Exercise

If you’re anything like me, I get bored with doing the same thing over and over when it comes to exercise. This week I’m sharing another way to create your own home workout using the Ladder principle.

A “Ladder” workout is created simply by choosing your exercises, for example, alternating lunges, shoulder press, bent over row, and cross-over crunches.

Next, you choose how many reps to start with, and how many you will add each new round. For example, I suggest starting with 2 reps on each exercise, and adding 2 more reps each new round.

Finally, decide how long you are going to workout, for example 15 minutes. Then set your timer and away you go, adding 2 more reps each time you go through each exercise.

To ramp it up a little, do the same routine for the same amount of time a week or so later, and see if you can get more ‘rungs on the ladder’ in terms of reps completed. You are your only competition!

Nutrition

Looking for a simple yet satisfying meal? Try this easy homemade stir fry without any additives, preservatives or overload of sugar that you get in packet sauces.

Honey soy stir fry

Makes 1 large serve / 2 smaller serves

Prep Time: 30min

INGREDIENTS:

1 C brown rice + 2.5 C water

200g Tofu, cubed

3 Cups veggies of choice (broccoli, capsicum, zucchini, carrot etc)

1 Tbs coconut oil

1/4 Cups cashews

2 Tbs Tamari sauce or Braggs amino liquid

1 Tbs raw honey or rice malt syrup

1 Tbs sesame oil

1 tsp corn flour

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook brown rice with water (easiest in rice cooker)
2. Heat coconut oil in pan on medium heat. Add cubed tofu and fry for several minutes until golden brown.
3. Add chopped veggies and stir fry for a further 5ish minutes.
4. Stir together in a cup: soy sauce/tamari, honey sesame oil and corn flour. Add a bit of water if necessary for corn flour.
5. Pour sauce over stir fry and cook for another 2ish minutes. Add cashews and stir through
6. Serve with brown rice hot.

Mindset

Diaphragmatic breathing

The most powerful way to communicate to your body whether it is “safe” or not is via how you breathe. When you breathe in a short, shallow way, and the only part of you that moves is the top of your chest, adrenalin is driving that. That communicates to every cell in your body that your life is in danger.

When you breathe diaphragmatically, your abdomen expands when you inhale and shrinks back in when you exhale, and you communicate to every cell in your body that you are safe, as you would never be able to breathe in this way if your life was truly in danger. The way you breathe influences how your nervous system perceives your level of safety in that moment, therefore the more we breath diaphragmatically, the more our body lives in parasympathetic nervous system dominance, which promotes ‘rest and repair.’

How To Breathe Diaphragmatically:

1. Find somewhere to sit or lie down, or put your legs up against the wall, as this helps to focus on breathing from your diaphragm
2. Take a long, slow inhale through your nostrils. As you inhale, send the breath to your belly and let it rise with the inhale. If your hands are on your belly you will feel this.

Imagine a balloon in your belly and with each inhale you are inflating it.

1. Inhale, pause, then exhale slowly through your nostrils as your belly shrinks back towards your spine.
2. Gently pause.
3. Repeat this 10 times.

It may feel uncomfortable initially as some of the muscles may not be used to being used, but it will get easier the more you do it. Breathing this way is a beautiful nourishment for our nervous systems, pituitary gland and our adrenals. Aim to do this once a day this week, and ideally, continue forever.

Copyright © 2021 Alisha Christie