nutrition Archives - Justine Switalla

I have been on all sorts of diets over the years that have been prescribed to me from various coaches. I was made to believe for a long time that carbs are the enemy and I lived off a high protein, high fat diet. I now know that this was not good for me at all and hope that others do not make the same mistake that I did. I trusted my coach at the time but I do feel that if I had of continued on that path I would have ended up with all sorts of issues.

I have been eating my fair share of carbs lately being pregnant as that is what my body has been needing and I can tell you now I have NOT put on 20kg overnight. I am gaining weight slowly and healthily throughout my pregnancy due to my training not been as intense and I am obviously eating more of the bad carbs, which I am allowing myself to do GUILT FREE for once in my life 😉

You will hear it a lot these days that carbs make you fat!!!! The truth is that they can….but all you need to do is eat the right carbs at the right time and you will never store them as fat, in fact you will use them as fuel!

 Here are 3 simple carb timing tricks that you can keep in mind so that you are not eating them at the wrong time and wondering why your belly isn’t budging and you are storing more fat than you would like to!

1) A good time to consume healthy carbs like non-processed  starches and fruits is first thing in the morning or upon waking.  This is because you have fasted all night while you sleep so your glycogen levels have been somewhat depleted and this leaves extra room for carbs to replenish lower glycogen stores without fat storage.   Also your metabolic rate runs at its highest during the morning  hours than it will later in the day so you’ll more likely use these carbs as  energy. Insulin sensitivity is also higher when you wake up than  other times of the day, which allows your body to utilize carbs and limit fat storage, this is especially effective if you exercise in the a.m.

2) An even better time to consume starches and fruits is a few hours before high intensity resistance training (bodyweight circuits, metabolic resistance  training, etc.) or a heavier weight training session.

This will ensure that these carbs are used as energy during and after the workout to avoid fat storage– and provide sustained energy throughout the workout. Better performance equals more fat and calories burned during and after the workout.

3) The best time to consume carbs from starches and fruits is in your post workout anabolic window of opportunity, which is anywhere from 1 to 3 hours  after high intensity training.

Regardless if your goal is fat loss, strength, performance, energy, improved health or anything else, it’s critical for you to understand the process of food timing.

When you do, you’ll improve your insulin sensitivity dramatically, which will improve your body’s ability to burn ugly fat as fuel on a daily ongoing basis and who doesn’t want that?

These days I think it is crazy that some people will still put alcohol, drugs and toxins into their bodies but they won’t eat some sweet potato or eat fruit!!! This kind of mentality is warped and there is absolutely no logic to it!! This cartoon pic below made me laugh, maybe it isn’t heroin we are asking for ( I would hope) but you kind of get the message behind what I am trying to say.

Educating yourself on the facts and allowing your body to fuel off the right foods will only benefit you in the long run and help you to live in an energy filled body that won’t burn out!

Be kind to your body, nourish it with the right foods at the right time and aim for a body that is healthy for life and not just lean for a week!!!

Lets all be happy little carb muncher’s together 🙂

Justine xx

There really is no other way to reach your goals without a little thing called self belief. If you are not in your own corner backing yourself 100% then I am afraid you just won’t get there.

Goal setting is crucial for life, you should set yourself not only fitness related goals but spiritual, emotional and mental goals. There are so many aspects to living and if you focus solely on one you will miss out on a lot of what life has to offer.

Lately I have been challenged in a few ways.. I have been going through a transitional phase.. I am one to always see the bright side of life and keep moving forward but this does not mean that I don’t have bad days and days where it all seems too much. We are all human after all and if we don’t have the low points we genuinely can’t rebuild ourselves to take on the challenges that life will always throw at us.

Taking a few months off from photo shoots and comps etc I went out and I had some fun, I lived a very social life and it was fun at the time, I really needed to do that after having a very serious year working and training my butt off.

While I was in that social phase I started to doubt who I was and where I was heading, I started to feel a tad lost and a lot overwhelmed by the task at hand and by the goals that I had set myself.

To get me out of this rut I started implementing mini goals, I knew that if I was to look at the big picture I would freak out and I could have stayed in that rut. So I booked in a training video shoot to get my head back in the clean eating game and I started aiming towards that. I then booked in a photo shoot in Sydney for my own port folio (which is what I am training for right now). These mini goals are easy to focus on and they don’t scare me, they have helped me move forward and get me out of that rut. It is like a clog ticking over in my head, once I have achieved that mini goal I tick it off and move on to the next mini goal. When that clog is in motion you can’t help but move forward from the momentum of it. Not only do you feel self satisfaction but you start to feel GOOD and you want to keep that clog ticking over and over.

This week alone I have begun to really land on my feet and have had some very exciting news in regards to magazine publications, media opportunities, a potential weekly radio gig and new sponsorships. I can honestly say that I feel like I am moving forward one mini goal at a time. The people that are in my life are in my corner, I have some amazing people who genuinely want me to succeed. I have sorted out those that I don’t believe to be true or those that are not on the same path as me, they are not bad people they just can’t be in my bubble. I need people I can trust 100% in my life right now.

I have my eyes set on the prize now and I know what I need to do, it doesn’t scare me anymore because I can see the path opening up for me and I am feeling more and more confident everyday.

I always like to share my story with my followers so you can see that it isn’t easy for anyone to achieve greatness, it takes time, effort and a lot of energy to get there. When you have moments and it all seems too much you have to embrace them and take them for what they are. You have to trust that it is happening for a reason and that you WILL come out on top and much better off for it.

Start now by looking at the big picture then work backwards setting yourself mini goals then start to work towards those mini goals and watch your life change.

You have to believe in YOU and be your biggest support, you only get one shot at life so I say get goal setting and never lose sight of the vision!!!

Justine xx

The past few months I feel like I have been on some sort of adrenalin rush, the hype and excitment towards my competition, my Oxygen magazine photo shoot and then our Thailand health and fitness seminar. It all went wayyyy to fast and now I am left to deal with the aftermath.

For starters you have to let your body rebalance itself after been on a depletion diet your body reacts in all sorts of ways. I am struggling a bit with fluid retention at the moment and I guess all the extra sugars I had in Thailand were not so good for my waistline or my head space;)

Even us girls who have been in the game for a long time still go through those physical image issues and need our heads to be checked at times. I know I look healthy and I know that no one else would notice but the fact that you have been in such amazing shape still plays havoc with your head. I think we tend to forget what ‘normal’ is and what ‘healthy’ is. We have to remind ourselves that it isn’t healthy to be shredded 24/7, it would be nice if we could but it just isnt manageable if you want a life outside of the gym. I tell girls all the time that the way I look in my pics is not maintainable, it is great to look at my pics and use them as inspiration but unless you really need to get super shredded for a comp or a shoot then you should always be aiming for a healthy goal, one that you can find a healthy balance with and not have to starve your body of nutrients.

I am not too sure what is next for me in regards to whether I will compete again or whether I will just train for shoots and life, I have a lot options and that is a good thing. All I know is that right now I need a mental break away from worrying about comps and been super lean, I need time to focus on ME and all the business ventures that I have lined up.

I know for a fact that there won’t many people out there who can honestly say that they haven’t experienced low points after reaching a goal. For me there is a positive in these low points as it has been those low points that have made me who I am today, I like call these low points, turning points.

Without the lows we can not truly appreciate the highs, the most successful people have hit rock bottom before climbing there way to the top.

Now I am in no means saying that I am at rock bottom, I am just at a cross roads, I have made a few big decisions and have some very exciting new paths to venture down. Sometimes taking a new path can be just as daunting as starting again as you pretty much have the same amount of doubt and fear that can creep in.

In life you have to trust your gut, you have to trust in YOU and back yourself 100%. That way no matter what happens you know you have given it your all and comitted to making your life as exciting and as adventorous as possible. No one ever said it was going ot be easy and if they did then they are in for a shock, cos it’s not!

Be true, be brave and keep it real my friends xx

Well just like that it is all over.. all the blood sweat and tears of 5 months of solid training all comes down to just one day on stage to show off all your hard work.

I had an absolute ball up on that stage and loved every minute of showing off my hard work and dedication.

My training leading into my comp was pretty specific- I trained heavy weights 4 x per week- back/chest, arms/shoulders, legs, back/shoulders, I taught 3 RPM classes and also taught 2 x CXworx classes. Remember that I have trained continuously for around 5 years so I have had loads of development time, it takes TIME to gain lean mass and develop your body! Also during my comp prep I decided to give up teaching body attack and step down from my presenting role within Australia and Asia, this was such a hard decision but I decided to see how I would respond to my training by taking out the high impact cardio training and if it would make a difference to the amount of lean mass I was trying to gain, in the end it was the right decision for me. Not only did it help with gaining lean mass it gave me more recovery time and as we all know recovery is CRUCIAL!

Here is a Photo from my comp and also a before and after transformation pic on the right, the one on the top right was taken in Dec 2011, so that is 5 months before my comp.

My diet was super strict from 5 weeks out with limited fats(only before training), no carbs and lots of protein, salad and green veggie and NO cheat meals. I need you all to understand that a depletion diet is not necessarily a healthy diet and it is one that can NOT be carried on into everyday life, it is only so I can get to my goal body fat. I always say to people that when I am at my leanest I am not at my healthiest. Taking essential nutrients out of your diet is not the way to go long term, I can not stress that enough.

It was an amazing experience to compete in front of my family and to take out 1st place was just a bonus, it is always good to win but the way I see it is that you are a winner before you step on stage.

Where to from here….. I think I have got the bug again.. hehe!!! I have a feeling I might try and get my butt over onto the US stage at the end of the year, I want to do it for fun and not for any other reason but to see how I measure up against the girls overseas.

Here are a couple of you tube clips from my 3 rounds, have a look and watch me working it on stage.
I hope my videos inspire you to achieve all you dream and more!!!

Justine xx

Hey ladies,

I felt a video blog on learning to love oneself and understand your body better was in order. It is so common to hear girls talking about all their own faults and pointing out their bad spots. I can not stress enough that your focus around this has to shift in order for you to achieve your goal.

Watch this as many times as you need and have it on stand by for ‘those days’ when you need it 😉

The dreaded CARBS…. Do they make you fat?

Tag: nutrition