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Keep up to date with the latest news, customer transformations
and healthy recipes from Equation Training

May 06
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Clean Eating Is Ruining Your Life

By Nutrition

Clean Eating. Another crazy diet in the fitness industry draining the joy out of life!

Clean eating… What the hell is clean eating? Nobody seems to know what foods are classed as clean and what foods are….. Dirty? I guess you can call it dirty? Clean eating pretty much means eating lots of veggies and whole foods, while cutting out refined sugar, starches, bread, red meat, salt, chocolate, cake and all things that make life worth living.

Clean eating is trying to make the normal people who eat normal food feel like they are dirty. ‘Look at you, you filthy animal, eating bread, your dirty’.

Healthy whole foods with no refined sugar or preservatives are obviously very good for you, A balanced diet is essential for life, for a healthy life. But honestly, I have been known to eat a krispy cream doughnut (or two). There is always a place in my heart and my belly for doughnuts. I also like salad, like real salad with ALL the veg! I eat oatmeal for breakfast and quinoa vegetarian bean chilli for lunch. Does this make me a good person. A ‘clean’ person? Do you think better of me for eating all this fantastic clean food?

No?..

Obsessive clean eating is an actual eating disorder. People who are obsessed with eating clean could be suffering from ‘Orthorexia Nervosa’ which literally means fixation on righteous eating. They become completely consumed by what they are eating, how much and how ‘clean’ the food is. Eating only ‘clean’ foods will eventually result in a massive break down where you will find yourself slumped on the floor, crying, covered in nutella and frosties.

I believe in balance. A little bit of everything is not going to kill you, nor will it make you unhealthy or fat. The beauty of flexible dieting is that you can fit most foods into your diet. As long as your micro nutrients (vitamins and minerals) and fiber intake is hit each day, then there is no harm in including some ‘dirty’ food in your diet. It is more than just calories in and calories out as your body also has a certain amount of protein, fats and carbs it requires to achieve your desired body composition. This macro nutrient intake is different for every person.

 

I do not advocate eating shit food. If you have MacDonald’s for lunch every day you need to fucking sort your life out because that is not okay. If you have MacDonald’s once a week. That is fine. It’s also okay to eat ice-cream and cake. Just not all day every day! It’s healthier to include these foods into your diet in small portions to keep you sane and prevent crazy junk food binges. Everyone says your body can’t gain fat from one cheat meal. You wouldn’t believe how much fat your body can store from just ONE massive binge.

Instead of draining the happiness out of your life by restricting fun foods like ice-cream and cookies, just keep small portions of all your fave foods in your diet, make those foods fit your macros. I PROMISE.. You can get lean when eating ice-cream and doughnuts and burgers and pizza. You will also be a much happier person for it.

 

p.s If there are any great doughnut companies out there I am open to sponcership offers

Apr 05
Love0

Paige’s Before and After Transformation

By Transformations

BEFORE

AFTER

Paige – CrossFit Athlete

Literally don’t know where to start with how AMAZING this girl is she has taught me so much and I couldn’t thank her enough without her today I would be a mess in health state. Although I’m still on my journey and I’m probably the worst client ever for falling off the path, Charlie never fails to get me back on track and push me to get closer to my goals.
If anyone ever wants help or advice she’s the perfect person to come to and it’s not an easy journey but Charlie makes it enjoyable aswell as hurting like hell after a leg session with her haha
I can’t wait to continue my journey working with Charlie and to see what else I can achieve the best trainer ever!! There was I time I said I won’t lose that much and when I got to there I was so happy and now it’s time to go further.

Charlie is literally the best!!!!

Mar 14
Love0

Cinnamon Danish Protein Thick Shake

By Nutrition

Here is one of my fave shake recipes. Great as breakfast or a post workout snack

Cinnamon Danish Protein Thick Shake

Ingredients:

Directions:

Place all ingredients into a high speed bullet blender (if you don’t have one of these you can also use a hand blender)

Blend until a smooth consistency is reached  if you want the snake to be thicker add a little more Xantha Gum. If you want the shake to be thinner. Add more milk or water

Notes:

This recipe will work using any flavour protein powder. Check out the other flavours you can get on MyProtein and get creative.

If you like this shake. Try one of my other shake recipes here>>>>Chocolate Beetroot Smoothie or Mint Chocolate Protein Smoothie

 

 

 

 

Feb 16
Love0

Chris’s Testimonial

By Transformations

Chris – Looking to loose weight and get fit

After 53 years of being over weight but fit, in fact a number of people used to tell me I was the fittest fat bloke they knew. I run half marathons and 10Kms races, played rugby, and I still go to the gym 5 times a week but I weighted over 18 stones, I am 6 foot tall and I realised I really needed help in changing how I lived my life to get fitter, slimmer and healthier. Charlie was the answer, she gave me information, structure, process, advice and inspiration to make the changes I needed to do to make the difference.

I took the Charlie 12 weeks course and at the end of it I had lost 22lbs, got fitter and felt 100% better. I now have a way of living that suits me and my new lifestyle i use the MyFitnessPal app to record what I have eaten and this has really helped me realise the make up of my meals, I now understand the importance of protein and what carbohydrates to eat and which to leave alone and my sugar consumption is almost zero and I look forward to filling it in every meal time to record what I have eaten. I have more weight to lose and more muscle to gain but working with Charlie has given me the confidence and positivity to carry on and become the person I know I can be.

Thank you Charlie you are brilliant!

Feb 12
Love0

Tracy’s Before and After Transformation

By Transformations

BEFORE

AFTER

Tracey – Mum of 2 and CrossFit Athlete

I first contacted Charlie in December 15 to help me overhaul my diet as it had gone from OK to terrible after giving up work to be a stay at home mum.  Cake and biscuits had become the norm and my energy levels were zero.  Also, I had just started to exercise again and it was taking me ages to recover in between sessions.  Within a week I noticed a difference.  My energy levels soared and recovery was better.  This was not a fad diet, and food was plentiful.  Some days I was eating extra food just to ensure I had eaten enough calories! Charlie was available for advice and support whenever needed and was encouraging on “check in” day.  Now, 3 months on I am still eating well, following Charlie’s guidelines, and am feeling better than ever.

I can thoroughly recommend Charlie’s program to anyone looking to improve their health and fitness.

Feb 04
Love0

Why You Shouldn’t Strive For Body Perfection

By News

I was quite shocked when a bloke in the gym says ‘Oh Charlie you’ve put on weight’.
After being taken back for a moment I replied ‘Yes I have put on weight; I’m trying to gain muscle‘
The man says ‘Oh is that what people do now is it?’
I replied ‘Well that’s what I want to do yes’
I shouldn’t have, but I felt pretty shit about myself after the comment he made. Maybe in his eyes I looked worse? Or was he just stating an unnecessary fact to make me feel like shit? Who knows?
My goal at the time was to increase muscle mass and strength so yes I had gained weight. I had gone from an unhealthy 10% body fat with a flat chest, zero hips and messed up hormones, to a healthier, happier 18% body fat with an increased muscle mass and metabolism.
I personally want thick thighs and a bubble butt. Some girls want a thigh gap and skinny legs. Some people are more than happy to be a little overweight. That is fine! Everyone is different. Isn’t that the point? The world would sure be a fucking boring place if we all looked the same.
What is perfect? Perfection is stupid and no matter what you do in life you will never be perfect. Nobody is perfect! We have this idea of perfect in our minds which we constantly strive for yet do you know anyone that ever gets to the point where they say ‘I’m perfect now’.. Maybe a few arrogant ass holes but really they have self esteem issues behind closed doors.

 

Here are 7 reasons body perfection sucks:

1. Nobody’s perfect is the same
My idea of ‘perfect’ will be completely different to yours. I aspire to look like strong girls with muscle where as you may aspire to look like Kim Kardashian? Or Keira Knightley..
2. Perfectionism brings upon negative emotion
Perfectionism brings upon self-doubt, depression, social anxiety and fear of rejection. Perfectionist often set the bar too high and never hit these unrealistic achievements.
3. Perfectionist don’t have a middle ground
Perfectionist either need something to be 100% or nothing at all. They will either have a perfect gram for gram macro counted diet, or binge eat all the junk food. They will either kill themselves in the gym or not bother going at all. There is no acceptance of the middle ground which is actually the healthiest place to be.
4. You will never be perfect so you will never be happy
‘I will be happy when I have a thigh gap’… ‘ I will be happy when I have abs’.. Trust me, you won’t be happy. You will always set the bar higher. You will hit your goal, gain your abs, reach your body fat percentage, yet you will still find flaws in yourself which need to be improved. You will never be happy living this way.
5. Negative hunter
Being a perfectionist makes you hunt out the bad things which need to be improved. It will push you to find the not so perfect things in everything.. family, colleagues and partners . This can really affect your relationships with people as you are constantly looking for the negative things in them.
6. Increased body fat
The perfectionist is usually a stress head, constantly striving for perfection. This will increase the levels of cortisol (stress hormone) in your system which will cause fat retention and muscle loss.
7. You are not perfect
Lastly, you are not perfect. Nobody’s perfect. You will never be perfect. Learn that you are a human not a robot and sometimes things don’t always go 100% the way you want them too. Accept that and allow yourself to be okay with 90% some of the time rather than beating yourself up.
“You are not your bra-size, nor are you the width of your waist, nor are you the slenderness of your calves. You are not your hair colour, your skin colour, nor are you a shade of lipstick. Your shoe-size is of no consequence. You are not defined by the amount of attention you get from males, females, or any combination thereof. You are not the number of sit-ups you can do, nor are you the number of calories in a day. You are not your moustache. You are not the hair on your legs. You are not a little red dress.
You are no amalgam of these things.
You are the content of your character. You are the ambitions that drive you. You are the goals that you set. You are the things that you laugh at and the words that you say. You are the thoughts you think and the things you wonder. You are beautiful and desirable not for the clique you attend, but for the spark of life within you that compels you to make your life a full and meaningful one. You are beautiful not for the shape of the vessel, but for the volume of the soul it carries.”
— Unknown

Dec 09
Love0

Katie’s Before and After Transformation

By Transformations

BEFORE

AFTER

Katie – Accountant and Keen Gym Goer

I started training with Charlie in mid May 2014. Although I had been training for several years, Charlie taught me so much about technique, diet and training. I went from “skinnyfat”, to muscular and lean within a four month period. I now have a body shape that I thought impossible to achieve. Not to mention how much healthier I am and how much more energy I have. Even though she has left Australia and returned to England, I know that I can message her at any time for support, motivation and help with where I am currently falling down.

Charlie started as my Personal Trainer but she very quickly became my friend. Without her, I wouldn’t be where I am.

Oct 12
Love0

George’s Before and After Transformation

By Transformations

BEFORE

AFTER

George – Office worker looking to get fit

Prior to coming to resistance training, I had very little confidence in my abilities to make a real difference to my physical appearance. I was frustrated by the lack of results I wasn’t seeing and my own inability to stay motivated to keep going. This attitude was completely changed by Charlie.

As a trainer, Charlie respects that everyone comes to the gym for different reasons, and has different strengths and weaknesses. She pushes you to keep trying to better yourself, to surprise yourself, but never punishes you, criticises, or makes you feel like a failure when you can’t make it. She instead reminds you to know your own strengths, to feel proud that you are making a difference, and that there is always next time. A large part of this is due to her superior knowledge of sports sciences, the anatomy, and knowing the ins and outs of resistance training. With her guidance, support, and enthusiasm, I began to see real results from my training and started to feel better about myself.

Charlie also takes her responsibilities as a trainer one step further by actively getting involved in your diet and food plans. Her encyclopaedic knowledge of food, nutrition is staggering, and the advice and instructions she offers ensures that everything you putting out in the gym is returning to your body in a meaningful way during those rest periods.

Charlie is not only an exceptional personal trainer, she is an exceptional human being. She is kind, funny, bubbly and above all, nurturing. Training with Charlie has changed my life for the better.

I am healthier, more confident, I look better and I am more motivated in all aspects of my life.

Sep 20
Love0

Salted Peanut Butter Protein Soft Serve Ice cream

By News

Women spend a huge amount of their lives working on their appearance. To be exact we spend an average of 6.5 hours a week which is 335 hours a year. That’s an average so if your a fitness junkie that number will likely double or triple.

It is SO important to take care of your body and care about your appearance. It is healthy to exercise and want to eat well to improve your appearance and nourish your body. Although there is a fine line between caring about your appearance and obsessing over your appearance. It becomes an obsession when a person begins to judge their self worth on their body image.

This is unhealthy for the mind and body and can lead to mental health issues.

Over 50% of women have negative thoughts about their bodies every day. Just under 80% of teenage girls!! It is shocking that society puts this much pressure on women and girls to get the ‘perfect body‘. What the hell is the perfect body?? We are extreme self critics, and pile a huge amount of pressure on our selves to look a certain way.

75% of women have behavior issues and unhealthy thoughts or feelings related to food or their bodies.

Your self worth should not be determined on how flat your stomach is or how big your boobs are! Your body may be your temple but it defiantly is not who you are. You are not a bad person because you carry an extra few centimeters of fat around your waist!

Being negative about your body will not improve anything. It will not make you loose weight or tone up. The only way to make change is with a positive mind.TRUST ME. I lost 10kgs of body fat with a negative, body hating mind and still at 10% body fat I hated my body. In my mind I was never good enough.

I never took the time to love and appreciate my progress and was constantly beating my self up about how I looked. Slaving away in the gym for hours, for what? To still hate my body and have an unhealthy mind!

To change your body you must love and accept your body. Positive things happen to positive people!

Im not saying its okay to be fat. There are a lot of people who will happily sit on their arse all day and watch TV while consuming their body weight in junk food. This is not okay!! Do not fill your body with shit food. RESPECT YOURSELF.. Focus on health. Create a healthy body internally and externally. Create a healthy mind through positive thoughts.

BE HAPPY 😀

Salted Peanut Butter Protein Soft Serve Ice cream

serves 1

Ingredients

  •  500ml water
  • 1x flat tbsp xantham gum
  • 50g yogurt (I use total 0% fat)
  • 1x scoop (25g) vanilla protein powder (I use http://www.theproteinworks.com/products/protein-shakes/naked-whey-protein-80.html use code CF180303 for free protein powder at the checkout)
  • 10g low fat peanut flour
  • a large pinch of pink Himalayan salt
  • 20x ice cubes

Directions

Add all ingredients to a high watt blender (like a nutribullet) and blend until smooth. If its too thick add a little more water. Too liquid and add a teeny bit more of xantham gum 😀 If you don’t have a nutribullet you can use a hand puree blender 😀

Notes: I like to add cinnamon and maca powder for a super-food kick. Try topping with bee pollen, nut butters or seeds

 

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