This is a question I get asked A LOT!
 
People don't want to have to cook separate meals for everyone, they don't want the hassle and also if they have kids they don't want them to see them eating different things all the time.
 
So the answer is
 
DONT
 
I pretty much, unless its a very spicy dish, cook the same thing for us all to enjoy...I may tweak my meal slightly but not so that anyone would even notice.
 
I think it is so important to get our kids used to eating what we do from a young age, I haven't got the time to cook lots of different things and also I want my whole family to eat healthily!
 
Yes shock horror of course my kids eat fish fingers and pizza sometimes...we are all human...but I would like to think that about 6 times a week we all eat the same meal.
 
So this is something I promote with my clients and in my online groups.....I show them easy family friendly meals that everyone can enjoy!
 
Let me know your thoughts on this? Have you got fussy eaters at home?
 
Kelly xx

​This week we are covering different areas around mental health as part of mental health awareness week..


Today its self care.....

We are all running around working, looking after families, trying to be a great Mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend, colleague that sometimes we get put to the back of the queue....

Anyone agree???

So how about taking a bit of "me time" do you worry that that is selfish?

I am a big fan of taking time out...I am sooooo busy that I would go mad if I didn't ..

So for me it is ....... going to my book club, reading in general, cup of tea in the garden on my own, getting a massage once a month, going to the gym, spa day, meeting a friend for coffee, breakfast with my Mom, mooching round the shops on my own....

Just little things but so important to me..

What do you do in a month that is just for you???

Someone said this to me yesterday in the context of work life.....but I think this relates to diet and exercise too...
 
If you are currently following an eating plan that is restricting you......
 
Maybe you are cutting out whole food groups
Living off meal replacements
Going hungry
Declining nights out because you can't fit it in to your "diet"
 
OR
 
If you are doing exercise that you DREAD
 
STOP !!!!!
 
IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE THAT WAY!!!
 
You should be following an eating plan that leaves you feeling great...not hungry...enjoying cooking and eating delicious food......making good choices when you go out and still enjoying life
 
AND
 
You should be doing exercise that you ENJOY...that leaves you energised and wanting more....
 
Hit reply and let me know whether you are ENJOYING or ENDURING your eating plan and exercise at the moment????
 
Kelly xx
www.keepfitwithkelly.com

​I would love to hear some views on this...its a hot topic right now...
 
I asked for some thoughts on it in my Private Facebook group and they were very mixed...
 
Some people saying they would never consider it...they love their meat and dairy too much..
 
I had some saying they really wanted to do it for ethical/environmental reasons but find it hard to get their protein in...plus how restrictive it is when you eat out
 
Comments were made around wanting to try a plant based diet to see how it impacted peoples health...but one lady said it had actually made her snack more and gain weight..
 
I also had some who want to do it but as they cook for their family they find it really difficult...
 
I would love to know what you think? Perhaps you are vegan and have been for a while? Maybe you are a new vegan? Do you worry about protein? Has it helped you lose weight?
 
I would really like to see how I feel on a plant based diet...I don't feel personally that I could go fully vegan so I am thinking about trying a few days a week to see how I get on...
 
I would love to hear your thoughts..
 
Kelly xx
www.keepfitwithkelly.com

​This was a lovely message that Zena sent me last September after she had been following my programme for 6 weeks
 
Zena has now gone on to lose nearly 3 stone and 32 inches!!!!!!!!
 
"I can’t begin to tell you how chuffed I am to have lost a stone and 14 inches overall!!!
​
For anyone thinking of trying PT sessions with Kelly...I had been promising myself to start exercising for longer than I care to admit. 

​I was feeling down and drinking more often than I should. Then, a few months back, I got taken along to a great exercise class ‘open day’ with my lovely friend Yvette and met the fabulous Kelly. She is so friendly and welcoming that I decided to take the big step of booking some personal training sessions with her. I did have a mild panic before the first session and very nearly cancelled. I am so glad that Kelly gently convinced me to give it a try. I loved Kelly’s sessions immediately! I had 3 x PT sessions with Kelly but got Cellulitis thanks to an insect bite and then came down with Laryngitis/Acute Pharyngitis (Doctor’s diagnosis differed?!). During these few weeks of feeling really poorly, I obviously couldn’t exercise at all but I did manage to stick to Kelly’s clean eating meal plans. Obviously my appetite wasn’t great being ill and I was reliant on my fab friend ‘Katie’s’ homemade soups to get me through the first week of feeling awful but I have found that my whole outlook on what I eat has changed in a very short period of time. The menus are easy to follow and I find shopping for food much less stressful, knowing what my week’s meals are going to be. I don’t feel bloated anymore and I don’t really miss the carbs, I’ve stopped drinking alcohol and now that I’m finally starting to feel better, I can actually get off my sick bed/sofa and get out in the fresh air and gently start to exercise again. Kelly even changed the way we exercise because of my painful cough so that it didn’t aggravate it. My voice is still not fully recovered but thankfully, you don’t have to talk whilst you exercise. Kelly is always upbeat, positive and great fun. I will most definitely be booking another 10 PT sessions. 
Thank you again Kelly for making such a positive and healthy change to my life. ❤️ xxx"

The nights are dark......
 
The weather is cold......
 
The lure of the sofa is there...snuggling and not bothering to go out and do your exercise.....
 
BUT
 
Do you know that it only takes 2 weeks for your fitness levels to start to reverse.....
​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​How about the fact that exercise is excellent for your mental health so sitting on the sofa is not going to get you that endorphin buzz
 
Or the big one.......your bum being on the sofa is going to spread!!!!!! 
 
SO 
 
​​​​​​​My message is DONT GIVE UP......KEEP GOING FOR YOUR RUNS OR BIKE RIDES OR OUT TO YOUR CLASSES
 
It is so important.....for so many reasons!
 
Kelly x
www.keepfitwithkelly.com
 
PS: Do you find it harder to find motivation in the winter????

 
I am not......because it makes me miserable !!!!
 
I totally get the health benefits and think it is great if you want to do it and can do it..
 
BUT
 
For me I just like to moderate in January....so I cut right back to just a Friday and a Saturday...whereas over Christmas you just don't even know what the day is do you???!!!
 
I think about what I am drinking so try to substitute beer and wine for a G & T.....more water when I am having a drink etc
 
But I have found that when I say I cant have something AT ALL it makes me miserable and I just want it more!!!
 
How about you?? I would love to know if you are doing dry Jan and what your reasons are?? Maybe you do it every year???
 
My one piece of advice if you are doing it....DONT BINGE DRINK IN FEB!!! I find lots of people try and make up for it afterwards and that just undoes all the good you have done your body...
 
Kelly xx
www.keepfitwithkelly.com
 
PS: The reason I don't do dry January is my husband cant stand to live with me if I cant have my G & T on a Friday night....Im a bit moody!!!!!

I am sure you are well and truly into the festive spirit now.....parties, meals out, family gatherings...and they all seem to revolve around food and drink!!
 
And why not!!!
 
But there are some little tips you can follow....
 
1. Fasting is a great tool to help reduce your calorie intake without even counting your calories.....trying to go 16 hours with no food just LOADS of water
 
2. Eat something small and protein rich before heading out drinking
 
3. Drink LOTS of water before during and after your nights out
 
4. Dark chocolate is a great alternative and lower in sugar than milk chocolate...higher the cocoa percentage the better
 
5. Get out and be active every day...at home workouts, walks in the park.....just do SOMETHING..
 
Kelly xx

I thought I would share with you this morning a little bit about how and why I ended up teaching health and fitness....
 
So my background is in financial services...I started on the counter at the Woolwich Building Society as a cashier aged 16...I then moved to TSB and then that became Lloyds TSB.....I worked my up from cashiering through the ranks and was an assistant branch manager for a time...
 
It was only when I went through a divorce aged 30 that I really got into fitness......before that I had dabbled in classes and had enjoyed them but being back at my parents with a 3 year old I really needed something to do in the evenings when she was in bed....and so thats when I really got into my fitness....
 
So..........they say things happen for a reason and just as I qualified as an exercise to music instructor (the idea being that would be a second job for me) I was made redundant from my job in financial services........
 
The rest is history as they say...I am approaching 10 years in the fitness business now and things have gone from strength to strength...
 
I adore my job and if I do say so myself I think I am quite good at it!!!!!!!
 
Thanks for reading.....I just wanted to show that things do change in life......we have ebbs and flows and I always do believe that things happen for a reason xxxxxx