Body Transformation Diaries – Halfway! We are officially halfway through the Body Transformation Programme! I am still feeling really great about how I’m going on my BT journey. Although my weight loss has slowed down, I still feel like I am getting stronger after each week. I find myself doing more of each exercise and enjoying the workout more and more each session. This programme has taught me a few things that I had no idea about before I started. I have learnt so much about the importance of diet and exercise and creating healthy habits. Through the consultations with Mark, I have a worko ..read more

Body Transformation Diaries – Week 1 I was so nervous going into the Programme as a complete newbie beginning my fitness journey! Although I was quickly put at ease when I met with trainer Mark and the rest of the group. I quickly found out that the Programme would be extremely supportive and inclusive. There was also zero pressure to be the very best in my first class! It has been great to properly move my body again after such a long time too. During the group training sessions, Mark shows us how to correctly do each exercise to avoid injury. He provides variations of each exercise too, so w ..read more

The Benefits of Fitness Boxing Fitness boxing is a great aerobic exercise, but there are more benefits of boxing that you may not already be aware of. Aerobic exercise gets your heart pumping and assists in lowering the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Boxing aids in strengthening bones and muscles, burning more calories, and lifts your mood. Aerobics can also boost your endurance, which helps you with weight training. Aerobic exercise is also associated with improvement in certain brain functions. Boxing is well-known for improving hand-eye coordination, espec ..read more

Eating out while achieving weight loss goals Losing body fat, staying fit, and keeping healthy requires willpower and discipline. However, social occasions do come up, and ditching these to stay on your ‘diet’ is neither fun nor cool. Here are a few strategies that trainer Mark uses to help him “have his cake and eat it too”   Creating a calorie buffer: On the day of the occasion, reduce your meal frequency, or calories in each meal leading up to the event. When doing so, stick to high protein foods and fibrous vegetables, and keep fats and carbs to a minimum. This will slow absorption, a ..read more

The Importance of Sleep We all know that person who boasts about getting stuff-all sleep, talking about how they only sleep about 3-4 hours a night and think they’re a badass because of it. In actuality, they’re boasting about being more predisposed to a myriad of issues such as slower brain function, crappy recovery (both from illness or physical activity) and increased risk factors for many illnesses. Learn more about the importance of sleep below!   Here are just a few reasons as to why you need to focus on quality sleep: 1 – Quality sleep has been associated with healthy weight mainte ..read more

Need some inspiration for meal prep this week? Check out this recipe for Coconut Rough Inspired Overnight Oats that will keep you on track for the week! If you love the classic combo of coconut and chocolate, this one is for you! This recipe is super quick and easy to make up in the evenings, and is one less thing to think about for those super busy mornings. Just make up a few batches at a time for simple meal prep throughout the week. What you will need for this chocolate-coconut overnight oats recipe: 1 x quick oats sachet (about half a cup of oats) 1 x scoop of your favourite chocolate pr ..read more

Hello I am Anthoney and I am one of the personal trainers at Arena Fitness and Boxing. Push ups have been an integrate part of fitness for a long time. For myself it was something I was unable to do till I was 15 years old. Once I learned how to get strong with easier variations I did my first one and more. But don’t you worry I have set up a plan for you below that will get you to your first one this year. What is a push up? Push ups are a bodyweight exercise that trains the muscles of the chest, triceps, shoulders and core. The Technique: Lie face down on all fours while placing your to ..read more

Hi! I’m Vicky, the Sales and Marketing Manager here at Arena Fitness and Boxing and had twin boys in early 2021. Since then, I haven’t “had time” to exercise and focus on my health and wellness. With my jeans getting tighter, I decided to commit myself to “Make Time.” I quickly signed up to the current 6 weeks Blitz challenge at the gym. Read on if you are keen to find out how my first week went. Starting the challenge Starting the week motivated and ready to commit to the goals, the aim was to do three gym sessions throughout the week. I managed to attend both of the group workouts and kept m ..read more

Zoe’s Lemon Cheesecake Base: 2 Cups Almond meal 1/3 Cup of Butter or Coconut oil (measure solid then melt it) 3 tsp of Sugar Filling: 250g Cream Cheese 1 Cup of Cream 1/4 Cup of sugar (can also use sugar-free sweetener) Zest of 2½ lemons 5 tsp lemon juice – This is the juice of just under 2 lemons Method: Preheat over to 180 degrees Mix together the base ingredients and press down in a baking tin. Bake the crust for 10-12mins While the base cools down. Blend all the filling ingredients into a blender. Blend until thick and creamy. Place the filling on top of the base and r ..read more

Zoe’s Easy Choc Chip Cookies Ingredients: 165g Coconut or Brown sugar 125g Butter 1 Egg 225g Self raising flour 1 TBSP Cocoa powder 200g Chocolate Chips Method: Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Beat butter and sugar together until pale and creamy, add egg & stir in flour and cocoa powder, lastly add in the chocolate chips. Mix until combined. Roll level tablespoons of the mixture into balls and place on baking paper. Flatten each ball slightly with a fork. Bake for 15mins. Let cool for 5 mins. The post Zoe’s Easy Choc Chip Cookies first appeared on West Auckland Gym, Henderson - Arena Fit ..read more