Dive into summer
Bare your body with confidence this season

Enjoy the delights of summer this year without body confidence issues. Photo by AB Phil Cullinan, NIU-W

By Rachel Irving

Summer brings a sense of excitement and fun, with holidays just around the corner for many people.
But it can also bring with it a sense of dread – the thought of baring our bodies can spark fear and anxiety among the most even-headed of us.

Too many Tim Tams and hot chocolates over winter takes the fun out of slipping into a bikini, and man boobs and beer bellies can mean boardshorts and bare chests are a thing of the past – not fun when it’s 40 degrees.

So while there are no quick fixes, bar surgery, to getting a great body, there are easy changes that you can make to your diet and lifestyle. These will improve your body confidence and have you looking and feeling great before you know it.

Get moving

Get your lazy winter butt off the couch and get out there. If you are already exercising then today do 10 extra minutes of cardio at about 10 per cent above your typical workout intensity. While this won’t affect the short-term poundage picture all that much, you’ll burn more calories than usual and you’ll feel better about yourself.

Walking, running and swimming will help you build strong heart and lung muscles and help you control your weight.

Stand tall

Good posture can make you appear thinner than you actually are, so for a longer leaner look stand tall and pull in your stomach.
The added bonus is that by tightening your stomach you are not only working those much-desired abdominals but are protecting your lower back too.

Look at what you eat

Yes, everything you consume – even the 3pm trip to the chocolate machine. This way you can determine your eating habits and work out where and how you need to improve.

Eating a balanced combination of foods in balanced quantities will help you get and maintain the body you want. That means you need to eat carbohydrates (starches), protein (meat and dairy products) and yes, even some fat.

Every body is different, but the general rule is to eat what your body will use.

The column below will help get you started.

Eating well combined with exercise increases your fitness. Photo by AB Kade Rogers, NIU-W

Eat well live well

The following are some tips for jump-starting weight loss and are simply a guide. Your doctor is a great person to visit before you embark on any weight loss plan.

1. Eat protein at every meal. Try a smoked-salmon bagel for breakfast, chicken for lunch and a steak for dinner and you’ll be in the summer swing before you know it.
2. Reduce wheat- and flour-based products for the time being. And yes, that definitely includes that pasta you love! If you can’t resist, at least go for brown and wholemeal options.
3. Increase your salads and low carb vegies. Instead of potatoes with your evening meal, opt for a low carb option such as a salad. You will still feel satisfied and with a variety of salad vegies you will have increased your vitamin intake too.
4. Chomp on fruit. Apples, pears, plums and berries are all good low-sugar, high-fibre varieties.
5. Go low fat dairy. Enjoy your dairy products but go for the low-fat varieties. Just be sure to check the sugar content of your favourite yoghurts.
6. Be a label freak. Read the labels as you shop for your groceries. Don’t be fooled by labels that claim to be “lite”, “no cholesteral” and “fat free”. Compare products and look at what you are really consuming. Do a little research and you will make more informed choices.
7. Lose the booze. There is nothing essential in alcohol that you can’t get in fruits and vegetables.
8. Watch the types of fat you consume. The amount of fat is probably less important than the kind you eat. The best fats are omega-3 fats found in foods such as fish. The worst fats are those that contain hydrogenised and partly hydrogenised oils, fried foods and margarine.
9. Obsessively drink water. Consume at least eight or more large glasses each day and more if you are excercising in the warmer weather.

The key is not to change your eating habits too radically all at once. By incorporating small changes with an increase in cardiovascular activity, your body will increase its metabolism and adjust to the changes.

Other good choices would be to eat breakfast every day, eliminate late-night eating, and reduce your portion sizes. By doing this and combining it with aerobic activity, your metabolism will rev up and before you know it you’ll be strutting down the beach confident in your appearance.

After all, it’s not always about how we really look at all, but it’s certainly about how we feel.

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