Reasons Why Water Is Important

Even when summer is over and the cold days are already there, drinking water is still very important. The human body functions in a way that all the processes taking place within it are responsible for a particular area of vital activity. It's like a computer, everything is linked together and when suddenly one process shuts down, your body will either face certain restrictions to its activity or stop functioning completely. 

The majority of the human body's processes take place with a certain , direct or indirect, participation of water molecules. This means that our existence is impossible without water, but I am sure that you already know that, don't you?

If you are thirsty, well this simply means that your body lacks water in order to continue functioning at full power. Did you ever wondered why you are so sleepy and tired all the time? Maybe because you don't drink enough.

Further, we can not survive more than 10 days without water, if we have been trained for survival. A normal person can only survive 3 to 4 days... That's scaring isn't it? 

But let's have a more detailed look at why you need to drink water and what benefits it has on our bodies.

#1 Water is a solvent for nutrients and oxygen that are entering the body. While dissolving them, water helps the bloodstream to deliver these nutrients to the cells in our body. This allows the cells of various organs to function normally.

#2 Water is the only thermostat in our body. While the body temperature increases, water is released by the skin surface through perspiration to cool it down. Which is the reason why we actually sweat. If we didn't have that water-based thermoregulatory system, we would die as a result of any significant increase in temperature that might be due to an internal infection or high ambient temperature.

#3 It contains a lot of minerals, depending on its origin, such as magnesium, potassium, fluorine and many other types of minerals. These substances are involved in our body's vitality and help us keep the body healthy. But, it is necessary to pay attention to what kind of water you are consuming as an excess of certain minerals can harm your body. 

#4 Water has no calories (woow, what a surprise haha). Therefor if you are trying to lose weight you should definitely put the soda away and drink water instead. By drinking a glass of water you can also eradicate the false feeling of hunger, which is mostly a result of stress or mental and physical fatigue, without consuming extra calories.

#5 During active sports, water is essential to the human body. Physical activity contributes to the warming up of the body, resulting in sweating, like already mentioned above. This means that your body is losing water and only by drinking more water you can refill the reserve and fix the water balance again.

#6 A lack of water can affect the metabolism in a negative manner. The process of 'recycling' of unnecessary elements, also called detoxifying, begins to slow down and a gradual intoxication begins to take place. This will be expressed in a variety of unpleasant syndromes like constipation or skin rashes, but may also lead to problems with your kidneys, liver and your gastrointestinal system. 

#7 If you are bothered with headaches, it often is a result of lacking water. Even the smallest water starvation may lead to strong and regular headaches. So if you want to get rid of the headaches, listen to your body and have a glass of water. 

#8 Water is a lubricant for all the joints in your body. Therefor, if you drink enough water everyday, you help your body to preserve the youth and the health of your joints. 

#9 To nourish and moisturize your skin from within you should drink more water. Plus, drinking water helps us to sustain its freshness and youthfulness. 

Have a great new week and enjoy your drink. xX

How water can help you to lose weight

How water can affect your skin, credits to dailymail

1st Shred-program check-up

You remember from the last transformation-post that I wanted to start another 'check-up-chart' from the shredding phase? Therefor, before getting to the chart, let's talk about the new changes. 

Like on the previous check-ups, my form, just as my posing was very satisfying, which makes me really happy and motivates me every single time to dig deeper and to get that body shredded. I hope that the next check-up will be in my first competition-bikini by Angel Competition Bikinis and my competition-heels.

You already know that I am carb-cycling for the last few months. We will keep this up, but a little tougher this time. This means that I will have 2 days of almost no carbs and 2 re-feed days.

On my no-carb-day (let's call it that way haha):

I will no longer have quinoa crackers with kiwi and eggs for breakfast. I am going to have a little turkey steak with tomatoes. Yeah I know... doesn't sound like breakfast but hey, the competition is in 4 weeks... Further will I have beef steak every day, awesome. My dinner is still the same; salmon with cod and vegetables. 

My re-feed days look a little something like this:

- Breakfast is still the same: Puffed-quinoa-rice-crackers with boiled eggs and stewed apples, except that the quantities decreased

- Lunch is also the same: Beef with quinoa and vegetables

- Afternoon-snack changes a little: Instead of cod with puffed-quinoa-rice-crackers and apple , we replaced the apple with cucumbers. 

- Dinner also the same: Chicken with broccoli

For the training-program there aren't big changes, except that I don't have to go for an outdoor-run every morning as we don't want to risk a cold (which I already caught...grr). Instead I will hit a 30-min HIIT on the stationary bike in the gym. There are also some exercises that are replaced but I am not going to list up every single one as that would make my post even longer, hihi.

Of course, my post-lifting HIIT increased by another 20 minutes, so here we go again for a 40-min HIIT after the weight-lifting...errwww. 

Before you have a look at the chart; I didn't lose weight nor did my BFP decreased that much, but I can't be too shredded, it's still bikini-shape so I have to uphold an aesthetic and feminine look. Yet my form improved visually, which is the most important. 

	September	October
Weight	54.8 kg	54.8 kg
Body Fat percentage	18.8 %	18.3 %
Neck	31 cm	31 cm
Chest	85 cm	83
Arms	25 cm	25 cm
Waist	63.5 cm	63 cm
Hips	83 cm	83 cm
Tights	51.5 cm	51 cm
Calves	35 cm	35 cm
Shirt size	S	S
Pant size	36	36

Let's see how my form will have improved two weeks from now.
Enjoy your sunday and always stay hungry xX

Carb-day breakfast. Still the same just other quantities of the crackers and the stewed apples

Preparing my trainings and meals. Very important!

Cherry Stem Tea Benefits

©J.-R. Photography

Now with the autumnal season that kicked in summer's door weeks ago, the desire to consume hot and cozy beverages is even greater. I am talking about hot chocolate, coffees such ass latte macchiatos along with a delicious piece of cake or a muffin, but also teas. Which brings me right to today's topic.

Did you know that the 'blessed' green tea isn't the only tea that helps you get rid of water retentions and detoxifies your body? Well, I knew that there are a few others left, but I never thought that the cherry-steam tea would be that beneficial for one's health.

Cherries are nowadays cultivated in lots of countries, such as Turkey, USA, Iran, Italy, Russia, Spain, Ukraine, Romania and Greece. They contain a lot of vitamin A, B1 and C. Normally cherries are used for weight-loss ass they are low in calories, but don't precipitate, they are still a reason of water retentions ,due to the higher fructose concentration, if you don't consume them in moderation. 

When J-M.B. began telling us to buy cherry stalks, I wasn't sure why. But after he explained me what the stems are doing to our body in form of an infused tea, I was kind of surprised... I don't want to put you on the rack so that's what I found out:

There are a lot of benefits that come along with cherries, and I am not only talking about the fruit itself. The leaves, stems, flowers and even the tree bark are very useful as well.

But the stems are by far the most beneficial. And this is why:

• Strengthens the nerves and thus has a calming effect
• Very hydrating, so good for thirst
• Very useful for your kidneys and prevent the formation of kidney stones
• They are diuretic, meaning you have to pee a lot... and when I say a lot, it is a lot haha
• They are cleaning your blood
• Very effective against rheumatism, arthritis and atherosclerosis
• Have the effect of relieving pain (e.g instead of swallowing a handful of aspirin, eat a cherry)
• Lower your cholesterol
• Help weight-loss because it simplifies getting rid of water retentions
• Your digestion gets easier (You may get a gippy tummy at first, but this will be okay after a short period of time, your body needs to get used to it, so don't worry)
• They are very beneficial for your liver too
• Cherry stems help to open your respiratory and you can expectorate easier when you caught a cough or cold.

How to prepare cherry stem tea?

I think there is nothing as easy as preparing cherry stem tea. Guess why?

The only thing you have to do is to either buy some cherries and take of the stems and let them air-dry or you buy them at a store. I bought mine at a pharmacy, but I think you will find cheaper ones in a normal store or a bio-store.

To brew the tea you simply add 1-2 spoons of dried stems to 500ml of boiling water for 5-10 minutes.  

You can either drink the tea every morning and evening, or at intervals from the meal, to promote a better elimination of the toxins in your body.

I was surprised by the taste as well. If you add a little honey, it's perfect I guess. Unfortunately I am not allowed to add honey, but it also tastes great naturally. This tea has become my #1 favorite tea. Good bye bitter green tea and hello cherry stem tea.

Enjoy your weekend. xX

That's how they should look like

©J.-R. Photography

©J.-R. Photography

Just to show you my sweet fluffy ball,Mumble
©J.-R. Photography

©J.-R. Photography

©J.-R. Photography

Size vs. Strength Training

You know how much I praise lifting weights, don't you? But don't get me wrong when I tell you that lifting heavy weights isn't always good for you. I know this sounds confusing, but there is a difference between healthy weight-lifting and retarded weight-lifting. There are even two main categories of lifting, size training and strength training...

• Strength Training: 

If you are looking for strength-training, you want to increase force production. Size-training, on the contrary, is about getting a pump and creating little damages to your muscles so they can repair themselves and grow bigger. (The reason why you get muscle-soreness).

Strength training should consist of few reps but heavier weights instead, but don't forget the proper form,trying to still control the movement. So, real low-rep strength-training is primarily neuromuscular. Meaning that you teach your body to bring more muscle into the game to increase your power.

• Size Training: 

Size training is more physiological. This means that you give your body a little upgrade in its size. You are forcing your body to develop tissues and grow stronger AND bigger. This may sounds exactly like strength-training , but your main focus is to build bigger muscles, not stronger ones.

Therefor, you don't have to worry about losing your strength when you want to increase your muscles' size. All types of training can have neurological benefits, it's just a matter of the right balance between reps and weights.

A lot of people misunderstand bodybuilders by thinking that bodybuilding is about lifting heavy-ass weights, right? But, it is about using your weights as a tool to increase your muscle tissue. If you are throwing as much weight on the bar, whether to boost your ego or to impress the people around you, you are completely on the wrong way.

Now what happens when you go too heavy?

• You decrease the time under tensions because you are too busy cheating on your form to lift your weights.
• You can't control the movement because it's way too heavy and you look stupid because you are trying to lift it up again. (maybe looking like a 'about-to-explode' tomato haha)
• You have no 'brain-muscle-connection' , because (again) you have struggle to do the movement right.
• You are using too many other muscles to lift your weights, meaning you can't train your muscle isolated.

To get to the point: No one cares how much you lift in the gym, unless they are doing the same mistake...

Nevertheless, if you don't manage to lift for sets of at least 6 reps, you are more likely to train for strength, if you keep proper form. Otherwise it's just bad lifting and you won't make yourself stronger nor 'bigger, you are simply risking injuries.

To improve muscle size you should:

• Have a strict and proper form
• Control the lowering movement for at least 3 seconds.
• Have a sane and healthy muscle-brain-connection and feel the movement in your muscles. 
• Avoid to lock completely out, meaning that your muscles should be under tensions throughout the whole movement, for every rep. (e.g if you do a dumbbell-curl always try to have your biceps under tension even if you lower the movement , and don't pause between each rep )

So once again, if you love lifting-weights, like me, always keep in mind WHY you are lifting weights and HOW you are lifting heavy weights. Control every movement, feel your muscle, feel the burn and always keep your muscle under tension. You will achieve better results if you lift lighter weights and control the movement, than if you lift heavy and look like a retarded ego-driven wanna-be lifter. 

With that said, enjoy your next pump. xX

Me doing close-grip lat-pulldowns

Guest-post on the PumpUp Blog

Hey sweetheart

Here are the great news I told you about in my previous post.
I had the opportunity to create a guest-post for PumpUp's blog.
Maybe you remember the review I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the 'PumpUp App' ? Well, they also have a blog where they publish articles about fitness and health, recipes, spotlight stories and inspirational posts.

I also have a collaboration now with the PumpUp team, meaning that we planned that I create and write a guest-post, of course health and fitness related, for them once a week or once every two weeks, we will see...

I would be pleased if you would take the time to read my article on their blog (here). And of course to scroll through their blog as well, because they offer a great number of inspirational posts, stories and delicious recipes.

I wish you all a nice week and stay focused.

Pole Dance

Me doing the Butterfly

Hi sweetie.

Some of you may have noticed that I am not only hitting the gym 5 times a week, but I also teach pole-dance classes for beginners, and I train for myself at least once a week. You may think that I am overtraining, but since I was used to dance everyday, I missed this so much. Of course I love to hit the gym and lift heavy weights, but sometimes I really need that kind of distraction from all that competition-stuf, simply to free my mind and to switch off the world, without thinking of the competition date that comes closer and closer. (aarrghhhh...) 

While there are still so many prejudices against pole-dance I wanted to clear things up. Because I know that a lot of people think that I am a striper or that I am a gogo-girl, which I am obviously not. 

Of course, pole dancing is associated with strip clubs and dance clubs, but pole dancing is not only about dancing around a pole. It is actually a form of performance art and a very heavy sport that combines dance and acrobatics centered around a vertical pole. 

Since the 2000's, promoters of pole dance fitness competitions (yes such things exist) have been trying for so long to change people's perception of pole dance and to promote it as a NON-SEXUAL form of dance and acrobatics. Initially, pole dance has been influenced by Chinese pole, you know that kind of 'pole-dancing' you see at 'le cirque du soleil'. 

Everyone who every tried pole-dancing knows that it requires strength, flexibility, technique and endurance. Plus, it involves athletic moves such as climbs, spins and body inversions using the limbs to grip (which mostly lead to bruises or blisters hihi). To attain proficiency you need upper body and core strength and rigorous training. 

Nowadays, it is more and more seen as a form of exercise that can be used as an aerobic or anaerobic workout. 

If you are from Luxembourg and always wanted to try pole-dance, you can join me every Saturday from 10.30 am to 11.30 am at Pole&Aerial Art in Differdange. All you need are shorts and a shirt, and of course a good mood.

See you... xX

Handspring

Figurehead

Pole-sit

Front Split

Pencil

Open Eye

Morning Cardio: Check

My view this morning.

Hi. 

How are you? Are you awake? 

My day started great today even if I already hit a 30min HIIT workout this morning, BEFORE breakfast. This was the first time ever in my life that I went for a run on an empty stomach and I didn't gave up.

Normally I have a very low blood pressure in the morning, especially when I haven't been able to eat something. That's also the main reason why I usually hit the gym in the afternoon because my body needs a wee bit time and some meals to get off the stick. I have no idea why. I have already been at the doctor's to check my thyroid, and what came out was a small thyroid dysfunction, which isn't that bad and not even the reason why I have such a low blood pressure in the mornings, as I also take adequate medicine. And of course I have also been in so many blood analysis but nothing came out... I am lacking for nothing, so I just think that I am hypotensive and that my body needs a tiny bit to pick up pace. 

Because of all that, I was a bit afraid yesterday when J-M.B. (my coach) told me that I have to do intervals on an empty stomach right after getting out of bed and taking my nitro-stak/glutamine shake with my bcaa and my fat-burner. I know, usually when you say 'empty stomach', it's a real empty stomach. But this ''cocktail'' prevents my muscles from injury and gives me a little boost to get through the workout and the rest of the day. 

And this is how my morning-cardio session looked like:

• 10 minutes warmup: jogging at a moderate pace to the place I will hit my hiit.
• 30 minutes Hiit : 3 min / 1 min , meaning 3 minutes of moderate jogging, 1 minute sprint uphill, 3 minutes jogging while going downhill to spurt uphill again for 1 minute and so on.
• 10 minutes cool-down: jogging at an easy pace back home. 

Of course I have already taken a shower before writing this post, I am not a stinky gremlin, I am a fairy... hihi. 

I think that's the best feeling after finishing your workout, a nice cold shower that cools you down while waking you up and making you feel energized again.

You can't imagine how happy I am that I made it through this whole workout. I never thought that I would be able to workout on an empty stomach without fainting. Yes, I am proud of myself right now. And I am glad that , for one time, I believed in myself.

But there is more to come that makes this day even better. I run the chance to have a collaboration with a new but already very famous fitness-app... That's all I am saying, I don't want to spoil the surprise, so stay tuned my lovely fitfam. 

Enjoy your day and always believe in yourself. xX

Goliath says hello to you. He also swam some round in his aquarium hihi