Brentano-Murphy's Adventures

What a roller-coaster 2018 has been, new experiences, new travels and things learnt... The first few months were pretty standard, early morning training sessions, work, gym at lunch time and coaching in the late afternoons. I was also doing courses for Anatomy, Aromatherapy, Holistic Massage and Sports Massage. In April my husband and I flew to England to start a new chapter in our lives. Shortly after arriving in the airport, he had to leave again due to some technical issues. We got to spend one day in London together before he had to return. I persevered, in the hopes of finding a job and being able to get him a spousal visa. Being in a foreign country is not easy, there are different rules and documentation that I needed to sort out, which delayed my job seeking process. I stayed in a small village called Yorkshire, the people there are probably the friendliest I have ever met and welcomed me with big arms at the first church service I went to. After a while I was even invited...

For many of us weight loss is a daunting task involving analyzing 'healthy' foods and the idea that eating less will in fact help us lose the weight. Weight loss is actually scientific, taking into account your basal metabolic rate (the amount of energy expressed in calories that a person needs to keep the body functioning at rest) and your level of activity. From this you can deduce how many calories you need to intake and which percentage of it is Fat, Protein and Carbohydrate. To begin, you need to estimate your RMR Now take a look at your Physical Activity Level From this, you can calculate your daily calorie requirements. Next we break it down into your macro nutrient needs - which is Carbs, Fats and Proteins: Carbohydrates: Based on your activity level, look at your target of grams per KG body weight. To get your Carbohydrate Calories, times your Carbs (g) by 4.  The reason for this is 1g Proteing = 4 kcal Protein Based on your ac...

We have all heard adopting a low GI lifestyle can result in weight-loss, but do we really know what GI means or how it compares to GL foods? What is GI? Glycaemic Index measures the effect carbohydrates have on blood glucose levels . Foods with a GI of 0-54 are safe to eat, while foods over 70 should be avoided.  Eating foods high in GI will cause your blood glucose levels to peak and drop quickly, whereas foods with a low GI give you a steady rate of energy.  What is GL? Glycaemic Load  takes into account the amount of Carbohydrates in a given food. It studies the glycaemic response, while considering the carbohydrate content in a specific serving size of a food item.  Foods with a low GL encourage the body to burn fat. The GL is calculated by taking the percentage carbohydrate content per portion of a specific food and multiplying it by its Glycaemic Index value. The best foods to eat have a GL of under 10. GL = Carbohydrate content per ...

So after having lost 1.5kg I thought I was in for an easy victory... that is until the weekend happened and nerves for my upcoming race hit me HARD. I am unfortunately one of those people that have to stay disciplined. One chocolate will lead to two and one bad day is leading into a whole week. It is important for me to understand why I crave certain foods... is it boredom or is it a lack of a certain mineral? Below is a list that I will start working on, to correct my cravings and get myself back on track: If you crave this... What you really need is... And here are healthy foods that have it: Chocolate Magnesium Raw nuts and seeds, legumes, fruits Sweets Chromium Broccoli, grapes, cheese, dried beans, calves liver, organic free-range chicken   Carbon Fresh fruits   Phosphorus Chicken, beef, liver, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, legumes, whole grains   Sulfur Cranberries, horseradish, cruciferous vegetables, kale, cabbage   Tryptophan Cheese, liver...

This week brings about the second week of my October weight-loss challenge. The first week was met with one day of unexpected indulgence. On Tuesday, it was my colleagues birthday, which meant cake. It was also my orienteering committee meeting, which meant Pizza. This resulted in me not eating my lunch. I decided to stick to the same lunch then on Thursday, which actually worked out as I had too much anyway for the allocated day. Now I know for next week it will be chicken and butternut Monday to Friday - this is actually so much easier for prep. Now onto this week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday the plan is to have Quinoa Taco Salad. Tuesday and Thursday will be fish. To make the Quinoa Taco Salad, you will need: 1 Avocado 1 can Black beans 1 cup Salsa 1 cup Quinoa 2 handful Tortilla chips, organic Optional - 1 packet of taco seasoning for flavor Per cup of cooked Quinoa, you will get: Protein: 8 grams Fibre: 5 grams Carbs: 39 grams Fat: 4 grams Calo...

Out with the old and in with the new... So my office has decided to kick off a little October weight loss challenge. The goal is to lose 5% of your current weight. This morning I weighed in at 58.4kg, which will put my goal weight in at 55.48kg come end of October. I have gained a few kg over the weeks as my cross country season has come to an end, I have not been paying too much attention to what I have been eating and also I have been focusing a lot more on strength in the gym (I am hoping my gain has been from muscle). So my plan of action is to keep my food simple and planned out, particularly on weekends when the diet tends to wander. So next weeks meal plan will look something like this: Breakfast: 1 Boiled Egg and half a grapefruit Lunch: Grilled Chicken or steamed fish (alternating) with veggies Afternoon Snack: Banana and nuts or 3 x provita with low fat cottage cheese Grapefruits:  Low in calories but are full of nutrients and an excellent source of v...

So it has been just over a month since my best friend asked me to marry him.... by all means it wasn't the romantic knee drop we all see in movies and dream of as little girls, and there was definitely no crying or photos even! What it was was pure and true to his simple nature. Tuesday, 28 June 2016 - 2 days before our 5 year anniversary I had been asked out on a date, which was strange for 2 reasons. I had been asked out on a date It was a weekday night I had a feeling something was up and even as he got in the car that night when I picked him up I looked to his jean pockets to see if there was a box shaped thing. We drove to Hello Tomato in Bryanston - a place we had kind of looked at when we use to do the Bryanston parkrun. It was not the place I expected at all, it was more of a take-away restaurant than a sit down for a romantic meal and propose type restaurant. Yes, he sure does know how to pick ém. Well we had ordered and Dakota got up to take his glass...