Operation Alpha

A rough estimate of how many calories I've burned just while walking since Monday morning.

So, here's a little test for you:

How many calories do you need to be in a deficit by to burn 1 Pound Of Fat in a week?

A light dumbbell between the feet to add extra resistance to a 'Windscreen Wiper' (rotational movement of the legs to train the oblique muscles) 🔥

Adroitly demonstrated here by our Silver Fox, Mr. Paul Allen!

A lot of you know that I've been on my own body transformation journey since last November.

I've lost 18 kilograms since then and 26cm from my no-longer-pendulous-belly.

Most of this has happened over the last 5 and half months during which time I've been especially focused with my nutrition.

I've basically been dieting that whole time - tracking calories and macros and consistently in a calorie-deficit.

Dieting for that long is psychologically hard and, truthfully, probably not appropriate for the majority of people.

It's better to have shorter 'phases' followed by 'maintenance phases' where you basically cruise at your current weight until it's appropriate to hit it hard again with the fat-loss.

(Playing the long-game)

Nonetheless, for me, it's worked, mainly because I regularly assess my mood and ability to keep going.

However, a couple of weeks ago I was starting to feel a little mentally 'fried' so made a decision to have a 'diet-break' for 10 days before getting back on it.

Despite some nerves that I'd not be able to slot back into the structure that's taken me so far (probably stemming from a deeper-rooted fear of becoming fat again tbh) it's worked a charm.

Much like a great holiday I felt completely rejuvenated. Mentally and physically rebooted and up for another phase of fatloss which I've been back on since last Sunday.

(As an aside, the physical response has been nuts - in the last 3 weeks I've gained a full 5 kilos and then lost it again!)

The point (aside from maybe being of general interest) is that taking strategic breaks from dieting can be extremely beneficial.

If you feel like you have a long way to get to your ideal body-type it's easy to want to muscle through, non-stop until you get there.

Problem is, that's an awful lot of pressure to put on yourself for one, and probably unrealistic too.

My suggestion is to take a different approach - be patient and regularly check-in with how you're feeling; mentally and physically.

Be completely honest with yourself - neither talking yourself into stopping for poor reasons nor denying the warning signs of impending burn-out and undoing of your hard-work.

Either way, scheduling in time-off from structured dieting (perhaps after getting expert on advice on when and how to implement it) will keep your brain-battery charged and therefore your physical results progressing.

And that's surely the outcome you're looking for.

Coach Don

All about that street LYFE

[Summer Hols over - time to get back to focusing on your training and diet]

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👉 Comment below if you're ready to do this!

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Pinch, punch, it's only the 1st September!

Which means it's exactly 13 Weeks until the start of December AKA when Silly/Indulgence Season kicks-off

(With ALL of the drinking and ALL of the eating that comes with it)

13 Weeks...

- Long enough to make some GREAT improvements to your health and your physique!

- A GREAT time-frame to enable you to arrive at that first Chrimbo-Party rocking your Little Black Dress/Whatever-the-male-equivalent-is

(little black trousers?!)

So, now the kids are getting back to school and your beach-holiday is done (if you were lucky enough to have one) let's all get back on track.

Last week, I asked you to form a new (and very manageable) habit per day.

These were:

Day 1 - Go for a 10 minute walk
Day 2 - Eat a piece of fruit
Day 3 - Drink 1.5 litres of water
Day 4 - Go to bed on time
Day 5 - Have protein with 3 meals

So today, all I want you to do is check-in and reconnect with all 5 of these habits.

If you can get to the end of today having nailed them all, that'd be an OUTSTANDING outcome imo

(And you can do it - I believe in you)

Right, so who's game?

Coach Don

Reverse Crunches using a heavy kettlebell to 'anchor' with

Beaut of an exercise for targeting the lower-abs 🔥

45 grammes Protein Pow Mix
15 grammes Crunchy Peanut Butter
10 grammes Honey

Splash of water

Mix

Delicious 😋

Another Outdoor Saturday Session monstered 💪

[Go To Bed On Time]

Yes, that's right; today I'm your Dad.

All I want you to add to the habits you've been creating this week is make sure you go to bed on time tonight.

And by that I mean AT LEAST 7 (preferably 8) hours before you have to get up.

That's it.

You can do that, right?

So, to recap, here's what you'll be doing today:

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10 Minute Walk + Eat A Piece Of Fruit + Drink 1.5L Water + Go To Bed On Time
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Who's with me?

Coach Don

[Drink 1.5 litres of Water]

So today, I want you to work on staying hydrated by drinking at least 1.5 litres of water.

That's all - as always, a very manageable target!

We'll add this to the goals from Day 1 and Day 2. So, today is:

{=> 10 Minute Walk + Piece Of Fruit + 1.5L Water