One of our go to meals for the week when I am feeling busy/a bit stressed. Home made pizza! You may be thinking… How could I feed my children pizza? What kind of monster am I? That’s not a balanced meal!!

On the contrary e hoa, Lets take a look at the humble home made pizza.

Unlike its commercial counterpart, home made pizza can be a heck of a lot better for you and a quick, low mess meal for the busy parent. Bitta chop chop and away you go!

If you have the patience of a saint, you can even invite your children to create their own pizza designs. I however am not saint like today. So I pressed on, sans their involvement... Well I had this little guy cheering me on.

When making your healthy home made pizza, you want to make vegetables as your biggest component. We are an omnivore family, so we had bits of meat in ours. Go easy on the cheesy too. Our kids had more cheese as their nutritional requirements are different to ours.

To keep our pizza moist and delicious. I served mine with a home made guacamole with some beautiful in season avocados. This will incorporate your much needed “good fats”. Bizarre mash up of foods but it totally works, trust me! Mexican and Italian. Its all about the fusion you know..

Then you have a few bases to choose from in the supermarket, if you find yourself time poor like me. (On a good calm day, I like to do a cauliflower base, which is even better!)

What I look for in a base is: whole food ingredients and no artificial nasties. Our "go to" pizza bases are: Home st. bakery Gluten free sprouted seed pizza base (from Countdown) and Venerdi Fancier sourdough pizza bases (from pack n save). Both meet our Gluten free dietary requirements, haven't got random stuff in it, and importantly, they crisp beautifully in the oven. Peeeeeeeeerfect.

Ta da!! The finished product. Plated up so nice. Ready for the fountains of praise from grateful kids...

As you can see here. My children appreciated the extra effort and love I put in to these pizzas. Their praise was more er... constructive criticism and they removed basically every healthy topping. Just so I had to eat their left overs and triple my vegetable serving for the meal. Such kind children. Bless them.

There you have it. Quick, easy, lots of nutritious foods... and a roaring success ahahaha! Next time I shall try the ol Hawaiian pizza flavour.

Peace.

AK

Right, here we are. On the brink of something new!

Jason and I, as of 6am tomorrow, are trialing a new Way of Eating. The trending and potentially controversial, meat based diet. We are choosing a period of 30 days (to start) and will be updating at the end of each week. We will be taking before and after pics and measurements. With no expectations and a full open mind, tuning in to our body intelligence ie. paying close attention to how we feel and what effects this way of eating has on our bodies. We're picking to try this one based on what we already like to eat and what we have available to us in large quantities.

No calorie counting, no Macros calculations, eating to satiety and eating according to hunger.

We will be primarily consuming grass fed beef & lamb, free range bacon (read here why we don't want to eat un marinated pork) and free range chicken. Organic as possible. We will also be consuming as much seafood as we (Jason) can personally gather. We will be having some free range eggs and cheese and butter. I'm not going to actively persue processed meat, as often its treated with all range of crap. We should all demand our animal products have been ethically treated. No one wants to eat sick meat.

Will drink water obviously (with CMD), bone broth (now I'm 30, I'm aware of my collagen requirements). Some carnivores still consume coffee. Again, this really is a 'listen to your body' diet. If you feel like killing someone as a result of your caffeine withdrawal, it isn't worth it. You'll be suffering carb withdrawl in the early days, so you don't want a double banger! Some people drink spirits and wine, again. If you feel lousy after consuming them.. then your body is saying no no no.

Other carnivore diet followers just eat red meat and nothing else. Or do a kind of elimination diet where they primarily just eat beef and add things in periodically to see how you actually feel at the introduction of different foods. Some eat no supplementary foods like herbs/spices etc. We will flavor, because this needs to be a sustainable way of eating (so we don't get so bored that it drives us to the edge).

But wait?! Don't we NEED plant foods in our diet?? What happened to 5+ a day? Lets have a look at where this information came from, are there actually any scientific information that tells us plant foods are essential for a thriving human? A Psychiatrist and nutrition blogger Georgia Ede digs deep into plant foods and the evidence behind eating them / or not over at "diagnosis diet".com. She also has a few youtube videos on the subject.

But wait?! Doesn't eating red meat cause Colon Cancer?? The W.H.O says so. We can examine the actual study that informed the World Health Organization on this topic, over on theHuman performance Outliers podcasts with Dr Shawn Baker & Zach Bitter (Episode 21). As you can see.. not everything is black and white when it comes to nutritional science. Research follows trends and is funded by food industry partners.

But wait?! There's no scientific evidence that a full carnivore diet is healthy for you! It is true that this diet itself has not been studied in an industrialized civilization. We can look to native cultures around the world that sustain themselves mostly on Meat and animal products, and we can look at their overall health. But in all fairness. I can't find any conclusive studies on full carnivore westerners over a period of a lifetime. So what we do have is a large base of anecdotal evidence in the form of personal testimonies and transformation pictures. Over at the Meat heals website: many people are telling their experience of healing chronic disease through carnivore diet and lots of "before and after pics" of weight loss. You can also find more at: Zerocarbzen : carnivore diet website for testimonials and more resources. Likewise there are plant based diet website sites that promote a full plant diet and its healing abilities.

Down to the bones of it, you will find 'evidence' for and against almost every way of eating. The Health and Fitness industry is sooooo saturated. You have highly intelligent and qualified individuals doing research and making claims that are contradicting each other. Given this, it is hard to believe that there is one universal diet that will suit every person of every age of every ethnicity. The only thing you can really do is try things out for yourself and be objective in your results. If your body starts showing signs of not being happy (pain, inflammation or illness), then examine what you're doing. Don't be blinded by this thing you've clung to as part of your identity. Be flexible to consider all forms of whole foods nutrition. Its actually ok to be wrong, because you learn!

It does not need to become an ideological battle ground among humans who have the same objective : to thrive and live long!

Unfortunately, greed is the saboteur that lurks around "health guidelines". As food industries battle to get their product promoted over the other, you can be sure that all information we are given, is not free from bias. It becomes this huge, almost fundamental crusade against particular food groups. I'm a little tired of seeing it personally. Hence my non proclamation over this diet as the be all end all for all of humanity.

Blessed are we that have choice over what we eat. For people in impoverished countries, who will need to be eating whatever they can source, or face starvation. It makes me reflect on the privilege of such food debates that we have.

So. Here's to body intelligence! On the quest for health and increased physical preformance.

Here we gooooooooooooo!

Peace

AK

(The following links are information about the way of eating that we are trying/ support groups)

Here's aninterview with Chris Kresser on how it works/doesn't work on a vegan, including necessary supplementation on this way of eating.

Facebook support groups " world carnivore tribe" and "women carnivore tribe"

Instagram : carnivore tribe, shawnbaker1967,

With permission and great pleasure I share this story. One of Jason's Personal Training clients has gone against the odds and out preformed what physios and occupational therapists had told his parents would ever be possible.

The background is K is a 25 year old male, this is the testimony from his mother. His Autism prevents K from conversing in detail, so this is what we have to work with.

Hi guys,

Just want to thank you both for everything you are doing for K. What a difference we have seen in him since he started working with Jason. This is the first time in 20 plus years we have seen him looking forward to interaction that doesn't involve a computer.

K had a traumatic birth which left him with several challenges including being diagnosed as autistic. As a child, having physio and occupational therapy, we were told he was unlikely to build more muscle mass, that he always going to be floppy with poor muscle tone, basically lack of oxygen had altered his physical composition and that he was about as good as he would ever get.

Fast forward to 2018 and our move to Mangawhai. Our reasoning behind enrolling K with a personal trainer was really to help him lose a little weight and give him an outing once a week. I was expecting some resistance from K, and there was a little, but that faded when he met Jason and spent half an hour hanging out at the gym with him. He came out from that initial meeting laughing. Jason makes K laugh a lot. K then agreed to a second session and before we knew it he was booked in twice a week and enjoying himself.

Jason is genuinely interested in K’s wellbeing, he has set him an individual program with achievable goals that K is hitting. K is not only getting stronger physically he is improving in all aspects of his life. He is more communicative with us and his siblings, much quicker to smile. K’s self care has improved a hundred fold. His confidence has soared.

I’m not sure we would have had the same results with another trainer. Jason just seems to have a manner that gels with K, he motivates him to want to achieve what K’s been told in the past that he can’t.

Again, what a difference a few short months have made, looking forward to seeing what else the future brings. We cant thank you enough.

Such inspiring words from K's mum!

I asked Jason to share some of his thoughts on K's progress

When K first arrived he could barely lift an 8kg kettlebell off the floor for a deadlift let alone squat below parallel unassisted and without a weight. He barely spoke a word, often only ever responding with a shrug of the shoulders or a nod or shake of the head.

K’s mother advised me to take “baby steps” with him at the very start so our first session was half an hour. He then managed a full hour session of coaching and exercise once a week.

After several weeks, and a bit more dialogue between the two of us, K started showing a bit more interest in squatting, and even agreed to train twice a week.

After 5 months of training, K has since deadlifted a 100kg barbell, back squatted over 70kg below parallel unassisted, and bench presses over 40kg. Our conversations are still heavily one-sided but K’s definitely far more vocal now than when he first started.

It has been a rewarding experience for me. Good to have a challenge and work with a wide range of abilities. Fitness is beneficial for everyone, K proves that great things are possible with a commitment to coming along and sticking to a solid fitness program.

Everyone at the gym has their own story and sometimes we might not know how hard it is to regularly turn up and physically push through a workout. Big props to anyone out there doing it! As K's story illustrates, the benefits of fitness are far reaching. I LOVE being in the fitness biz. You get to share in so many personal triumphs!!

AK

(click here for info on Autism and the benefits of exercise)

We’re in the business of making peoples bodies healthier by encouraging fitness. Whilst exercise has numerous benefits on mental health, we can go that step further by encouraging healthy thinking as well. You can liken your brain neural pathways to muscle memory. The more you practice a certain “move” the more automatic that thing will become.

This month we are encouraging you to hone your mind fitness onto the expression of gratitude. Why? Because you’ll be a better human. Studies show that we can deliberately cultivate gratitude, and can increase our well-being and happiness by doing so. In addition, gratefulness—and especially expression of it to others—is associated with increased energy, optimism and empathy.

Who wouldn’t want a world with more people like this in it? It also counters the thoughts of scarcity or anxiety about things that you often have.. the “what I don’t have?” thinking is manufactured specifically by companies driven by profit off selling you shit you don't need. They don’t want you content with your life, they want you to want MORE. Being in a state of focusing on what you don’t have, will always lead you empty in the end. You get that short thrill of the new purchase, then it wears off after a while, untill you find the next thing you're told you need to be happy, or on trend or more likable.

You spend this time and money toward self improvement in the gym. Your commitment to your exercise certainly will have the desired effects. But we are not just a body. Your mind needs its “WODS” too. If you need more convincing on the ‘why’, you need to be doing a daily gratitude practice, I found this informative post here

The drive to the gym can be at least 5 mins for some. Lets utilize this time to do our daily mind workout and focus on at least 3 things that we are grateful for. The big things like your health, or the little things like a sweet car park yesterday. ANYTHING. Remember we are training the pathway in your brain that is “my life is good” vs “my life lacks A, B or C”. You need to make this habit in order for it to set and become your automatic thought patterns.

Will it feel weird doing it? Maybe. It feels even more weird saying it out loud. But when you do, it kinda takes it to the next level of realism. To speak your gratitude out loud is like confirming it. Examine why you feel its not typical for you to think this way? (maybe some of you super mind ninjas are already doing this practice and its completely normal for you). For others of us, it’s a bit foreign to actively think this way. But don’t worry, I promise it will get easier. Just like fitness!! It helps to express gratitude towards someone or something. If you believe, then it may be gratitude towards God. If you don’t believe, then just direct your gratitude outwards. Your brain is still renewing itself, and that’s our goal. To reinforce all those benefits you read about, and to create a more happier life within yourself.

Right… time to stop writing. Have to engage in the ‘breakfast, lunchbox, school run’ adventure. I sure am grateful that I have food to feed these challenging humans in my care. There you go, first gratitude rep done for today!!

Good luck in your pursuit of the Mindful May challenge. I wish you all the best and celebrate in your new mind skills and happier lives as a result!

AK

"I wonder if I'm hooked? A thought nagging my mind as I push my kids to the side to read another article on SM or watch a video. After an enlightening conversation with one of our members after a workout one day, I decided to collaborate to dig deeper into his IT world and figure if I could uncover any truths about social media addiction.

Many of our members have super interesting jobs and viewpoints to share. This particular member works in the IT / cyber world, and happens to be a really switched on human. He prefers to remain anonymous so we will call him ‘Anthony’ (it was the 21st most popular Name in 1984 in the USA FYI).

Anthony, Thanks for sharing a few of your thoughts on some of the social media topics that are gaining popularity at the moment. The use of Social Media is at the forefront of my mind as I consider a massive FB detox! But let’s start with the backbone of how it all works to figure out whats going on behind the scenes.

I always think of artificial intelligence as pretty much just like the movie 'I, Robot'. But, you have shared with me that AI and Computer Learning is already in our homes and pockets! Briefly what is AI and how are we using this everyday already:

Anthony: Artificial intelligence is the ability of computers to understand and perform tasks which normally require human intelligence. Machine learning is a popular application of AI where we provide access to huge amounts of data and teach them to learn for themselves.

There are many other branches of AI. Facebook recently launched a new research lab dedicated to AI research and development. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerbergannounced that the "goal is to build AI systems that are better than humans at our primary senses: vision, listening, etc.

Google recently acquired DeepMind ("the machine that dreams"), which focuses on simulating neural networks, i.e. the brain, to analyse and deduce patterns to achieve objectives. Like a brain figures out equations or problems.

LM: Ok now I’m totally seeing I Robot. Do social media platforms use AI?

Anthony: Absolutely. Along with every other organisation which has a digital feed of our activities. Banks, supermarkets, driving assistants, gaming consoles, etc everything is capturing and analyzing our behavior. Across all industries. With the explosion of rich data and the lower cost of computing it means companies which ignore AI will be left behind!

LM: What do they use this data for?

Anthony: Competitive advantage. Most obviously, in Facebook's case, selling ads. Facebook creates a staggering 29,000 individual categories (that you are placed in) to sell to its advertisers. It allows advertisers to single-out Facebook users in categories including, "total liquid investible assets $1 - $24,999", "people in households that have an estimated household income of between $100K and $125K", or even "individuals that are frequent transactions at lower cost department or dollar stores".

LM: Yesh, I feel a little ripped off that my information is being sold like that for someone’s profit! Its also a little bit ‘big brother’ ish to me!

Down to the personal level. Do you think social media can be addictive?

Anthony: Most people I know interact with social media constantly throughout the day. They have no idea how much actual time they spend. It is kind of designed in a way that keeps you asleep to the fact that you may be indeed spending too much time on social media.

LM: But how do they keep our attention for so long?

So the feeds we see are individually tailored to our preferences. A well known psychological trick is: "control the menu and you can control the choices”. This translates to creating the illusion of free choice while architecting the feed so that its holds your attention for as long as possible. As you are more profitable this way.

The average person checks their phone 150 times a day. You can liken it using slot machines, which use intermittent variable rewards (creates a strong behaviour). When we check our phones we're pulling the lever and the notifications/likes/comments are the reward. Same goes for swiping and scrolling through a feed - new posts, images, and ads. Slot machines make more money in the US than baseball, movies, and theme parks combined!Put a slot machine in a billion pockets and see how an addiction becomes the norm without many realizing it.

The fear of missing out (FOMO) can keep people coming back.. even if they don’t really want to! It’s amazing how quickly, once we let go of that fear, we wake up from the illusion. The concerns we thought we’d have don’t actually happen. We don’t miss what we don’t see. Just try it!!

LM: Wise words!! What are your opinions on the usage of social media?

Anthony: I think It's the junk food of socializing. It simulates quality social contact but is the equivalent of empty calories - delicious but not nutritious! My opinion is that it should, when possible, be used for initiating face-to-face interaction. It's obviously incredibly useful for organizing events, sharing information with groups, and keeping in touch with distant friends/family.

LM :Ok lets tackle this for 2018! What are your insider tips for reducing our usage?

Anthony: Delete the apps from your phone and only use from a computer. Our phones are always on us and it's too easy to check-in regularly. If you don't have a computer you can turn off all notifications to reduce the temptation to check.

My spin:

My pledge off social media for an entire year....

(Using for business purposes allowed)

Is a full ban a bit excessive? Missing out on your children growing up because you face is stuck to your phone is a bit excessive too. But that's pretty much where I was at.

I feel like social media isn’t inherently bad. It’s just that I was abusing it. Or it was abusing me? Does it have the capability of abusing us? Well sounds like it actually is a thinking programmed designed to suck up as much of your time is possible. So it’s totally legit to think that this system is against you.. all the while some how convincing you that you need it. Weird. It probably plays on your own, already present insecurities. I don’t have body hang ups or FOMO for holidays or experiences. But I definitely will get the parenting guilts if I see pics of other people being (in my mind) way more dedicated parents and giving their kids “more”.

Not everyone would be feeling the same way, but after a binge on FB, I certainly don’t feel empowered or good about myself. I can’t even describe it. Its like I am on it scrolling and reading for an unknown amount of time. And its all the while building this disgusting feeling in me where I know it’s shit and I should stop. But I keep going. I swear my eyes glaze over! Does anyone else feel like a zombie afterwards. Like………. Oh wow.. where did that hour go?!

I am not the only one to be considering this idea. Even the creators at Facebook are back tracking fast.

The effect of SM usage on our growing teens had me pondering too. I am an adult and I don't seem to be immune to the harm the over use is doing to me. Turns out many researchers are concerned now with the link of depression and social media use in teenagers. Questions arise around, how much is too much? I declare that if it makes you feel terrible afterwards (a little like junk food) then its not beneficial for you. If you ego gets stroked on how many 'likes' you get, or gets a hit when you dont get many. Then its not beneficial.

Easing off the social media isn’t just an idea, it seems like it could be life saving! Quality of life is really important, and if you are effectively self harming with this communication tool, then your life isn’t being lived to its full potential.

I obviously can’t use it sensibly so I think I need to go cold turkey and test Anthony’s theory that I wont miss what I don’t see.

I will definitely keep Messenger just because I see it is a tool and not a ‘deplete your life energy’ mechanism. In messenger people are actually talking to you, not at you. That is probably a note, being talked AT a lot gets exhausting. I try to write exactly how I would talk to you so you feel like you’re participating.

That being said. I want you to make your OWN goals for reducing or banning social media for a period of time. Even if it’s a detox period! See how you feel? Find out four ways tohelp your possible addiction.

Try them out.

Maybe it’ll be awesome. Maybe it’ll be shit house. One way to find out?!

Here’s to being more connected by being less wired!

AK

4 months ago, Jo Bowden (one of our most determined gym members) sat down with me to share her monumental weight loss journey . You can read It by clicking the pic below.

In September, she summarized 21 months of intense fitness sessions and dieting, with life changing excess skin removal surgery. It ended up removing a total of 7kgs worth!! I wanted to catch up with her and get the good, the painful and the beautiful. With real pics included.... The ones they probably wont show you in a glossy mag. The ones that exemplify what happens when you live in an abusive relationship with your body for 31 years and decide to end the abuse by taking charge of your health. The ones that show immense journey and healing. Physically and mentally. We are so privileged to join her along this path. But with achieving anything worthwhile, usually includes hard work and struggle, punctuated with glimpses of success and progress!

As Jo healed on the outside for 4 weeks, she sat confined to her home. Kept away from her sanctuary the gym and the daily boost of endorphin's, fed by the well meant sweet food gifts of others, She faced a revival of old destructive thought patterns. Jo enters a new challenge chapter, 'recovery'. Lets find out how she went and where to now?

A: So what was your main motivation for having your excess skin removed?

J: To increase mobility, to get in a boxing ring and not be conscious of the large skin flap clapping against my legs to not look in the mirror and be reminded of the abuse I put my body through what felt like a life time ago. Some things are better to be forgotten.

A: The surgery experience. How were you feeling right before you went under? If that isn’t the climax moment of every sweat session you had under your belt, I don’t know what would be! You worked So. Very. Hard. So, that moment as you drift off to go under.. tell me your last thoughts?

J: Well funny you should ask because I was just plain excited right up I nearly passed out. The surgeons were drawing on me, while my friend Emma was sitting watching how it was all done, we were having some casual banter then boom I lost vision and had to lay down. My mind and body had become separate. My mind was pumped it was all like "come at me! Hear me roar!" It was so loud I didn't hear my body crying in fear. I don't like been touched and when two strange men were touching my body, it just couldn't cope and shut down.

A: Wow, that sounds deep. We know so little about the mind body connection really!

I am trying to imagine going to sleep and waking to parts of me removed… How was that? Did you identify with your excess skin as.. ‘you’? What was it like?

J: When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was my pants were too tight (I had felt this sensation MANY times before) but wait where was I?? Oh, that’s right I'm somewhere else. OMG it's done I LIVED!! I'm not wearing pants, this is the after pain! Wow weird feeling but definitely doable. Then blank.

Also I'm super keen on having big de clutterings in life so the "amputation" felt like a clean out. I don't miss it but I still feel it some times and when I've been doing certain exercises I wait after a jump to hear it slap against my legs and then I'm like oh right that's bye Felicia.

A: How many days before you were allowed home? Was there any post operation complications you suffered? Was it sore?

J: I stayed 2 nights (had lamb shanks) I know you didn't ask but it's important! They were like, 'when in movies and the happy ending happens and there's a song and a bright light' , that's what it was like when they walked through the door. (I was on some pretty heavy pain killers, it was probably meatloaf but in my mind that's what heaven is) anyway, yes there was complications, the drive home. I had two of my besties pick me up (Liz and Tia). I'm sure I popped like 50 stitches from laughing and it was actually a real fear at that point! During a large dip in the road, Tia thought was a good time to show Lizzy this joke and we sped up the bump and my little bottle of liquid blood stuff nearly flew out the window!! (Slight exaggeration). But it was touch and go! Haha, na the only real complication was the wound got a bit infected and I was going to cut it but Arnika (my midwife friend) came and did some handy ribbon bandaid work bless her (the tube was in a awkward "new level friendship zone")

A: Do you have any fresh scar pics/ progress pics you want to share? I’m thinking we could help prepare others who might be about to do this same surgery or similar.

A: Moving on to the initial recovery faze.. Honestly I did find it a little odd people bringing you junk food as like, congrats & welcome home gifts etc. (Similar to how I felt in the earlier part of our last article). I feel almost like…. I Don’t know. Its awkward for me to ask this. But as you and I see food as a potential addiction issue for some. I would think bringing you junk food like that would be like me bringing wine to a recovering alcoholics house. I guess this part of the addiction story.

No one will know where you’re exactly at with everything. On my list of “to reads” is Russel Brands new book ‘Recovery’. He writes from the perspective of once being addicted to pretty much everything you can be addicted to and how to become free from your addiction. Can’t wait to read it!! Love his work. Anywho..

This leads me to… where are you at with food now? Is it still a daily challenge?

J: Ok down to the important part! Food will always be my addiction and recovering/surgery recovery was super hard. My mind was at a weak stage and was accepting all the junk with a sweat on. I don't blame other people for bringing me junk as it's how our society is programmed to show a type of congratulations or 'feel better' gesture. The weight I lost in the skin removal was pretty much what I put back on post op. I knew I was in a bad place but I wasn't as deep as what I could be. It's like when people diet then lose a certain amount and go celebrate eat and put it back on. I did that. But I snapped and pulled it back in.

All I wanted to do was be like everyone else who could eat crap and exercise and only put on the weight of a magazine. No I eat a chocolate and my body swells and adds encyclopedias on. A lot of people have the food addiction but people like me can't hide it as well because our bodies are allergic and react badly to bad food. I've lost a kilo now so the scales are going back down my head is back in its strong state but I'll always struggle. The way I explained how I feel about those shanks is how I feel with junk food around. The struggle is so real and easy.

I was recently in a really bad place and food was my best friend for a bit. I hide it well but every day in that state is like counting down the hours till you can sleep so you don't have to be alone with your own mind because the control is lost and your soul is dark. I'm out again now back in the light so it's all good. I see it as a challenge I keep over coming now.

A: Thank you for being so open about your struggle. We see the pics of your recovery, but we can't see the inner battle. Your words let us in to understand all of ourselves that much better. In our last post we really touched on food as an addiction and it is a topic we're sure to revisit in the future.

Week one and Jo is back in the gym with wonderful cheerleader skills!

A: How did having a good level of fitness pre surgery help your chances of successful recovery? Did your doctors mention anything about it?

J: My surgeons were surprised at how fast I recovered and that was put down to my level of fitness. They said that when they looked at my abs under my skin they could bounce a ten cent coin off them, if they tried haha.

A: What are the things you couldn’t do with the skin, that now you can do without?

J: I can do a lot more with the skin gone now. I'm noticing small achievements every week. I'm not sure if those achievements are a mind thing as well though, there's not that mental "I can't do that because of the skin" block anymore.

A: So where to from here? What’s your next chapter shaping up to look like?

J: From here I want to continue to master my mind, still box in a ring and help people if I can. I feel like I've mastered the foundations of the life plan but need to work on the bricks in between the building of my life... if that makes sense?

A: Totally makes sense! What words would you give to someone considering this surgery or similar?

J: The words I'd use to others considering this surgery are absolutely do it. I love my tummy now!! The physical journey was a piece of carrot!! Just be aware that your mind is still the boss and you need to be kind but firm with yourself.

Pre op surgery pic 5 week post op pic

A: Once again. Thank you so much Jo for talking with me and sharing your journey! We have a lot to learn from those who have conquered mountains in their minds and who keep climbing in the most humble of ways. I think you look amazing in your newly earned body. I hope you enjoy having the freedom from that excess past. Also, biggest congrats on reaching your Deadlift PB already so soon after the op!!

For those wanting to reach out to Jo, with help on your own journey or in words of support. You can email her at: majicshak@hotmail.com

Or crucially.. how to save your own life if you are addicted to food.

I’m not talking about a casual remark “oh I’m so addicted to the new”.. this or that brand. I am talking about living with the 24/7 death sentence type addiction.

Yes, we are going to talk about the F word.

I have attended the funeral of a dear loving man, taken from earth far too early due do his addiction to food. I tell you. It’s heart breaking to watch parents bury their children. I thought, how could something like overeating junk food lead to death for a man in his 20s? It was equally upsetting when we ate pizza and cakes at the wake, I felt so conflicted. Society needs to start seeing obesity for what it is. Just another addiction that plagues us humans. But this suicide is slow, cheap and easy. It is endorsed at industry level and reinforced in homes. It is such a complex and controversial issue.

I noticed a few people wrote “fat loss” on their gym sign up sheets as a personal goal. I felt I needed to know this issue better, in order to best serve our members. So I spoke with one of our Gym members Jo Bowden, who has been on a weight loss journey for over a year, losing a whopping 86kgs to date.

I wanted to know the inner workings of a woman who literally saved her own life through diet, exercise, and mindset. Jo gives a unique and real perspective on food, weight loss and being Fat. From the bottom of her new healthy heart, she wants to help other people that are in her prior situation. Our hope is that this article will touch the life of at least one person out there.

...He who saves one life saves the world entire...– Old Jewish saying

ASL? (You’ll know this one from the 00’s)

31, female and Mangawhai Northland

Heaviest weight? 174.3kgs

Weight today? 88kgs

Total weight loss? 86.3kgs

A: Obese. Rotund. Blubbery. Whale. Pig. Heffalump. Fatty boom boom. Chubby. Who ate all the pies? I can’t think of any other words. Do you know any from experience?

J: Chubby bub, fatty boom ba, fat Jo and Ashanti, thunder thighs, Lard (I had to ask an adult what this meant)

A: Do these words still sting?

J : No, because they don't hold anything over me anymore.

A: What did it feel like when someone called you those names?

J : Shameful feeling ‘cause I knew they were right. But deep down, those seemingly innocent childhood taunts hurt me so bad, worse than any insult I could send back to them. I would never let them see me affected though!

A: Is it a choice to be fat?

J : In most cases I think it is a choice. It was for me. The majority of our population is overweight now. They are setting the cultural norms, so it becomes acceptable. I don’t think being sick is something we have to accept or fear having a public conversation about. Losing weight is so hard. Minute by minute. You are fighting addiction on some level. You actually have to become obsessed with it. You have to choose to leave your comfort zone and no one can leave it for you!!

A: Let's talk openly. Let's pull down the walls of protection and expose what is really going on in the mind of a very unhealthy over weight person. Because I have heard a recent online conversation about being obese and still healthy. Is this a paradox?

J: Very complex question. You can be physically healthy and mentally unwell. There are things like, walking down the street, being scared of kids pointing you out. Them loudly commenting on your size and their parents embarrassed trying to shush them. Or trying to decide if that chair would hold your weight or come crashing down… That kind of thing shouldn’t have to worry you. But it did to me because of my size.

Physical health, my BP was still fine, no diabetes or pre diabetic symptoms. Ironically I was denied the stomach clamp because I wasn’t “sick” enough. I suffered fatigue and I didn’t realize how low energy I was. It was so hard to even get off the couch to change my son's nappies. I think that is plenty “sick” enough to qualify for help.

A: I have nothing but admiration for the HUGE positive change you have made to your body. Carrying around an extra ‘person’ of weight can't have been easy. So take me back to the beginning. What were your childhood experiences with food/weight?

J: I always had that addiction. My parents tried to stop it. Put me on heaps of diets, which never worked. I would sneak food any chance I found. I could eat 6 yogurt pots in one sitting. Many of us make that association with junk food as “treat food”, which is a reward for being good or something. Start that association in childhood and you get an adult struggling with how to regulate “treating” yourself.

A: Then to your teenage years… How did you relate to your body? How did mirrors make you feel? How did your family and friends make you feel?

J: I was a really angry teenager and I see now that it was weight related. When I turned 10 I started smoking pot, then heavily from 14 till 18. When I would get the munchies I would eat a whole loaf of bread or something. Easy to see that wasn’t a great cycle.

No, I wouldn't do full-length mirrors and I would avoid cameras. I became really mean to people, if they said anything about my weight, I would attack them back. I guess I thought better to hurt people before they hurt you.

All the time nasty talking to myself. “You're too fat, don't stand there, don't sit there, don't go to that party, they don't want to see you there”. All those childhood traumas stay with you beneath the surface.

A: Going into your 20s, what were your ambitions? Work, marriage, kids, travel? Did your weight have an impact on these desires?

J: I wanted everything, white picket fences and all. My work ambitions were always dampened by weight restrictions. I think it affected my ability to find a partner, and yeah, I feel like it got in the way of my life. I’m 31 and now it has stopped me from living a full life.

A: Now, what actually kick started you to act? Was it a profound moment or a series of moments?

J: It was a series of moments but mainly my son. I nearly watched him die a couple of times. I thought, No, I can’t actually put him through what he has put me through. I don’t want him to see me go down through my own self-sabotage. It is not fair. It was me thinking about him being sick, through absolutely no fault of his own. Then thinking I’m sick by choice. Watching your son nearly die…. That just shakes you.

A: What things have you done specifically to lose the weight?

J: Diet – strict, clean eating. I used a special shake in the beginning. That plus new mindset. It was too daunting for me to think about the nutrition side of things, so going for a meal replacing shake was the ideal start for me. Plus I did not like cooking, so that was a barrier to following meal plans. I don’t need it now though. I am happy to report that I am getting better in the kitchen!!

I also started the exercise. I would start the day with Zumba, then would go to the gym and do 100 stairs on a local walking path. I had to start somewhere. I am now fitting in 2-3 different workouts a day 6 days a week, so I get the best results before my skin reduction surgery.

A: What was it like withdrawing from your old food?

J: It was sooooooo hard. I would crave the weirdest things. Things I had not eaten in 10 years. The brain takes you to crazy places.

A: Was the change scary for you?

J: Nothing could have been scarier than the last thought I would have some nights,"I wonder if tonight's the night I have a heart attack and die?"

But I loved the losing weight and the little perks that come with it. I did/do struggle with the attention now. All of a sudden I was noticed by men who were now looking at me in a not repulsed way. Now I can’t deal with it. It's like, you have lost the weight but now it’s the mental healing that has to happen. I am still the fat girl in my head sometimes. It really caught me by surprise! I thought it would be, lose the weight and get the husband, but no. Never thought I was capable of being loved, so this is the raw unhealed part of me. A part that no one tells you will come after major weight loss.

A: Describe how you perceive food now. Does it still trigger your old addictive thought patterns?

J : I see “bad food” as obstacles to progress. I am in the process of finding a balance. Yes, I can eat a brownie, no I won't eat it again this week. But to start off, you can’t even have that food in your house. I used to just demolish a whole block of chocolate in one sitting. Now I can have chocolate Easter eggs in the house for my son and I won't touch it. Previously I had to keep food at my mum's house. Because there was no way to control myself.

A: Most of us have loved ones that are currently medically struggling as a direct or indirect cause from being heavily overweight. What kind of things do you think may be standing in their way to making a good change for themselves, what are the things that prevented you from losing weight?

J: Excuses.. Always. I’m too busy, I have a child under 5! No money, ill health, no workout shoes, nothing has worked before, it's too hard. There are a million and one excuses under the sun. But what I now know, it has to be your mind first to change, then your body will follow. So you have to have the right mindset from the start.

A: I’m sure one day you’ll write a book on it, but what would you say to people addicted to food and the ones surrounding them?

J: Your health is being put under pressure. You don't see many obese old people because they don't get to live to old age. You will die early. Don’t be offended when your doctor is talking to you about your weight related illnesses. You could be facing a life of high dependence and medical care. Just think, don’t put your loved ones through that. Call it for what it is. Slow suicide, enabled by your friendly local shop or well meaning loved ones. I know that It’s a ‘feel better thing’. When you are trying to turn to something. Food abuse is so easy.

Be mates with your mind. Initially, I saw my mind and body as separate. They have hated each other all my life. You need to heal both of them together.

If you know that someone is struggling with over eating. Don’t bring junk to their house. Just as the same as you wouldn’t bring alcohol to an alcoholic. Loved ones need to help you with addiction, not enable them by protecting them or their feelings. Don’t be mean to them for the sake of being mean. But constantly tell them “you’ve got this”. You never know how profound your words can be to someone on the verge of turning their life around.

A: Now? Your dreams.

J: Among other things, I am really motivated to become a Personal Trainer, to help people like me. I have the goal of having my first boxing fight in a ring. I would never have got here without the weight loss change.

A: Thank you so much Jo for sharing your story with me and the world. I know we’ll hear more from you!

From me:

I hope that anyone out there struggling with addiction to food can reach out for help. Talk to people like Jo who have saved their own lives. You can follow her on her facebook page "bo jowdens journey to success". If she can do it, you can too!! She'll be the first one to call you out on your BS then cheerfully lead you in the direction of success street. You are the only one that can save you!

See you in class!

AK

Same Sign, new Girl

Jo Lifting her PB!

Odd combination of thought processes, but hey, that's my style!

Nan

Today I visited my 87 year old Nan. She has 5 kids, 13 grand kids and 9 great grand kids in counting. She has worked on a farm since the war days. She annually breaks a rib falling over in the paddocks because she’s Turbo Nan and won’t slow down. She is strong and hilarious! She made us have her Wake at her 80th Birthday because she said funerals are “too expensive”, so best combine them with a party to save costs (plus you can see what people would say about you!) No kidding. There was her coffin and everything. Was a lovely occasion!

Anyway, on this random visit day, we were sitting in the sun, talking about old days and watching my kids playing. Nan is full of “you should do…” statements, as most loving Grandparents are. I was getting the usual - not so- tender grilling about my non existent vegetable gardens. I asked her what it was like raising 5 kids back when times were tough and what did she feed them? Like most rural people in NZ at the time, it was beef & sheep and whatever you grew in your garden. Carrying such a huge responsibility is so out of my reality! My kids would be long starved if I had to grow them all the food! Remembering this woman, along with Pop, broke in an entire 600+ acre farm covered in scrub, by hand with a baby on her back and shooting rabbits for dinner! Reflecting on the enormity of everyday life back then I said “Nan, how on earth did you do it!?” She just calmly says back, “well…You just keep going”.

Generation bleh

You. Just. Keep. Going…. I freakin' laugh at the amount of self help/ personal growth/happiness/fulfillment books there are on the market (Lord knows I’ve read a fair few!). Our generation is struggling to motivate ourselves in every area. So authors write thousands of words formulating philosophies or little mind tricks to help you cope with your life. But maybe the solution is not so complex? Simply put. You just keep going!! I think that Nan would have repeated this mantra her whole life and never thought anything of it. Nowadays I google “how to manage 3 kids and housework”. What a joke!! I genuinely think I have a tough run some days. But yes.. I am just another human from the “Millennial” generation. Lots of chutzpa and not a lot of direction, other than 100000 different directions simultaneously! So what gives? Why are we so... lost.. sometimes?

Enter….. Burpees!!

Husband (who is a fitness instructor) was talking about why he programmes burpees in so often. “Because they’re hard out cardio and they’re just shit!” You will very often hear “I HATE BURPEES” from anyone who has to do them! They are hard slog. To Nan and so many of that generation, ‘doing’ fitness is so out of their reality. Because being ‘fit’ wasn’t a choice, it was a survival necessity. Working the land is the original 'functional fitness'. I think movement gave a huge amount of purpose to a human being. I began to formulate an opinion that perhaps we humans need physical suffering to be balanced. Not suffering in the form of torture of course (although, some people see workouts AS torture!). Some of us have to now plan brief amounts of physical hardship into our lives now via gym membership because many of us simply aren’t in survival mode anymore. We think too much and move too little.

The better life

I think of the irony of our ancestors working so hard, just go give their offspring a ‘better life’. Most of us in NZ are living this ‘better life’, yet we are struggling like mad! Depression, anxiety and stress related disease is rampant. Why? There will be thousands of theories about why we’re mentally struggling amidst prosperity. I can partly put it down to the simple fact that we have the time to think about being sad, or hurt or lost or rejected! I think about the one time I huddled up under my covers, crying to myself, thinking “I can’t cope with the demands of domestic life anymore. It is just too hard”.

I’m not playing down the incidences of broken parenthood. It is real. We are broke. Life is complicated now because of the luxury of easy survival. 100 years ago, I’m sure parents felt overwhelmed too. Starving kids because your food crop failed? How’s that for stress!? But you didn’t have the time to sit and get so muntedly depressed. Well you could, but your family would die faster. So we have this situation where our brilliance and ingenuity mean it’s now easier to physically survive, but it seems we changed the survival game to a ‘survive your own mental stress’. So what’s the point? What links do the mind and body have?

Perspective