1. Avoid going to parties or functions hungry. You are much more likely to fill up on (and overeat) the nibblies (which might include chips/lollies/sausage rolls etc) rather than waiting for the main meal. Have a small snack before you go (such as a piece of fruit or a tub of yoghurt) to take the edge off your hunger. 2. Be wary of drinking your calories. Alcohol has a very high kilojoule content so if you choose to drink, try to have lower-alcohol options (such as light beer or low-alc...

Have a large bowl of cherries as your pre-dinner nibbles. They are a great seasonal treat and much healthier alternative to lollies! Prefer savoury snacks? Try popcorn rather than corn chips and try veggie sticks (celery, carrot, capsicum) with dip (hommus, tzatziki, guacamole) rather than overloading guests with cheese and crackers! Offer fruit salad or diet jelly as a dessert option. Having a light and refreshing dessert available is ideal in the Australian summer! It is always thoughtful o...

As an exercise physiologist, I get asked this question a lot. We like to maintain some tight controls around energy expenditure so we can scientifically calculate this for each individual. The reality is, everyone is different. You know the calories burnt function on the treadmill or heart rate monitor? I hate to say it but they’re just not accurate. To get an accurate reading of how many calories you burn and therefore how much weight you will lose with exercise, you need to use anindir...

When it’s been a prolonged period of time between work outs, it can be hard to build up enough will power to turn those great thoughts into reality. I like to ride for fitness and if I’ve had a long stint off the bike I don’t seem to love it as much. I feel really unfit and it’s just not as fun! For me, I need to trick my brain into realising that it’s not such a bad thing after all. To do this, I recommend starting with really small goals that are so easy to achie...

If I manage to accidentally flick over to one of those infomercial channels and they are selling exercise equipment, I will often keep it there just for the entertainment value. With promises of shredding that stomach fat in 6 minutes a day or cutting your weight in half in 12 weeks it’s funnier than most sit coms! I like to see the positive in everything, and I certainly don’t see myself as a cynic, although these claims are hilariously inaccurate. I have people telling me weekly t...

No it’s not a cream. Itsweight training? How does that work you say? Well, our connective tissue is different in comparison to men’s. The orientation of our skin connective tissue needs to be able to stretch to bear children, so when we put on fat it fills pockets of the striated connective tissue giving us the orange peel look. Have you ever seen a lean muscular woman with cellulite? Muscle tissue helps tighten the skin to prevent the fat pocketing in the striated areas of our c...

To lose weight or to lose fat that is the question? Firstly, you should know what does weight loss mean to you? Is your goal to conquer the scales? Or is it to look HOT in that bikini this summer? If you want to conquer the scale easy, just do more cardio with your healthy eating regime. Cardio shrinks down both fat and muscle and you may end up skinny and soft. If you want to look HOT and leanin those bikinis this summer then add strength training to your cardio and healthy eating regime...

Back pain is one of the biggest complaints that the physiotherapists and the exercise physiologists from My Health Team have to deal with. Herniated discs, sciatica and general back problems cause many patients to take medication and be absent from their work. Not resolving these pains could finally result in extensive and expensive surgical procedures. If you can set aside 7 minutes every day to do 4 exercises that are simple and easy could restore your back to its original healthy state. This...