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One of my work colleagues started going to the gym about six months ago with the aim to go three times a week. They were not ashamed to admit that they needed to lose a few pounds. During the first month my work colleague was very upbeat and I could see that they were really enjoying going to the gym. During the second month they were still fairly buoyant but they did mention to me that they weren’t losing any weight, but they were prepared to continue with their fitness program. When it came to the third month they were not very enthusiastic at all and were contemplating not continuing with the fitness program as they had not lost any weight and had actually increased their waist and chest size. I asked them what their fitness program consisted of and they informed me that it mainly involved lifting heavy weights. I asked them if they used any cardiovascular or endurance equipment and I was shocked to hear that they only used the rowing machine for 10 minutes once a week. I advised them to speak to one of the fitness instructors at the gym to see if they can put together a fitness program for them. A few days later my colleague informed me that the fitness instructor had advised them the training program that they had been following was completely wrong for what they were trying to achieve. They were increasing their muscle size but not burning off any fat.
My work colleague is now following a fitness program written by the fitness instructor. About ten percent of the program is lifting heavy weights and the rest is cardiovascular and endurance work. They have been following this program for about two months now and their approach is much more positive and already there is a noticeable difference in their appearance.
From this my advice would be to consult a fitness instructor if you are unsure or unhappy with your fitness program.

I was doing my usual fitness program at the gym yesterday and whilst I was on the treadmill I looked at the conveyor passing by below my feet and thought if the ground is moving beneath me and I’m not really making the effort to push to it behind me then this really isn’t like running at all. I realised that it is more like jumping on the spot. I’m sure that it burns a good amount of calories but no where near as much as I could burn if I was outside jogging around a park. There is little resistance when running on a treadmill and increasing the incline is the only way to justify using one.
I spent another fifteen minutes or so jogging on an incline and then decided to move on to a piece of equipment that provides more resistance.
I now use the likes of a cross trainer and step machine much more often as they are more effective in helping me burn off calories. Any running I now do is outside around a park or around the countryside.

It is very easy to forget about your diet at the weekends. Because I eat healthy food during the week I thought I should treat myself at the weekends and choose to eat whatever food I wish. During a weekend I would quite easily eat my way through a couple of fully cooked breakfasts, a few pizza’s, a greasy burger from a fast food restaurant, a portion of fish and chips, plenty of sweets and chocolate, and perhaps even a greasy kebab after a good number of alcoholic drinks on the Saturday evening! I soon learnt that all my hard work during the week was being completed wasted by me eating lots of junk food at the weekend. I was advised by a nutritionist that if I want to achieve my dietary goals then my eating habits at the weekend need to change and be more in keeping with my week day eating pattern.
I still have the occasional treat at the weekends but I make sure I am much more strict with what I choose to eat and try to keep to my diet program for the full week rather than just week days.

Determination is not one of my strong points which is why most of my diets often go downhill, but last summer I had a mission. I was a bridesmaid at my brother’s wedding. When I had my dress fitting the women at the bridal shop warned me that if I chose to order the small dress that I couldn’t put on any weight – especially my hips! This petrified me – it was February and the wedding wasn’t until August! But come the end of June I had put on weight, mostly due to a dislocated shoulder preventing me from going to the gym for the whole of May and most of June. However with 5 weeks to go I got down to some serious gym sessions and kick started my diet. And it worked. I was the lightest I have been for about 3 years at the wedding the dress fitted perfectly. However this year I’m fretting – I have no goal! So instead I have a picture of myself at my slimmest, this seems to be helping – so the corny catchphrase goes – I’m thinking thin to be thin!
Remember often the small goals and achievements can help you lose weight and keep it off – if your weight goals are too big and unrealistic you will almost certainly not be able to obtain them. Do it in little bits.

Food diaries are a great way of keeping track of your calorie and food intake for the day / week / month. It really helps me when I am trying to eat a healthier. It is surprising all the things you forget you eat – a biscuit here, a handful of crisps there, but unfortunately it all adds up in the long run. I write all the ‘bad’ things in red, and thankfully this technique works on me as I really don’t like writing down the ‘bad’ things so I try not to eat them! No one sees my food diary but just the thought of someone seeing how much I munch on each day makes me cringe so it seems to keep me on track and sticking to me diet.

Often the boredom of diets can really get you down. I often find that I am thinking about food in between meals I torture myself with the thought of all the ‘bad’ food that I can’t eat. So I have found some healthy snacks that make dieting a bit easier.
•    Plain low fat yoghurt – with honey or fresh fruit (blueberries are great for energy)
•    Rich Tea biscuits (for one snack you can have 2 biscuits)
•    Jaffa Cakes (for one snack you can have 2 biscuits)
•    An apple with a slice of low fat cheese
•    Maltloaf (for one snack you can have 1 slice)
•    Toast (for one snack you can have 1 small slice of wholemeal bread with low fat cheese spread/reduced sugar jam or a slice of turkey/ham)
•    Fruit scones (for one snack you can have 1 scone)

I try to have only one or two snacks a day – usually in between lunch and dinner and as supper after dinner.

Cutting out your fizzy drinks can be a great to help out your diet. There 139 calories in one can of coca cola alone!! That is an incredible 7% of your daily calorie intake and an even more incredible 39% of your daily sugar intake. Shocking! Admittedly Coca Cola is the worst of the fizzy drink culprits, diet coke being only 1% of your daily calorie allowance but they are all full of sugars and sweetners. Cutting out this one thing or even cutting down to one a day can really help. Fizzy drinks are very much ‘empty’ calories and are making bad all the hard work you do in the diet and gym. My advice is replace with something like lime cordial and soda water, you still have the sweetness and fizziness but with much less calories. Then slowly but surely this can also be eradicated  from your daily diet.

February is the time of year that really tests the New Year’s resolution of dieting and more exercise. My own personal way round this difficult period is to try new classes at the gym or start going to a dance class. It is just a small trick in order to get through the boredom of the gym 3 times a week. Maybe try classes at your gym also. Most gyms have circuit classes, aerobic and step classes and these can be a great to break up your weeks workouts. I suggest if you find you are boring of your workout routine then go back to your gym instructor and explain that you are finding it a bit monotonous and they will happily change it for you. It is also a good idea to get this changed on a regular basis to keep the body guessing. If you do the same workout every time you go to the gym then your body will get used to it and you will find that weight loss will slow down!

It has always been a fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and it’s so true! Eating breakfast will give your metabolism a kick start and will fill you with energy to keep hunger locked up till lunch time!

Being full up will also stop you from snacking during the day and will mean that you don’t over face yourself at lunch time with a sandwich ten times the size of one you would normally have.

If you like cereal, make sure you go with the low fat options and if you are still hungry, fill up on fresh fruit. You don’t need to lay off a good English breakfast either, just make sure you grill everything rather than fry it and maybe go for a quick walk afterwards.

When you are dieting, trying to stay motivated can prove quite difficult. When you get in from work, the last thing you want to do is go to the gym for a grueling 2 hour workout, sitting on the sofa watching TV seems a lot more appealing.

There are a number of ways to help you stay motivated and will help you to avoid being tempted by high fat foods.

• If you are heading out to a party where you know there will be snacks galore, eat something before you go! A bowl of cereal with semi skimmed milk is a much better idea than a big bowl of nuts or crisps.
• Drink plenty of water. This should help fill your stomach and keep hunger locked up that little bit longer.
• Chewing sugar free gum will help stop you snacking. if your feeling tempted by that bar of chocolate, opt for the gum instead!
• Keep the fatty foods locked away in the cupboard. That gorgeous looking Dairy Milk is better out of site, out of mind!