New Year New You

Can you believe a year has nearly been and gone already? me neither! with new years at our finger tips we look back over 2015 and the memories it holds and look forward to what 2016 has in store for us all.

for most of us 2016 will start with a detox and a diet, the christmas period is one where we over indulge and the winter nights are still long and arduous, which makes exercising that much more harder when you want to snuggle up to a good film on the sofa. So if you make any resolution which involves losing weight and exercising this forth coming year than make sure it is one which id doable so you don’t join the hundreds that fall out of love with the gym come the following month.

Faddy diets are at large this time of the year and its easy to get sucked into the idea of instant weight loss, but many of them will not give you the energy you need to sustain a good gym session. Real change comes with understanding exercise and nutrition, so a good personal trainer should help give you the guidance and the confidence to make the right decisions inside and outside the gym.

I have not decided on my new years resolution as yet, but if you have any really cool ones i would love to hear from you… May help me find inspiration before the year is up.

If you have any queries about starting exercise or an eating plan in 2016 please feel free to contact Nathan@fashionfitnessspecialists.com .

Id like to wish you all a happy new year and may 2016 be a happy and healthy one…

Hannah x

Find A Quote and pass it on…

Cowards Never start, The weak never finish, Winners never quit…. I read this quote today whilst i was at my weekly circuit training class and thought to myself ‘i like that’. A little bit of unexpected motivation thrown in from know where, which you can take with you throughout the day. So i thought i would pass it on to my beautiful readers…

There is a quote for almost every aspect of life whether that be fitness or love the list is endless. But the trick is finding the good ones and applying it to what you do. Which is why we all need someone to look up to that inspires us, it does not necessary need to be a celebrity or Mother Teresa, it could be your best friend or brother, sister or mother. (Sorry about the rhyming). The concept remains the same, chasing the same dream of how to be better and stronger from drawing on everything around us that makes us want to drive our lives forward in a positive direction.

This is what prompted me to start a business in the beginning, thinking how i can help drive the lives of our clients forward? to be healthier and happier. A good starting point is to surround yourself with the right people, for example if fitness is something you want to progress in, the gym environment can help as well as a personal trainer. The business expanded into providing a team of specialists in fields of health, beauty & exercise which relays the slogan by which we now work by…Educate, Shape, Transform.

If you can find a quote, what would you pass on? and why?

Hannah x

5 Tips to Help you Run Better

I have never really like running much and yet it has imbedded itself in my lifestyle regardless, i see it through different eyes now unlike the cross-country day at school that felt like a punishment. Running became a channel in which i could relieve stress, find some sense of freedom as well as satisfaction in knowing i was keeping fit. But never has it been a race, goal or achievement it was just something i did. So why not? i asked myself!

This week-end i face my first 10k, it is a great stepping stone for a half marathon and marks the end of 8 weeks of training alongside my brother,business partner and personal trainer. It certainly has been a commitment but all in all i feel i have fared reasonably well, i guess this sunday will tell.

For anyone who runs regularly or is in training here are a few tips that have helped me.

1. Make sure you have the right footwear and sportswear! this is vitally important because the wrong shoes will cause injury (i learnt this the hard way when i had shin splints through running in converses 2 years ago. SILLY I KNOW.) I also have a habit of running in jogging bottoms, windy/rainy days just made running hard work so i got myself some NIKE leggings so much better.
2. Change your route. Running the same route all the time can become boring and too predictable, when you’ve mastered a certain run switch it up! and make it a little more challenging.
3. Incorporate hill stints. It is important not to always be running flat, throwing in a hill every now and then breaks up the run and helps strengthen your legs. I always think to myself, if i can do 10k under an hour mostly uphill imagine what i can do when i run completely flat!
4. Bring a friend. It’s nice to have a friend to run with every now and then. Theres added commitment and it can help keep you motivated, especially when your running almost every day.
5. Dont let the weather stop you. It is very easy to use the weather as an excuse when you live in England. But if every time it rained or was too cold or windy you gave in, then running would be a rarity. It’s as much about metal stamina as it is about physical.

I hope you find these tips helpful, feel free to add and share anything that can help.

Hannah x

Life is but a Journey…

Life is but a journey… This may seem like a very obvious title along with, life is what you make of it etc etc. However when you have the chance to shape someones life and shape someones journey it holds a privilege and gratification to the meaning of the sentence.

I have spent the last 12 weeks alongside my business partner with this privilege, working with what i can only describe as the ideal client. committed to the program we laid out personally for him, taking onboard all the advice our specialists team has provided through our services. But what makes his journey particularly special is the personal transformation he made at the end of his time with us, shedding up-to 20% of his body fat.

http://www.fashionfitnessspecialists.com/

When our client first came to us looking for help and self-improvement, he suffered from many of the common hang-ups expected such as body issues, low confidence and self-esteem among others. But through a process of support and guidance offered each step of the way, his outlook on life changed and so did the negative barriers that once stood in his way. And it was not a magic pill that sheds a stone a week, cutting out half of your main food groups needed to survive or a hypnotherapist. It was a combination of a Nutritional advice, healthy food, working-out, and one to one support, because there was no short cut, just dedication and perseverance to the program. Since finishing… He has met someone special, launched his own business and signed up to the London Marathon this year.

For a stylist like myself, it does not get much better than knowing you have genuinely made someone feel a whole lot better about themselves.

Mind over Matter

As we go through life there will always be people we stumble upon who like to reiterate the fact that something cannot be done or it is incredibly difficult to achieve.  There is by no means an issue with a reality check every now and then, we all need those to keep us grounded. However that is not to say your goal cannot be achieved or if you put in the hard work you will not find success.

During my career so far i can relay many instances where what felt like the impossible became achievable through pure determination. My career in fashion began this way as well as my journey to london. After graduating university you are always faced with the big question so much so you get aggravated by hearing it…”So what are you going to do now?” my response being “im going to move to the big city and start my career”. This was always met with a common negative response of “how are you going to afford that?” Being a poor ex student i had no way of affording it to be honest, but i found away around that by becoming a part-time live-in nanny whilst working full-time in editorial to build up my portfolio, rent after all is what burns a hole in your pocket in London.

I find i face the same issue at the gym the same way I’ve faced my career, there will always be someone in your head saying you cannot do this its too hard. Truth be told your body can give so much more than what you think it can, my PT brother & business partner Nathan always used to say.

So when your mind is ready to give up, know that there is always a little left in the tank. Over time you will be able to squash those thoughts like you squash the negative people who say you CAN’T, and its is that determination and motivation which helps you achieve your goals in the gym and in life…

Hiding in the Cardio area…

I’ve been a loyal member of the gym over the years, but have not always been able to afford memberships in every location I have moved to, so I have taken my workout outside or managed to do something at home to replicate a reasonable amount of exercise I think I should get in a week. Looking back I always remember my younger brother leading the way in exercise which I quickly adapted to.

Recently I have started to face a very obvious issue at the gym, one of which is not a big deal, however I imagine many women can relate to it, and as much as I think it’s probably inside my head I cant help but think I am not the only one which is probably facing the same thought pattern.

Having a brother as a personal trainer is a blessing by all means, he reinforces the fact that weights can be a crucial part of a workout for men and for women. Most of my workouts are heavily cardio based, 1. because it’s a great way of losing the weight and 2. because spending time in the weights area can be a bit intimidating and I do my best to dodge around it.  As silly as it sounds it felt a little like walking into the lion’s den, but really what is the worst that can happen?

Realising how important incorporating certain exercises like SQUATS into my routine was, I braved my insecurities and carried on regardless, but having a personal trainer like Nathan to break the ice certainly helps. The link from us below helps explain how to do Squats. So for ladies that are not at a women’s only gym, Weights will not make you look like the incredible Hulk, be BRAVE, its worth it in the end!