Did I give you (false) hope by my headline? Of course I don’t mean you can chow down on Doritos, open a can of beer and get comfortable on the couch while giving up on your daily gym visit. What I mean is identify the things you most enjoy doing and DO them.  In the fitness industry, I come across so many people who just ‘go through the motions’, eat bags of tilapia and frozen beans, do the same old routine on the step mill day in and day out, and are completely miserable.  Just because their coach has said “this is the only thing that will work”, or because ‘somebody else is doing it with great results’.  Or how about those people who grind up their chicken and add to their shake just so they can get some protein? Crazy!  I believe in eating the things you enjoy eating – living life should be pleasurable, and although broccoli can never replace an ice cream sundae or a big box of chocolate, it can be made into a delicious dish if you are a bit inventive.  Speaking of tilapia, I’ve come to the conclusion that this is one of the things I detest eating, and spinach is a close second (probably from over eating it but tilapia tastes like donkey a%$) . Does that mean I can’t get in tip top shape for my show? Of course not, and I think I’ve proven it. I have replaced tilapia with cod, which is much tastier in my opinion. Sure, tilapia do have a few more grams of protein, but I make up for this in other ways. Instead of spinach, I enjoy broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and asparagus. The latter was actually my inspiration for this post, as it is now coming into spring, and that means asparagus will be in season! As a chef, I never really eat vegetables that are not in season (with the exception of asparagus perhaps), I would never eat tomatoes right now for instance. Watery, tasteless and mealy – what’s nice about that?  I’m a bit of a food snob and believe produce should be bought at the farmer market when they are in tip top condition.

What about training? I love all the different weight lifting exercises, because they are always challenging and it’s easier to mix things up than cardio. When it comes to cardio, one thing I LOATHE is the bike (sometimes spinning is ok, I’m talking about the stationary bikes in the cardio room) – and I must say the step mill is a close second. What’s fun about climbing endless amounts of stairs?  One must be a bit of a masochist to do this, in my opinion, although sometimes I do end up on it (and always wonder “why”, lol). Sure, it builds a nice behind, but I can think of other ways to achieve enviable glutes. I love running outdoors – unfortunately right now I have a knee and a back that are both striking when I try to do that, so I resort to the treadmill, running uphill and doing intervals. Running is also the only way I really lose weight if I need to – my body doesn’t seem to respond to any other exercise (read: elliptical machine for instance) although I do them every so often to change up my routine. When you like what you are doing, it goes without saying that it will be easier to stick with it.  Doing some sort of exercise is better than sitting on your behind. This is what I’m telling myself now, as I am going through the motions and not really excited about anything in the gym. I still go, but I’m longing for that “fire” I had a few months back. There is no way I’m going to throw water on that little flame that is still burning by torturing myself on the bike. Hell no – I’m going to run even if my knee tells me not to. Let’s see what happens!  I’m off to make myself some lunch now – with asparagus.