Fitness & health routine

Apart from make up and fashion, one other area that I’m interested in is fitness and health. I wouldn’t say that I am a gym bunny or a health freak. I simply like taking care of myself. One reason why is because it makes me feel good to work out regularly and eat healthy foods. This doesn’t mean I’m a stick, nor do I mean to say I never eat junk. I have plenty of curves (also in places where I wouldn’t want them to be) and as you could read last week, one of my guilty pleasures is to pig out on tubs of B&J. Now, I’m no expert on health and fitness. I’m not a dietician, a doctor, or a fitness expert. I just feel that after a few years of trying different things, I have found what works for me. And I thought I would share with you what it is that I do to stay fit and healthy, since summer is on its way and every one is trying to fit into their bikinis again.

A typical breakfast

For me there are two main fields that I use to achieve and maintain my fitness and health: food & exercise. So I will discuss both areas below.

Food

Let’s start with food, or diet if you like, as that is a topic that I have written about before. I am a bit against calling what I eat a diet, because it sounds so temporary. Diets only work if you stick to them. They are never a quick fix that you do for a while and then go back to your old ways. That, I believe, simply doesn’t exist. So the first thing I try to do is to maintain a varied, semi-low carb, wheat free diet. I wrote about going low carb and wheat free before and have since decided that I should try to find a middle ground between the two. I need carbs to maintain my exercise routine and I do find that wheat free carbs are better for me than regular ones, so when I eat starchy foods I will from now on make them wheat free.

Here’s a rough overview of what I eat on a regular work day:

Breakfast: Yoghurt with different toppings, i.e. fruit, flax seeds, nuts, dried fruit, dark chocolate sprinkles, popped amaranth, oats

Lunch: Salad with at least 3 different veggies, cheese and/or nuts, meat, fish or eggs. If I have more veggies I leave out the meat or fish. I sometimes add (dried) fruit as well. If I’m working from home I’ll have a protein smoothie to go with the salad. Or I just make a big one and have it for lunch.

Afternoon snacks: fruit (salad) or rice cakes

Dinner: veggies & eggs, meat or fish. Sometimes includes pasta or rice (roughly twice a week). I dislike potatoes so I eat them as little as I can. I only eat pasta or rice twice a week as eating more of it upsets my stomach.

Evening snacks: cheese, popcorn, assorted nuts, a scoop of peanut butter.

Drinks: water, (green) tea.

I change things up a bit on weekends. I tend to get up later, especially on Sundays so I tend to skip lunch then. Brunch then usually consists of eggs, be it fried or boiled, with bacon or ham, cheese or nutritional yeast. If I do have a separate lunch I tend to have bread. Especially on Saturdays. Dinners are usually a bit of a last minute thing for me during weekends. I sometimes cook something, but I also throw something together with whatever is left in the fridge. I also allow myself to have some ‘bad food’ during the weekend, if I haven’t had any yet during the week.

I try to make sure the food I eat is as fresh and natural as possible. I read a lot of labels, buy organic products where I can, especially dairy, and make my meals from scratch. My starchy foods are all wheat free as of last month and the only other carbs I really eat are from fruits and veggies. I add fiber to my daily intake by adding flaxseeds to my breakfast and a hemp protein powder to my shakes.

A typical lunch time protein shake

Exercise

Eating right only gets you halfway there. You can eat all the healthy food in the world, but if you don’t exercise regularly you’re fighting a lost battle. You don’t need to go to a gym to get and stay in shape, but since going to classes to work out is such a given for me, I prefer doing that. I go to the gym three times a week, then I have dance class once a week and I also try to squeeze in one or two rounds of exercises at home. The latter totally depends on my schedule. Here’s what my weekly work out routine looks like.

Monday: Body Balance at the gym. A 50 minute, low impact class based on Tai Chi, Yoga and Pilates exercises to build balance, strength and flexibility.

Tuesday: A yoga work out through youtube videos or my Tara Stiles workout DVDs. I also tend to add some abs and push ups if I feel like it. Or just do the latter if I don’t have much time. Something is better than nothing. Time: 15 – 30 minutes, sometimes I can squeeze in 60. If I don’t have to work on Tuesdays I go to the gym to take a Body Combat class.

Wednesday: Intermediate jazz/ show/ musical class at the dance school. 75 minute class including a 20 minute warm up (for technique, flexibility and balance), 20 minutes across the floor (technique: turns, kicks, leaps), 35 minutes of choreography (for cardio and applying all the techniques covered earlier in the class).

Thursday: day of rest or a home work out as described on Tuesday. It completely depends on how I feel that day.

Friday: Spinning class at the gym. A 50 minute, highly intense cardio work out that also trains your leg muscles like crazy. This class always has me wonder why I take it until half way through, then I’ll have worked through the pain and I simply go.

Saturday: Body Combat class at the gym. A 50 minute intense cardio work out based on the movements from different martial arts and boxing. It involves a lot of punching into thin air and doing kicks, while sweating buckets.

Sunday: Nothing yet, but my gym is changing their schedule so something might change here in the near future. Not sure whether I like the class yet, nor whether I’ll actually be able to get up before 10 AM on a Sunday. Sunday’s is for sleeping in and PJ day.

Classes at the gym as well as dance class, all involve some round of abs/ core training. Some are more intense than others. If I can’t make it to a class I sometimes go 2 hours on Saturdays to still get the work out I usually get and I also dance quite a bit at home. I tend to practice turns, freestyle to my favorite songs or try to work my way through routines I’ve learned in the past.

As you might have noticed, being fit & healthy doesn’t come easily. It requires diligence and perseverance and it’s sometimes hard work, especially if you’re having a bad day. The important thing is to keep going, despite what people think or say. I work out 4 – 6 times a week and am no size 0. I always get questions and remarks on why I eat what I eat. As challenging as that can be, I wouldn’t want it any other way. Eating what I eat and exercising regularly helps me feel good. I function better because the exercise is a major stress relief and the food gives me energy and prevents me from getting stomachaches. It literally keeps me sane.

What is your fitness & health routine?