Such a great group of ladies.
I had the most amazing time in Florida. I held two seminars. One was a women's only and the other was co ed. the co ed seminar had 6 other black belts on the mat. Is is so amazing to see the open minded progressive guys, coming along to these events and supporting women in the sport. Thank you Katrina for putting this all together.
The ladies had me sign their flyers!!!
The co ed seminar
For those who don't know me, I am a mum of two. I have a 3 and a 5 year old. With the right exercise and diet anything is possible. My next 5 Day Challenge starts on MOnday November 7th. I will be releasing 5 videos that guide you on safe and effective ways to workout for fat loss, toning up and for fitness. https://www.facebook.com/groups/248316812183450/ .I am looking forward to the workouts challenge next week and I will be available for guidance along the way. Add your name to the group and add your friends too!!!
We all know that eating pizza are bad and eating apples are good right? Aside from the calorie content, the foods we eat have a hormonal effect on our bodies and will program our bodies to either burn our fuel for energy or to store it.
Some of you may be familiar with the glycemic index. It is a value given to carbohydrates based at the rate at which they are broken down by the body and released into the bloodstream as glucose. If you eat carbohydrates that have a high glycemic index they are broken down rapidly by the body and cause a spike in blood sugar levels. Your body responds with a surge of insulin to lower the blood sugar levels and it shuttles the excess glucose to be stored. That is why when you eat a lot of processed high carb meals such as pasta, bread, cakes etc it is a recipe for weight gain because hormonally your body is geared to store, store and store!!!
Don't get me wrong, I am all for carbohydrates. As athlete we need carbs for energy to train but it is they TYPE of carbs you choose as well as other food you eat in combination with the carbs. Opt for unprocessed grains like quinoa and other ancient grains as well as fruits and fruits and veggies. The glycemic index of carbs can be altered with the addition of proteins and fats. It is best to eat a balanced diet by consuming healthy carbs, protein, fat and together at every meal which allow your body to better utilize all you are eating for energy rather than programming your body to store.
A balanced meals with carbs, protein and fats
Here is an example of an idea meals with a balance of carbs (corn, beans and greens), protein (chicken) and fat (avocado and olive oil dressing).
Siesta Key beach, relaxing after yoga & BJJ
I started these 'Lifestyle Camps' so that hard working ladies who bust their butts in the workforce, being mothers and basically juggling it all could have an experience where they were looked after and could get a much needed break. I wanted these camps to be an opportunity for BJJ ladies to stop and to just focus entirely on themselves and to connect with other amazing, like minded women.
So far this year all my Lifestyle Camps have been so much fun and I would like to expand these camps to be able to provide this opportunity for more women and make it a time that you gals will never forget. The next camp I am working on is set to be held on February 13th - 17th in Siesta Key, Sarasota Florida - which quite seriously is magical. We will all be staying at 2 mansions minutes walk from the beach, doing jiu jitsu every day and shaking off the Winter blues. I know that after a few months of the cold weather, heading to Florida to hang at the beach and enjoy the sunshine will be paradise.
The focus of this camp will be geared a little more towards overall lifestyle hence the camp will also include:
- BJJ sessions
- Yoga session
- Meditation sessions.
- On site masseuses.
- Showbags with cool BJJ gear and discount coupons.
- All meals provided and from my nutrition e book.
The camp will also be packed with loads of other additional activities.
SPECIAL GUEST BLACK BELT:
I am arranging a special guest female black belt instructor to teach alongside me.
WARRIOR WITHIN WORKSHOPS:
I have a special guest who will be conducting a 'Warrior Within' Workshop that is especially useful for those who need some more confidence in themselves on their training journey or who are competing.
NUTRITION SEMINAR
I will also be hosting a nutrition seminar to help shed some light about about healthy eating, safe weight cutting and eating for performance.
EXTRA ACTIVITIES AT THE BEACH:
I believe there is the option to go do some watersports at the beach also. Stay tuned for details.
I am opening up this camp to 20- 30 ladies. If you think this is something that interests you, please send me a quick email to sophia@sophiafit.com. I will be offering a DISCOUNT for those who register early. From the feedback I have received already, this might sell out fast, so please email if you want to be a part of this!
One of the houses at Siesta Key. waterfront pool view.
I have been working with my editor on my workout videos for my 5 day challenge which starts in a little over 2 weeks. I am really excited! Here are a few snap shots of my 'Butt Blast' workout. The 5 workouts that I am sharing in the group all have a different focus so each workout is unique and overall, at the end of the gives a great full body workout. Join the Facebook group if you haven't yet and add your girlfriend's names also.
FOr those peeps in or hear Idaho I will teaching a couple of seminars on November 11 & 12. The seminar on the 11th, a Friday evening will be for the ladies only and the co ed seminar will be held on the Saturday morning. If you are interested in attending please contact jacinth. Her details are on the flyer.
Work out this way to burn fat and get fit more effectively
In a previous newsletter I talked about how slow long distance jogging does not get you lean. Slow jogging and other slow or moderate, even paced cardio exercise puts your body in an efficient mode where it is in the aerobic zone. When you body is working aerobically it is using fat for energy BUT but it is burning the fat slowly. As uncomfortable as running may be for some of you, your body is actually operating quite efficiently.... which means it is burning calories at slow rate.. regardless if it is burning fat.
If you really want to shed fat then you have to put yourself out of the comfort zone and shock your body a little. Switching from anaerobic to aerobic and back to anaerobic with bursts of intensity is the way to go. It forces your body to use both energy systems and keeps it guessing. Basically this is NOT efficient for your body so in the long run, it burn more calories AND set up metabolic pathways for your body to burn fat well after the session is over. Intervals of high intensity causes your body to release human growth hormone (especially in women) and testosterone. Both hormones are very powerful agents for lipolysis (breakdown of fats for energy) and hypertrophy (building muscle.)
So if you want to have a leaner body with more muscle tone, skip the slow steady cardio and opt for some interval training with sprints. If you are doing weights, switch things up into a circuit and move from one exercise to the next. Throw in some burpees and some jump squats. These bursts of high intensity exercises will shock your body and help you burn fat and build firm muscle far more effectively that slow jogging ever will. In addition, by adding burst of high intensity to your workouts you can reduce the workout time dramatically. For those who are time poor you can get a great and effective workout in in as little as 15 minutes and still see changes.
Feel free to add your details here to recieve my next newsletter with more health fitness and nutrition tips. https://sophiadrysdale.squarespace.com/subscribe/
Water is essential for weight loss.
Water is the essence of life. Every living thing needs water to survive, right down to every cell in all plants and animals. Our bodies are made up of nearly 75% water and in order to thrive, we must supply all the cells in our bodies with adequate water so these tiny magical building blocks that make up our bodies can carry out all their biological processes and this included utilizing our food for energy.
Check out this article I wiore for Whole Life Challenge which explain why chronic dehydration might be making you fat.
https://www.wholelifechallenge.com/how-chronic-dehydration-can-make-you-fat-tired-and-weak/
