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Posts tagged “dorset

Christmas training advent calender: 5th Dec 2011, Day 4

Oh my god, its only day 5!!! I hear you say…

Well don’t you worry, time is on our side there’s plenty of time left before xmas to fit in loads more sessions.

Here is today’s session, a mix of body weight and cardio. Remember don’t be going all soft on me….MAN UP and work hard.

Ok here goes:

Warm up: 5 – 10mins running and get moving well.

(work on your upper and lower body mobility today, especially pay attention to your hip flexors and hamstrings as they will get a drilling, and i expect you’ve been sitting down a fair amount as its first day back in the office so they’ll be all tight)

Main section:

Five rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters

30 mountain climbers

15 Pull-ups

Please post your time below in comments.

Boring disclaimer part.

Here at RE:Born we advise everyone before entering a new exercise programme to get a full health assessment and sign off by the GP, reborn also accept no responsibility of anyone suffering from injury, illness or shear stupidity to hurt themselves with these basic exercises)


Christmas training advent calender: 3rd Dec 2011, Day 2

Brrr…..its cold but its great to run in, so….

Get outside and enjoy!!

OK everyone its day two (of many).

Today its simple running, yes RUNNING, don’t be jogging on me now….jogging is so 1980’s.

All you need is some running shoes (barefoot style please Vibram fivefingers would be best), shorts, a hoody, a bottle of water, an iPod and a true belief that you can run and you can run fast.

Today’s workout:

Warm up: 5 – 10 minutes, taking it easy  (run, skip, stair climb come on you know what to do to get warm!!)

Pre-stretch: give your quads, hamstring and calves a good old going over.

Main session :

4 x 400m (as fast as you possibly can……)

Rest for 1 minute between each 400m.

RUN Forest RUN!!!

Post workout deep stretch: Hold the following stretches for 90 seconds each.

Hamstrings, Glutes, Quads, Hip flexors, and calves.

……and now breath deeply and head home,

giving yourself a massive pat on the back for training hard today. oh yeah, good time now to grab a recovery drink.

Please post your time below in comments.

Boring disclaimer part.

Here at RE:Born we advise everyone before entering a new exercise programme to get a full health assessment and sign off by the GP, reborn also accept no responsibility of anyone suffering from injury, illness or shear stupidity to hurt themselves with these basic exercises)


Alkaline or Acid, what PH is your body and does it really matter?

Well i guess many of you reading this, answer the above with a “Don’t know” answer, and I’m not surprised by this as many of us have know idea what is going on in our bodies, let alone know whether our body is Alkaline or Acid.

And frankly, do you know whether it matters or not to be Alkaline or Acid.

This is why i have put together this post to hopefully get across why it is essential for us to check out bodies PH levels.

Why acid – alkaline balance?

Please watch this video first:

Your body must stay alkaline for optimal health, energy and mental clarity. In order to do this your body has to eliminate the by-products of the normal processes of respiration, digestion and energy production, which are all acid. Your body has to work to ensure that it remains in this state of alkalinity.

Therefore in turn we will be able to automatically increase our energy levels, and as a by-product of this your body will become more energized and burn more Kcals!!

If you can detoxify and alkalize effectively, your body will also be able to absorb more oxygen!!

“An alkaline body can absorb up to 20 times more oxygen than an acidic body.” says Dr Otto Warburg, Nobel Prize Winner. He also found that diseased bodies are acidic bodies, which repel oxygen and attract the overgrowth of microorganisms.
As your body becomes acidic, your body’s oxygen levels begin to drop, leaving you too acidic and then you will begin to see the results that this stress causes in health-related symptoms including:

  • Fatigue
  • Poor digestion
  • Weight gain
  • Aches and pains in muscles and joints
  • Excess mucous production causing nasal and sinus congestion
  • Lowered immunity resulting in more frequent colds and flu
  • Increased anxiety and irritability

If you already have certain health conditions this acidity can increase inflammation and the degeneration of soft tissues and bone, which in turn causes further damage. Particularly affected is your body’s ability to build bone. Bone is sacrificed to keep your body alkaline (generally at a pH of higher than 7.2) and this means that you lose vital minerals, not just calcium but other minerals, which make up the structure of bone. If this is happening to your bones what effect might it be having on all your vital organs?

What causes your system to become acid?

Here are some of the most acid-forming foods:

  • A diet rich in processed foods, high in sugar and salt
  • Red meat
  • Chocolate
  • Coffee
  • Wheat, white flour
  • Biscuits and cakes
  • Pasta
  • Cheese
  • Homogenised Milk
  • Ice Cream
  • Soft Drinks
  • Beer

Which foods will encourage your system to become alkaline?

Here are some of the most alkaline-forming foods:

  • Lemons (these are acid on the tongue but become alkaline)alkaline foods
  • Watermelon
  • Limes
  • Grapefruit
  • Mangoes
  • Papayas
  • Asparagus
  • Onions
  • Vegetable juices
  • Parsley
  • Raw spinach
  • Broccoli
  • Garlic
  • Olive oil
  • Herb teas
  • Lemon water

These are at the extremes of the acid-forming and alkaline-forming scales, so between the two there are degrees of each.

If you can include in your diet 250 gms of raw green leafy vegetables per day – say a generous salad with both lunch and dinner – then you will be changing your diet to be much more alkaline. You can, of course, do much more by eating more fruit and vegetables in general, and possibly including a green supplement like Green life, at great tasting GREEN drink.

What else can I do to help balance my body?

Drink good quality water

“Water, water everywhere nor any drop to drink” says the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner. He was talking about seawater but in our world the quality of the water you drink and the quantity are vital to maintaining alkalinity through correct hydration, efficient elimination and mineral uptake.

Our advice at RE:Born Wellness is to certainly not drink tap water if you can avoid it. Drink at least two litres from a Mini Ioniser water filter to which you can add alkaline salts to is a good recommendation for daily consumption.

Organic food

Your body will become acidic if it is lacking in minerals. Most of us are mineral deficient as, in our modern world, fresh food is grown using chemical fertilizers which produce large glossy looking fruit and vegetables but which are mineral deficient – as the plants have taken up those fertilizers and not the minerals in the soil. So if you can, buy organic, or at least fruit and vegetables which have not been grown with those artificial fertilizers. Growing your own is, of course, an even better option. Not only do you know what you put into the soil, and hence your mouth, but you can pick and eat it immediately.

What to do next….

Our fully qualified trainers at RE:Born all have an in-depth knowledge of nutrition and how food can be your best medicine, so do come down to the RE:Born studio and they will be able to help you decide on your best strategies to develop a more Alkaline and healthier lifestyle.


The essential 6 steps to a better looking, feeling and performing body.


If you want to change the way you look, feel and perform then health is your first priority.

Following these detailed but simple steps will change you for the rest of your life. Don’t leave it to late!

“This is not just living better…This is a “Power Living” regime that will both transform your health, looks AND make your life so much more exciting and energizing.”

Andy: RE:Born client, Bournemouth

6 steps to success!!

1)    Detoxify and Alkalize

2)    Get your nutrition right

3)    Supplement to combat the toxic environment

4)    Get a training plan from a Personal trainer, who you trust and has the knowledge to help you achieve, then start to FEEL results.

5)    Change the program constantly with your trainer and KEEP training so that you start to SEE results.

6)    MAINTAIN all that hard work and live a much healthy, energized and exciting life!!!

Step 1

Detoxify and alkalize:

First please let us understand that the ENERGY which is creating by the body is dependent upon the complex system of cellular respiration that is dependent on oxygen availability. If we understand this then doesn’t it make perfect sense to increase the body’s cellular oxygenation?

Therefore in turn we will be able to automatically increase our energy levels, and as a by-product of this your body will become more energized and burn more Kcals!!

If you can detoxify and alkalize effectively, your body will be able to absorb more oxygen!!

“An alkaline body can absorb up to 20 times more oxygen than an acidic body.” says Dr Otto Warburg, Nobel Prize Winner. He also found that diseased bodies are acidic bodies, which repel oxygen and attract the overgrowth of microorganisms.
As your body becomes acidic, your body’s oxygen levels begin to drop, leaving you tired and fatigued. This is what allows fungus, mould, parasites, bad bacteria and viral infections to flourish and gain a hold throughout the body.

The biggest causes of acidity in the human organism are as follows:

Negative thinking
• Relationship and financial stress
• Tap water, tea, coffee and alcohol
• High animal protein diet
• Dairy foods (including those rubbish whey and casein drinks!)
• Processed sugar (especially carbonated drinks)
• Processed foods
• Cooked food
• Pharmaceutical drugs
• anaerobic exercise

This pretty much covers 99 % of people’s diets. To increase alkalinity in the body, you need the following:

• Positive thinking
• Happy relationship
• Drink alkalized water
• Adopt a 80% raw food diet
• Adopt a 80% alkaline diet e.g. vegetables, fruits
• Get the right dose of sunshine
• Aerobic exercise

At a pH slightly above 7.4 cancer cells become dormant and at pH 8.5 cancer cells will die while healthy cells will live.
Oxygen cannot stick to blood cells if the pH of the blood is too acidic. You can breathe pure oxygen, but if the blood pH is acidic, the oxygen will not be able to be picked up by the blood cells. It is chemically impossible.

Therefore in summary if we understand this then doesn’t it make perfect sense to detoxify and become more alkaline??

Step 2

Balance your Nutritional intake: start building better blood and cells.

“It all starts with what goes in your mouth!

Nutrition is the foundation in changing the way your body moves, feels, performs and looks. With bad nutrition you will create poor biological cells and poor performing hormones therefore giving you little chance of achieving your goals. Keep your intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.” James Rufus

Eat like our ancestors taught us to, not as the supermarkets direct us to. Try to eat a variety of foods, keeping as close to nature as possible. Stay away from anything packaged, canned, starchy (potatoes, pasta, rice etc unless you want your blood sugar levels going through the roof, making you produce more insulin and store fat) or freezed dried…etc

Making the change is a conscious effort, and only you can make for yourself.

Follow a diet that is balanced and based around a 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein and 30% fat. (but make sure you get your carbohydrates from vegetables and fruit).

or make it simple to the eye, 1/3 of your plate protein, 2/3 of your plate carbs and a dash of good fats (see below). this will allow you to control your insulin (storage hormone) from your carbs and the Glucagon (release hormone) from your proteins which stimulates the liver to release stored carbohydrates from its glycogen stores.

Barbara Cox, CEO and Nutritionalist for NUTRICHEF gives us these amazing top 10 tips!

1: Variety is the Spice of Life

Eating a wide variety of healthy food is essential for good health, so it’s no coincidence that the Japanese (who have the longest life expectancy) eat as many as 100 different foods per week compared to only around 30 for people in the UK. Why is variety so important? The answer is simple: we are complex creatures that have count-less processes going on inside us each and every day, and each of these processes requires a variety of different raw materials, which has to come from our food. Hence the saying, ‘You are what you eat’.

2: Love Your Fruit & Veg.

Fruit and vegetables are not only a great weight loss food and provider of fibre, they are easily the most important kind of food because they provide us with the greatest variety of nutrients.

3: Fish for Nutrients

They’re a great low-fat alternative to red meat and they’re a great source of essential fatty acids (EFA’s), especially omega-3, which are necessary for good brain health, for your cardiovascular system and for fighting illness. Oily fish such as mackerel, salmon, tuna and sardines are particularly good for providing EFA’s and also as a source of vitamin D, a very important disease-fighting antioxidant. Fish is also a good source of calcium.

4: Lose the Wheat and Starch

The problem with wheat is that its constituent protein – gluten – is difficult to digest, which can cause people considerable digestive problems and is also linked to depression.

5: Lose the Dairy

Did you grow up with the marketing slogan ‘Drink a pint of milk a day’? It really worked because millions of us took it as gospel that we couldn’t live a healthy life without dairy. What about calcium? Where do we get it if we don’t consume dairy products? By eating green vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, asparagus and peas. Also by eating fish, nuts and seeds. Try dairy-free ‘milk’ made with oats, quinoa or rice.

6: Take Pride in Your Protein

Good quality protein is essential for growth and repair of cells. So we steer clear of fatty protein, choosing to use fish, lean cuts of lamb and chicken, nuts, seeds and beans.

7: Avoid Artificial Additives & Preservatives! 

We believe strongly that manufacturers who use artificial colours or sweeteners such as aspartame are risking the health of their customers by expecting their bodies to process chemicals that are not naturally found in food. By and large if you don’t recognize it by name then don’t eat it!

8: Not All Fats are Bad

Good fats like omega-3 and omega-6. These are known as essential fatty acids (EFA’s) because we need them in our diet due to the fact that our bodies can’t actually make them. Omega-3 fatty acids in the oils from cold water fish such as mackerel, tuna, salmon, herring and sardines. Omega-6 fatty acids are found in cooking oils such as olive oil, sunflower oil and rapeseed oil.

9: Mind Your Salt & Sugar

The problem with salt is that it raises blood pressure, increasing the likelihood of stroke and heart disease. Sugar acts differently because it is loaded with calories, which, if they aren’t burned off during the day, have to be stored away into fat cells, resulting in weight gain.

10: Seasonal, Local, Organic

Although not always possible in practice, strive to use locally produced, organic ingredients that are in season. Seasonal ingredients are considered best because they are bound to be fresher and, therefore, their nutrient content will be at their maximum levels.

Step 3

Supplement your life to combat the toxic environment we live in.

We live in a toxic world, where our food, water and environment are all polluted by toxic chemicals such as: PCBs, Parabens, Fertilisers, heavy metals (such as lead and arsenic), Pesticides, Nitrates/Nitrites, Fluoride, Oestrogen / Hormones, Cryptosporidium, Chlorine,, Sulphates, Aspartame / Neotame in most diet drinks, Other Artificial Sweeteners Olestra / Olean, Monosodium Glutamate (MSG, hydrolyzed proteins) found in take away chinese etc, Preservatives / Additives, Genetically-Engineered Foods (Many Non-Organic Foods), Non-Organic Foods (Pesticides, Contaminated Sewage Sludge, Hormones), Dairy Foods / rBGH, Alcoholic Beverages (beer, wine), Allergy-Producing Foods, Microwave Oven Cooking, mercury, palladium, Cigarette Smoking / Second-Hand Smoke, household cleaners, personal care products etc, the list goes on and we can’t get away from it all.

Ideally we need to move anyway from the products in the list above, go organic and drink water from a reverse osmosis, mineralising water filter. However for some of us this is not going to happen.

Therefore we must consider supplementing our diets to make sure we combat these toxins. There are a few essential supplements we suggest you look at very seriously:

(Before starting on a supplement plan, we suggest that you book in for a full health appraisal prior to ascertain what areas your body is lacking)

(More detailed blogs will come soon regarding the profound positive effects of the list below)

Alkalizing Salts: Disease thrives in acidity. Health thrives in alkalinity. Neutralise the toxic acidity in your body and re-oxygenate the body up to 20% more.

Vitamin C: Gives your heart and arteries the essential nutrients they need to support repair and regeneration and to fight degenerative disease.

Omega 3s and especially: Heart / Brain Oil:  (see omega 3, blog)

Iodine and selenium and Tyrosine; these are powerful thyroid boosters that help maintain a healthy thyroid, boost the metabolism and raising energy levels.

A Probiotic:  helping to support healthy digestive and immune systems particularly those affected by their hectic lifestyle.

A Green drink:  Get one now!! Choose wisely, you want a powerhouse of natural greens: watercress, spinach, broccoli and kale. This is a phenomenal blend of health-promoting green vegetables for long-term health, energy and vitality.

An Antioxidant drink: A super fruit blend of juicy acai berries, blueberries and blackberries, would be great so its bursting with essential antioxidants to give your body a great defence against damaging free radicals.

A Growth hormone precursor:

A Mix of L – Arginine, L – Glutamine, L – Glycine, Potassium Ascorbate, B6, B12 & Folic acid and Niacin.

Why you ask? Well the good news is that your body must always product some minimal level of HGH or you would not be able to function. The bad news is that as you get past about 20 years old, your body produces less and less HGH each year. By age 60 you will probably have lost 75% of the HGH that your body produced.

If you are a numbers person, here are some average HGH secretion levels:

  • At 20 years old we average 500 micrograms/day
  • At 40 years old we average 200 micrograms/day
  • At 80 years old we average 25 micrograms/day

Human growth hormone and IGF-1 have been shown to play a significant role in:

  • Conversion of body fat to muscle mass
  • Growth of all tissues
  • Energy level
  • Tissue repair
  • Whole body healing
  • Cell replacement
  • Bone strength
  • Brain function
  • Sexual function
  • Organ health and integrity
  • Enzyme production
  • Integrity of hair, nails, skin and vital organs

Basically, anything that goes on in your body is in some way tied to HGH. This is why HGH is often called the “fountain of youth”. Elevated HGH levels are what make you feel young again.

You may see this list as overkill, and state that you can get these essential nutrient from your diet, which I would agree with, IF and it’s a big IF you were eating organic, fresh and varied nutrients everyday, without using household cleaners, personal care products and drinking tap water etc. Unfortunately very few of us can actually achieve this!!

So supplementing should be seriously considered.

Steps 4,5 and 6:

Exercising and de-stressing:

Although the next 3 stages are all similar I hope you’ll read through and understand why I have broken them down into 3 separate stages.

A quick note beforehand we start to talk about the stages is that we must try to rid ourselves of stresses before we take on any exercise.

When you are mentally stressed and you keep trying to push your body physically during workouts (which is therefore applying more stress to your body), the straw that can break the camel’s back will eventually happen (please read drop a dress size re. Cortisol levels).

 “Don’t train unless you can gain.”

This means that unless you can give 100% to your training session, you are wasting your time.
Remember this: you either get better or worse, you never stay the same. If this session is not going to make you better, then you need more rest and you should go for a massage, swim or walk along the beach, get fresh air and sunlight. I do anything to de-stress. Then when you arrive at your next session, you can then truly give it 100% and stimulate a result.
If you are going to be able to give 100% to the training session and get the results you deserve for your efforts, you must make sure you work at reducing stress in your life and improve your health.

In regards to the exercising, your plan should consist of the following elements:

(please make sure you book in with a qualified trainer and get signed off by your GP before entering any exercise regime)

Cardiovascular: Bike, run, swim, row, etc,

Make sure it’s done at a high intensity and do it for short periods of time, but do that multiple times. This will cause your body to adapt and change, making you fitter and leaner. NO more running for hours on that treadmill. Hooray I hear you say.

Resistance work: yes weights!!

Adding weights to your session will increase your metabolism, burn more calories, tone or build your muscles and make you look great. Make sure your weights work includes big lifts, such as squats, deadlifts, clean & jerks and bench presses to name just a few. Make sure you have a trainer to help you here.

Gymnastics: no not running round in a leotard,

But using your bodyweight as resistance, like press-ups, pulls ups, sit ups and maybe even a handstand. Making sure your body can move, lift and hold its own weight will make your daily life much easier.

To sum it up, get a personalized exercise programme from a personal trainer, it should be done 3 – 4 days per week, it needs to be constantly varied, and done at a high intensity including some functional exercises (exercises that mimic what you do in your daily life), cardiovascular work and gymnastic elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow.

This variety of exercise will not only sculpt the body that you desire, but make you ready for anything that life throws at you.

Remember routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense.

Step 4

Getting through the first few days of pain, with little change in body shape.

The first 1-30 Days, starting to FEEL different!
During the first 30 days you will notice your cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance & strength rapidly increase as your body adapts from an untrained state. This is especially the case if you haven’t exercised regularly in a while.

If improving flexibility was one of your primary goals and you have been working on it, expect it to slowly improve. While you will feel like you have more energy and are getting in shape, your body composition is likely not to significantly change in the first month of training because your body adapts neurologically first.

Step 5

Staying focused and motivated, with the help of others and a great plan.

The next 30-60 Days, starting to SEE change!
During the second month of training you will continue to make improvements in your cardiovascular endurance as well as muscular strength and endurance gains. Although the gains won’t be as rapid as the first month, your personal trainer should be adjusting your program to avoid plateau and keep making progress.

During the second month of training you can expect your body composition to slowly begin to improve provided you have been eating correctly and doing the prescribed exercise during the training sessions and on your own time. Your flexibility will slowly improve as long as you keep working on it by stretching the specific muscles you want to become more flexible.

Step 6

Maintaining the workload and achieving your desired result.

90+ Days onwards, change is here, now to MAINTAIN!
If you maintain your regular exercise with a personal trainer and exercise on your own time you can expect your body composition to continually improve.

From 90 days and beyond improving your fitness assessment results for muscular strength & endurance as well as cardiovascular endurance will gradually become more difficult as you are in a trained state.

If you have been working on flexibility you will start making noticeable progress. Your muscles will feel less tense and you will increase your range of motion about your joints.

The Most Important Thing to Consider: Persistence Pays Off

Achieving results in a fitness program will never be an overnight process. If you are exercising with a personal trainer, putting in exercise on your own time and attempting to eat right, results will come in time.

Basic Results Timeline

  • In the first 30 days of training you will FEEL the difference.
  • In the 2nd 30 Days of training you will be able to SEE the difference.
  • For 60 days and beyond of training your colleagues, family & friends will see the difference. A good time to call up a friend who you haven’t seen in a while!! See what they say about you!

So there we are people, 6 steps to achieving the body, life and performance you desire.

1)    Detoxify and Alkalize

2)    Get your nutrition right

3)    Supplement to combat the toxic environment

4)    Get a training plan from a Personal trainer and start to FEEL results.

5)    Change your program with your trainer and KEEP training and start to SEE results.

6)    MAINTAIN all that hard work and live a much healthy, energized and exciting life!!!

Please feel free to contact RE:Born Wellness on info@rebornpt.co.uk or call 01202 671783 for more information or to book in for our full health appraisal and programming.