

carbohydrates on your plate or vice versa. Then see how you feel after making this change

and adjust accordingly with each meal you have. Note that vegetables are also

carbohydrates and if you are going to eat starchy carbohydrates such as past, rice and bread

then make sure it is wholemeal. This contains a good source of insoluble fibre which helps

with your digestive system. With plenty of natural micronutrients such as vegetables, salads

and moderate amounts of fruit, these combinations will provide your body with everything

it needs in a healthy balance. So what does that look like on an average day? To start we

need 3 meals and 1 snack each day, the snack can be things such as nuts, seeds, meat and

fruit etc these are very well balanced foods and great for energy. Here is an example day to

be followed by women and men.

Nutrition

Typical Day

Breakfast:

2-3 eggs (ideally pouched or scrambled), mushrooms and 1 apple

Lunch:

Chicken breast with a mixed salad drizzled with homemade dressing or balsamic vinegar

Mid afternoon snack:

Handful of nuts of your choice and 1 pear

Dinner:

Salmon fillets with a couple of handfuls of green veg

Water and Green Tea throughout the day

Drinking is a peculiar topic, most of us love spending time drinking things that are bad for us

but surprisingly dislike drinking fluids that are good for our body and mind. Let us take

alcohol and water as an example, both of these are crucial to weight loss or weight gain,

they are even responsible for our energy, sleep habits, skin condition, organ function, and

even play a role in our motivation.

ALCOHOL

Alcohol is made from Ethanol which is extremely poisonous to our body, once consumed at

any amount it becomes the body’s priority to process the toxins. Think about a hangover

what does it feel like? Horrible right? Nausea, headaches, sickness, diarrhoea craving for salt

and sugar, all symptoms of poisoning. Let me explain how alcohol affects us and at what

cost it comes:

Our liver is an incredible organ it literally saves our lives every time we drink, without it

the Ethanol would accumulate and kill us. This type of safe guard comes at a high price,

the liver scars and sacrifices its self to allow us to live on. This leads to damage, reduced

function and in some severs cases cirrhosis or death.

Here is a common quote “One glass of wine a night helps me relax” correct, alcohol can

relax the muscles of your body through the nervous system which allows us to unwind,

but when we sleep our poor liver has to dispel the toxins. This keeps the body working

when it should be resting and healing, this interrupts our sleep and leaves us feeling

drowsy and tired the next day. Imagine working all day then going home to work all

night then starting work again the next day without rest. This is how organs feel after

consuming alcohol.

Alcohol even in small doses a week such as a couple of glasses of wine inhibits the

body’s ability to break down fat and may even store fat to help deal with the Ethanol.

YES your body can store poisons and toxins in fat to prevent blood poisoning.

WATER

It is everything alcohol isn’t it hydrates the body and every individual cell that makes us who

we are. And just so you know we are roughly 75-80% water so even being the tiniest bit

dehydrated will lead to severe consequences for our health and energy. So here are a few

pointers for the waters fight against dehydration.

Drink

All cells are made up from water and use water for almost all biochemical processes,

without a good supply of water these processes fail or cannot work effectively. Hugely

effecting out health.

Water helps run and maintain your metabolism which burns fat, consume roughly 2-3

litres daily, to help burn fat and increase energy.

Water plays a role in digestion; a lack of water can lead to constipation and lack of

appetite.

It even helps eliminate uric acid through urine which if allowed to build can lead to

kidney stones.

The list goes on for water and its pretty outstanding methods of keeping us fit and healthy.

Just take a break from alcohol for 1 month and see how amazing you can feel. Only drink

water using either bottled or filtered water, watch your body, skin and energy levels

increase leaving you feeling vibrant and ready to take on the day. Avoid cordials and juices.

“Don’t talk to me about stress what do you know about how I feel!” What a great point to be made,

this is because stress is unique to each person and can vary from situation to situation. The first area

we need to consider is what type of stress are you suffering from acute or chronic stress? Acute

stress is perfectly normal and often comes and goes quickly it may not be pleasant, but we tend to

recover and move on rather quickly. The main type of stress we are interested in is chronic stress.

With debts, relationships, work, children, traffic jams, annoying neighbours and a never ending list

we are almost chased by stress everywhere we go. So to beat stress and all its negatives on our

waist line and health we need to understand what stress is and how it affects us. Once you have

identified your type of stress you can then develop strategies to manage the effects.

Stress triggers a number of chemical reactions around the body that stimulates heart rate, blood

flow, respiration and muscular tension to name a few. Basically put, we are placed in an emergency

state which is commonly known as Fight or Flight syndrome. This state prepares the body to either

fight the danger that is coming our way or to run away from it.

Unfortunately our bodies are not intelligent enough to differentiate a sabre tooth tiger chasing us or

being stuck in a ridiculous traffic jam when you’re already 30 minutes late for an important meeting.

However, there is an obvious difference between the two, the threat of the sabre tooth tiger will

have disappeared within a few seconds (Acute stress), therefore the stress hormones (Cortisol)

within the body will recede to normal levels and your body will return back to its natural state, end

of story. This is not so with the traffic jam, firstly you are late, secondly you are stuck in the traffic

for a long time and thirdly you have to then deal with the consequences of being late when you

finally arrive at your destination, thus keeping you in a stressful state for a long period of time.

(Chronic stress)

If we stay in a stressful situation for too long we start entering a catabolic state, which basically

means tissue destroying. Our immune systems are suppressed, sleep patterns are altered, appetite

decreases and sugar cravings increased. Continual exposure will lead to fat storing and an increased

risk to Type 2 diabetes, IBS, depression and Fibromyalgia.

Most of the time we create stress in our thoughts, we tend to imagine terrible and painful outcomes

to situations that haven’t even yet happened. A lot of us focus on negative impacts of a situation

we are in. Try these points in future when faced with stressful situations:

1. Learn from the situation you are in and how you can avoid this in the future

2. Always remember no matter how deep the hole is you are in, look around you, there are always

plenty of ropes to help pull you out

3. Always focus on all the positives of an outcome and learn from the negatives

4. Try to find time for yourself every day. This is a must! If you do this and look after yourself then

you are in a position to look after others.

Stress

It’s 3 pm and you are working at the computer the only thought on your mind is how do I stay

awake? You prowl looking for a snack or warm caffeinated drink to keep you pepped, after this

battle in the afternoon you enter bed tired and drained. Now the opposite battle happens you’re

wide awake, thoughts racing, no matter how hard you try your brain will not shut off. Thoughts of

the day start playing through your mind, shopping lists, events that happened years ago start

replaying. What is going on? You feel tired, the day you had was certainly long and tiring so why

can’t we sleep? Now there’s only 5 hours before the alarm goes again, tic toc, tic toc.

Sleep deprivation is one of the most common problems modern men/women face, because we have

24 hour services, around the clock Tele, artificial lighting illuminating our streets and homes 24

hours a day 365 days a year we cannot seem to escape some form of stimulation.

What is stimulation? For the purposes of sleep and wake cycles it’s a chain of effects leading to the

release of Glucocorticoids such as Cortisol, once there is a release of Cortisol our body begins to

wake up. This is because Coritsol is primary an activity hormone, it’s designed to wake us up, supply

us with energy and in fight or flight situations, gives us the strength to run or fight.

In moderate amounts it’s a wonder hormone however once it becomes chronically elevated for

more than a few days, sleep starts to become an increasing issue. So how can we beat sleepless

nights?

Remember stimulation and stress elevates Cortisol and a rise wakes our body and mind up, this

means we need to eliminate stimulants that encourage this process. So here are 5 top tips that will

get you sleeping like a baby.

1. Unwind 2 hours before bed, avoid tele, news or work related tasks, grab a quite book,

take a nice warm bath or even watch or listen to something that makes you laugh,

laughter will relax your body and allow for the stress of work to be forgotten.

2. Develop a routine with sleep even at the weekends routine is what allows the body to

balance hormones which govern how we feel, according to theory known as the

circadian sleep cycle we need to be asleep by 10.00 pm and then need a full 8 hours

sleep. The time is important; if you change the hour parameters you will struggle to feel

the full benefits of the sleep.

3. Clear your bedroom of any electrical distraction such as teles, ipod, phones etc. The

clearer your bed room the clearer your mind, this allows for a relaxing environment with

nothing else to do but sleep!

4. Avoid high powered or bright lighting before 1-2 hours before bed such as kitchen spot

lights, Teles, phones; these all stimulate the release of Cortisol which we now know will

equal another sleepless night.

5. Whilst setting a sleeping pattern avoid all caffeinated/sugary foods and drinks, the half

life of caffeine lasts up to 12 hours so any drink after 10 am will affect your sleep that

night.

Give these 5 points 2 weeks and you will start to drop off earlier with very little struggle, it takes 3 -4

weeks to develop a new pattern so keep that in mind.

Sleep

You now have a wealth of information on how to live a healthy lifestyle and all the tools you need to

make this happen. Please use this information as a guide in your life and look forward to enjoying

the benefits that come with this.

If you ever get stuck and need some help then please do not hesitate to contact us as we would be

delighted to help you. Our office number is 0151 668 0250 or you can contact us via email

info@elitefitnessconsultants.co.uk we will always get back to you within 24 hours if we are not

available to answer your call immediately.

Healthy Regards

Kane Warren & the Elite Fitness Team

A Final Note

T: 0151 668 0250

E: info@elitefitnessconsultants.co.uk

www.elitefitnessconsultants.co.uk

Elite Fitness Consultants

Wirral Studio

92 Banks Road

West Kirby

Wirral

CH48 0RE

Liverpool Studio

20 Knight Street

Liverpool

L1 9DS

© Elite Fitness Consultants Ltd 2012

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system or

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