Clean and lean

At the end of my last post, I teased you with my current diet, as well as the horrors of hot yoga. Well, readers, keep reading and all shall be revealed.

The diet I am on is the "Clean and Lean" diet. Essentially, I have started to describe it as a high protein, low GI diet. I am basing it on a book I found in a New Year clearance (who puts diet books in a clearance just after everyone has resolved to lose weight?). The book is by James Duigan and, imaginatively, is called "Clean and Lean". I'm sure you could get it on Amazon if you're interested. 

Clean and Lean diet guide - James Duigan

I have to say, there are some good facts about foods to avoid and foods to go for. But as with all these things, it becomes pretty much self-explanatory after a few days; lean meats and unlimited green veg. Got it. What I do like about this diet is that you can have very filling portions because vegetables are practically calorie and fat free. Having a full tummy on a diet, I'm sure you'll agree, is a pleasant novelty.

Here are some of the things I've conjured up the past couple of weeks whilst on this diet:

Venison grill-steak (around 147 calories), green beans, white asparagus and avocado (which I know isn't the lowest calorie food but it is allowed in the diet)

Jerk turkey salad - 100g grilled turkey in jerk powder marinade, spinach leaves, 4 cherry tomatoes, a handful of sliced cucumber and half a large roast red pepper (around 150 calories all in)

Venison sausages (57 calories each), pickled onions and gherkins, sprouts, sweet potato chips and a little low fat cranberry sauce

If you like your meals without sauces and carbs, I think you'll find this one straightforward and effective. I miss pasta, rice and bread though, I can't lie.

Now, onto hot yoga, or "bikram" yoga as it's actually called. To summarise, it is a 90 minute yoga lesson, but imagine it in the hottest sauna ever! You can burn up to 1000 calories a session. Thus our dubbing of it "hot yoga."

One of my friends from work talked me into this as an easy get fit fad for 2015. A small group of us have been twice - they run a class everyday just off Easter Road (you can find details here) - and I have to say, I'm not sure I'm a fan. I admit the beginners offer of £20 for 20 executive days was appealing in comparison to £11 per session, but I've been twice (it's now day 10 or something) and I genuinely don't know if I'll go back.

The heat is intense. Really intense. 105 degrees at 40% humidity. The first class was hot enough, but we were informed at our second class that the heaters weren't actually working properly and that it'd be hotter. And it was. Within 10 minutes the sweat was pouring off me. Within 20 minutes I had to lie down because my vision went funny, I became lightheaded and thought I was going to faint. It is a frustrating sensation because I know I can do the moves. They are too complicated, but the heat makes it extremely difficult. I find it difficult to articulate just how much the heat hits you in the room. 

"Why do you put yourself through it?", I hear you ask. I have no answer.