How to boost your metabolism

Want a faster metabolism? You need to ensure your digestive system gets the right nutrients.

Digestion and metabolism are not one and the same, but they certainly need to work together for optimal workout benefits. Digestion involves the breaking down of food and distributing nutrients throughout the body while at the same time getting rid of the any waste.

Metabolism is when your body uses the energy and nutrients from the digestion process to aid workouts and also to process food in everyday life.

For your metabolism to work properly, the digestive system needs to be feeding it the right nutrients for exercise. Likewise, if your metabolism isn't so great, the digestive system ends up storing excess calories as fat, so both need to be working in tandem for your body to completely benefit. After only 10 minutes of exercise, your bloodstream contains more metabolites than when you started, and consistent exercise stimulates long-term changes in metabolism.

What to eat

During weight training, the digestive system competes with the muscles for all that blood flow that's occurring during a workout. Whichever one has the heavier load wins this epic showdown, so it's important to have a specific eating schedule that favours your muscles since they need the blood supply a lot more than the digestive system (he is a bit greedy it seems).

Melbourne-based PT and elite athlete Sheena-Lauren Steinert recommends watching what you eat pre-workout.

"My number-one rule before working out is to have something in your belly.

"An active body is a raging fire and food is like its coal. If there is no coal, your body will use what it has, which can sometimes mean hard-earned muscle from your last workout!"

While some science says carbs pre-workout increase workout intensity and duration, offsetting any fat burn impediment, Steinert advises clients to skip them pre-workout. Small meals high in protein and low in carbs encourage the body to use its own fat stores for fuel, she says.

Exercise that support digestion

Along with diet, workouts that strengthen abdominal muscles support optimal digestive organ function. Try a yoga exercise, surya namaskar, to increase heart rate and strengthen your core.

Do a set of 12 Surya Namaskar poses early to mid-morning. Poses such as Hastauttanasana (raised arms pose), Hasta Padasana (hand to foot pose) and Bhujangasana (cobra pose) benefit the stomach muscles and posture.

For diet, Steinert says great pre-workout foods include scrambled eggs (three egg whites and one egg yolk, diced tomato and onion), half a banana with one tablespoon of peanut butter (100 per cent roasted peanuts), or a protein shake made with water.

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7 ways to boost your self-esteem

Do you have low self-esteem? Learn how to boost your confidence with these simple tips.

Your self image is tied to what you feel others think of you. It is also influenced by your personality and whether you're an introvert or extrovert, as well as the standards you set yourself; for example, whether you're a perfectionist, a high achiever or whether you are laid back and tend to roll with the punches and are not easily stressed or fazed.

If you have low self-esteem, you come home from a party and worry that you spoke too much or said something stupid. At the heart of this is a deep-seated fear that somehow you don't measure up or that people see your failings and think less of you.

Tips

1. Cut back on social media: Stop checking how many friends or followers people have. Don't believe the hype. Remind yourself that what people post is based on the image they want to portray, but may be faked or embellished.

2. Treat yourself like a friend: Are you always hassling yourself for not being gorgeous, smart or motivated enough? "I ask women, would you put down your daughter, best friend or mother in this way? Of course not – so it's obviously not okay to say these things to yourself," says Sydney psychologist Jacqui Manning. "In the long term, critical self-talk can destroy self-respect and damage your self-image."

3. Motivate the right way: Work out or lose weight to invest in a healthier, longer life, not because you hate your body. (Have you seen our Raw Fitspo page? That's a good place to start)

4. Pat yourself on the back. Do this when you finish that report at work, donate clothes to charity or stay on a health kick for the week. It will help bolster your self-esteem.

 

5. Accept compliments: Say 'thank you' and avoid putting yourself down.

6. Think beautiful: Walk, talk and relate as though you're that latest 'it' girl or you're channelling Audrey Hepburn, and that's how you will feel and appear.

7. Do a personal self-audit: Write a list of at least 10 things that you value and appreciate about yourself. Ask a friend and your partner to write a list of 10 things they love about you and write a list for them. Finally, write a list of the things you don't like about yourself and re-frame them in a more positive way, e.g. 'I am shy but that makes me a good listener.'

"When you notice your talents and abilities, over time you will come to realise that you have all the qualities that you admire so much in other people and that the only problem has been your inability to celebrate your own strengths and attributes," Manning says. 

NEXY:

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VIDEO: Bikini Butt Blasting Workout

Want a bikini body? Amanda Furguson demonstrates this butt-blasting workout.

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VIDEO: Detox smoothie recipe

Planning to detox? Try this healthy smoothie recipe from Katie Jean. Watch our demo before you start.

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What is leaky gut?

 

You think you have leaky gut because you’re bloated, gassy, achy and crampy. We ask three doctors to define this 'grey area of medicine'.

What is leaky gut?

Leaky gut is still a grey area of medicine. The term has become popular in the last 10 or 20 years to explain how gut substances literally leak into the bloodstream.  

Western medicine says

A complete digestive stool analysis and a urine test can check for leaky gut, says Prof Kotsirilos. “There are some studies to suggest that these [gut substances] can cause symptoms of inflammation in the body as the compounds enter the blood, building up in other tissues of the body, and are then released into the urine, causing a leaky gut syndrome.”

Complementary medicine says

“It’s a funny term because, really, it’s a medical scientific term that some Western naturopaths and trained doctors have latched on to,” says Dr Hunter. Complementary medicine practitioners may test for similar diagnoses but they won’t label it leaky gut.

Integrative medicine says

Dr Dodsworth says a full patient history is taken, including dietary intake, digestive function, past history of antibiotic use, traveller’s diarrhoea, autoimmune conditions, known food intolerances, current and recent stress levels, regular or intermittent medication, herbal and nutritional supplement use and family medical history.

“Investigations might include Immunoglobulin G (IgG) or Immunoglobulin A (IgA) food intolerance testing, gut microbiome analysis, complete digestive stool analysis, intestinal permeability testing, nutrient level assessment and autoimmune disease testing,” she says.

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Skin problem: moisture loss

 

Moisture loss is a one-way ticket to wrinklestown. Don’t believe us? Next time you’re dehydrated – after a night on the prosecco or endurance event – look in the mirror at your décolletage.

Here’s betting it’s wrinkled. The same effect applies to skin on your face, which can look years older within hours.

“Moisture loss does not directly accelerate skin ageing, but it will accentuate the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, making a person appear older,” says Dr Hunt. The good bit is that you can wind back the visual clock just as quickly by replenishing your body’s fluid stores. As for moisturisers, they’re hit and miss.

How does it happen?

Dr Hunt explains how ageing skin loses moisture.

1. As we age, a reduction in function of the skin’s glands results in lower levels of natural lipids.

2. Levels of ceramide (a compound naturally occurring in skin’s outer layer) also wane as we age, affecting the layer’s water-binding capacity. Skin’s permeability is also damaged, making it more susceptible to injury from chemical substances and less able to recover. Nutshell: damaged skin incurs even more moisture loss than healthy skin.

3. Dehydrated skin disrupts normal skin function, resulting in skin cells that do not shed normally and build up at the surface, appearing rough and dull. Moisture also maintains the elasticity of the stratum corneum (the top layer of skin cells) and once it dries out, the skin becomes tight and susceptible to cracks or splits.

How to avoid moisture loss

Environment: “UV sun radiation damages the top layer of skin and disrupts the skin’s ability to make its own natural moisturising factors,” says Dr Hunt. Other deleterious conditions for moisture include low humidity, air conditioning and heaters, long hot showers and wind.

Lifestyle: It makes sense – keeping your body quenched on the inside is going to show on the out. “Stay well hydrated and avoid excess alcohol, coffee and tea, all of which dehydrate the body and skin,” says Dr Hunt.

Product: A good moisturiser speaks a thousand skin-saving words according to Dr Hunt. A good one will have three characteristics – an occlusive component, a humectant, and emollient properties. “The occlusive component (e.g. lanolin or mineral oil) forms a protective film on the surface of the skin. The humectant (e.g. glycerin, hyaluronic acid) attracts water from the deeper layers of the skin and ‘holds’ them at the surface. The emollient (e.g. isopropyl isosterate, jojoba oil) fills the crevices between shedding skin cells, resulting in a smooth, soft texture.”

Skin treatment: Professional skin treatments concentrate on removing a lot of dead skin cell build-up in order to allow moisture to penetrate. “Alpha hydroxy acid can exfoliate dead skin cells but also to aid moisture,” says Dr Hunt.

Fillers: For a two-in-one, injectable hyaluronic acid-based fillers smooth lines and improve moisture levels. “Hyaluronic acid has the ability to attract and hold several times its weight in water and when used in injectable fillers it has been shown to increase skin hydration levels,” says Dr Hunt.

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What to eat after a heavy workout

So how much should we eat after a heavy workout? We ask the experts to give us the low-down on recovery fuel.

As the sweat starts to subside, the post-gym munchies start to set in. Within 30 to 60 minutes post workout is the optimum time to eat a recovery snack, and it's important that you do it right.

"Adequate refuelling after exercise is important to replenish glycogen stores and to allow muscles to repair, recover and adapt to the exercise that you have just done," says sports dietitian Margaret Mielczarek (fuelrightnutrition.com.au).

"But you don't have to refuel after every exercise session; any training of low-moderate intensity that lasts for up to 60 minutes may not need any additional nutrition, and resuming normal eating will be generally enough to refuel."

What to eat after heavy training sessions

When training for longer periods and at higher intensities, 'food first' after training is a priority. "Enjoy a snack or meal that consists of protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates," says Mielczarek. Logic would have us believe that post-workout grub would vastly differ between training types, but in reality our bodies hold our macronutrients in fairly equal stead when it comes to recovery and refuelling.

"Pre- and post-workout snacking doesn't vary that much...we generally recommend about 15 to 25 grams of protein and one gram of carbs per kilogram of body weight after a heavy training session – our bodies don't use any more than 25 grams of protein in recovery and any extra will typically get stored as body weight."

The importance of protein

The role of protein in this instance is to repair exercise-induced muscle damage, which prevents muscle soreness and encourages hypertrophy. Breaking down this protein into amino acids the body can use takes energy, so by co-ingesting protein and carbohydrates you are guaranteeing you'll get the most out of both. It also shouldn't be assumed that exercises like weights training, although they are low intensity from a VO2 point of view, don't require carbohydrate replenishment too.

According to research published by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, a multiple-set bout of resistance training exercise caused a 25 to 45 per cent drop in muscle glycogen, and a single 30-second sprint resulted in a 27 per cent drop. Fats should factor into recovery as part of a macronutrient balanced diet, but as they take longer to metabolise (slowing the digestion of your post-workout fuel), they aren't suitable for recovery where fairly rapid absorption is ideal.

NEXT: The importance of active recovery

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Brandie Chamley – May 2015 BodyBlitz winner

Mum of two Brandie Chamley had battled with her health for long enough. Read her amazing weight loss success story!

 

Doing the BodyBlitz challenge has literally changed my life and I am so proud of what I have done and what I can now do. The last year had been a really hard one for me. After the birth of my second child, I was 97 kilograms, anaemic, prediabetic and on medication for high blood pressure. I was diagnosed with post-natal depression. Physically and emotionally I was not healthy at all and in a bad way. I wanted to be fit and healthy and happy and start my 30th year positive. Seeing other transformations really inspired me to do this.

Adopting healthy eating and exercise habits wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be! I have young children so I had to be really organised with when I could exercise and I actually looked forward to that time where I was alone. Eating healthy, I was really strict about as I was so determined to get myself off medications and get healthy that I didn’t find that too hard. Eating foods I really liked made it easy.

I feel unbelievable compared to how I was before. It’s amazing just how much exercise can lift my mood and is now vital to my wellbeing. Sometimes knowing I can work out later is what gets me through the crazy times with my young children. Health wise I am no longer anaemic or prediabetic and I have been able to cut down on my blood pressure medication by a third, which is great. Most importantly I am no longer suffering from postnatal depression. I have had my 30th birthday and it was such a joy to be able to say that I am happy and healthy and definitely on my way to getting fit.

Being emotionally and physically better has made a difference as a mum and wife. I love all the fun things we are doing as a family as opposed to the months where I couldn’t get out of bed and couldn’t do anything. My children and husband are my world and being healthy, eating the right foods and exercising is definitely the key for our happiness.

On overcoming challenges:
There were a few hurdles I had to overcome, mainly my fear of leaving my house, so the thought of joining a gym caused me such anxiety. With the help of my beautiful cousin – who offered to be my training buddy – we found Alice, a personal trainer with her own studio so we could have private sessions together.

She worked us hard, introduced so many new ways for me to focus on my fitness that I never have to join a gym and can work out with what I have from the comfort of my home. We did circuit training, Tabata sessions and pool workouts, among other things, that I have enjoyed more than I would have ever thought. As my confidence grew, Alice invited me along to her Zumba classes, which I loved and actually looked forward to each week.

On workout motivation:
My children and husband kept me motivated. They are my world. I knew I wanted to get myself better for them. They deserve a mother who wasn’t depressed and unhealthy. They were so supportive and my biggest fan club. With the help of my husband, we set up our own touch football team with my family members and although we never won a game, it was fun to get together on Monday nights and exercise together. This is something I couldn’t have imagined doing previously as I was too scared to try anything out of my comfort zone, but feeling the benefits not only mentally and physically of exercise, I really enjoyed all the workouts I could do.

WHAT I DID:
Monday: Touch football
Tuesday: 40 minutes of cardio (walk or cross trainer), weights: arms and abs
Wednesday: One-hour Zumba class, weights: legs
Thursday: One-hour personal training session
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 40 minutes cross trainer, 20-minute Tabata workout
Sunday: 40 minutes cardio, weights: abs, arms and back

On food swaps:
As soon as anyone says diet to me, I automatically start craving bad foods. So I made a conscious effort not to tell myself I was on a diet; instead I was making an effort to eat more fruits and vegetables that I have always struggled to eat enough of. Because I was prediabetic and have high blood pressure, I was pretty strict with salt intake and keeping my sugar levels okay. I found if I ate regularly and only kept good food choices in my house for everyone, I couldn’t go wrong. It was when we went out that I had to think about what to eat, especially as it seemed like everyone had a birthday or a function or party during the challenge that we had to attend. It got easier to stay away from the food table, distracting myself with the children. I always took lots of water to fill me up and sometimes I took my own meal, which wasn’t such a big deal considering I take my children’s food when we go out anyway.

WHAT I ATE:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and a piece of rye bread
Lunch: ½ cup brown rice, lean red meat, green vegetables, cottage cheese
Dinner: Chicken breast and salad
Snacks: Almonds, protein shake, lots of fruit

On treats:
I turned 30 during the challenge, so we went out for dinner and I had birthday cake for a treat. I had bought a new outfit and I felt really good in it, so that was good motivation not to overindulge! When I started to lose weight and needed new clothes, wearing a new outfit that made me feel confident also made it a lot easier to say no to certain foods. I didn’t have cheat meals; even if we were out somewhere I would always get the healthiest option I could.

On measurements:
Before the challenge, I had gradually been losing weight – 30 kilograms down just by using the MyFitnessPal app, but I was still so unhappy. My 30th birthday was getting closer and I was determined that the BodyBlitz challenge was exactly what I needed to get back to the healthy me I had been a long time ago! I was so shocked to see the difference between my before and after measurements and on weeks when the scales hadn’t moved, those measurements got me through knowing I was on the right path.

On goals:
It’s still my goal to get off my blood pressure medication completely, but I am currently training for the Kokoda Challenge 15km. I have never done anything like this before; however, I am really looking forward to it. It is going to be a big challenge for me but I know it will be worth it! I am also continuing to have personal training sessions and working out from my house. Now I’m looking at starting boxing classes, which is exciting. I would love to continue building my strength and work towards firming up my tummy and getting that six-pack. I am determined to work for it.

 

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