What I am up to!

This summer is fab! I am loving the long, hot days – in spite of the increased challenge of training sessions in 30 degrees! My clients are really enjoying working out outside, and lying under a tree for Pilates is really theraputic after a day in the office.

The new DVD – ‘Shape Up’ is shaping up! The rushes (first cuts of the film) are over from France, and we are chosing cover shots this week. I will ‘voice over’ the DVD in the next couple of weeks, and then we will be almost ready for release! I can’t wait to see it after all this work.

‘Click into shape!’ the new on-line personal training service will soon be ready to roll! Its a mamouth job getting this up and ready, as I really want it to be quality. I want each individual to have a unique programme, tailor made for their needs. You can’t rush a good thing!

I have been asked to run The Great North Run – a half marathon in september. I am very tempted, but not sure if I will have time to train for it…. watch this space to see how that goes….

Happy July!

How to stay in shape on holiday…

Many people worry about undoing all of their hard work and gaining weight whilst they are on holiday, but fear not because holiday time is actually the perfect time to get active, try fun new things and stay healthy! 

City Break

If you are taking a city break this year, then pack your walking shoes! Wandering around and exploring the streets will clock up a huge amount of steps (pack your pedometer for an accurate number) and burn off lots of calories. Look for any hills around and hike to the top for a fab bottom workout, and great panoramic photos at the top!

Try out the wide variety of training shoes such as MBT’s Chung Shi’s and Fit Flops – which claim to lift your bum and reduce cellulite while you walk.

Many large hotels will have a swimming pool and even if your does not, you can often pay a small fee to use another’s facilities. Swimming is a great all over body workout – improving you heart health as well as toning your upper and lower body. Try alternating arms only and then legs only to increase the challenge.

Night time is no excuse to stop! Get your dancing shoes on and bop away all night to burn calories and work your legs while you have fun (just watch out for those hidden alcohol calories!) 

Beach Holidays –

If you are lucky enough to have a beach holiday coming up, then there are many fun ways to stay healthy:

Walking on the sand gives your legs a great workout and the sand will exfoliate your feet at the same time!

Pop on a sun hat and factor 30 and then wade into the water at waist height – striding back and forth in the sea is a wonderful lower body toner and is great for your cardiovascular system too ( your heart, lungs and circulation).

The beach is the perfect place to try group activites such as frisbe, rounders or catch in the surf. You will be having fun and won’t even notice that you are exercising.

Hire a bicycle with your partner of friends and check out the scenery – you might find an even better beach a couple of miles down the road, and you can burn off lots of calories while you explore! Or if you are on the beach why not hire a pedallo and give your legs a work out while you catch some rays!

Camping holidays –

If you are camping, then the odds are that you love nature, so take a back pack and head off on some country hikes. If the weather is hot, head off before breakfast and then you can relax all day knowing that you have already achieved your healthy exercise for the day.

Check out the local area for other fun activities such as horse riding – an hour or two on a horse will soon remind you which muscles are working! Or perhaps you are near a river or lake – many holiday sites will be able to point you to water activities such as canoeing or rowing – both great fun ways to stay cool and get a great upper body workout!

And if all else fails, a quick jog first thing in the morning before everybody else rises will keep your day free for chilling out without any guilt!

Enjoy your hols!

shape up dvd shoot

Just back from shooting my latest dvd down in Cannes – South of France. Lucky me! The filming went really well with early mornings and late evenings to avoid the scorching midday sun.

The DVD is a fusion of Pilates, Yoga and general resistance exercises, using bodyweight for resistance. I really felt my body tighten up from filming the exercises, and love that I was able to use all my favourite moves. The film now sits with the cameraman, who will edit it before sending it back to London. I will then voice over the final edit, and then it will be almost ready to go!

We hope to have Shape Up released in August – so watch this space for dates!

detoxing: does it work?

I was recently sent to a renowned detox clinic in Austria – The Mayr Clinic near Klagenfurt. Having been to several spa’s and wellness clinics I thought it would be a breeze! Wrong! First lesson learnt – do your homework before you go!

Each day began with drinking Epsom salts, then morning exercise. Breakfast was a sheeps yogurt and dry bread roll. The bread is aired to dry, so that you have to chew it thoroughly before you can swallow: chewing stimulates the digestive enzymes and aids digestion.

Each meal was supposed to be eaten in silence, with each mouthful being chewed 35 times minimum – I now have a well defined jaw line!

To find out more – click http://www.mayrtherapy.com and look for my updates to see if it was worth it!

Several thrapies filled the morning – lymph drainage, massage, liver compresses and kneipping, before a light lunch of soup – eaten with a teaspoon, and a dry roll. Some were allowed a portion of protein. Dinner was soup, or a cup of tea for the hardcore fasters! (not me!)

The theory is that your digestive system rests, your colon is cleansed and your entire system is able to regenerate. Does is work? watch this space – I have been home for two days, and don’t feel great! Weak ( I lost around 3kg), bloated and not quite right! However – this could still be part of the detox process.

Fit Camp

If you are looking to kick start a new fitness regime or you want to shift a good few pounds fast, then Champneys Fit Camp is for you!

I have just spent three days at the gorgeous Forest Mere, at their new ‘Fit Camp!’ The camp is a week long (unfortunately my diary wouldn’t allow for 7 days) and is best described as a ’soft bootcamp’ in a spa setting. 2 hour hikes and off road bike rides are mixed with thalassotherapy and head massage, so you work hard but get pampered at the end!

Our first full day included 7 hours of exercise – a lot even by my standards! We walked, ran, did water circuits. water polo, fit ball class, circuits, body sculpt and more! The food is restricted – but delicious healthy and satisfying.

A good lesson learnt by all was to have fun with exercise: a game of ‘Ultimate Frisbee’ is such fun that you dont realise what a tough workout you are getting!

So  – this summer, grab some friends and a ball or frisbee, and play rounders, catch or footie and blast away the calories while you laugh!

 Check out www.champneys.com to find out more.

Shape Up!

Training your body shape training tip:

Every little bit helps!

There are 3500 Kcal in 0.45Kg of fat. Although this may sound an incredible number, when compared to the calories you burn in a workout, regular training can make a big difference:

If you burned 300 Kcal a day through your chosen exercise and increased general activity, in a year you could theoretically remove 13.6Kg of fat from your body.

Check the table below for cals burnt during exercise -

Activity                                      Kcals/hr         approx Kcals/min

Aerobics high intensity                       520                  8.5

Cycling 16 Km/hour                           384                  6.4

Cycling 8.8 Km/hour                          250                  4.2

Rowing (moderate)                             445                  7.4

Swimming (fast)                                 615                  10.2

Swimming for fitness                          630                  10.5

Weight Training                                  270-450           4.5-7.5

Treadmill Running (5.6 min/km)         750                  12.5

Treadmill Running (3.8min/km)          1000                16.6

 

The above figures are based on a 65Kg individual. If you weigh more you’ll burn more calories, if you weigh less you’ll burn fewer calories

Click into Shape!

With the success of the book ‘Shape Up! Tailor-made training for female body shapes’ ( www.carolinesandry.com) and so many people wanting to get in shape for summer, Caroline Sandry has joined forces with Body In Balance TV (bodyinbalance.tv) to bring you your very own tailor made exercise programme at the click of a button! To join the waiting list for your chance to have a specially prescribed exercise programme from top celeb trainer Caroline Sandry, e mail caroline@carolinesandry.com and click into shape!

training with Dame Kelly Holmes

I was lucky enough to train with Dame Kelly Holmes recently, and I asked for her top running tips…..

Training With Dame Kelly Holmes

 Kelly’s top running tips

-         Get good running trainers

-         Set goals and have a purpose

-         Know your strengths & weaknesses

-         Be realistic about your targets

-         Build up gradually – 10 minutes is better than nothing

-         Eat well

-         Try to make exercise part of your lifestyle

-         Seek advice from a pro or experienced runner, or join a running club

-         Refuel within 20 minutes of exercise (water with a dash of orange juice & a pinch of salt is ideal)

-         Add in interval training to stay fresh & improve fitness- use trees as marker points

-         Ice your legs straight after exercise or take cold bath/shower

Holmes knows more than most the agony of injury, and I spoke to her physiotherapist Alison Rose who helped Holmes through her difficult Achilles problems. She gave the following advice –

• Define your weak areas – have someone check your alignment & flexibility
• Work on your weak areas – for example if you have tight hip flexors, warm up and then stretch them before running
• Flexibility is vital to injury prevention – so do your stretching!
• Strengthen your core, glutes & calves
• Pilates is a great supplement to running to prevent injury
• Dynamic warm-ups are great pre run, and long stretches post run
• If injured – Ice, compress and rest
• Do not take anti – inflammatory medications for the first 72 hours as they can affect healing .

 

• For more advice on running, check out women’s fitness magaizine, or e mail your questions to my contact page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Training with the Welsh Rugby Team

It was a cold, windy and sunny day, and I was nervous and excited at the prospect of going through the Welsh Rugby team’s training regime – particularly as they were watching! Having never played rugby, I was completely open minded and ready for anything….

The training consisted of intense seven minutes blocks of hard anaerobic work and sprinting with really short recoveries (if you can call them that!).  I already had a huge admiration for the players, which grew as I experienced first hand what they put their bodies through – the training I received was a lot more forgiving than they would experience, and for them it is on an almost daily basis. The speed, power and endurance these players have is awesome – especially when you consider their size and weight.

Check out my experience and interviews with trhe players coming up in Women’s Fitness…

Claire Sweeney’s Big Fat Diet

ITV showed a one hour documentary about Claire Sweeney’s journey through weight gain……

 Claire and I usually train hard, and she eats well to maintain her size 10 shape. However for this documentary Claire bravely stopped exercise and ate whatever she wanted. I continued to monitor Claire throughout the process, and was shocked by her rapid weight gain – 2 stone in 6 weeks!  Check the programme on-line if you missed it!

claires-big-fat-diet