Lose weight the same way Michelle McManus did

We all watched in wonderment when the Pop Idol winner lost over 8 stone last year. Here is some fabulous advice from her personal trainer Dax Moy - it will have you shedding those pounds in no time

  Michelle McManus OK, so Christmas is over, January is all but gone and the 2006 diet season is well and truly getting into full swing. And there is so much information on diet and fitness out there that it can be hard to know where to start. It was this problem that led to the producers of the 'You Are What You Eat' show giving me a call early last year.

They said they had an amazing 'money-where-your-mouth-is' project. It would involve a participant who was 100% ready, willing and able to follow every piece of advice that they were given in order to achieve their goal of massive weight loss.

When I say 'massive' I do mean massive. They were looking at a minimum of 5 stone lost over the period of around 10 months - a serious challenge requiring a seriously effective programme if the participant and I were not to lose face on national primetime television.

Day one of filming found me in my studio with a film crew and a very nervous Michelle McManus, winner of the reality TV show 'Pop Idol'. She'd accepted the challenge to completely makeover every aspect of her life in order to find out what could be achieved by following the right advice about exercise, nutrition and lifestyle.

Her direct nutritional advice would be coming from fellow Glaswegian, Gillian McKeith whilst the responsibility for her exercise and motivation would fall under my domain.

Luckily for me, McKeith's nutritional philosophy is not too dissimilar to mine, sharing many of the same techniques and protocols ...though she can keep the poo examinations!

During my first meeting with Michelle I got to grips with several important subjects that would form the basis of our relationship.

Now, bear in mind, this process is not one reserved for pop stars, film stars and athletes alone. It's the exact process that every single person who achieves any form of success must go through to change.

Motivations
First I examined Michelle's motives for losing weight. What did she hope to accomplish? Why? How important was it to have it happen? Was she really willing to do anything to lose weight?

From this coaching process, I came to understand something very important about Michelle. She was absolutely, 100% committed.

Assessment
Next Michelle had to undergo a full and thorough assessment of her functional ability. What worked? What didn't? Why? We found that Michelle's muscles had become extremely de-conditioned to the point where her balance and co-ordination were compromised, her muscle firing patterns were faulty and her core conditioning was non-existent.

Although Michelle's physical condition was less than optimal, we now knew exactly where we were starting from and just what needed to be done in order to get her from her current bodyweight of 22+ stone to the desired weight loss of 5 stone.

All that was left now was to do it!

Now, by this stage, I know that most people are aware of the result. Michelle absolutely trounced the target loss of 5 stone by losing over 8 stone by the time of her final weigh-in in November 2005. But the success was far more than weight loss. Michelle had gone from a size 24 down to a 16 and taken herself from being barely able to control her own body in the gym to being able to perform kick-boxing kicks above her head, lifting weights that at one time she could barely pick up and training more times in a month than she used to do in a year!

The recipe for success

1 Set yourself a goal, in writing, with a specific deadline for when you want it to be achieved. Sure, you can skip this process, but statistics show that a goal that is written down is 500-700% more likely to be achieved than one that is merely verbalised. If you need a little help with this then click here or go to www.daxmoy.com and sign up for the Power Principles Newsletter.

2 Get an assessment of your current physical condition from someone who is trained to give you a quality answer and design you a programme. Again, you can skip this and just jump into your exercise programme but after 2 or 3 weeks when you're aching in your joints and feel like quitting, you'll wish you hadn't. (You can also try out the functional fitness questionnaire and the Integrated Movement Training Programme to more closely duplicate the exact format that I used with Michelle).

3 You should engage in an elimination-style diet that reduces the toxic stress upon your body - follow the diet 100%. If you do, you'll find that the stubborn fat that you've been holding onto for ages will suddenly up and leave and that your water retention and bloating will soon be gone too. You can get a free copy of my elimination diet here.

4 You need to exercise at least 5 times a week. Again, no ifs, no buts. Michelle has consistently been in training for 5-7 days a week for nearly a year now and it shows. It doesn't have to be at a gym or take hours but you must do it.

5 You must hydrate with at least 1 litre of water for every fifty pounds of your weight. Failing to do this makes your metabolism sluggish and allows for toxic build-up. Michelle now carries water with her everywhere she goes.

6 Sleep! If you're not getting enough sleep between the hours of 10 pm and 2 am then your body is under physical stress and will struggle to regenerate itself after your training. Too little sleep between 2am and 6am will leave you exposed to increased mental stress and anxiety, leaving you de-motivated and more likely to drop out of your programme altogether.

Finally, have some fun! Break your goal down into sub-goals and reward yourself each time one is reached. Buy a new dress, go on holiday, visit a spa. Whatever. Just be sure that you start linking massive pleasure and reward to the positive behaviours you're following and you'll be more likely to sustain them in the long run. (Michelle has taken holidays, family breaks and spa trips as rewards to herself despite being busy recording her new album).

That's it!

See, I told you that you knew this stuff already! But knowing and actually doing are two different things aren't they? You know this stuff, you want the result, but are you willing to pay the price - the following of the rules, the total abstention from things that you want and the developing of new patterns of behaviour?

Only you can answer that, but if Michelle McManus can do it, why can't you? And look at it this way: the next six months are going to pass anyway, with or without you following this advice. How will you spend them? Who will look back at you in the mirror when the six months are up? Only you can decide!

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