Come Join Me. Let's get fitter and healthier together.

If you're here reading this post and want to make changes to your health, then you've come to the right place.

Come join me on becoming that healthier and fitter you've envisioned. Let's work together to become a better us.

Mia Kay Fitness 2016 ©

This what this blog is all about. I'm here essentially sharing my fitness journey and passion to others as I embark on learning more about my body and finding ways to incorporate fitness into my every day lifestyle.

Why am I doing this you ask? I'm doing this because I want to. I want to learn ways and techniques which will help to increase my fitness performance. I want to feel strong and alive! I want to look after my body. I want to feel good on the inside and out. I want to know more about how the human body works. I'm genuinely really intrigued and I don't know why but it is what it is! I thought I'd document some things I learn on my way in case someone else was interested too.

So here's a few of the things of what I'm going to be sharing on this blog:
- my fitness tips
- what I eat and healthy recipes, or healthy places to eat in the UK
- fitness gear and accessories I'm use/loveeeee
- my training
- product reviews
- and learning/thoughts about this lifestyle in general
Oh...and also videos from my Youtube channel. ;)

My aim is to get up a weekly post so stay tuned! There's lots of great stuff that will be on this blog, and I'm so excited!:) xxx

@miakayfitness

FIRST VLOG ON MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL @MIAKAYFITNESS

https://youtu.be/kEl1I1dNeEo

Click on the link above to watch my first-ever vlog!

I was nervous to put this up at first but I'm glad to have made the leap. I'm at the stage where I'm feeling confident where I am at with my fitness. I feel strong, motivated and happy and just wanted to reach out to people who want to start their fitness journey but aren't sure where to start and other like-minded people who share a passion for health and fitness! 

With this channel, I plan to share my fitness and exercise tips as well as easy ways to help people lead a more healthier lifestyle.  Please check out my channel and if you like it, please give it a cheeky thumbs up and subscribe. If you have any questions, please feel free to message me whether that's here, on my instagram or on my Youtube channel. I would be more than happy to hear from you! :) x

Update // Moving to the UK

Hello England!

© Mia Kay Fitness 2015

I am now living in Leeds to start my new chapter in life. I will occasionally be making visits to Hong Kong, so for my fellow followers from there fret not because I will still be carrying on posting my health and fitness journey to you. Although I won't be on at the same timezone, I plan to post regularly so you won't be missing anything out.

Escaping the busy city life in Hong Kong, I hope to use the extra time that I have in my spare time to post and share more content with you guys to help you achieve leading a healthier lifestyle based on my own experience.

With the last month or two having been filled with social activities, my diet and training was not up to par so I'm looking forward to getting back to the gym and amping up my training to get in good shape for the new year! So what better way than to post my fit happenings with you so we can get in shape together to enter the new year with a positive start- feeling fresh, energetic, confident and healthy!

I look forward to sharing my journey with you all. #letsgetfitfor2016

If you have any questions to ask me, I would be more than happy to reply so please do give me shout on my instagram or comment on this post.

My Story: Dangers of Pure Cardio Training

This one is for the ladies! I am going to tell my story to the potential dangers of excessive cardio training you might not be aware of so that you do not put your health in jeopardy.

I confess I used to be one of the girls who never thought about touching weights. In my head, pure cardio was all that I needed to stay trim and slim.

As a competitive runner my training consisted of A LOT of endurance based exercises like swimming and running for hours a week. I had a narrow mindset and never thought twice about incorporating other training methods to make me a stronger and faster runner. I was super dedicated to running whenever I could and didn't think much about nutrition. I was training intensively, constantly pushing myself to run for as long and as fast I coulds to the point I got secondary amenorrhea. Although this is hardly a new issue for athletes, my competitive edge and naivety thought of this as a sign that my missing periods was evidence of my hard work, and that having a low body fat percentage equated to being faster but this couldn't be further from the truth. What I didn't know back then was that my body was unable to produce enough oestrogen, which meant that it was taking calcium from my bones.  In the long run, this could lead to stress fractures and broken bones. 

I stopped training this way after I finished all my races in my final year of high school because I knew it wasn't sustainable. I was lucky to get my period back after reducing my miles but who knows what the consequences would have been if I had carried on like this. Yes I was slim and regarded as 'fit' because I can run quite well but this approach could've resulted in negative consequences. 

Listen to the signs your body tells you and  do not overlook them just because you think you look and feel fine.

Yes I was certainly slim and even underweight whilst I was competitively running (no surprise here- just look at the figures of long-distance runners) but if you are aiming to get that toned physique, cardio exercise alone is useless. Let me break it to you now so you don't waste your time running hours on end. If you train this way you are NEVER going to get that fit body you've been yearning for. And you CAN get it. You just have to train smart.

Hours of cardio and eating less can result in weight loss but it doesn't result in fat loss.

You are likely to be losing muscle mass and water weight. Is this what you want to do to your body? Cardio exercise alone can increase cortisol levels (a stress hormone) which has in studies been linked to weight gain and increases appetite, so results-wise, it can be counter-productive as you may end up eating more than usual. 

Doing cardio can be a great weight loss tool but doing it excessively is not going to give you the results for that fit lean body.

The best way to get the beach body you want is with a healthy diet, lifting weights and a bit of cardio. These are the basic rules to successful weight loss. Lifting weights is not going to make you bulky. I myself fell victim to this myth and was initially hesitant to lift weights with my naturally small frame but I couldn't be more grateful to fall in love training this way. I am more toned than ever and more confident in my body. It certainly took me time to change my mindset so for you beginners out there, I understand where you are coming from. But trust in me, keep going and you will see and feel the benefits. 

Having more muscle mass means having a higher metabolism so you burn more calories even whilst your doing nothing. It's a win-win situation.

Just to show a case in point that cardio is not going to give you the results here is my body transformation before and after lifting weights...

Here's what I look like when I was underrating and just doing cardio training.

My running years- (I'm standing in the middle) relying on pure excessive cardio, Mia Kay, 2008 ©

Here's what I look like now eating healthy most of the time, weight training and incorporating cardio into my workouts.

My body transformation- eating healthy regularly, with weight training and a bit of cardio, Mia Kay 2015 ©

If you have been thinking about incorporating weight training into your routine, now is the right time to start. It is NEVER too late.

I hope this post was insightful and helpful. Please do feel free to leave comments and ask questions below. I will be so happy to hear your thoughts on this topic and more- whatever comes to your mind, as I am here to share my thoughts. :)

Mia Kay x