Alex Coombes, Author at TruBeLife ™

Why You Should Keep Eating Gluten

October 19, 2015July 22, 2017 Alex CoombesLeave a comment

Finally! The ‘gluten-free’ fad might be coming to an end! So many people these days are choosing the gluten free path, but is it actually causing your digestive issues or is what we’ve been eating it with?!

New research coming out about Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides & Polyols (a mouthful I know we’ll call them FODMAP’s for short), claims that self-diagnosed coeliacs might actually be suffering from the Polyols in certain fruits and vegetables like avocado, as opposed to the gluten in your baguette. AVOCADOS?!!

What’s going to happen to the avocado industry after thriving for so long as the number one brunch favourite for so many health and fitness fanatics? What about the new avocado emoji said to be coming out soon? Are we really going to turn our backs this antioxidant boosting fruit, as well as many other nutritious fruits and vegetables. This would mean no more smashed chilli avocado, no more cauliflower rice, no more Deliciously Ella key lime pie and good luck to you if you love a dollop of cashew nut butter on your ‘gluten-free’ porridge!And did I mention sweet potato? If you decide the low FODMAP diet is for you then you can say adios to those sweet potato brownies…

Any unexplained digestive problems should be diagnosed by your doctor first before unnecessarily cutting FODMAP’s or gluten from your diet.

Remember a little bloating from time to time is normal and not solely down to your food. Whatever your goals are you should maintain balance, variety and a well stocked kitchen. These are the keys to healthy success 🙂

For some examples of my meals please check out my Instagram page, @Chelsea_Siegel.

Chelsea x – London Personal Trainer

How to Make your own Granola

October 15, 2015July 22, 2017 Alex CoombesLeave a comment

Granola is one the best ways to get a balanced and nutritious breakfast. The foundations of oats, coconut oil and honey provide your body with the carbohydrates it need to start the day (fast and slow release), natural fats you need for cell growth/maintenance and of course fibre for your digestion.

Base Ingredients
– 500g Organic oats
– 4 tbs Coconut oil
– 4 tbs Organic honeyYou can now add whatever you like, as long it fits in with your fitness goal. I like to add a type of nut/seed for protein, dried fruit for extra sugar and fibre and something for added flavour.

Added Ingredients
– 150g Nuts (pecans are my favourite)
– 100g Dried fruit (cranberries)
– 1 tbs Cinnamon (for flavour)

If I have a particularly active day ahead I will add another good source of slow release carbohydrate such as chia seeds.

Method
1. Pre heat the oven to 150c/gas mark 2.
2. Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl.
3. Put the honey and coconut oil on low heat in a saucepan until they mix together.
4. Pour the honey and coconut oil mix over the dry ingredients, then toss well.
5. Lay the mixture out in a baking tray lined with baking paper, then bake in the oven for about 25 minutes at 150c.
6. Once the mixture is golden brown, leave to cool.

You can choose to enjoy it with milk, almond, yoghourt or may favourite, a spoon of peanut butter. Yuuuummmm!

Neda – London Personal Trainer and Healthy Chef.

P.S. Follow me on Instagram for more recipe ideas and fitness inspiration.

Introducing Personal Trainer Chelsea

October 9, 2015November 1, 2018 Alex CoombesLeave a comment

Meet Chelsea, one of our top female personal trainers. She specialises in endurance bodyweight training.

What is your favourite exercise and why?
My favourite exercise is a ‘power thruster’ (press up to squat) as it works everything. And I love the name!

Why did you become a personal trainer?
I became a PT because I wanted to work in an industry that I’m passionate about and reflected my own lifestyle. I love seeing my clients progress in strength and confidence – it’s the best feeling.

Do you stretch and why?
Coming from a dance background I stretch all the time to prevent injuries. I always take the time to warm up and cool down properly. I’m also an enthusiastic yogi and use self practice to improve my flexibility.

What nutritional principles do you follow?
When it comes to my nutrition, I don’t have restrictions. I eat ‘healthily’ most of the time because I love how the feeling when I fuel my body with nutritious food. When I want to eat something ‘naughty’ I don’t guilt trip myself. I’m all about promoting balance and happiness.

What is your training speciality?
I feel a person’s true strength shows in how they are able to carry their own weight and their determination to keep going when the mind wants to give up. I try to develop both of these characteristics in all of my clients.

What is your biggest client success story?
I have a client who dropped from 18st to 10st by herself. She came to me to help her maintain this weight as well as building muscle definition. She had become obsessed about her food and no longer enjoyed eating. What makes her my greatest success is that I was able to fulfil her needs. She built muscle and achieved well defined abs. However she went beyond her aesthetic goals, growing in confidence, building a better relationship with food and overall become a much happier person.

What is your current fitness goal?

My current fitness obstacle is this years Royal Parks Half Marathon. This is my first one and I’ve been training hard, combining long runs with strength training has taken its toll on my joints!

If you’re looking for a great all round bodyweight training session to help lose weight, tone muscle, improve general fitness and endurance, book a session today! To book with Chelsea download the app and you can find her as one of our featured trainers.

6 reasons to do a TruBe session with a friend or partner

October 7, 2015July 22, 2017 Alex CoombesLeave a comment

We all know that having a trainer partner makes exercising less of a chore, but should you be doing a personal training session with a partner as well? Here are 7 reasons why you should!

1) Great Motivation
As the days get shorter our motivation to train dwindles. Having a training partner means you are more likely resist the temptation of cancelling your session.

2) Get to Know Them Better
Exercising with someone else breaks down many of the social barriers that prevent you from really getting to know someone. This makes it a much healthier alternative to drinking alcohol!

3) It’s More Fun
It’s a well known fact that exercising releases the happy hormones endorphins. Well, training with your buddy not only does that, it makes you laugh even through the toughest exercises. TruBe uses various complex exercises that will encourage maximum interaction and contact with your partner. So Smiles all around!

4) Cost Effective
Having a training partner can save you money. It cuts the cost of personal training session in half making it much more affordable.

5) Push Harder
Let’s face it, we all like a bit of competitive edge. Training with a partner encourages you to work harder to out perform each other and to work as a team. You wish each other well because you’re in it together. It’s a healthy attitude that will translate into your daily life making you more successful.

6) It’s just cool!
Training with a partner looks cool and is super cool. Not only do you get them to try challenging elements of acroyoga, core exercises and plyometrics moves in your training, you also grow stronger as friends or partners.

So why not download the app, book a workout, split the cost and try it with a friend.

Dana V – @DanaandAliceFitness

Is Ballet Barre For Me?

October 1, 2015July 22, 2017 Alex CoombesLeave a comment

As a ballet barre trainer there is one question that I regularly get asked, “Is ballet barre for me?”

In my opinion ballet barre and any form of ballet training is beneficial for everyone regardless of your fitness goal. Well of course I would say that, I am a former professional ballet dancer and I helped design TruBe’s ballet barre workout.

But let’s think about it objectively. Why do we train? The reasons why we train and engage in physical activity are wide and varied. But all of them can be enhanced or achieved through ballet barre training. There is a reason why ballet dancers are often touted as some of the fittest athletes alongside boxers.

One of the largest barriers we face at the moment when we exercise is poor range of motion. The way the modern westerner lives their life promotes poor posture and tight muscles. Ballet barre is a great way to improve your posture and promote greater coordination between different areas of your body simultaneously. How often do you hear about dancers with poor posture and limited range of motion? This applies to everyone, most men could add 10kgs to their three big lifts with improved movement patterns.

Let’s talk about some other fitness goals such as weight loss, tone, core strength, cardiovascular fitness, strength and power. All of these can be drastically improved through ballet barre training. When you think about all of these facets of fitness, ballet dancers display all of them. The beauty of the TruBe ballet barre is that you can achieve these results in the comfort of your own living room, ballet is about moving your body not heavy weights.

To celebrate world ballet day today, why not download the app and try one of our ballet barre sessions using this £10 off promo code:

BALLET10

Matt – @mattino22