Veg always going off in your fridge? “Use a food delivery service that ships the exact ingredients you need along with simple recipe cards to your door,” says Giles Humphries, co-founder of mindfulchef.com.
2 Play with your veg
“Invest in a spiraliser,” says Humphries. “These cheap gadgets transform your dinners.” Think carrot ribbons and sweet potato noodles. “You won’t get the same blood sugar spike as with white starchy pasta.”
3 Blitz in a smoothie
Fill your juicer with nutrient-dense veg in place of just sugary fruit. “Start your day with a kale, spinach, banana and almond milk mix for an iron-rich, fibrous boost,” says Humphries. Add spirulina for extra vitamins and protein.
4 Convert into rice
“Swap carbheavy rice for innovative – and more flavoursome – cauliflower or broccoli rice,” says Humphries. Mix it up in a food processor (or buy it ready-riced) for a creative, low-GI option.
Pay attention – it could just get you a second date. That’s according to new Australian research investigating how mindfulness and visual attractiveness influence male and female choices during a speed-dating experiment. In the study, men were (somewhat unsurprisingly) more concerned with looks while, instead, women were drawn to men showing traits of “high dispositional mindfulness”. In other words, someone who’s aware and attentive to what they are thinking and feeling in the moment.
“Mindfulness is being the master of your emotions,” explains mindfulness teacher and author Suryacitta Malcolm Smith (mindfulnesscic.co.uk). “If you have high mindfulness, you’re more present and alive in the moment, you listen and empathise better and are more self-assured.” So pay attention to yourself before the big night – using the beginner’s tips above – and you’ll pay better attention to your date, which should bring its own rewards.
Mindfulness for beginners
FEEL YOURSELF BREATHING
“Get to a meeting early and sit quietly for five minutes,” says Suryacitta. “Feel your contact with the chair. Observe your breath into your body as your chest rises and falls. Think only of your breathing and feel present in the moment.”
TUNE IN TO YOUR TRAINING
“Build mindful muscle,” says Suryacitta. “When exercising, start without music and listen to your body instead. If running, be aware of the movement of your hips. If lifting weights, feel every muscle involved in the movement.”
LISTEN TO YOUR EMOTIONS
“Use the power of pauses,” says Suryacitta. “A few times a day, stop and allow your emotions to flow. Learn to know your feelings. After a minute, switch to focus on your breath for another 60 seconds. Then get on with your day.”
A study from the University of California found reading can lower levels of a brain protein linked to Alzheimer’s. Lower levels of amyloid proteins were identified in the brains of those who read throughout their lives. Load your bookcase with challenging texts to give your mind a workout and push it out of its comfort zone, just like with your muscles -Liverpool University research found classic literature activated more of the brain than easier, modern adaptations.
2 Take a 60-minute power nap
Just one night of poor sleep can damage your short- and long-term memory but a hour’s nap can help redress the damage, according to a study in the journal NeurobiologyOf Learning And Memory. Can’t catch 40 winks at work? Go for a stroll instead. Just 30 minutes of daily walking can boost the size of the hippocampus, the part of the brain that processes new information and aids long-term memory, another study in Physiology And Behaviour suggests.
3 Time your study right
Revising for exams or got a big pitch in the morning? Cramming or rehearsing before bed and immediately after you wake can improve retention, according to Brazilian research. The study also found those who received training in the afternoon performed better on tests than those who trained in the morning. And for a last-minute fix, research in Nature Neuroscience found a cup of coffee can boost cognitive function and memory too.
4 Fatten up on snack food
Our brains are composed of 60% fat and use 20% of the body’s metabolic energy, so keeping them well fed is essential. The brain diet: polyunsaturated fats, the omega 3 fatty acid DHA and even saturated fat. A study in the journal Neurologica found healthy fats reduced the risk of dementia by 36%. Cook with coconut oil, eat oily fish and load up on nuts – especially almonds, pecans and walnuts – and you should get enough healthy fats to keep your mind whirring happily.
43% The increase in electromyographic (EMG) activity measured in the leg and core muscles of subjects doing free weight squats over using a Smith machine, according to Canadian research
Real-world strength
If you’ve ever tried to drag a heavy bag through a packed airport or lug a TV up to a second-floor flat, you know the real-life requirements of functional strength. And you can only train for it with dumbbells, barbells and kettlebells. “You might be able to build size that makes you look the part with resistance machines, but you won’t have the strength in your tendons, ligaments and stabilising muscles for the real world,” says PT Alex Gildea (gildeafitness.com).
Fix your weaknesses
Body symmetry is important for more than just aesthetic reasons. “An imbalanced body can be especially vulnerable to injury when one side compensates for the other,” says Gildea. It can be hard to target individual limbs or muscles using machines alone but also when using barbells for overhead lifts and bench presses, so swap in dumbbell variations. “You might find you lift less at first but once you’ve exposed and addressed weaknesses you’ll be able to lift bigger in the long run.”
Six-pack perks
Dumbbells come in matching pairs but that doesn’t mean you have to use them together. “Doing unilateral – one-sided – lifts with free weights activates your anti-rotational core muscles to target your abs muscles, which usually get an easy ride with machines,” says Gildea. Try single-arm dumbbell chest presses and suitcase carries (like farmer’s walks but on just one side) to strengthen your core and forge more robust foundations for your lifts.
33g The average amount of sugar in a standard 330ml can of non-diet pop – over a third of the UK’s recommended maximum daily intake of 90g
Think you’re doing your fat loss efforts a favour by swapping sugar for artificial sweeteners? Think again. New research from York University has found sugar substitutes, particularly aspartame, negatively affect the body’s ability to manage blood glucose levels, reducing your ability to lose weight and even increasing the risk of diabetes.
Artificial sweeteners have long been used because of a belief that they’re not digested by the body, but this study found that bacteria in the gut may be able to break them down – causing the exact problems they’re meant to avoid. The sweet truth: cutting your intake of both sugar and its substitutes will vastly improve your fat loss.
233 The average amount in litres of soft drinks consumed per person in the UK last year – 14.8 billion in total
Having the grip strength to climb a rope might just save your life. Not just if it’s your only exit from an Indiana Jones-style snake pit, but because a strong grip is linked with a reduced risk of heart attack and stroke, according to a study in The Lancet. The research, which canvassed 140,000 subjects, found grip strength is a greater predictor of survival than systolic blood pressure, citing it as an indicator of the effects of age taking hold. Another study in the Journal Of Strength And Conditioning Research found a strong link between grip and total-body muscular strength and endurance. In other words, a weak grip equals a weak body and a mighty grip equals a mighty body. Rope climbs are a phenomenal way to challenge your grip while also building a strong upper body, but you can also make minor tweaks to regular gym moves. “Swap half your pulling exercises in the gym with rope variations,” says functional fitness expert Andrew Tracey (wayofthenomad.co.uk).
Use the rope attachment instead of the metal handle for rowing moves – and even pull-ups. “As well as a bigger range of motion, you’ll get an added grip challenge and the harder you grip, the more muscles you engage in your forearms, biceps and deltoids.” Try to get out of the gym too. “A weekly climbing or bouldering session will develop your finger strength and make workouts more fun and varied,” says Tracey. Not to mention boosting your chances of getting out of that snake pit alive.Turn the page for more ripped-grip tips from Tracey
Best kit for a vice grip
Photography Getty
Looking for gym kit that’ll help you strengthen your grip? One thing you don’t want is wrist straps, which are designed to let your grip off the hook. “If you must use them, save them for the final, heaviest deadlift set or your grip will limit your potential for strength gains,” says Tracey. He recommends these three grip-enhancing bits of kit for one session a week to activate your forearms and crush the life out of your workout.
FAT GRIPZ
How Slip them on dumbbells for curls and presses.
Why? “These transform standard dumbbells into fat ones, doubling the amount of work your forearms have to do to hold on,” says Tracey. “You’ll have to reduce the weight at first, but you’ll be able to lift way more in the long run.”
GLOBE GRIPZ
How Attach them to an overhead bar for chin-ups and pull-ups.
Why? “These spherical grips test your finger strength – another common weak link – and give you similar benefits to bouldering. Use them for the first couple of sets before your fingers tire,” says Tracey.
GRIP4ORCE
How Use them on barbells for biceps curls and overhead triceps extensions.
Why? “These force you to squeeze them shut around a dumbbell or barbell handle, so they’re more versatile,” says Tracey. “Use them for hammer curls and you’ll add a wedge of muscle to your biceps.”
