Tag Archives: tamaramakar

Training and nutrition tips

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Nutrition and training tips in a nutshell

I often get approached on my social media to give ‘nutrition and training tips’. More often than not these questions are quite generic because I don’t know what you’re doing (cutting, bulking or just trying to be healthier), I don’t know what your diet consists of currently and I have no information about your training either – therefore I can only give you some generic pointers which I collected in this video. If you have any further questions, please get in touch: hello@tamaramakar.me

If you’d like to further discuss your specific questions, you can book a consultation by contacting me here or by email: hello@tamaramakar.me

The book that I mentioned in this video can be purchased through this link.

The importance of massages

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Why is it important to get regular massages – especially for us, athletes? Improve your massages with CBD oil! Here is my recommendation on Wellness CBD USA

My experience with CBD oil

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You can find my recommendation of CBD products on Wellness CBD USA

My first article in Brainz Mag

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Stay healthy this festive season!

Hello everyone,

I’m new to the Brainz family so let me quickly introduce myself. My name is Tamara Makar, and I’m an IFBB Pro bodybuilder. I have been coaching people for about 15 years on how to achieve their desired physique and I very much enjoy what I do.

Today I would like to talk about 2 very trendy seasons: the festive season and the flu season.

Let’s start with the festive season since Christmas is just around the corner! I am a professional athlete, and my training and diet is my priority since this is my job. However, I have a full understanding of my clients and other people, who just want to stay healthy, and they are on a completely different level of passion for fitness. I understand that they have other priorities, maybe their jobs or their families, and keeping their fitness could be just another ‘chore’ in their lives.

Let me first start with this statement: the gym is not for everyone. Some people love it, others hate it. We have different priorities, different mind sets and different goals. If you don’t like the gym, if you don’t like lifting weights, do not do it. It’s hard to keep up something when you don’t enjoy doing it. To keep your health and fitness – however – you have to do something. Find what you enjoy doing. It could be walking, running, cycling, swimming, it could be anything really. You don’t have to lift weights to keep yourself fit and healthy. If you do something that you enjoy doing, you’re more likely to stick to it in the long run, instead of quitting and restarting periodically.

However, I’ve noticed that most people struggle with sticking to healthy food choices. The holidays are not a very good time to start a diet for most people. There are certain things though that you could do to prevent overeating:

1: drink lots of water. If you fill up your stomach with water you’re less likely to overeat.

2: try to eat more vegetables, and less carbs. Again, if you fill up with greens: salads, broccoli, asparagus, cucumber etc you will have no space to overeat the naughty foods.

3: try to reduce your portions. Usually there are many courses during festive season and if you want to eat all the food, you will definitely overeat. There’s nothing wrong with trying all the dishes on the menu – especially if you’re invited to someone’s home, because you don’t want to offend them by not eating what they’ve prepared. Have a small portion of foods, especially sweets, and try to fill up with vegetables instead of rice, bread or potatoes.

4: another idea is to serve your food on a smaller plate –  a smaller portion of food will look bigger on a smaller plate and that tricks the brain to believe it’s a full size portion.

But honestly, if you slide during the holidays, don’t sweat it – try and get back on track as soon as you can. A few days of holiday eating will not make you fat or ruin your work if you’ve been working hard – just like a few days of clean eating will not make you slim and healthy either. A little bit of rest will do good to your body, help with recovery and sometimes breaking the good habit of clean eating can be an advantage for your body. And if you haven’t been eating clean but you’re considering a change from next year, well, then enjoy the holidays and get serious once it’s finished.

When it comes to the flu season I’m a big believer of prevention.  It’s always easier to prevent something from happening, than dealing with the hassle and consequences when it occurs. We have a great immune system, and we can help this system to guard us from all attacks.

For a great immune system you need enough rest. How many hours do you sleep at night? Do you wake up tired or do you get some deep rest? If you can’t sleep at night I recommend you try and take some sleep aid: melatonin or antihistamine just to mention a few. If the problem is deeper, you might need some professional help.  Stress can cause some sleepless nights. There are different products and ways you can deal with stress – if you’re interested, hit me up and I’ll send you some information of what I recommend.

You will boost your immune system by taking vital vitamins. Vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc, Echinacea, these all help strengthen your immune system. Multivitamins, that suggest to take 1 pill a day are usually not strong enough to stop us from catching any viruses. Especially if you train on a regular basis, you need a higher amount of vitamins and antioxidants for your recovery and immune system. There are some stronger concentration multivitamins that you could take to help your immune system – if you need any recommendation, drop me a message (I’m not endorsing any products here, that’s why I don’t want to put it in the article).

And of course, last but not least: working out boosts your immune system. Either the gym, walking, running, swimming, anything that gets your heart pumping. Go for it and enjoy knowing that you’re doing something for your own health.

If you need any help with your diet or training plans, healthy choice of foods, how to get back on track or start again, please get in touch and I’m more than happy to help you with tips or full online coaching: hello@tamaramakar.me, www.tamaramakar.me

Steroids and diet

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Many people believe if they’re on a cycle they can slack in their diet. In this video I explain why it is important to have the correct diet during a cycle

Let me know your thoughts: hello@tamaramakar.me

Talking steroids – again

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In this video I explain why genetics play a big part in your training / athletic abilities. Let me know if you have any questions or you have a topic you’d like me to discuss: hello@tamaramakar.me

Tips for beginners

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Training tips Part 1

Nutrition tips Part 1 ?????

Nutrition tips Part 2 ?????

Training at home / getting back to training

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Everyone has suffered some time away from the gym during the weeks of this pandemic. Some of us are blessed to be able to train in the gym again, others are still having to workout at home.

Most people don’t have any equipment at home, they can only use resistance bands or some light dumbbells/bars or trx.

First of all: I know for some of you it’s been a long period of time, some of you have certain goals to achieve – whether it’s weight loss, building muscle or competition preparation. Your diet is really the key thing here, and then your training.

If your diet is not right, it wouldn’t matter even if the gyms were open, so first and foremost pay attention to that.

Second thing is, if you’ve been training with bands and light weights / body weight, you have probably learned or are learning how to use the right technique to feel the exercise. Once you don’t have the heavy weights to throw around, you have to focus on the technique to feel it. It’s probably a positive for everyone. Perhaps it has helped you to achieve a better mind – muscle connection that you can use once the gyms reopen.

To be honest, I would’ve never thought about training with bands, but once I was forced to do that, I felt a big difference in my body – and in a good way. It was like an ‘active rest’ for my body. I was still training, but with less pressure on the joints, with a different technique: longer squeezes at the peak, so that I could get the most out of my workouts. A set could’ve lasted for 4-5 or sometimes even 10-15 mins when I was doing body weight squats and different lunges back to back to burn out my legs/quads.

But here’s what to watch out for when you can finally go back to the gym:

Don’t try and lift the same weights that you did before the lockdown.

Don’t get frustrated because you’ve lost some strength. You will gain it back quickly once you can continue going to the gym.

You will probably have to adjust your diet again when you can start lifting heavier weights.

?If you need any help with your current diet or training, drop me a line. I’m here to help you for free to adjust your diet or training plans, we can discuss different ideas.

?If you’d like a proper plan, I’m also available for online coaching.

Online coaching / training plans / meal plans

? get into shape

??‍♂️ build muscle

??‍♂️ lose fat

? contest prep

✉️ hello@tamaramakar.me

My take on supplements Part 1

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Many people ask me about supplements, what to take to gain weight. It’s quite difficult to advise when I have no idea what they eat, but first I always recommend that you put your diet right. Most people wouldn’t need any protein shakes if their diet was spot on. You can have it, it’s your choice, but it’s not necessary to gain muscle. Protein intake is necessary, but most people should be able to have enough protein from their food intake: chicken, eggs, fish and beef.

If you’re vegetarian or vegan then it’s a whole different ballgame – depending on your end goal.

So what supplements do I recommend for gaining muscle?
?Creatine –

  • Helps muscle cells produce more energy.
  • Improves high-intensity exercise performance.
  • Speeds muscle growth.
  • May lower blood sugar levels and fight diabetes.
  • May reduce fatigue and tiredness
  • Can improve brain function

?Glutamine – which is an amino acid, therefore it’s a building block for protein and a critical part of the immune system. It also has a special role in intestinal health.

Some foods that contain glutamine are: eggs, beef, skinned milk and white rice

Glutamine is a critical fuel source for immune cells. If the body’s need for glutamine is greater than its ability to produce it, your body may break down protein stores, such as muscle, to release more of this amino acid.
Additionally, the function of the immune system can be compromised when insufficient amounts of glutamine are available.

Online coaching / training plans / meal plans
? get into shape
??‍♂️ build muscle
??‍♂️ lose fat
? contest prep
✉️ hello@tamaramakar.me

Steroids

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This is a quick video about the gear. Nowadays I’ve been getting a lot of requests for cycles from guys and girls. Most of these people have no idea what steroids are and what they do to your body – let alone the side effects. This video sums up the basics: