I kept asking him if he wanted to play on the swings but he said ‘no’. Too busy.

He would spend ages lining up the ball and really zoning in on the ball. Just like his two footed old man had told him to do.

Sometimes he got frustrated, threw a paddy and lost his cool. Other times he nailed it.

Getting healthy and fit takes practice. More so than you think.

Did you know that bit of grey matter between your ears is the mother ship guiding your decisions, rationale, subconscious, will-power? You name – it steers it.

Each time you succumb to temptation and a lack of will power you condition your brain to repeat this pattern. It is something that brain specialist Daniel Amen alludes to in his book Change Your Brain, Change your Body.

On the flip side, each time you say ‘no’ or ‘I have had plenty thank you’ you reinforce this pattern. Sooner or later the brain knows exactly what to do.

This habitual practice can extend in so many ways and something you should be aware of as you take a step towards a healthier and fitter you.

It is one of the reasons why I don’t recommend moderation. Each time you give yourself an excuse to shy away from that promise you made to yourself and succumb you practice failure.

Do something whole hog for 12 weeks and assess where you are then. I guarantee you will be in a much better place.

In our centre we align individual’s weak links with a set of new habits to head away and practice with. Day in day out you practice health.

Sure, practice one thing at a time but do it 100%. If you set the rule that you are eliminating grains and refined cereal from now on, that’s it. Each time you are swayed and a difficult decision comes along you need to practice will-power.

It takes practice.

If you set the rule that you will exercise 3 times and week again, you don’t shy away from training if it is raining or you forgot your clothes. You dig in and find a way.

Each time you stick to the rules you make it infinitely easier to draw upon this little bit of inner strength in the future.

It carries over too. That bit of work you said you would complete suddenly gets done. Or that business you thought about starting suddenly starts rolling. Or that letter you were going to write to your long lost Aunt is written. All of the deadwood circulating in the mind gets done as your self-control and level of  will-power heightens.

Of course there are some strategies that you can deploy to heighten your will-power and ability to practice effortlessly and without much strain.

These include getting in the habit of exercising. Even a simple walk will heighten the activity in certain areas of the brain leading to more rational decisions being made.

Staying hydrated will ensure that water, the brain’s most precious nutrient, is found in abundance leading to optimum functioning.

Taking an Omega 3 supplement in the form of pharmacy grade fish oil will ensure that the brain also receives its crucial form of good fats. If you were to wring out the brain, its dry weight would consist of 60% fat. So for all of you fat-phobes out there, listen up! Stop it! You are starving your brain!

Cut the bad fats and up your good fats in the form of fish oil, avocados, olive oil, nuts and seeds.

The brain robbers, sugar and caffeine all do a great job at placing a burden on the brain by acting as a stimulant.

Adenosine is a chemical in the brain. It tricks the brain into feeling drowsy  and stimulates sleep so that we can recharge our brains.

Caffeine blocks the effects of adenosine by occupying the adenosine receptor sites and preventing the brain from seeing it. So even if you are tired and are in need of sleep to rejuvenate your brain chemistry, caffeine tricks the brain into thinking it is wide awake.

Respect your brain and the mother ship will steer you into good health.

Family crowded round the oil based table cloth, devouring lashings of thickly buttered toast and rashers and hot tea. It looked like a scene out of an Avoca catalogue.

Fast-forward 50 years.

Most people are on their way to work before the sun rises. Kids are hurried off one arm in jumper with the other grabbing a bit of toast. Mum in the meantime is grabbing a bit of lippy and providing a gentle but firm kick up the backside to get out of the door.
Yet we all know and rightly so – breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Skipping it altogether will tee you up nicely for fat gain. Particularly around the mid-rift.

Sumo wrestlers cottoned onto this years ago. They deliberately skip breakfast and have the largest meal of the day just before they head to bed.

Through years of looking at eating habits and body fat distribution patterns I can firmly say that whose who skip breakfast consistently end up looking like a pear.

In same light using a cereal box as your method of starting the day has also had a large part to play in keeping people erring towards the muffin top shape.

If you find that you are slim and follow this pattern then unfortunately you are not free from this label either.

As Dr Barry Sears writes in his book, Toxic Fat, this method of eating causes ‘slient inflammation’. A lot of the nutrients you may eat are rather than stored as fat are converted into destructive ‘free radicals’ wreaking havoc elsewhere.

Most of us are familiar with the food pyramid?

Well try the reverse food pyramid in the sense that make your breakfast the largest meal of the day and taper off your calorific intake as the day progresses.

IN fact your dinner should be about half the size of your breakfast and lunch. If you find your self eating too much at night it is because of choices made throughout the day.

Better blood sugar management, leaner physique, no hunger, better moods, more food to eat (!!) and so on. What is there not to like about this?

You see instead of perpetuating a cycle of sugar cravings by leaving gaps between meals (longer than 3-4 hours) we are actually feeding our bodies regularly.

So what’s the big deal with breakfast?

What you eat first in the day will determine your hormonal and energy levels. Try this practical experiment. Drop some fish and a little salad into your breakfast. Over this drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil, hemp or avocado oil.

See how your energy levels are for the rest of day. Then go back to your cereal based breakfast and compare.

I will guarantee more energy and certainly less sugar cravings. It is unsurprising that your dopamine levels will increase providing you with extra ‘get-up-and-go’ to face the day.

Some other options for breakfast can be leftover dinner, homemade patties with a side salad or chicken breast with salsa or home-made guacamole.

Typical comments I have received in the past are ‘I felt like gagging’ and ‘where am I going to find the time?’
All I can say to this is – ‘try it, you won’t be disappointed’
So what then do you have for dinner? Try something light like a salad with cold meats or a Vegetable Omelette.

In fact Eggs are quick and easy to knock up alongside the fact that they are rich in choline, a nutrient geared towards optimal brain health. Not a bad food to have on your side if you are in the middle of a feeding frenzy at the zoo.

Most of my female clients have settled into the swing of cooking up their breakfast whilst knocking up dinners.

For the males this is a bit tougher. For most of them, reading the instructions on a Pot Noodle is as far as it goes.

Although one athlete I used to room with at college was caught emptying the contents of one a pot noodle into a saucepan before transferring it back into the pot to eat.

This is the same guy who assembled a flat pack bed downstairs.

So can you see how important your nutrition is to your brain health?

Start your day with a power breakfast, not some dehydrated excuses of fruit with an empty cereal. Prepare your food the night before whilst you cook your dinner. At worst have left-overs. Your brain, waist line and energy levels will thank you with open arms.
John Lark is a Health and Performance consultant combining nutrition, training and supplementation for tailored results. John works with Olympic Level athletes to cancer patients to Global Multi-National Companies across Europe consulting on health and nutrition for performance. Download his free report at www.spherecorporatefitness.com or call 00 353 1 5052131 for more information

John Lark is a personal trainer and bootcamp owner in maynooth

As a personal trainer I have been meaning to write this for a while now and only this week saw the debate about Sunbeds rear its ugly head again. And we are not talking about the head of the not-so-healthy health minister here.

Typically what happens in Ireland is a rallying call from the political ranks, a cry from the special groups combined with a frenzy of over-the-top horror stories leads to the driving of a complete ban.

It's ok - it ain't gonna get ya

In this case it is not a complete ban of sun-beds but a regulatory system in particular for using tanning beds under the age of 18 and with clear warnings. Good move – but let’s get a few things straight here.

Prudent sun exposure AND responsible indoor tanning is perfectly safe.

Ok it may seem a little strange to rent a video and then hop on the sun-bed or dive into some seedy parlour for a few minutes. But we are missing the bigger picture here.

I would even add it is crucial to our health here in Ireland. We should not be frightening people out of the power of sunlight.

In fact it is so important to health and fitness that we administer UVB Light Therapy in our clinic here in Maynooth.

Let’s get one thing straight here. We need sunlight.

We don’t get enough sun. Ireland lies on 50-55 degrees latitude meaning that sun exposure is minimal. Countless studies have demonstrated that those areas around the globe exposed to more sun experience less cancer!

Speaking of which let’s have a look at the connection between sunlight and cancer. In his book The UV Advantage , Michael Hollick (who just so happens to be as pale as a ghost) outlines some key fallacies that need to be considered.

Maybe not the best joke to play...

For one it is though that any and all sun exposure causes skin cancer. In essence though we can’t live without UVB rays (for production of vitamin D) nor do we understand fully the connection between non-melanoma and UVB/UVA.

Equally there is no evidence to suggest that regular moderate sun exposure causes melanoma (skin cancer). After a 1995 conference the FDA were ‘baffled’ with the link between persons who had melanomas not exposed to regular sun. This seems to point the way to the fact that the actual cause of melanoma is varied and not just rooted in ‘big-bad-sun’.

Why is it that melanomas often appear in areas not exposed to the sun? For instance they are rarely on the face or the hands. For men it is the chest, stomach and back and the women it is the legs.

Isn’t it strange that at present we spend far more time indoors working in our bat-cave offices than our forefathers yet have a steadily increasing rise in skin cancer rates? Is it wonder that they may have built up a GRADUAL resistance to the sun over the years working outside and keeping most of their body covered?

Tanned skin protects your skin. It could be argued that you run more of a risk staying out of the sun altogether. Independent research has demonstrated that those individuals who gain sun exposure ultimately are healthier due to the production of the ‘uber vitamin’ vitamin D.

Paraben Free or Cover Up

In our modern age it is the classic look. There is nothing ‘gradual’ about this. One day of sun = the next day of lobsters. Amongst the young this is a disaster and will lead to an increase in skin cancer risk.

But to state that the sun solely causes cancer is pure scare-mongering.

When are both sides of the argument actually going to be presented to us? Just like the vaccine debacle (remember that – yep – we are all still alive and well thanks).

Sun exposure may actually prevent skin cancer. That is why, if you do a search in the journals, there are literally hundreds of studies done in the Scandinavian countries who with their limited sunlight find a positive relationship between improved health and the use of artificial UVB Light Beds.

The risk in this case outweighs the benefits. Get out in the sun as much as possible. Get your ‘dose’ and then cover up. Look into clinics that provide a UVB Therapy service to get your Vitamin D levels raised. Look for paraben free sun lotions but whatever you do do not be scared of the sun. You may be missing out on one of nature’s most powerful healing agents.

Closing thought – our health messages are coming from the mouth of someone who is morbidly obese. Just ‘food’ for thought.

John Lark is a personal trainer in maynooth

Go to www.spherefitnessstudio.com and pick up your free diet plan today

Discussions around the dinner table, at work, with relatives and now even with child revolve around ‘how much you weigh / have lost / put on’ etc.

Our subconscious is primed with images of slim celebrities who ‘look fabulous’ and ultimately as a culture we now model ourselves on these body types and images.

Time to take check and propose that all is not what it seems. In fact I would argue that what the scales demonstrate is very little in terms of what state of health, fitness and ‘looks’ you are in.

For example you can be fit but not necessarily very healthy. What do I mean by this? Well, as Barry Sears author of Toxic Fat argues, skinny people may not possess a genetic disposition to store body fat in visible areas (bums, legs and tums). They do however, possess the not-so-good ability to convert fatty acids into excess free radicals that wreak havoc upon us causing us to age early, fall ill, cannibalise muscle to be used as fuel and weaken our bones.

So ‘no’ the skinny bitch can’t eat anything she likes and not put on a pinch. It doesn’t work like that. I mean think of it like this? Do you honestly think that you can-not be effected by a diet of cigarettes, coffee, skipped meals and special K for breakfast? Delusional. Mad. Call it what you want.

So, what do the scales tell us? Ultimately they tell us our weight. But weight of what? We are made up of muscle, fat, water, a connective frame that includes bone, tendons ligaments etc etc.

And what about the skinny work collegue? How much inflammation is she dealing with on a deeper level? ( If you would like to know how then I suggest you take a live blood analysis consultation. You will see first hand how ‘clean’ your blood is and ultimately how healthy you are)

It is disheartening to see so many of us become hung up on our weight and what the scales say. Your weight can fluctuate throughout the day. No one knows the exact why this happens. Some scientists propose that it could be to do with your fluid levels. But imagine hopping on the scales after a gym session and seeing you lost 2lbs. Great. Later on in the day, the scales creep back up 2lbs. Disappointment sets in. You may even think about quitting.

Celebrities lose weight at an astronomical weight. 7lbs in 2 weeks. 4lbs in a day with the new ‘wraps’. 40lbs in 6 weeks was the best one I heard. What is actually happening?

Lean bodies with good levels of health determined by blood tests will possess 10% of their body weight as fat in males and between 14-16% in females. Visible muscle definition will be evident.

Who would you put in this class? Models? Fitness Professionals? Celebrities? The cast of Desperate Housewives?

Well, think again. Models possess very high levels of body fat, up in around the 20% range. How can this be? Their diets that force them to eat skinny i.e. below what they would need in terms of their daily calorific amount to maintain their weight coupled with a diet rich in cigarettes, alcohol, stress and zero exercise will force them to burn fat AND muscle.

They are sick and tired. The scales say one thing, their vicious mood swings, aging skin and lack of muscle tone says another.

What about the BMI and all these Liquid ‘Get Slim Quick Formulas? An Olympic rower around 16 stone and 6 foot 4 is categorised as ‘Obese’ by the BMI. It neglects to look at body a fat level which in all cases is below 10%. Try telling 4 time Olympic Gold Medallist, Steve Redgrave he is obese!

Equally the liquid get slim quick diets are a complete joke. How can sipping away for 2-3 meals a day on a cocktail of artificial colourings, sweeteners devoid of ALL nutrients be good for you?

Fat stores are depleted from our muscles and liver. But our muscles are also depleted as our bodies, like hunger starved dogs, search for their next source of energy – your muscles and the protein that is contained within.

Try and embrace how much body fat you are carrying over what the scales tell you. A skilled exercise physiologist will be able to measure your body fat levels. Better still, just aim to get healthier. Have you ever seen a healthy fat person?

Is it as easy as drinking your food? No. Is it as easy as relying solely on the scales? No. Keep focused on your body fat levels. Have them accurately taken and then set about meeting the challenge. The bikini body is about to be unravelled and the age of the ‘skinny fat’ will be long gone.

John Lark is a personal trainer in dublin.

Where do you begin and more importantly what are you aiming for or looking to achieve?

Like training and any fat loss goal, it pays to have the end result in mind.

Nutrition is goal dependent and habit based. Fat loss nutritional strategies will differ to health specific strategies. Sports nutrition will differ to aiding ladies through the menopause.

There are, however, common threads that can be applied in any strategies.

Habits underpin good nutrition. How many of us undergo a diet programme and attempt to change everything over-night? We hope to mystically transform our entire approach to nutrition over-night and follow a ‘eat this don’t eat this’ approach.

Here’s the thing – It doesn’t work.

Instead of ‘going on a diet’ think of ‘building your health’.

Why would you do this?

Well a) immediately you have taken the pressure of yourself to always be ‘losing weight’ and therefore creating unnecessary pressures and stress b) you get hooked on the feeling rather than inches, pounds and stones and c) the stick rate is much higher whilst delivering the same result.

Here’s how it works in the real world. Firstly you have to throw away the scales. These are for the pros. They are about as much use as a chocolate fire guard. Secondly, you have to use the mirror, clothes and your energy levels as a guide.

The first week you may set yourself the goal of 1. Drinking a glass of lemon water 15 minutes before each meal alongside 2.Taking time out 10 minutes every day to reflect and relax. Now do it. Each day write it down that you achieved these actions.

Here are a few more habits that should be deployed with most nutritional programmes. In an ideal world, you should consult a professional to find a nutritional programme tailored to your needs.

1. Eating vegetable and oil based breakfast with a small amount of protein on some mornings.

2. Following a Caveman approach to nutrition. Keep your foods as close to nature as possible. The further you move away the closer you move to disease.

3. Keep a journal. We all tell a few white lies to ourselves you know the ones that start with the words ‘This wont hurt’. Well it does. It all adds up particularly if you are looking to get healthy. Keep a food journal and you are 80% more likely to hit your targets. Not a bad little habit to keep.

4. Preparing your food in advance. Develop a little ritual the night before where you bring some foods with you to work or in the car. Trying to eat healthy snacks in this country is like asking finding a needle in a haystack.

5. Drinking water as your source of fluids. Consider that most of your body is made up of water and you can see how important it is to stay hydrated. Coffee, Tea and other hot drinks tend to be water-robbers. Water – pure and filtered is the best. There really is no comparism. As a guideline, consume your bodyweight in kg x 0.033 to find your ideal amount in litres. The only real exception is green tea. Shoot for 3 cups a day of this mighty beverage. As a personal trainer this is the biggest mistake I see people make.

7. Consuming veggies with each meal. Everytime you feed there should be a source of vegetables. Spinach in omelettes, salads, chopped veggies, grilled (a really great way to sweeten veggies) and stir-fry and ‘Greens Drinks’ are all great ways of getting more veggies in to your nutrition.

8. Get the skinny on fat – fat can make you thin. Fact. Did you know that supplementing your diet with fish oil is a sure fire way to get those fat furnaces burning fast. Coconut oil, rich in SATURATED FAT, can also help you get leaner. Fats are your friends. Now I am not talking about those artery-clogging fat found in fried foods, cakes, biscuits and take-aways. You would be best to avoid anything on the packet that has ‘hydrogenated’ on it like the plague.
Instead shoot for fats that are rich in Omega-3. These include fish oil (pharmaceutical grade only), flax seeds, hemp oil, nuts

and olive oil. Cook with coconut oil.
9. Take your energy from vegetables and dietary fats rather than bread, pastas and starches. Have them as a treat. However, if they are appearing in every meal you may be setting yourself up for ill-health.

John Lark is a Fat Loss Specialist providing tools to help you get healthier and leaner – faster. He can be contacted at 01-5052131. Download your free fat loss report at www.spherefitnessstudio.com
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Recent research revealed that Dublin women suffer more from cellulite than the rest of the country with nearly one in three complaining it causes them problems. This compares to 19pc of women in other parts of the country who admit they have the orange peel on their thighs.

Cellulite is fat. But surprisingly it is often not related to how fat you are overall.

One plausible explanation – which also explains why very few men suffer from cellulite – is based on the composition and behavior of women’s fat cells and the connective tissue that holds them in place.

Very simply, a woman’s connective tissue is very inflexible, so as females gain weight their fat cells expand, and tend to bulge upwards towards the surface of the skin, giving the classic orange-peel appearance of cellulite.

In men, not only is there generally less fat on the thighs, but also the outer skin is thicker and thus obscures what is happening to any surplus fat below.

There is a way of attacking it though. It means approaching from a different route. Cellulite is often a symptom of a deeper underlying cause.

When we look at body composition and review where you store your body fat we can determine very quickly why you are holding it there.

Think that fat accumulates around your mid-rift to ‘spite’ you? Think again. This is reflected of your ability to handle sugar and how well you keep in check a hormone called insulin.

Cellulite’s partner in crime points largely to an imbalance in the hormones estrogen and insulin. High circulating levels of one or both together in women (and men) will be reflected in fat on the back of your arm, thighs and chest.
Why would you have this imbalance?

There are many reasons. We all produce the hormone, estrogen. What really matters is what happens to it once you make it as well as how much your cells and organs are exposed to.

It is like sunlight – get the right amount and good things happen (elevated mood, more vitamins produced) but get too much or spend too long over-exposed then you will more than likely get burnt.

In estrogen’s case we need it. But too much of it and a chronic over-exposure will lead to trouble.

In estrogen’s case, this is paralleled with some nasty diseases like endometriosis, PMS, uterine fibroids and benign breast tumors. Men – take note – as breast cancer in males is on the increase.

What’s more in the last 30 years man-made sources of estrogen called xeno estrogens are adding to the problem.

These are man-made sources that mimic estrogen. Sources include (in short)  Plastic bottles, Carpet fibers, Teflon coating,

Pesticides and herbicide, Commercial meats grown with hormones, Birth control pills and Hormone replacement therapy drugs.

Estrogen is toxic. The liver treats it as toxic. In the process of detoxifying it, the liver will convert it into some nasty metabolites.

What’s more there is an enzyme in the body called aromatase that converts testosterone into estrogen. We need to inhibit this.
So why the orange peel?

Cellulite is an estrogen-type of fat. Think of your fat as your estrogen out of control and as a result body fat will accumulate in particular areas such (thighs, back of the arm and the chest)

As a personal trainer, this is easily managed. But several things have to be addressed.

Your nutrition has to lend itself to get rid of these cheeky critters. Start to ‘love your greens’. Watercress is the gold standard and stay hydrated.

Of course any toxic habits such as smoking and drinking will cause the liver to be distracted in trying to sort out the rubbish that you may be ingesting. Some hope of it trying to shift your estrogen if this is going on!

Your training has to lend itself to this as well in your bid to shift the peel. Extra spinning classes are a disaster! All they do is encourage the body to shift fat to the areas that are being worked (bums and thighs) for use as a more readily available source of fuel.

Unfortunately whilst a nice stroll with pals is good for the head. It does little to burn the fat or shift the peel.
Start lifting weights. Your backside will thank you for it.

John Lark is a personal trainer in Maynooth and founder of The Sphere Fitness Group.