​Just kidding. There really is no such thing as an ab diet.

Remember what I said in the last post Abs: The Truth? You can't "spot train" your abs, meaning you can't target a certain muscle group or area of your body to lose weight or gain muscle without affecting other parts of your body. Just like you can't necessarily eat a certain way to target only a certain muscle group, it just doesn't work that way.

Your body changes overall, you don't get to pick and choose where.

While I know many of you were expecting a diet plan and there are many out there for just about anything, you'll notice they all have a common denominator: eating whole, minimally processed foods. 

That's really all it takes. But it's so much easier said than done. So I laid it out step by step for you:

Step 1: Go to the grocery store

• Put a variety of fruits and veggies in your cart that you actually like and enjoy eating
• Put a variety of healthy fats in your cart (e.g avocado, olive oil, butter etc.)
• Lastly, pick up some foods high in protein (e.g lean chicken, Greek yogurt, legumes, nuts and nut butters etc.)

Step 2: Prepare them and eat them in a way that you enjoy

• Buying the healthy ingredients is easy, actually preparing and eating them is where people often struggle
• Make healthy recipes with the ingredients you bought or eat them raw (e.g baby carrots, apples, peanut butter)
• Here are some awesome healthy recipe websites that I often refer to:
  • www.eatingwell.com
  • www.cookinglight.com (it provides the nutritional information for each recipe so that's an extra BONUS!)
  • www.skinnytaste.com
• If you're too lazy to do this and you're staring into your fridge not knowing what to do with the ingredients you have, simply go to Google, type in the food(s) you don't know what to do with, and add "healthy recipe". In most cases something will pop up!
• Remember, you can look for easy and quick recipes or more time consuming ones based on your preference and lifestyle. Eating healthy is only as complicated and difficult as you make it.

Step 3: Limit the amount of processed foods you consume

• This is probably the trickiest part. So instead of going to your cupboard and immediately dumping all the junk food you have, try limiting or reducing one thing at a time
• If you have a can of pop every day, reduce it to 5 days a week and slowly cut back. Once accomplished, move on to the next highly processed food you consume the most and slowly reduce that as well

For those of you still searching for that "diet plan". Here are some foods that help support your belly reduction and allow your abs to show more by fighting off body fat storage, lowering your levels of cortisol and keeping you feeling full longer. Again, it follows the same theme of whole, minimally processed foods:

• Bell peppers
• Brussel Sprouts
• Eggs
• Bananas
• Green tea
• Lean poultry
• Legumes
• Oatmeal
• Apples
• Sweet potatoes
• Blueberries
• Broccoli 

Doing ab exercises is great too, check out my post if you missed it Abs: The Truth.

While this is not a quick solution (be wary of any that say there are), stick with these 3 steps and you'll see results. Combine proper nutrition and exercise and you'll be in for some awesome abs and an awesome overall change in your body composition.

Joanna has lost a total of 15 pounds from January 2017 to August 2017. Her goal was to reduce her waist, arms and overall body weight. She has done just that. Her waist circumference has decreased from 41 inches to 36.5 and her arms have decreased by 4 inches.

When I first met her, just walking was a challenge due to her balance issues. Before we even had our first session, she wound up in the hospital due to a fall. She called me once she got better and was cleared for exercise and so, began her journey.

1) Introduce Yourself
 
My name is Joanna I was born in England but have lived in Canada for 53 years.

2) What made you decide to make a change? Was there a turning point or sudden realization?

I fell and broke a couple of bones in my back and I hoped as my body got stronger I could get rid of using a walker and a cane.

3) What has been the most challenging?

Daily exercise.

4) What was your goal when you started and how much have you accomplished so far?

To loose 20lbs. Also to be able to walk without help. I have reached about half my goals.

5) What advice/tips can you give to others on their weight loss journey?
​
Do what the trainer says. They are there to help. Exercise daily and eat healthier. 

I am so proud of you Joanna! Thank you for sharing this with all of us. ​

In this new series, I ask my clients to answer 5 questions about their weight loss journey so they can reflect on how they've changed and provide helpful tips for others.

1) Introduce Yourself
 
My name is Deanna. I'm 24 years old, and I've been overweight for most of my life. I've tried to lose weight before, but could never commit to anything or make it last long enough to have an effect. As a bit of a new year's resolution, I decided to make 2017 a year for myself. A year for feeling good and looking good. With how things have gone in the past, I knew I wouldn't stick to something I did on my own. So I looked into personal training.
 
2) What made you decide to make a change? Was there a turning point or sudden realization?
 
There wasn't a specific 'moment' where I had a realization. Any time I looked at myself in the mirror, I felt a bit disappointed. I didn't even consider trying on clothes that I liked because I knew I wouldn't like how they looked.

The start of a new year gave me the motivation to try and make changes. I want to be proud of how I look, and I want to be healthier.
 
3) What has been the most challenging?
 
The most challenging thing for me was changing my diet. I was surprised how easy it seemed for me to fit exercise into my schedule, but trying to completely overhaul the way you've eaten your whole life is a lot harder. That's something I'm still working on.

4) What was your goal when you started and how much have you accomplished so far?
 
My goal was to lose about 30 lbs and to reach a healthy weight. With Simone's help, I've lost about 9 lbs in 12 sessions. I've also lost about an inch from my waist, hips, and biceps. My BMI and body fat percentage also went down slightly.
 
5) What advice/tips can you give to others on their weight loss journey? 

My advice for anyone who is on their own weight loss journey is to give yourself the chance to do great things. Everyone is capable of reaching their goals. It won't be easy, and it will take a lot of time and effort, but it's all possible if you give yourself time. Simone helps to make it feel just a little bit easier. I would highly recommend her services.

Thank you so much Deanna for sharing your journey with us. You have accomplished so much both physically and mentally. Although she no longer trains with me, she is currently taking kick boxing classes at her local community centre, and still creating beautiful art work (check her out on instagram @deannalennox). Keep up the awesome work Deanna!

I've worked with many clients over the years and while tackling their weight loss is a challenge, the biggest challenge comes from their relationship with food. Specifically emotional eating.

However, it's important to note that emotional eating is viewed as perfectly acceptable and normal. In fact, it's something we have been doing for centuries. We celebrate with food at weddings, parties, and big events, even at funerals there is food. Emotionally driven food is everywhere.

The problem occurs when it turns into a dangerous habit. Those who struggle the most turn to it repeatedly and excessively whenever they're experiencing any emotion and view food as their reward. They've created a habit to reach for food whenever they have the slightest shift in their emotion.

While this habit can take months and even years to fix, it can be done. It starts with implementing new habits. I would love for that new habit to be exercise but most people already struggle with exercising regularly. What it really comes down to is keeping your mind and hands occupied with something else besides food. So here are 29 things, divided into categories, you can do instead of eat your emotions:​

• Next, pick one thing from this list you can do next time you get an emotional urge to eat
• Try it out. How effective was it? Were you able to take your mind off food? 
• If it works, continue with it and try to implement it as your new habit whenever you feel emotional hunger come on
• If it doesn't work don't be discouraged, move on and try a different one 

I hope this was helpful! Be sure to give it a try and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Lastly, I want to give a special thanks to my client Barbara and her husband Terry who introduced me to Paint by Numbers. It's my new favourtie thing!