Back to Back Issues Page
Are You Ready to Get Your Lean On?
April 15, 2015
Hello,

How I Lost 10 lbs in 30 Days

I hope everybody is having a wonderful spring thus far! I am enjoying the changing of the seasons for sure! I wanted to mention a couple of things this month. One is the method I just used to shed 10 pounds. And two is an exciting new project I am working on!

Let’s start with my weight loss.
About 2-3 years ago I went on the Whole30 eating plan and really trimmed some body fat and felt great! Well, fast forward about 3 years and I recently found myself in a similar situation where I wanted to trim down some body fat and get my lean on for the summer.

Enter, Whole30
This is a radical plan. I talked about it in my newsletter the first time I did it, and I can’t help myself, I have to talk about it again now.

So here are the very simplified rules of the Whole30 plan.
You have to cut out all alcohol, processed foods, legumes, dairy, grain, and sugar. What this leaves is whole food, hence the name. Fruits, veggies, healthy meats, seafood, nuts, seeds, and healthy fats like coconut milk, coconut oil, olive oil and avocado.

You can go to Whole30.com for the whole spiel, but suffice it to say that it is pretty strict. The idea is that you completely kick the specific aforementioned things out of your diet for a full 30 days. No cheating. If you cheat you have to start over. They want you to see how awesome you feel if you get these things out of your system for that amount of time.

Another rule is they don’t want you to weigh during the 30 days. Just get a start weight and a finish weight at the end of the 30 days because Whole30 is about health, not-so-much about weight loss. The weight loss just happens to be a by-product of eating so cleanly.

My Results
I lost a little over 10 pounds. I feel awesome! Better than I have in years. And I ate 3 great meals every day. I ate a lot. The pic below is a typical whole30 breakfast. There is an organic angus beef patty under that egg. It was delish and very filling!!! All the meals are like that!


Everything I ate was all healthy and Whole30 compliant. I went on this with a friend who also lost 10 pounds.

Two things you have to do in order to be successful. Plan and cook ahead. We cooked a bunch of stuff on Sundays to get us through most of the week. And secondly, you have to learn to be an expert label reader. Because food companies are sneaky. They sneak sugar in just about everything and give it code names. So you will be paying close attention to the ingredients. But don’t worry, the website at whole-30 gives you everything you need to succeed.

After the 30 days, which mine ended today, they want you to slowly add things back in that you have been avoiding if you wish to do so. That is one thing at a time every few days so that you can see how that particular food affects you. There are many foods that I intend on continuing to avoid most of the time. I, personally, have decided to graduate into a Paleo plan for 80% - 90% of the time. Whole30 is like Paleo turbo charged. But that is a subject for another newsletter.

In summary: I love Whole30. You should try it, but do your homework. Go to their website and read their book "It Starts With Food." It will definitely get you fired up for the 30 days. And you will need to be fired up in order to pull it off. But it is so worth it! I feel great and so will you!

Now, about my exciting new project.
I am building another website. Woohoo! Yup! It’s true. This one is dedicated to Women over 50. You can check it out at fitnessforwomenover50.com. It is new so be patient as I add content. I will be blogging at least 1-2 times a week there as well as adding content pages. So, if you are a lady over 50 or know one, spread the word! Head on over! I plan to share much need-to-know info for all my over-50 peeps! Drop me a comment or contact me and say hello! If there is anything you want to know about or have concerns about, please don’t hesitate to ask. I am always looking for good content ideas!

Okay, that is it for this month. I hope you guys have a great spring, and I will talk to you again next month. Until then, may the wind be at your back and improved health and vitality your new reality!


EXERCISE OF THE MONTH
This month's featured exercise is a fun way to do cable curls at the gym. These are lying cable curls. Not that they are untruthful, but they are done in a horizontal position instead of vertical (standing). Try them for an intense biceps burn. Good stuff!

Lying Cable Biceps Curls
Primary Muscle Group Worked: Biceps.

To see a video of this exercise click here.

Preparation: Lie flat (supine) at the lower cable on the floor with knees slightly bent, keeping upper arms barely against the floor throughout the move. Grasp bar with underhand grip at hip width.

Execution: Exhale as you curl bar as far as you can without moving upper arms from the floor and return to start position. Repeat for desired amount of reps.
Tips: 1) Keep wrists straight throughout. 2) Keep upper arms barely in contact with floor throughout the exercise. 3) Keep a slight bend in the knees.

HEREIN LIES THE CHALLENGE: Always, always, always go slow and controlled! Just when you think you cannot do another...do two more...in perfect form! The beauty here is that your back is supported by the floor, allowing complete and safe isolation of the biceps. Good luck and have fun growing those guns!


THE PONDER POND
Okay, peeps! You know I usually like to make you think, cry, or laugh with these vids, right? This one will amaze you and definitely put things into perspective. I love it when that happens. Click here to view the video. Enjoy! :)


TO BUY MY BOOKS OR READ MY BLOG
Be sure and check out my blog site! Just click here to head on over and give it a read! I will be posting a new blog in the next few weeks.

You can also purchase my books at most of the popular online bookstores in whatever format you may require. Please sign up for my mailing list and subscribe to my blog so that you can be informed when I post a new blog. I am a believer in less is more so don't worry about being inundated with posts telling you every time I had a snack or a new thought. On the other hand, I hope you find the wait between posts worthwhile as I plan to speak directly from my "writing" soul and I look greatly forward to it.


Say! Did you know that you can follow me on Facebook? Well, you can! Jump on over to Facebook.com/StraightforwardFitness and "like" my page, please. I post a fitness tip most days. Feel free to leave comments and check in often. Thanks ever so much! If you have read any of my books you can also go to my new facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/NowWhatBooks and drum up a conversation with other readers or me or whomever. It's brand new so don't let the crickets scare you. Somebody has to get this party started, right?


Thanks so much for subscribing to this newsletter and for reading it and for your support. Our relationship is reciprocal as I live and learn from all that happens in my life, just as you live and learn through yours. We are truly in this together, and I empathize with your challenges as I do my own. I promise to hang in there and learn and grow along with you, and I hope that sharing through my writing maybe helps you a smidge. If it does, that is my payback. It is why I continue to do what I do.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, please feel free to pay it forward to anyone you think would like it too. That is the best compliment you could ever pay me, and I appreciate it very, very much.

And don't forget to tell everybody about Straightforwardfitness.com and Now What? Fitness Blog where they can get all the fitness info their heart desires and sign up for this newsletter while they are there.

From my heart to your health,

Linda Burke, CPT

Back to Back Issues Page