Kalina Fitness

Nutrition doesn’t have to be all or nothing.

You can want to prioritise foods that are good for your physical health while also including foods that are good for your mental wellbeing.

Both nutritionally dense and less nutritionally dense foods can lead to food satisfaction.

Too much of anything is not good for you.

Get your 5 a day in.

Get your protein target in (or as close as you can).

Have foods that you like.

Stay hydrated.

Nutrition doesn’t need to be complicated, but we make it complicated by categorising foods into ‘good’ and ‘bad’, ‘healthy’ and ‘junk’.

Less of the labels, and more of what makes you feel good and aligns with your goals.

~ K x

It’s crazy how much has changed over the last few years, but how some things feel exactly the same.

You can outgrow yourself, but still feel like you’re her.

You can take 10 steps forward, but still feel like you’re back at the start at the same time.

I know I have been quiet on here for a while, but the truth is, I don’t have anything to say of value right now.

Shocking, I know, for someone who never stops talking if you’ve met me in person but this is where we’re at.

Until next time ✌🏽

~ K x

Show up, even when you don’t want to.

Your future self will thank you for it.

~ K 🖤 x

There are some new people to this page, so I thought I would re introduce myself 🙂

Hi, I’m Kalina.

I am 30 years old.

I work full time managing refuges for .

I have been through my own fitness journey since 2015 training with .

I also qualified as a PT 4 years ago and love it.

I teach a body conditioning class at NLCS once a week.

I am a certified coach and grateful for being part of a great community.

I have a big sweet tooth and love ice cream and everything chocolate orange.

I don’t like plain water 95% of the time (yes I am aware how that sounds given I’m a PT 😂).

I am a monster ultra addict ( 1 per day keeps the doctor away).

I suffer from high functioning anxiety and sometimes it can be quite debilitating.

Alcohol affects me way quicker than I would like it to, but I still love tequila (not tequila rose, the legit one) 😂.

I want to show and educate people about having a balanced approach between health and fitness, social life, family commitments etc.

I also use this page to share things that I am really passionate about, and one of them being violence against women and girls, and will never apologise for it.

That’s a brief intro about me. I would love for you to introduce yourself in the comments below ☺️

~ K x

Make Up by 🥰

What’s hiding in the right hand?

A glass of Prosecco 😉

Todays post is about alcohol.

Can you drink alcohol and lose weight? Yes

Can you drink alcohol and gain weight? Yes

How often you drink, how much you drink, what you drink and subsequently eat all impacts your progress.

If your goal is fat loss, having multiple cocktails will take up a lot of your daily calories as most range from 100-300 calories per cocktail. So if you’re having 3-4 drinks, that could total around 1000 calories which doesn’t account for food as well.

Depending on how frequent you drink, this could lead to frequent going over your body’s energy requirements for fat loss.

It’s not all doom and gloom!

Opting for liqueurs with low calories mixers can allow you to have more of those drinks and stick your daily intake.

If you’re thinking, “but it really love espresso martinis”, you could also factor in having one cocktail and then switching to other options.

Of course we all have occasions or nights out where we’ve gotten completely drunk, and that’s okay, but the issue is when this becomes more of a frequent occurrence.

However, it’s down to you to decide how frequent you have alcohol on a weekly basis, but if fat loss is your goal, the quantity consumed is important. Alongside how alcohol impacts your body i.e. food cravings and consumption after drinking.

You can enjoy having drinks and pursuing fat loss as a goal, but there will be some level of compromise/ sacrifice involved.

~ K

I know how much you want to put yourself first, but are scared to make a change.

Fear of failing…again.

Doing quick fix diet after diet.

Taking fat loss supplements.

Buying another detox tea.

In a bid to lose weight quickly.

These methods never work in the long term and the weight piles up, maybe more than before.

You may be confused about what to do next and how to achieve your goals.

Well, I’m here to tell you that you can absolutely lose weight without having to do another fad diet.

Fat loss requires a few things:

- Being in a calorie deficit (eating less than what your body burns)

- Prioritising protein to aid satiety and muscle growth and repair

- Prioritising sleep - 7-9 hours per day

- Being active - walking is the easiest way to move more and aiming for 8-10k steps for health.

- Resistance training 2-4x per week

- Being consistent and patient, and not just for 2 weeks. Fat loss often does not happens as quick than you may think, particularly if you don’t have much to lose.

- Focus on building habits that you will carry out not just until your fat loss goal, but for life.

After following these core principles, you will never try a quick fix method again, and you will thank yourself for it both in the short and long term.

However, you don’t have to go through it alone.

If you want support to achieve your fat loss goals and achieving long last results, drop me a message to work with me.

~ K

There are so many nutrition myths and the claim of “fruit makes you fat” is doing the rounds again.

No single food can make you fat.

If you are in a energy surplus, that may lead to fat gain.

If you are in a energy deficit, you cannot gain fat as you’re body is not storing excess energy.

I doubt anyone is actually eating fruit in excess to the point it puts them in a energy surplus. In fact, lots of people have lost weight while eating fruit so this would also portray the claims are untrue.

People claiming that the fructose in fruit makes you fat are incorrect, as although the fructose in fruit will cause a spike in insulin, this does not mean it will be stored as fat as long as you are in a calorie deficit.

Eating any foods with carbs or protein will result in a spike in insulin, but if you’re overall calories per day put you in a calorie deficit, the food consumed cannot be stored as fat.

Insulin is important for making sure the blood glucose levels in the body do not get too high or low; after having food your body may pause fat breakdown because the body can use energy from the food consumed rather than energy stored.

Insulin also reduces hunger by signalling that there is energy from food in the body so you don’t need more food.

Back to the claims about fruit.

Having different fruits has many benefits which include consuming some of the recommend micronutrients.

Don’t focus on a single food as being the cause of fat gain. It’s about your energy balance overall that determines this.

P.S. Strawberries are delicious.

~ K

A lot of the women and men I speak to still struggle with their protein intake, so here is another recipe for you.

Vegetable Quinoa with Tandoori Quorn Fillets

Ingredients

1tsp oil or a couple of fry light sprays
200g quinoa cooked
Peas
Sweetcorn
Red bell pepper
Runner Beans
Onions
Garlic
Carrots
Lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
3 fillets
tandoori seasoning - 1.5tsp

Optional: chilli sauce

Method:

Boil the quinoa until cooked

Sauté veg in a separate pan with a little salt

Add the quinoa to the vegetables once cooked and add pepper and lemon juice to taste

Put 3 fillets in the microwave to cook (3 minutes each side).

Cut the fillets into small pieces and mix the tandoori seasoning in.

Add the fillets to the quinoa vegetables.

Add chilli sauce if you want to.

This dish contains over 25g protein and is big on volume and helps get your 5 a day in.

~ K

Struggling to increase your protein intake as a vegetarian?

I have the perfect recipe for you that’s quick and easy, and has 23g protein per serving.

Ingredients:

500g quorn mince
1 medium red bell pepper
1 medium yellow pepper
1 small onion
2 Tins chopped tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic crushed
150-200g sweetcorn
1 tablespoon garam masala
Salt
Pepper
Fry Light/ 1 tsp Olive Oil

Method:

Add oil or fry light into a pan.

Add the onion and garlic.

Grind the tomatoes and add to the pain. Let it simmer for a few minutes

Add peppers and sweetcorn to the pan.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Let it simmer for a 7/8 minutes before adding the quorn mince.

Let it cook for 7 minutes before adding the garam masala and then let it cook for a further 3/4 minutes.

I prefer the veg not completely cooked, because I don’t like mushy texture, so let it all simmer until your preferred density.

Serve with pasta or rice.
Serves 4

Let me know if you give this a try!

~ K

The Platinum Jubilee weekend may have involved having more food or drinks than planned.

There is nothing wrong with prioritising creating memories and having a good time with friends or family, without worrying about nutrition choices.

However, if you have woken up this morning feeling guilty or self-depreciating about the nutrition choices over the weekend, this post is for you.

As always, my DMs are open if you are struggling with nutrition or training, and would like some advice 🙂

~ K

Stepping out of your comfort zone isn’t easy.

It looks different for different people.

This could be:

Changing your body composition to improve your overall health and quality of life.

Quitting your job and changing career.

Solo travelling.

Public speaking.

Etc.

Naturally, the thought of doing something new can feel daunting for a lot of people.

It’s often why we cling to our safety blanket to avoid the discomfort.

But.

How does keeping everything the same feel?

What if the thing your scared of doing, changes you and your life for the better?

What’s really holding you back from going after what you want?

Is it worry of what people may think or say?

People will always have something to say, but how this affects you and the choices you make, is up to you.

Don’t let the fear of not knowing hold you back or prevent you from taking action.

Incredible things can happen outside of your comfort zone, if you want them to.

~ K

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