If you’re not accustomed to walking, you may find that the area along the front of your shins is sore or tender, particularly if you’ve been walking mainly on hard surfaces like concrete. This soreness is usually a result of inflammation of the anterior tibialis muscles, which lie along the front of the shin. These muscles are often weak and are prone to inflammation when we increase their usage.
To combat this problem, try this shin-strengthening exercise.
Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Lift your toes off the floor, drawing them into your shins. The heels stay on the floor. Hold for 10 seconds and release. To make this harder you can attach a dynaband over the top of the foot and secure against a post as you lift your foot – you will then have the extra resistance of the band to work against.
DAY 11
Today’s mantra: I feel in control.
Today’s step target: 10,000
Tip/testimony from volunteer: The hardest recommendation to follow for me was to exercise. I now exercise every day for at least 30 minutes, including a speed walk/jog first thing in the morning. That alone means I start the day with a strong sense of positive achievement. Vanessa, 55
| On rising | 1 glass of water plus cup of coffee, green tea or tea, or hot water and lemon |
| Suggested activity zone | 15-minute walk (step target 1800) plus abdominal and core stability exercises |
| Breakfast | 2 glasses of water apricot and banana smoothie: soften 6 dried apricots in boiling water, then place a ripe banana, a 4oz pot of natural yogurt, a spoonful of honey and ⅔ cup semi-skimmed milk into a blender, add the softened apricots and blend until smooth |
| Mid-morning spruce juice | choose a juice from those listed |
| Suggested activity zone | 20-minute walk (step target 2400) |
| Lunch | 1 glass of water |
| a lunch from the options suggested on pages 71–9 | |
| Mid-afternoon | 2 glasses of water |
| snack | a snack from the options listed |
| Suggested activity zone | 30-minute walk (step target 3600) |
| Satisfying soup | 1 bowl of FOG or Immune-boosting soup |
| Dinner | 2 glasses of water a Starch Curfew meal from the selection in this book |
| Suggested activity zone | 15–20-minute walk (step target 2200) |
| Bedtime drink | chamomile tea, hot milk or soya milk, or hot water and lemon |
EAT TO GET SLIM
If you’ve followed the plan correctly it’s likely that you haven’t felt hungry. You may even have felt tempted to skip your spruce juice or miss out an afternoon snack. After all, the more calories you can cut, the better, right? Wrong! The very process of digestion actually increases your metabolism and contributes significantly – roughly 5 percent – to your daily energy expenditure. So skipping meals and snacks denies your body the chance to rev up its metabolism in order to digest them. If you feel over-full and really don’t want to eat as much as is suggested, try reducing the amounts at all meals rather than cutting out specific ones altogether.
DAY 12
Today’s mantra: I feel like a new person!
Today’s step target: 10,000
Tip/testimony from volunteer: Don’t get disheartened if, from time to time, you fail to stick with the plan. A realistic and flexible approach is just as important as being disciplined. Tom, 29
| On rising | 1 glass of water plus cup of coffee, green tea or tea, or hot water and lemon |
| Suggested activity zone | 15-minute walk (step target 1800) plus abdominal and core stability exercises |
| Breakfast | 2 glasses of water |
| 3 rye crispbread with 1 mashed banana and 2 tablespoons peanut butter cup of tea or coffee | |
| Mid-morning spruce juice | choose a juice from those listed |
| Suggested activity zone | 20-minute walk (step target 2400) |
| Lunch | 1 glass of water a lunch from the options suggested in this book |
| Mid-afternoon snack | 2 glasses of water a snack from the options listed |
| Suggested activity zone | 30-minute walk (step target 3600) |
| Satisfying soup Dinner | 1 bowl of FOG or Immune-boosting soup |
| 2 glasses of water | |
| a Starch Curfew meal from the selection in this book | |
| Suggested activity zone | 15–20-minute walk (step target 2200) |
| Bedtime drink | chamomile tea, hot milk or soya milk, or hot water and lemon |
EVERY STEP COUNTS
Walking is about the best exercise we can do. It is the simplest, least expensive and most effective exercise for the vast majority of individuals. The health benefits of walking have been known for a long time, but now research has quantified the number of walking steps we should be taking each day to achieve specific activity goals. It has been shown that 4000 steps