WARNING: CELEBRITIES ARE PROBABLY RUINING YOUR HEALTH!

That’s right celebrities are probably ruining your health. Not just because their TV shows cause us to sit on our bums for hours glued to the old goggle box, but because many of them, either implicitly condone or explicitly declare their love of highly questionable health and nutrition practices!

GWYNETH PALTROW...

Probably the biggest culprit of this is Chris Martin’s former wife Gwyneth Paltrow, for she is the brains behind the company GOOP. Just one of the many highly questionable ideas which GOOP pedal are the benefits of vaginal steaming, despite there being little, if any scientific evidence to support it.

Surprisingly, many of her 2 million plus twitter followers vehemently believe in what she says. Personally, how you can trust anyone who refers to the ending of their marriage as a ‘conscious uncoupling’ when the rest of us call it a ‘split’ is beyond me!

BEYONCE…

Old Gwynnie and GOOP may be Champions League level when it comes to spouting claptrap but there’s plenty of other celebrities out there giving it a good go too. Detoxes or cleanses garner lots of support in the celebrity world, with Beyonce being one of their most vocal supporters. The only problem is, there is little, if any evidence that they actually work (you can see a theme emerging here can’t you?). Supporters claim they rid the body of toxins but in reality, the human body does a very good job at this every time you go for a wee!

JUICING…

In a similar vein, you then get the celebrities who are into their ‘juicing’.  They just have to be seen strolling down the street sipping on some sort of coloured juice normally green in colour. These guys may not vocalise their support for it, but the very fact that they get pictured holding a cup of it gives it a hefty nod of approval in the minds of their adoring fans. Granted, juicing may be a way of consuming more fruit and veg but claims that it detoxifies the body are once again largely unfounded.

TOWIE…

Then there’s the good people TOWIE whom I believe began coining the phrase ‘no carbs before Marbs’ which we’re reliably informed by a former cast member Lucy Mecklenburgh caused ‘a lot of young people to stop eating carbs’. Which is a real shame because the much-demonised macronutrient has several benefits. According to the NHS, carbohydrates provide the body with much needed fibre and energy. Anyway, regardless of whether you think carbohydrates are good or a bad, one thing is for sure: cutting them from your diet for the long term is near impossible.

IT’S NOT ALL BAD THOUGH...

Before you cancel your subscription to OK! you must remember that some celebrities use their influence wisely. Michael J. Fox and the late Christopher Reeve have done wonders for increasing research into Parkinson’s disease and spinal injuries.

IN CONCLUSION...

Although this seems like a systematic slagging off celebrities it’s really not meant to be. However misinformed they may be, I’m almost certain that they genuinely believe in the treatments that they advocate. In some ways celebrities are victims themselves. Victims of being under tremendous pressure to look ever-young and stay slim, and in doing so they will happily try anything to remain that way. If anything, perhaps this article is more a of a critique of why many of us allow the ill-informed words and actions of celebrities to trump the overwhelming evidence provided by the significantly more well-informed scientific community! 

If you enjoyed this article I urge you to read the book ‘Is Gwyneth Paltrow Wrong About Everything?’ by the excellent Timothy Caulfield.

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HELP, MY 6 PACK IS MAKING ME LOSE MY LIBIDO AND MY FRIENDS!

Nowadays everybody seems to want to improve their appearance, not necessarily their health but certainly their appearance. This is obvious when you consider the alarming regularity in which many women undergo cosmetic procedures. So much so, boob jobs have become as common as cauliflower ears on rugby player!

The male equivalent seems to be attaining the much fabled ‘6 pack’. For some men with large abdominal muscles and reasonably low body fat, this can be not too difficult a task, however for others it can mean losing ridiculous amounts of body fat so as to reveal the abs lying underneath. This, when taken to extreme levels, is known in gym circles as getting ‘shredded’. And with so many ‘shredded’ models appearing on front covers and on social media everywhere this look has become accepted as the new gold-standard in healthy. But is it really? I’ll leave you to decide…

THE PHYSICAL DOWNSIDE TO LOW BODY FAT LEVELS...  

As well as being constantly cold, and having energy levels lower than a sausage dog’s belly, extremely low body fat levels can cause your workouts to be rubbish too. Not only that, but your recovery between workouts can be poor as well. Low body fat levels go hand in hand with low levels of stored carbohydrate in the muscles and liver, and this stored carbohydrate is vital to help you recover from exercise. This leads to almost no improvements in strength or hypertrophy and in all likelihood ,muscle mass and strength will be reduced.

If this weren’t enough, low levels of the hormone leptin causes you to be constantly hungry. And to add insult to injury, extremely low levels of bodyfat can also lead to reduced levels of testosterone which in turn can reduce your sperm count. In some cases, the reproductive system begins shutting down all together so you may end up like a novice boy scout attempting to put up a tent…struggling to get an erection!

THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DOWNSIDE TO LOW BODY FAT LEVELS…

If that weren’t bad enough the psychological drawbacks may be even worse. Achieving extremely low body fat levels whilst retaining a muscled physique requires some quite difficult lifestyle changes. For most people, it requires tracking every single calorie that passes your lips. Which may sound easy enough, but in reality, it is much harder than you think (a bit like having to sit through a 1 Direction concert). It often means spending endless hours preparing your own food and stressing over its exact macronutrient composition, almost never eating out with friends or family and almost certainly not drinking any alcohol! Heck you may look ‘good’ but end up becoming a bit of a bore!

And if this social isolation weren’t enough to make you feel bad, the reduced levels of essential fatty acids in the brain will probably make you irritable and prone to severe mood swings anyway! It may also leave you less able to concentrate and suffer from general mental fatigue!  

IN CONCLUSION…

Extremely low levels of body fat combined with relatively large muscles may make for an impressive looking physique, however it’s not without its drawbacks. For the dedicated few who can endure what is required to achieve this, many of them are only able to maintain it for a very short period before they ‘break’ and return to somewhere near normal levels of body fat. And as for those who manage to maintain such well-muscled, low fat physique all year round, they are one of two things: either genetically gifted or, a real pain in the bum to live with!

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THE ‘GOOGLE IT’ APPROACH TO WEIGHT LOSS

Remember your school days when life seemed so joyful and carefree? Yet unburdened with the harsh realities of adulthood, your heart still had space for dreams and aspirations. Everything seemed so simple.

The only major issue, apart from finding out who was the second hardest in the infants; and if Mrs Smith (the popular and attractive music teacher) really was dating Mr Jones (the intellectually brilliant, yet socially awkward science teacher) was getting your homework in on time.

For me, the rigours of homework followed a similar yet effective pattern: 1, ask mum and dad their knowledge on the given topic. 2, Research the topic further utilising the family’s set of encyclopedias (as a family from the aspirational working classes this consisted of consulting the ‘Joy of Knowledge’. For the more middle class amongst you it probably meant using the family’s set of Encyclopedia Britannica, and as for the upper classes it probably didn’t apply. After all, what’s the point of homework when you stand to inherit a sprawling 100-acre estate some day! Anyway, I digress) 3, Assimilate all the information and rewrite it, by hand, using my own thoughts and ideas. 4, (if there was time) include a nice pretty, hand drawn picture to go with it.    

Now as you can imagine this took a considerable amount of time especially whilst simultaneously watching Saved By The Bell (no self-respecting ‘90’s kid dared miss it) or Big Break (man I loved John Virgo’s no dad waist coats).

And this is completely different to today’s kids. Set them homework and they don’t have to go through the same rigmarole. They simply ‘google’ and ‘cut and paste’. Heck if you ask them to print it out they think they’re doing you a favour! And I say this on good authority having been a teacher for well over a decade!

The trouble is this bodge it and cutting corners approach has crept it into the fitness industry too.  Some people might even say that it dominates it!

For example, fad diets grow ever more popular by the day because ‘they work’ as I’m reliably informed by the ill-informed! Of course they blimmin’ work. Any diet which cuts out entire food groups or drastically reduces your food choices will work, because it causes you to eat dramatically less calories and surprise, surprise lose the weight.

And don’t even get me started on the ‘detoxes’ or ‘cleanses’. Heck there seems more of them on the market than a there are Premier League footballers with tattoos!

IF NOTHING ELSE, REMEMBER THIS…

All fad diets, detoxes and cleanses work in the short term but not the long term (a bit like Jennifer Aniston’s relationships) because they simply are unsustainable. People simply can’t handle how restrictive they are and they soon return to their old eating habits. The weight flies off at first (but just like a distant relative trying to get hold of some inheritance) it soon comes back.

I’m left baffled when people bang on about losing incredible amounts of weight in a few days through some sort of cleanse or fad diet only to put it all back on again almost as quick. And then repeat this cycle again in only a few short weeks’ time. Flippin’ ‘eck if these diet products were that good wouldn’t the weight stay off longer?

The cynic in me might say that these weight loss companies deliberately design products that cause dramatic weight loss followed by almost as impressive weight gain as a way of ensuring repeat custom!  

SO WHATS THE ANSWER?

The answer won’t make me rich but it means I can sleep easier at night. The answer is to look at weight loss in a more sustainable way. Make dietary changes that require little effort, but cumulatively have a big impact.  A simple example that has worked well with my clients is eating meals from a smaller plate. You don’t have to change the type of food you eat, or the times of when you eat it. You simply eat smaller portions which in turn ensures less calorie consumption!

For more pragmatic, evidence based advice on weight loss please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

If you’re after a silver bullet solution to weight loss don’t bother getting in touch, as I (nor anyone else) will be able to provide it. But who knows, with Easter just around the corner maybe the Easter bunny can! (I presume if you believe in one, you must believe in the other!)

Thanks for reading,

Matt

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CAN YOU GUARANTEE ME I’LL LOSE A STONE? NO!

That was the question posed to me recently by a black cab driver and much to his surprise my response was: NO.

It was a few weeks back. No sooner had I informed him of my destination and he was off putting the world to rights. In less than 5 minutes I knew his life story, the exact number of famous people he’d had in his cab and his unyielding admiration of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. ‘She cut the red tape and let businesses flourish without interfering’ he took great pride in telling me.

Flippin’ ‘eck all I wanted was a quick cab ride and there I was getting a lesson in politics from some third rate STIG/Paxman wannabe.

In a vain attempt to switch his monologue to dialogue I thought I’d broach the ‘elephant in the room’ and garner his thoughts on UBER. ‘They’re a bloody disgrace, they ought to be regulated much more’ was his curt response. Gordon Bennett, one minute he’s a Thatcherite, the next he’s a socialist wanting to regulate things. (That, of course was probably a crass characterisation, and probable denigration of both Thatcherite and socialist policies, but much like the British tabloid press, I haven’t got the inclination to find out the truth!).

Conversation soon turned to me being a personal trainer. ‘If you can guarantee me I’ll lose a stone in 2 months, I’ll train with you’ he said.

I told him I was unable to guarantee such a thing and set about explaining why. Sadly, he had about as much interest in my explanation as Katie Price has in celibacy, so if you’ll allow me a moment of indulgence I’d like to share those reasons with you:

Homeostasis

Homeostasis is basically the term used for the body’s desire to maintain its current state. For the vast majority of overweight people, it didn’t happen overnight. It happened over months and more than likely years. As a result, their bodies have got used to being that way. When trying to alter this by going on a diet, peoples’ bodies react differently. Some people’s body’s (just like  Rod Stewart's stylist) are resistant to change, and weight loss proves a lot harder for them than others.

Training ability

Some people are simply able to train harder than others. Some, can train really hard 5-6 times per week and continue to make rapid improvements in their physique. For others, 2-3 sessions per week may be all that they can physically handle before suffering from injury or illness.

Training response

People respond to training differently. Given the exact same training programme, some people (known as high responders) make terrific improvements whilst others (the low responders) make much slower progress. (As I've written about in more detail here).

Training compliance

No matter how well designed a training programme is, you can never guarantee that an individual will actually do it.  How many people do you know that have expensive gym membership, upwards of 70 squid a month, yet hardly ever step foot in the place?

Training induced food choices

This sounds like a rather grandiose term but what I’m really trying to point out, is that some people find that training really tightens their focus on their diet. It’s as if training acts as a catalyst for them to eat better. For others, affectionately known as ‘compensators’, they seem to overeat as a result of their training. It’s as if they think ‘sod it I’ve trained hard today, I can have Big Mac and chips…thrice! They seem to overestimate the number of calories they burn whilst drastically underestimating the number of calories they consume.

In conclusion…

The moral of this story is to always book an UBER instead! Only messing black cab driving friends I love you really.

What you should really take from this is to never trust the weight loss claims you see on many a diet or exercise product. The human body is such an AM-AZ-ING thing (regular readers will know I don’t use that word lightly) that no-one knows exactly how it’s going to respond to a particular diet or training regime imposed upon it.

And as for those guys in the fitness industry who ‘guarantee’ you’ll lose a stone of fat or gain 10lbs of lean muscle, approach them in the same way you’d approach dogs mess on the pavement – by giving them a wide berth!

Thanks for reading,

Matt

TO BOOK YOUR FREE PERSONAL TRAINING SESSION, OR TO BOOK A PLACE AT MY BOOT CAMP CLASS, PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH.

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TIME TO GIVE HIIT A MISS?

Since January I’m sure many of you will have started some sort of exercise regime. And just like a seaside fortune teller using their astonishing ability to balance probability, I’m going to guess that your new exercise regime is probably some form of HIIT.

HIIT is an acronym for High Intensity Interval Training whereby high intensity bouts of exercise are interspersed with lower intensity periods of rest or recovery.

Now before you marvel at my divine ability as a clairvoyance and beg me read your palm, I must confess, the reason I knew your new exercise regime was some form of HIIT is because nowadays you simply can’t step foot in a gym without someone banging on about its super powers.

Go on social media and you see personal trainers and their devout followers evangelically banging on about HIIT, HIIT and blimmin’ more HIIT. In a bid to seek refuge from this bombardment, you switch on the TV only to find another personal trainer trying to flog you a fitness DVD which surprise, surprise is all based on HIIT.

But is all this fuss warranted?

On the face of it probably yes. Search the internet for its benefits and more fitness professionals appear extolling its virtues than Lindsay Lohan has short skirts! According to renowned fitness expert Brad Schoenfeld HIIT trumps traditional steady state cardio (running, jogging, cycling at ‘lowish’ intensities) because it burns more calories and requires about half the time. (There are numerous other benefits too and I urge you to check out Brad’s website for more info on this: www.lookgreatnaked.com).

However, it would be remiss of me if I didn’t mention at this point that equally renowned expert Lyle McDonald refutes the grandness of many of these claims. (Check out his excellent website for more info on this: www.bodyrecomposition.com).

So, is there a down side to HIIT?

Oh yes, there most certainly is and it can mean different things to different people. For example, if you’re new to exercise and approach training in a balls-out type of manner, HIIT, if done in the high doses and at the frequency that many personal trainers recommend, can lead to overtraining and injury and even quitting exercise altogether.

Conversely, if you have what in polite society is described as a lazes-faire attitude towards training and you approach HIIT with the same level of motivation as a prisoner on death-row you’ll end up doing low intensity work for even less time than if you were doing steady state cardio. In which case, you may be better of sticking to steady state cardio and forgetting about HIIT altogether.

Rubbish, sprinters always perform HIIT and they don’t suffer from overtraining!

I hear this argument lots, and up to a point it’s correct – sprinters, do largely train using HIIT, and as a former sprinter I should know. But believe me, a large amount of our training was not performed using the ridiculously tough protocols which many personal trainers advocate for fat loss.

No, our training was based largely around working at ‘maximumish’ levels for anywhere between 10 – 30 seconds with recoveries of up to 3 - 6 minutes in between, so overall far less intense than many people think.

So, it’s all a question of Intensity then?   

Yes, and personal preference. HIIT has many benefits if used prudently. If you’re a beginner, in a bid to stave of injury and overtraining, keep the work time relatively low and rest high, something like a ratio of 1:4 or 1:3 work: rest is generally a good starting point and as you get fitter try to reduce your ratio of rest.

But if you don’t enjoy the ‘go hard or go home’ training approach then don’t do HIIT. The key to effective training is sustainability and if HIIT doesn’t float your boat stick to the steady state cardio as there may not be that much of a difference between that an HIIT with regards to calorie burn after all.

In conclusion…

HIIT is a welcome form of training which I personally utilise a lot with my own training, but just because its espoused incessantly by social media fitness ‘experts’ it most certainly doesn’t mean it’s the only way, or correct way to train given an individual’s circumstances!

I approach HIIT with my clients in much the same way as I approach watching comedian David Walliams:

Given the right circumstances HIIT can be very effective, just as, at times David Walliams can be very funny. But unfortunately, his persona based largely on ‘is he straight/is he gay’ soon becomes very boring and hard for my head to handle, just as too much HIIT becomes too hard for many people’s bodies to handle!

If you like to train hard, and get it over and done with give HIIT a whirl, just go easy on how hard and how often you do it, to reduce the risk of injury or over training. If you approach your training with the same level of intensity as Joey Essex approached his school work, you may be better off opting for steady state cardio!

Thanks for reading,

Matt

TO BOOK YOUR FREE PERSONAL TRAINING SESSION, OR TO BOOK A PLACE AT MY BOOT CAMP CLASS, PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH.

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ALTERNATIVE FACTS OF THE FITNESS INDUSTRY!

Remember the good old days when if you were being a little disingenuous with the truth someone would quite happily say 'Oi, stop lying'. Or if you were telling a real whopper they might even tell you to 'stop talking b****cks . Well, those days (just like Russell Brand's virginity) are long gone. For we now live in an era where fibs, little white lies or downright lies are now known as alternative facts.

And the fitness industry is no different. Unfortunately it is abound with alternative facts and in this post I'm going to reveal just a few of them:

1. Social media supplement sellers aren't all that they seem!

Unless you’ve ‘done a Chilean minor’ and been stuck underground you can’t have helped notice a Facebook ‘friend’ or two trying to sell you some sort of nutritional supplement. I'm not going to mention the names of any of the companies involved just in case the lawyers are reading but if you google the terms: scam + nutrition + companies one or two of them will probably pop up.

Now, let me be clear here I'm not actually accusing any of these companies of being a scam and would like to take this opportunity to point out that any similarities that they may have with the much maligned, often frowned upon and sometimes illegal practice of pyramid selling is purely coincidental (I think this is the point where I should insert a winking face emoji).

In most cases the individuals selling this stuff hold absolutely no official nutritional qualifications. At best, they have a misguided yet overwhelming urge to (and I quote) ‘help people become healthy’. At worst (and I’m afraid to say in most cases) they simply have an overwhelming desire to try and make a very tidy profit by selling you overhyped, overpriced products (incidentally a bit like some recent David Haye and Anthony Joshua fights!).

Now, I’m not against making a profit (unlike your average Bargain Hunt contestant) but it must be done ethically. And when these social media supplement sellers seem more intent on recruiting you to sell their products rather than just buying them, it leaves me, much like a dog who licks its own bits – with a sour taste in my mouth.

2. Industry funded scientific studies

Next up are the scientists. Not all scientist I’m hastened to add, just the ones who receive funding directly from sports nutrition companies to research their products. Unsurprisingly the results of this research nearly always prove very favourable for the paying company.

That's right guys, that scientific study which the makers of your favourite sports drink or supplement always refer to, to prove the veracity of its product might not be as authentic as it seems.

Now I’m not saying that these scientists are deliberately as dodgy as Del Boy, I’m just pointed out that there could certainly be a strong case made for a conflict of interests. After all you don’t bite the hand that feeds you, do you!

3. The government may not always be looking out for you!

In theory, our government introduces nutritional guidelines/legislation after seeking advice from experts. However, in reality big business also regularly gets involved in influencing the government too!

According to Professor David Miller at the University of Bath, big business may be so good at influencing our ministers, that our governments current nutrition guidelines may be flawed.

That's right, the governments advice on what to eat, might not be there because it's good for YOU and your health, but because it's good for BIG BUSINESS and their profits!

David Cameron and Theresa May have spoken out about curbing this lobbying-style activity but I fear we’ll be seeing Justin Bieber advertising stair lifts before this happens! 

Take home message…

Just like an annoying kid question everything, whether it be the motives of a Facebook friend trying to flog you some cure-all pills, or the scientific claims made by a company on the benefits of its products. Question what’s in it for them and unfortunately nine times out of ten it will come down to one thing - money!

The problem with the health and fitness industry is that its a huge financial pie with a relatively low barrier to entry. Gaining a qualification as fitness professional is not particularly difficult and the level of scrutiny which supplements must undergo before being brought to market is surprisingly low too.

With such a big financial pie on offer it’s unsurprising, that lots of people want to get their grubby little mitts on a piece, so be very weary of where and whom you get your advice from!

Oh, I'd love to write more but I'm afraid I cant as I'm just too busy readying myself for the finals of the Mr Great Britain 2017... I'll leave you to decide whether that was an alternative fact or not!

Thanks for reading,

Matt

TO BOOK YOUR FREE PERSONAL TRAINING SESSION, OR TO BOOK A PLACE AT MY BOOT CAMP CLASS, PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH.

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10 EASY STEPS TO BECOMING A CLEAN EATING GURU!

Making your way in the fitness and nutrition industry is a tough task, especially if you’re a stickler for science and insist on giving evidence-based advice.

Luckily for you, you don’t have to. Here is my 10-step guide to becoming a clean eating guru, which if you’re lucky, may culminate in a book deal, a TV deal or even a chain of restaurants!

NOTE: This article is written with my tongue placed firmly in my cheek and I urge you not to follow this advice. However, if you do, unfortunately you’ll probably make a shed load more money than your average professor who dedicates their life to advancing our knowledge of nutrition!

Step 1: HAVE A SOB STORY

Now this isn’t a pre-requisite but it sure helps. Choose some sort of ailment to suffer from, this can range from the rather mild such as headaches or stomach cramps to the more extreme, such as a life limiting illness. You’re probably better off opting for the more severe here as this will add weight to your future claims (and profits).

Not keen on putting a personal slant on your story? No problem, simply claim that we are all collectively in the grips of an epidemic, or even better a pandemic!

Step 2: CHOOSE A GOODY OR BADDY

You’ve got your ailment, now you must choose option A or B: A, a SUPER BAD foodstuff for which you can pin all the blame on for causing your ailment. Or B, a SUPER GOOD foodstuff which will defeat your evil ailment.

You can opt for a combination of both A and B but I don’t advise this because this could all get a little too nuanced for your consumers. Remember you want to start a social media movement here and there isn’t space for areas of grey, it’s strictly black or white.

Step 3: SHOW A COMPLETE DISREGARD FOR THE SCIENCE

This is probably the most important of all the steps. You must show a complete disregard for what the overwhelming scientific consensus is telling you. You must disregard the experts almost as much as TOWIE star Gemma Collins disregards the need to use manners…well almost!

However, if you want to have the slightest whiff of credibility you can cherry pick the odd study which kind of substantiates your claims!

Step 4: FAUX SCEPTICISM

That’s right you must claim to be a sceptic. Whatever you opted for, option A or B you must at least claim to have been initially very sceptical about it. This is a must because it builds a rapport with your customers. Initially, when they hear about the claims you’ll be making, they will probably be very sceptical, but if you claim that you were as well way back in the beginning, it builds a certain affinity with them.

Step 5: AMAZING RESULTS

If you go for option A, you must claim that abstaining from eating that super bad food stuff has left you feeling AM-AZ-ING. Similarly, if you prefer option B you must also claim to feel AM-AZ-ING but not because you’ve cut something out of your diet but because you’ve added in some food item with mythical super powers!

Step 6: DISCOUNT OTHER (MORE RATIONAL) REASONS WHY YOU FEEL AMAZING

That’s right you must discount other reasons as to why you’re feeling better. Often when people begin to alter their diet they make other lifestyle changes too such as: they exercise more, sleep better, eat more appropriate portion sizes, drink more water etc. etc. and it’s the cumulative effects of these which combine to make someone feel better.

But you can’t let this possibility enter your thoughts. Don’t even entertain it for the most fleeting of moments. You must believe, or at least claim to believe that this improved feeling of self-worth is brought about purely because of the dietary changes you’ve made. Remember, soon you’ve got a restaurant to open and after all you do want to send your kids to private school, don’t you?

Step 7: POST YOUR STORY ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Join Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat or whatever and endlessly post about your ‘journey’. It’s a tough task here but you must post more pics of your grub, than the average parent posts of their new-born. This will be extraordinarily tough but you can do it. Oh, and always be sure to include the hashtags #cleaneating or #eatingclean

Step 8: KEEP POSTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA

That’s right post, post and post some more, oh and when you think you’ve posted too much, just like Postman Pat, keep posting. For particular kudos, you could also begin including hashtags #traindirty, #vegan or #glutenfree (but these are optional).

Step 9: INFORM PEOPLE THAT YOU HAVE NO QUALIFICATIONS WHATSOEVER IN SCIENCE OR NUTRITION

You must come clean at this point and inform your social media followers that you have no qualifications in the field you are incessantly talking about. But don’t worry, this won’t affect your chances of getting that future book deal whatsoever, after all social media ‘likes’ trump science any day of the week!

But as a slight word of warning don’t bang on about your lack of qualifications too much, we wouldn’t want any of your more free-thinking followers thinking you’re a complete fraud and charlatan would we!

Step 10: BE ATTRACTIVE

This isn’t written in stone anywhere (unlike Ed Milliband’s election pledges) but I must stress that the more attractive you are the more likely you are to achieve clean eating guru status.

Don’t believe me? Take a look at the gurus who’ve had books published, to say they’re easy on the eye is an understatement! Many of them look like they’ve just stepped off a catwalk.

Still, as a former model myself (mainly of gloves and balaclavas) there’s hope for me yet!

IN CONCLUSION…

If I need the electrics altered in my house I seek the expertise of an electrician not a window cleaner. Similarly, if you’re having trouble altering your health seek the expertise of just that, an expert in the form of a doctor or dietician not someone who is more interested in collecting likes and followers rather than collecting letters after their name.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

TO BOOK YOUR FREE PERSONAL TRAINING SESSION, OR TO BOOK A PLACE AT MY BOOT CAMP CLASS, PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH.

    matt@mlrpt.co.uk                 www.mlrpt.co.uk                          07939316401 www.twitter.com/mlrpt      www.facebook.com/mlrpt        www.twitter.com/mlrpt

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