Dave’s Energy Boosts 18-22

The latest “Energy boosts”. Enjoy the read and try to action out at least one boost this week

  No.18

DO SINGLE LEGGED DEADLIFTS

The countless times I hear people say “my balance is terrible!” but many of our everyday movements are single legged. Walking, running, going up and down stairs. They all require some degree of balance.

Balance will plateau though if not targeted. The single legged deadlift is one of the best exercise I know to improve balance and all round leg conditioning.

-It improves balance

-It’s the perfect rehap exercise for lower body injuries

-Tones up the core muscles

- It develops and kicks into action our lazy glutes (our bums)

What does Dave think? ‘

I was shocked how difficult the movement was initially. Not only that but my glutes were so sore! Ive moved on from body weight and now use dumbbells to further the adaptation.

See how many you can do in a row!

  No.19

TRY A PROTEIN SHAKE

Protein shakes seem unnatural. When have you seen these magical “get me mega buff” concoctions? Normally in the hands of teenagers with the huge chest and arms but the tinny “sparrow legs”. With poor posture they slump over their brightly coloured protein fix. Enough to put anyone off.

There are many forms of protein shake ranging from hemp to pea protein. However the best in my opinion is whey. Whey is a byproduct of cheese-making.

It comes in isolate, concentrate and hydrolysate. In short isolate is the best choice, as it’s the purest form of protein. In terms of nutrient density concentrate or hydrolysate could be the winner but remember I have one goal here: protein.

WARNING: If you are going to use protein shakes please go for the unflavoured versions. The best I have come across is from “myprotein.com”. (select unflavoured). They use a cold, cross-flow micro-filtration. The cows the protein derives from are not treated with hormones, and are fed as far as possible from grass.

Many protein shakes contain dangerous sweeteners such as sucralose and aspartame which wreck havoc on the body over time.

What does Dave think?

YOU DON’T NEED SHAKES IF YOU HAVE A GOOD DIET and your happy with how your nutrition lines up with your goals…for me I struggle to put/keep muscle on and am finding I am verging on eating unhealthly amounts of foods just to get the fuel on board! With a protein shake I can get a 25g portion of protein without trying to stomach 3 pints of milk. I can get the protein on at a crucial time, directly after a workout to optimize recovery. I generally mix the powder with yoghurt as its unflavoured.

If you would like further details/ discount info on protein shakes please get in touch.
  No.20

LEARN TO SAY NO

We should aim to love others and live sacrificial lives. BUT sometimes the most loving thing to say is “NO”.

There is a disease called “people pleasing” it fights for our attention and if we let it will drive us to burn out.

Learn to prioritize your tasks in terms of importance and urgency, these tasks need to be derived from your goals. Simply put don’t say YES to everything! Otherwise you will end up being spread too thin, spinning too many plates that will  sooner or later come crashing down.

What does Dave think?

We all have a tendency to be inward looking and driven by selfish ambition, but the answer isnt to say yes to everyone and everything that comes our way, that will lead to burn out or us becoming resentful… the answer is to focus on doing a few things really well, to give and to serve out of a place of strength.

Do you need to revaluate how you spend your time? What your live goals are? When to say yes and no to others?
  No.21

EAT LEMONS

Even though they are slightly acidic outside the body they have a pH alkaline state once consumed. It is vital to maintain a slightly positive alkaline state to get our body firing at 100%.

Lemons boosts the immune system, detoxes the body (cleansing the kidneys and digestive system), remove toxins from the blood.

What does Dave think?

LOVE LEMONS! I have the juice of half – a whole lemon per day with yoghurt. Remember if you are having lemon juice with hot water, ensure the water is drinking temperature first, any hotter and it will kill off the vitamin C.

  No.22

SOAK YOUR NUTS, GRAINS, LEGUMES!

Living things generally do not want to be consumed by other living things.

I feel sorry for plants as they are passive organisms..unable to defend themselves. They want their seeds to stay whole in order for their plant race to survive and bring about world domination. (sorry that was over the top)

BUT they have a clever survival strategy, so the seeds will survive until the proper growing conditions are present. They have toxic anti-nutrients, lectins, gluten, and phytates. (Generally we eat fruit whole and poop out the seeds, so the fruit is happy with how this works).

We are mimicking nature when we soak these foods…tricking them. If eaten untreated though, they are very hard to digest and cause negative effects on our digestive system, but treating them makes the nutrients more available for our bodies and breaks down many of the harmful “anti-nutrients.”

What does Dave think?

I don’t eat many grains apart from porridge. I soak a big batch of oats overnight in water, adding a teaspoon of yogurt and a pinch of salt to help the breakdown. Generally the only nuts I eat are Brazil nuts and almonds. With the Brazil nuts I soak them in yogurt overnight (with the rest of my breakfast) and with the almonds I have this as a nut butter.

Anyone going to start soaking?

Please remember to contact me, Dave Wall if you are interested in personal training in the Dorchester area or if you would like to trial an exercise / fitness class. Increase fat loss, strength and functional fitness to get you moving better and feeling better.

DW Personal Trainer

Dorchester personal trainer - Dave Wall - www.dorchesterpersonaltraining.co.uk