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honestly fitness

Fitness

Girls, please lift weights

April 9, 2014

I feel as if most girls are allergic just to the idea of lifting weights.

“No, I just stick to cardio.” “Are you kidding, the weight room is full of guys!” “Mmm, but my legs will get bulky, right?”

I am sure many of you have heard this before (or have said this), and honestly the only one I kind of get is the second comment. Because yeah, most weight rooms are full of guys, but don’t let this put you off. Sure they may stare at you, but that’s just because it is a rarity to see a girl lifting weights. If anything, take a friend with you so it won’t be as intimidating or ask one of the personal trainers at your gym to teach you a few exercises.

Lifting weights will not make you bulky, UNLESS you are eating a diet which will not aid in fat loss. I used to think I was getting bulky from lifting weights but in reality, it was because I still had some extra fat. So because I was not losing any fat, I looked bigger because there was muscle AND fat. Although I still have some excess fat I currently want to lose (it is a long process ..) when I first starting lifting weights and following an eating plan that aided in fat loss, I saw a big change in my body. Cardio will only take you so far. Cardio can help you lose fat but lifting weights (or just resistance exercises in general such as using resistance bands or TRX) will help shape and firm your ‘problem area’s.’

There are also certain area’s of the body that you just will not be able to tone up unless you use weights. Case in point: the back. My body has this lovely (sarcasm people) tendency to store fat in my back (it’s disgusting) and I only started to see improvement in this area when I started using weights to strengthen and tone my back. It’s pretty exhilarating actually to see my progress, and how I am able to use heavier and heavier weights .. and a more defined back!

So please ladies, rethink your approach to weight and fat loss. Cardio is an important factor but not the ONLY factor. What you eat also plays a role, and using weights will help shape your body. Plus food for thought – a lot of yogi’s will train using weights to help them do advanced balancing exercises which require a great deal of upper body, core and lower body strength. And I do not know about you, but I have never seen a ‘bulky’ yogi.

What are some of your favorite exercises? Mine are currently cable back rows and doing sit ups on a bench with a 10 pound weight 🙂

Honestly yours,
Alice xxx

P.S. The gorgeous lady in the features image is Juennifer, and she lifts weights 😉

Sunday Summary, Uncategorized

Sunday Summary: Kayla Itsines Week 5

March 30, 2014
Kayla Itsines Week 5

Hey everyone!

What a whirlwind spring break week this has been! I had work from Tuesday-Thursday so it really was not much of a break lol. My lovely friend Shivvy who I have known since high school has come to visit me for just under two weeks, so we have been doing lots of fun and tourist-y things. This is her first visit to America so of course we have been sampling all the food. Surprisingly we actually ate quite well save for tonight when we ordered loads at a Japanese restaurant in Lodi, CA called Haru Sushi.

San Francisco (and California in general, but particularly the bay area) is such a fun place to visit! It is great having a friend visit because it forces me to do tourist-y things that I normally wouldn’t do. On Friday, we went to Haight-Ashbury and spent hours shopping and had some lunch at the Citrus Club. They specialize in Asian food and noodles, and attempt to us less oil  by substituting it with citrus. You MUST go to Haight-Ashbury if you want a good shopping experience – they have a lot of unique boutique shops and thrift shops. I found the black shirt I am wearing in a few photo’s below for only $8!!

We then went to explore Buena Vista park and took some photo’s.

Kayla Itsines Week 5

After that we ventured to Chinatown. I think Chinatown is awesome but OMG the traffic is horrendous, and I swear that the steepest hills in SF are on the way to Chinatown!!! I wish we had just walked from the BART (bay area rapid transit – train basically) but eh, it was worth it in the end. We got some really delicious boba (this is milk tea with tapioca pearls) from Cool Tea Bar. Naaaht healthy haha, but I asked for 50% less sugar so at least you can customize them a little.

Kayla Itsines Week 5

Saturday was gross and rainy so let’s just skip that recap haha. This morning we went to the beach; we oohed and aahed at all the sweet dogs and puppies that were also at the beach, and just had fun walking around in general. Naturally I had to show off my yoga skills hehe. Ick, I really need a tan …

Kayla Itsines Week 5

Kayla Itsines Week 5

Kayla Itsines Week 5

Kayla Itsines Week 5

Kayla Itsines Week 5

I finished week 5 of Kayla Itsine’s bikini body guide, woo hoo! This week set of workouts are definitely more advanced in nature, particularly the arm workouts. I absolutely loved it, although I am not loving the amount of cardio. We have to quite a bit more cardio but oh well .. it is so worth it. I am seeing improvement in my legs and my abs look more toned 🙂 The only thing I wish it would focus more on is the back. I have some really gross fat on my back and although I KNOW YOU CAN’T SPOT REDUCE, it would be nice to have workouts that focused on the back.

I hope you have all had a great week everyone! Please let me know what type of posts you would like to see, or if you have any questions; I would love to hear what they are 🙂

Honestly yours,
Alice

Friday Fare, Health

Friday Fare – Sugar free and refined sugar free muffins

March 28, 2014

As promised, here is the recipe for the sugar free muffins I posted about on Sunday Summary two weeks ago!

Sugar free and refined sugar free muffins

sugar-free-muffins-recipe

I am going to share two versions of these muffins with you. The difference between them is that one is purely sugar-free (as it contains sugar-free honey made of xylitol) and the other is refined sugar free (and contains honey). Both are healthy and delicious, but I realize that sugar-free honey is not easy to come by which is why I am offering two versions.

This recipe was taught to me by my boyfriend’s aunt who is on a strict sugar-free diet to help battle her candida. These muffins are surprisingly fluffy and moist, and very very delicious. You can’t stop at just one, but the beauty of these muffins are that they contain a healthy mix of protein and fats with no sugar or no refined sugar! The sugar-free version is great for those with sugar issues, such as diabetics, and provide a sweet treat without blasting up your blood sugar levels. The refined sugar-free version contain sugar from honey (I use raw honey), and while this is still sugar, it does not undergo mass levels of refinement that most commercial sugars go through.

Although sugar is good for you (save a few who have medical issues with it) and IS necessary for the body to function, I try and limit the amount of ADDED sugar I ingest. And sweet treats tend to have a LOT of unnecessary added sugar which will cause you to gain weight in the long run and could lead to longer term health problems. This article is a great read if you want to know more about how excess sugar can negatively affect you.  Like excess ANYTHING though, too much of it will lead to weight gain and you putting on fat.

Therefore, I like to share yummy sweet things which have natural sugar-free alternatives or sugars that have not been refined. I would prefer you to stick to natural sugars if possible as we still do not know the long-term side effects of sweeteners, but liquid stevia is a good sugar-free choice.

Okay, informational talk and slight rant over!

Sugar-free & Refined Sugar-free Muffins

Alice Williams
Incredibly moist sugar-free and refined sugar-free muffins to satisfy your sweet tooth.
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Ingredients
  

Ingredients for the sugar free muffin are

  • 4 eggs
  • 1 and a half cups of almond flour
  • 1/3 cup ground flax seed you can make this by buying flax seed and throwing it in the food processor for a minute or longer
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup almond milk
  • 15 drops of liquid stevia
  • 1/4 cup sugar-free honey
  • 6 tablespoons cinnamon or pumpkin spice
  • OPTIONAL: 2 tablespoons olive oil I prefer it without to be honest

Ingredients for the refined sugar free muffin are

  • 4 eggs
  • 1 and a half cups of almond flour
  • 1/3 cup ground flax seed
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup almond milk
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 6 tablespoons cinnamon or pumpkin spice
  • OPTIONAL: 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions
 

  • 1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees farenheit and get a muffin tin or some muffin/cupcake holders ready.
  • 2. Whisk the eggs in a bowl and then add and mix in the rest of your ingredients
  • 3. Pour the mixture into your tin or holders and then put into the oven for 13 minutes.
Sugar free and refined sugar free muffins

Voila! Easy, fluffy and delicious sugar-free or refined sugar-free muffins!! Enjoy with some sugar-free jam on top, honey, some berry compote, with coconut whipped cream or any way you choose. If you make them, tag me in your photo and hashtag it #fridayfare so I can find you 🙂

Hope you enjoyed this post and I look forward to seeing your recreations!

Honestly yours,
Alice