I found Craft Decaf’s half-caf coffee a few months ago and FELL in love. I recently purchased another 1kg of it!

I cut out caffeine for the longest time and felt amazing for it. Better and more consistent energy levels throughout the day and better sleep. But when I felt up to bringing caffeine back into my routine, I didn’t want full whack in order to avoid jitters, anxiousness and the other unwanted effects.

I began mixing my own store-bought decaf and standard coffee (ergh), to make half-caf… Not realising such a thing is on the market! It’s rare, but exists. And this brand uses the premium sugarcane decaf method, so the coffee retains it’s flavours from not using harsh chemicals (unlike store bought… that’s why they taste so chemically and bitter). It still gives me a productive buzz, but no jitters and less of an afternoon crash.

I’ve tried other half-caf coffees but this was by far the best.

Now this is my standard morning coffee and I am so happy to be able to share this with you, too. They also do amazing decaf options, if that’s your jam.

Make sure you use this link to shop, and use discount code CRAFT20 for 20% off your first order ☕ Enjoy!

The post Ever tried half-caf coffee? Now’s your chance! appeared first on Fitness by Georgia.

Long-term dieting and calorie deficits negatively impact your metabolism. Research shows that extended calorie restriction leads to a decrease in metabolic rate, making it more challenging to maintain or continue weight loss. Chronic dieting also elevates cortisol levels (the body’s primary stress hormone) which, when sustained, causes some of the many symptoms I discuss below.

This is why we need to remember with regards to fad diets: ‘if it’s too good to be true, it probably is’. If you’re being promised severe weight loss through extreme methods, you’ll pay for it. But, you may not be in this category, you’ve just been undereating for a long time… or, you may not even realise you’re undereating until you read this and recognise multiple symptoms.

Let’s explore the signs that indicate it might be time to pause or stop your dieting:

If you’ve been diligently following your diet but the scale hasn’t budged, it suggests that your metabolism has adapted to the calorie deficit. Instead of further restricting calories (which may take you to much too low a daily amount) or increasing exercise intensity, consider taking a break from dieting to help reset your metabolism. There are other reasons the scale may not have moved: if you’ve been weight training for more than a few months, and have followed a very high protein diet despite being in a deficit, there’s a chance you’ve gained a bit of muscle which has balanced out the scale. It’s a universal truth too that no one accurately measures calories, not even experienced dietitians, so misjudging what you’re actually eating is a real possibility.

However, if you are eating very low calories and the scale hasn’t budged… reverse dieting may be needed. I’ll explain more on this later in this article, as this is something I’ve had to do with multiple clients.

Are you always wanting to nap? Feeling constantly tired, even after lots of rest, may indicate that your body isn’t receiving sufficient energy from your diet. If you’re exercising you’ll be achy, and severe calorie restriction leaves you feeling sluggish and unmotivated.

Restrictive diets can lead to hormone imbalances/disruptions (particularly prominent in women), which can cause: irregular or missed menstrual cycles; low libido; mood swings, depression and anxiety; difficulty sleeping and/or poor sleep quality; digestive issues and storing fat around the abdomen.

Physical symptoms such as: hair thinning, brittle nails, dry skin and acne/spot outbreaks. These signs suggest that your body is struggling to meet its nutritional needs.

Maybe you find you’re more irritable and obsessed with food? You may be experiencing intense cravings, or feeling irritable and anxious. This is a clear indicator that your diet is negatively affecting your mental health.

On the other hand, it’s common for chronic dieters to have a reduced appetite or lack of interest in eating and drinking, which can be a sign of malnutrition resulting from prolonged dieting.

Chronic overly-low calorie restriction weakens your immune system, leading to more frequent illnesses and longer recovery times.

Your brain needs fuel – namely carbohydrates – to function, which are often, sadly, a demonised food group amongst faddy dieters. Malnutrition results in poor concentration and difficulty focusing.

Lastly, constantly feeling cold happens because your body lowers its core temperature as a way to conserve energy when it’s not receiving enough calories.

You may well be thinking to yourself… ‘I’ve still got some weight I’d like to lose, but I can’t really cut my calories any more as then I’ll be eating like a child, and I’m already barely eating anything!’

This is where reverse dieting comes in and saves the day. I have had to do this with a few of my clients (including those who are overweight) who have chronically under-eaten (some through dieting/societal pressure, some not intentionally).

Reverse dieting is the process of transitioning from a prolonged calorie deficit back to a maintenance level, in order to reset your ‘starting point’. Reverse dieting is a structured approach to gradually increasing your calorie intake, which restores your metabolism and maintains weight loss. Essentially, you lose weight by eating more in the long run. By slowly adding 50 to 100 calories per week, your body can adapt to the higher energy intake, improving energy levels, mood, and overall performance. Reverse dieting should always be combined with strength training, as building muscle mass is the only way to ‘boost’ your metabolism as muscle is an expensive tissue that needs more calories when at rest.

[If you want to find out more about reverse dieting, please get in touch. I’m going to write an article explaining the phenomenon soon, watch this space!]

Diet breaks, pausing or stopping your diet isn’t a setback; it’s a proactive step to preserving your health. It’s especially worth considering if you do not feel you are learning from your ‘dieting’. If you’ve done a diet and don’t feel you have come away from it able to make better-informed, sensible, sustainable changes in the long run, then you haven’t approached your nutrition properly. You should not be spending half your life on and off a ‘diet’; diet is merely the word for what you eat day to day.

Remember, balance equals health. And faddy diets that suggest cutting foods or food groups are not balanced, sustainable nor enjoyable. You can lose weight without going through a gruelling cut which leads to some of the symptoms laid out above.

Do you feel like you need support with your diet and your metabolism? Get in touch to find out how I can support you to continue hitting your goals, without being miserable!

The post When enough is enough: recognising the signs to stop dieting appeared first on Fitness by Georgia.

Especially come January, up pops all the aggressive adverts on socials, promoting discounted gym memberships and faddy exercise products that do not work. Family, friends and colleagues begin incessantly dwelling on how they ‘need’ to exercise and ‘detox’, that they’ve put on weight or they feel unhappy in their body. 

My bug-bear are the ‘fitness influencers’ in full swing, slashing prices on their cookie-cutter fitness app or exercise programme which hasn’t been created by them. It’s important to remember a lot of these people lost weight, got fit, but then capitalised on their following by getting someone else to write a gym programme which they can palm off as their own. Their figure is not representative of what you will gain from following their programme, and most of these people are not qualified. For many influencers, it’s their life to be fit and healthy which is hardly comparable to your average working mum or dad of 3 children who sleeps 5 hours a night.

Bearing this in mind, I’ve put together a list of some Instagram ‘influencers’ you should follow in 2025; not all ‘influencers’ are made equal. My focus is on suggesting accounts which provide fact-based information, be it in different forms, so you can be educated, rather than be demoralised or made to feel unhappy about yourself. Here we go…!

1. Ben Carpenter: @bdccarpenter. Ben is extremely knowledgeable on all things fat-loss, having written well-researched books on this. He is kind, extremely empathetic, funny and the information and theories he shares are detail-dense but easy to understand. He always cites studies, is notorious for his balanced viewpoint and is highly credible in the online fitness space. I would always recommend following Ben for honest, factual and myth-busting health and fitness advice. He wants every person to feel comfortable and able to move more. Ben weightlifts and lives with Crohn’s disease.
2. Graeme Tomlinson: @thefitnesschef_. Graeme is Scottish, has a dry sense of humor and his videos probably aren’t to everyone’s taste. However, his message is important and it comes through strongly in everything he does: ‘anything in moderation’. He highlights calorific similarities/differences in commonly perceived ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods, showing that everything can be fit into your diet if it’s factored in. There are always the same comments on his posts from people missing the point of his content – e.g. ‘but of course eating Maccies isn’t as good for you as eating an avocado on toast, regardless of whether the avocado has higher calories!!!!’. He is correctly highlighting that just because something is nutrient dense does not mean it necessarily has less calories (which is what matters on a weight-loss journey). He is a nutritionist and also an author.
3. James Smith: @jamessmith. Much like Graeme, James has a no-bulls*** approach to weight loss and health, and for the longest time has preached about the calorie deficit in a way people will understand. He is good with analogies and making information clear for the masses. If you want to easily understand key principles for weight loss and getting fit, he’s a good person to follow… if you can handle lots of swearing! James has written multiple books. James used to weightlift, but now primarily does JuJitsu.
4. Sohee Lee: @soheefit. Sohee is just wonderful! She is down to earth, seems sweet as anything and is now married to Ben Carpenter. She has a PhD and is extremely knowledgeable about health and fitness. Her content is often geared towards women and the tribulations we often come up against. Her content is non-patronising and clear, while also feeling reassuring. Sohee has a PhD and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with Distinction. Sohee runs and weightlifts.
5. Layne Norton: @biolayne. Layne is credible in the fitness industry, holding a PhD in Nutritional Sciences. His content is often focused on calling out false information on social media, always citing references and studies, as he is determined to make sure the masses don’t get sucked into believing non-truths. His content can include lots of yelling, which can be intense, but his messages are valuable as he stresses the importance of human randomised control trials. His content tends to be most relevant for those on a health and weightlifting journey. Layne is a competitive weightlifter, so knows a lot about building muscle and strength, and has published books and papers.
6. Bret Contreras: @bretcontreras1. Bret is universally known as the ‘glute guy’ – the man who invented the hip thrust. He’s now got a line of glute machines he designed based on studies and on his work in his ‘glute lab’. He used to post more about his opinions based on facts/science/studies, whereas now he’s turned a bit more to calling out false glute information on social media. His knowledge on the anatomy of the body, particularly the glues, is mind blowing and he definitely knows his stuff. Bret has a PhD and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with Distinction. He has written books and papers.
7. Tyna Moore: @drtyna. Tyna is focused on hormones, building and maintaining muscle and metabolic health. She works with peptides – GLP-1s are her specialty – and focuses on holistic medicine and microdosing as is appropriate for each individual. Her podcast ‘Doctor Tyna Show’ is great, but the details and topics can be complex. Tyna is an author and weightlifts as she is extremely consistent in her message that building and retaining muscle mass is vital for sound metabolic health and a longer life, as is consistent with the studies.
8. Mind Pump: @mindpumpmedia. This is a coaching business and the #1 health and fitness podcast run by three men with copious amounts of weightlifting experience (bodybuilding, college football etc.). Their podcasts are long, with about 1 hour being a general chat which often includes some health/fitness topics but it can be anything. The gem of their podcasts are the talks on studies and the speaker questions/phone-ins from those needing help. Sal, the main man, is worth following on social media (@mindpumpdistefano) as his knowledge of human anatomy and physiology, nutrition, health and medicine is outstanding. He has written multiple well-respected books. He respects data and science and brings this nicely into the podcast. Anyone who is into health and fitness, particularly weightlifting, and listens to podcasts should listen to this! Their gym programmes are evidence-based and I’ve seen people achieve amazing results from them.
9. Jazz Hennessy: @Jazz.fitness_. Jazz is an English online fitness coach. Jazz is technically less qualified than my other recommendations, but the way she puts facts and useful information into very relatable and easy to digest forms is valuable. Often I watch her videos and feel she describes theories or elements of health and fitness very similarly to how I would. She often does videos explaining how to do exercises properly, alongside videos on nutrition. 

If you’re interested in personal training with me, get in touch and we can chat about what I can do for you.

The post New Year, no nonsense: fact-driven fitness experts you should follow appeared first on Fitness by Georgia.