At last it seems that Summer is here, although I think it’s a bit more like spring, I’m certainly grateful for the sunshine and the dogs are appreciating my gardening efforts too!
Now the Summer is here and there are more salads and veggies more readily available, plus our wish to improve our beach bodies coinciding with a desire to take a lighter approach to eating and feeling that we want to be more active, I think that now is the time for your new Challenge !
Our June Challenge is to eat 30 different plant foods every week.
Now that sounds a bit scary but that’s across the week, not in one day and it’s not in huge amounts either – although a portion is a only a handful. I’m not looking for quantity but more for variety eg for breakfast you can have a few mixed berries (strawberries, blue berries etc) with some sunflower seeds and hazel/walnut nuts sprinkled on top of your porridge with almond milk (6 different plant foods). Team that with a tea or good quality coffee and a glass of diluted fresh juice which is another 1 and ¼. That’s already 7 and a bit done by breakfast!
I’ll explain the ‘¼ bit’ further down.
Why so much variety?
Well research has shown that those who have a greater variety of plant based foods have a healthier microbiome (gut bacterial colony) than those who eat lots of plant foods but with less variety, suggesting that variety is the key! A healthier and more diverse microbiome results in greater health with all the associated benefits.
The theory emerged from research carried out as part of the American Gut Project, a crowd-sourced project involving more than 10,000 participants. It’s goal is to better understand the gut microbiome in health and disease.
“They discovered that participants who ate 30 or more different types of plants per week had gut microbiomes that were the most diverse – and hence health promoting,” says Dr. Shireen Kassam, professor, author and founder and director of Plant-Based Health Professionals UK.
Link to American Gut Health Project
Plant based food categories are vegetables, salads, fruit, nuts, seeds, wholegrains, legumes, herbs, spices – any amount of food from these groups counts as one point but remember you can only count it once per week, the challenge is variety!
Now to the surprising bit – dark, good quality chocolate counts (remember it’s not about quantity, before you hit the dark Bournville hard!) so does tea and coffee (¼ point each time when drinking a different beverage) – even different types of tea e.g., you can have some black tea, then peppermint, then liquorice and each counts!
Herbs and spices also count (¼ of a point) so when cooking, throw in a variety of spices and that will move you closer to your 30 a week goal and food tastes better too!
Are you up for it?
Below is a weekly record sheet – write down each different food on the list for a week and repeat for 4 weeks.
You might want to make a note of how you feel (energy, sleep, brain function, bowel habits etc), your weight and how your clothes fit as you start and repeat at the end to note any changes!
Reach out if you want a one to one, I will pop my gut health consultant hat on and take you through it and address any questions.
I can email you a copy of this form if you wish, or copy and paste from this email.
The week ahead…
We have our awesome, in person and live on Zoom classes Monday to Thursday this week, and can make a Friday Yoga Class recording available to you if you want to keep up your Friday Night Yoga.
Remember our classes are amazing value and the membership deal is ridiculously good value!
Kimchi Brown Rice Bliss Bowls
These healthy vegan kimchi bowls are delicious !
If you’re making them ahead, save the avocado to add at the last minute.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked brown rice
- Heaping ¼ cup kimchi
- 1 Persian cucumber, peeled into ribbons
- ½ cup thinly sliced red cabbage
- ½ avocado, sliced
- 8 ounces Marinated Tempeh, baked or grilled
- ½ recipe peanut sauce
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
- 2 Thai chilies, thinly sliced, optional
- Lime slices, for serving
- Microgreens, for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Assemble the bowls with the rice, kimchi, cucumber, cabbage, avocado, and tempeh.
- Drizzle a generous amount of peanut sauce on top and sprinkle with sesame seeds and Thai chilies, if using. Serve with lime slices and remaining peanut sauce on the side.
- Garnish with microgreens, if desired.
Have a fab week!
Love ya,
Helen x
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DYBO Live & Online – Next weeks Classes are as follows:.
At All Hallows, Farnham & DYBO Studio, Church Crookham (Book in Advance only): Zoom class details further down the page.
Monday (AH)
6.30-7.15pm: Boogie Fit
7.30-8.15pm: Total Tone – with bands, handweights and mat.
Tuesday (AH)
6.30-7.15pm: 5 in 1 Fitness – with bands, handweights and mat.
7.30-8.15pm: Dance Fit & Fab
Wednesday (DYBO Studio)
6.30pm Old Skool Step – Step, hand weights and band.
7.30pm Barre Fit – Something to assist balance like a barre, eg. chair, worktop, mantlepiece etc.
Thursday (AH)
6.15-7.20pm: Contemporary Stretch – various equipment used at each class, contact me for info.
7.30-8.30pm: Dancespiration
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Joining us at All Hallows or The DYBO Church Crookham Studio? – Protocols and Information
I’m so happy to be able to run Face to Face classes at All Hallows and at the DYBO Studio in Church Crookham. My primary objective is to ensure that we all have a wonderful time with effective and fun classes that are engaging, relaxed and of course, safe.
Preparation
1) Firstly ensure that you have booked by sending us an email info@dybo.co.uk confirming all the classes you wish to attend plus your payment method, be it as a member, using your voucher, or pay as you go. No on the door bookings or payments can be taken. Bookings are not refundable or transferable. I will keep records of all attending, please also keep a record of your own attendance too.
2) Preparing your kit bag/box. This depends upon the class you are attending.
Boogie Fit, Dance Fit and Dancespiration crew will only require your indoor trainers/dance shoes to change in to, sweat towel, and drink.
Total Tone and 5 in 1 crew – in order to prevent cross contamination currently I am not sharing equipment in a group exercise setting so you will need your mat, a resistance band and light hand weights/equivalent in addition to your trainers, sweat towel and drink.
Contemporary Stretch crew need a mat, band, chi ball and on the last Thursday of the Month you will need 2 x tennis balls and a sock for our Trigger Point and Myofascial release class !
3) Re borrowing equipment – if you would like to try a class or have forgotten equipment then you may borrow equipment on that occasion and please ensure that you sanitise it before and afterwards (sanitising products supplied). I can assist you with sourcing your own equipment inexpensively, moving forward.
On the night
*When you arrive at All Hallows, enter the school via the gates to the left as you face the school and follow the road around the school buildings.
*Please park in the playing courts and walk between the old school building and new sports hall, up a few steps on to the outside seating area, the studio door is to your right.
*Participants are required to arrive 5-10 mins before the class.
*Please change into your clean trainers for indoor activity as you enter, e.g. slip off your outdoor shoes, place your bag, walk to activity area then put indoor shoes on, the same in reverse to leave. This is to maintain the hygiene and cleanliness of the space, avoiding stones and glass being walked in and potentially causing injury and to protect the lovely new wood floor.
*The toilets are open to use but please arrive changed, ready for activity so as to keep use time minimal and avoiding queues.
*After a wonderful class change from your indoor trainers to outdoor shoes and sanitise your hands again if you wish.
*Please tell friends and family about our wonderful classes!
When joining me at the DYBO Studio (No.42, GU52 0YA) I will send information directly, including entrance code for the Studio and please note, advanced booking is required.
Fees, you have THREE options!
Please note that all Classes must be booked and paid for in advance and are non transferable or refundable.
Online payments only.
45 min Class – £8.00, 60/65 min Class – £8.50.
10 Class Voucher: £75 (to be used within 12 weeks of purchase).
Membership: £55, unlimited classes, plus a bonus of free access to all class recordings on our DYBO TV channel, and another bonus of a £5 discount for one to one services for current membership holders.
To be paid by the 1st day of the month (at the latest) and is valid from the first to last day of calendar month.
One full month’s notice of membership suspension/cancellation is required with one membership restart permitted within a 12 month period.
Bank details are UK Fitness Academy Ltd.
Sort Code 09-01-28, Acc No. 04284324
Please email me when you have made a payment and use your name and what it’s for as a reference. eg. Jane Smith Class Voucher
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Joining us on Zoom? – Links and Information
Monday
6.30pm: Boogie Fit
7.30pm: Total Tone
Tuesday
6.30pm 5 in 1 Fitness Class
7.30pm Dance Fit & Fab
Wednesday
6.30pm Old Skool, Step & Strength – Step, hand weights and band.
7.15pm Barre Fit – Something to assist balance like a barre, eg. chair, worktop, mantlepiece etc.
Thursday
6.15pm Contemporary Stretch
7.30pm Dancespiration
****** All the above classes change and vary weekly! *****
How to prepare your Zoom environment
- You need space to move 2 side steps, 4 walks forward, 4 backward. Move trip hazards and furniture as much as you can (get help, be careful!) to give you maximum space for upper and lower body movement. Roll up rugs or secure them so they don’t slip or cause you to trip.
- Plugging your device in to your TV with an HDMI cable is brilliant as it gives you a good picture of you (like a mirror) and me – as well as boosting the sound if you go through the TV/Hi-Fi sound system. If you can place your device under the TV, then even better.
- I know some of you are using your phones – try to plug in to a speaker system (even those little speakers we have when we go on holiday would help) so that you can hear better as you move back from the phone. Angie has tried Bluetooth earphones and it worked well.
- Ensure you have maximum access to your Wi-Fi in the house and as close to the router as is feasible. Take phones off the Wi-Fi system and pop them on to your 4/5G network or place on airplane mode, unless that’s what you are using to join us, obviously. Ask family to do the same for the duration of your class – keep them off the internet whilst you need the bandwidth. The more bandwidth you have, the better the picture and sound and the less likely you are to lose the feed. Your health is a priority at this time and I’m sure they can do something else for that short time!
- Ventilate your exercise space, have plenty of water and towels to hand, keep your exercise equipment close – if you need anything, let me know.
- Wear correct footwear for your activity – putting an old pair of socks over the toes and ball of your trainers will help reduce friction when exercising on carpet (if they are a really old pair, cutting the toes open and then just having them over the ball of the foot is even better). It’s up to you if you want to dance or train in bare feet but be careful if you don’t usually do this as it takes time for the muscles and connective tissue of the feet and rest of the body to adapt to barefoot training.
- Make your own gym equipment. Save laundry liquid or milk bottles – you can fill them with water or wet sand/rice etc. to add weight and make a dumbell/kettlebell. I recommend you make a few in differing weights and you have written on them so you know what they weigh and seal the caps with tape to prevent leakage. Get a heavy duty shopping bag and put weighty items in it, check they can’t fall out and you have a kettlebell alternative. Make your own hurdles, put cushions, pillows, boxes, books on the floor to jump over. Use household items as floor markers for circuit activities. The stairs and outdoor steps are great temporary steps/benches for cardio and upper body work. The garden is a great open space to make an assault course or if you can get a signal, take your class or PT session outside, but do make it safe.
Disclaimer
I declare that all of the information I have given (both written and verbal) is accurate and truthful. I know of no reason why I cannot participate fully in any exercise programme and I do not deem it necessary to consult my medical Practitioner/GP/specialist. I undertake to inform my instructor should any information change.
I understand that I participate at my own risk and that any information given is not intended to replace or represent medical advice. I agree to comply with all terms conditions and class protocols and instructions as outlined above and whilst attending DYBO classes/training.
Do not attend classes if experiencing symptoms of Covid 19, Flu or airborne transmissible infection or have tested positive.
Attending any DYBO class will assume agreement with above terms and disclaimer.
