Living Beauty

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the wedding of Bec and Michael. Bec did a 12 week Living Beauty “Ultimate Bride Body” plan and you can see in this photo she looked simply amazing. Congratulations Bec and Michael.

Had a bad week? not done your training? too busy?
The most common question I get is how do you do it? Well here is a breakdown of my week including a few tips to help you to make positive changes in your life.

I am not going to bore you with the work stuff so I am only including things in my day and times to indicate how I use small “windows” of the day to get things done to LIVE LEAN & HEALTHY, not just when competing in Sports Model but all year round!!!

Monday
6am – wake up and meal prep for my day including breakfast with daily supplements, prep meals for work (gym bag packed the night before)
9am – Met with my boss.
12noon – lunchtime appointment with chiro (for maintaining spinal alignment)
1pm – 5:30pm – crazy pace at work as Marketing Manager
6:15pm – Training weights at the gym
7:30pm – eat dinner, meal prep for next day, pack gym bag for next day, I also help my husband with some of his meal prep for the next day and do a couple of loads of washing
Tuesday
6am – wake up and get ready for work
12noon – Meeting with Assistant Coach Gemma Dawson to discuss her LB clients progress
6:30pm – cardio training, home dinner, unpack, re-pack …you get the idea!
Wednesday
6am – gym – weights
7am – grocery top up – lean protein, just from coles (yes they sell organic chicken and eggs and are open convenient times)
7:30am – first meeting at work
9:15am – photo shoot for work
1pm- shopping in my lunch break
5:30pm – sports massage
6:30pm – home, 2 loads washing, meal prep for a few days in advance
Thursday
6am – Train at gym – weights
9am – meeting externally, running a bit late so had the iPad out and my assistant signing off print jobs of brochures and flyers whilst we are driving along
More meetings at work and it seemed like a million emails
12:30 – met mum for a quick 30 min peppermint tea
1:00 – back at work til 5pm crazy pace, meetings, deadlines, general stress and working at 100 miles an hour
4:30pm – all s…it hit the fan at work – daily grind, heated discussions, eventually sorted it out!!
6pm – hair dresser and catch up with client Kelly, a LB client and bride to be  – she was there at the same time as me coincidently. Plan out and write notes for a session I have with two girls on Sunday to help them with comp prep.
Always in bed by 10:30
Friday
7:15am at work – so much to do, I have to get in early
Parked in the wrong car park, got yelled at …great start to the day!
9am – Meetings back to back
12noon – meet my best friend at the gym for a lunch time workout
1pm – 5pm – work
5pm – grocery top up – organic vegies and supplies from the market
6pm – Answer Living Beauty emails

Each day is different and I am always helping Living Beauty clients every day and also at night but I try to limit computer usage and any facebook “surfing” prior to bed and I relax by reading so I can sleep well.

Have a good week and just enjoy life for the beauty in each day!

Love and Light
Amelia x o

Living Beauty Summer Salad

The weather has been gorgeous and hot! Such a great way to start the year off. Busy as ever Living Beauty girls are getting leaner and feeling more energetic each week. Gemma and I have had quite a few new girls starting and their progress is fantastic. I really am priviledged to be able to help girls understand how to train and eat to get the body of their dreams. No starvation here! Just nutrient dense meal plans to give vitality, health and the best muscle structure. A better version of you! Oh and dont forget we are also kicking butt at the gym with a good weights plan to tone the body and give the muscular look of a Sports Model, not a bodybuilder! Love lifting weights!

As promised here is a great Summer Salad Recipe! Great for an Australia Day BBQ!

Living Beauty Raw Summer Salad

Ingredients

I use all organic or low spray veggies and a few that are extra yummy from my garden.
2 carrots, 2 large handfuls fresh spinach, 1 large or 2 small cucumber. Fresh herbs basil, parsley, mint to your own taste.

Dressing

1 red capsicum, 1 cup olive oil, 1 tsp fresh chilli, 2-4tbsp fresh lime/lemon juice, 2 tbsp ACV (Apple cider vinegar), 3 tbsp wheat free tamari sauce, 1.5 tbsp agave, 2 cm fresh ginger, 1 tsp curry powder, 1 tbsp fresh coriander, ½ tsp Himalayan salt.

Salad Method

I pulsed the raw vegies only twice in thermomix to chop them coarsely. Then arranged them on a white salad platter for high colour and a fresh look. Choose a good setting on your food processor that gives a fine consistency or chop by hand.

Dressing method

In thermomix or food processor, start with fresh herbs and ginger and chop finely, then add all other ingredients and mix well.
Add dressing just prior to serving this crunchy, nutrient dense salad!
I had half the dressing left over and it keeps for a few days in an airtight glass jar in the fridge.

Happy Australia Day for Thursday! Im heading to the beach with my Esky full of yummy salads and will be likely to throw some fish on the barbie! How Aussie!!

Love and Light

Amelia x o

Have fun this Christmas!

Sometimes Christmas is not all Love and Light! For those who have family members that are badly behaved, argumentative, negative or simply so stressed in their own life that they take it out on others, there is a way to overcome it. You might have also lost a close friend or family member this year and it could be the first Christmas without them which can be
hard to accept.

A great tool for thinking positively is to sit quietly first thing when you wake up and write down 5 things you are thankful for. Gratitude lists are very trendy these days, but they are amazing! You don’t have to write an essay, just spend 5 minutes. This list is very personal, so just keep it to yourself. Place the note somewhere you will have access to consult it when you feel annoyed or down (e.g. your purse, your bedside table drawer?). And when needed, just give it a quick read over. You will be pleasantly surprised how this can change your mood.

Did you know that so much of what is reflected in our outside body starts with the mind. So if you can work on the inside then quite often the body will follow. Living beauty…from the inside out!

Gemma and I had a great catch up this week and reiterated our commitment to work hard for our clients in 2012! It is going to be a big year ahead Living Beauty girls will be doing it with LOVE!

If you want to book in to train with us 2012 spaces are filling fast! Remember we train no more than a handful of clients at any one time. This guarantees exceptional customer service and a genuinely unique program which is just for you and is updated regularly! Just ask our happy clients and read the testimonials with photos posted this week, click here to see the girls amazing stories!

Love and Light to all this holiday season! Get outdoors and enjoy this glorious weather.

Love and Light

Amelia x o

A few of the Living Beauty girls have asked my advice about how to tackle clean eating and maintaining a lean body during the festive season.
I have already obtained holiday timetables of the gyms where I train and I will schedule a minimum of three weights workouts per week (when the gym is open) and then do simple cardio like walking outdoors to enjoy the summer sun!
My Christmas day normally looks like this: Wake up and eat my normal breakfast, followed by a walk with my husband either around my local area or at the beach. I might throw in some stair runs, push ups or tricep dips depending on if I am at the local park or beach. I will eat with awareness of how full I am during the several family events we have. I won’t restrict myself and will try a little bit of most dishes including dessert. As long as I eat until satisfied but not overly full I feel great. Of course for me having so many food intolerances (wheat, gluten, dairy, fodmaps) I choose the foods that don’t aggravate. I certainly don’t deprive myself or eat like a bird. Christmas Day is fun and a time to socialise and share foods with loved ones.
I look at recipe books and adapt recipes into healthy treats. This year I will be bringing my raw avocado lime pie to my parent’s house and then my raw chocolate balls to my in laws for dessert. I don’t rave on about the recipe and how it is healthy …as I have found that just by bringing it and placing on the table for people to try they will make up their own minds and most people don’t even know the difference and like it just as much as a sugary fat laden cake.
I don’t like “crazy nut case” behaviour around food it is not a good look and most of your family and friends will just get annoyed. I don’t make a big deal about my food choices or draw attention to myself and most of the time I load my plate up with so much that no one says anything. I eat much more in volume of food than those who are overweight because my metabolism is working effectively. Most of my plate will be veggies and then lean protein – it really is so easy!
And although I am not a drinker if there is some French champagne on offer I won’t say no to a glass, but after that I will finish the day with lots of water.
So there you go…Christmas Living Beauty style!

Amelia Ricci at The All Female Muscle Classic 2011

Hope yours is filled with peace, joy and happiness.
Love and Light
Amelia x o

Amelia Ricci & Mariya Mova

The past two weeks I have not trained due to illness and it has been hard but I had to rest! I had bronchitis and then it lead to my whole body aching and today I just have a sciatic nerve pain shooting up my right leg. This is a vast improvement to the whole body aches.

When ill you need to understand your body is giving you a message to rest. No matter how bad you want to train or you “love” the gym you cannot put the body under extra stress. So here I am back again starting training again. If you ever feel unwell or get sick it is advisable to rest and recuperate until you are 100% better.

It helps when you think back on good memories to get you through times that are challenging and one such day was the photo shoot above earlier this year. This is a photo of me with Mariya Mova a photographer in Melbourne. We did a shoot for the Living Beauty advertising campaign that has been featured in Women’s fitness Mag Oxygen. My campaign will again feature in the Feb/March edition, so look out for it as the gorgoues Gemma Dawson, Assistant coach will also be featured.

I have been stretching daily and eating really well and today I thought I would share this recipe. TMX refers to thermomix and so do the settings on how to chop up things but you can adapt it for cooking in a saucepan. The rice and almonds need to be finely ground so if you don’t have a thermomix you need to buy them already ground.

This week it is back to training and I am starting a new weights program. I also have a few new Living Beauty girls starting their preparations for the competition season in 2012. I love helping them on their journey.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, it has so many nutrients and tastes amazing!

Creamy Chicken & Almond soup (no dairy!)

Ingredients:

- 50g brown rice

- 50g raw almonds

- 1 small piece ginger

- 1 stalk celery

- 1 large carrot

- 30g olive oil

- 300g chicken, cubed

- 1 litre water

- 2 T chicken stock paste (made in TMX)

1. Grind the rice for 1 minute on speed 9. Add almonds and grind 20 secs on
speed 9, or until fine. Set aside.

2. Place ginger, celery (quartered) and carrot (quartered) in bowl and chop for
3 seconds, speed 5.

3. Add olive oil and cook for 3 minutes, 100^o, speed 1.

4. Add chicken and cook 3 minutes, 100^o, speed 1.

5. Add water, stock paste, ground rice and almonds, and cook for 30 minutes,
100^o, reverse, speed 1.

6. Adjust seasonings if needed, and serve.

Have a great weekend.

Love and Light

Amelia x o

Yesterday saw three Living Beauty girls compete in the National WNBF competition in Adelaide. It was a great day with all girls looking their all time best.

Congratulations Gemma Dawson who achieved a top three placing. This is the last competition for the season and I would also like to congratulate Patricia Muller and Sasha Patsakios for achieving their goals and looking stunning on stage. Well done!

Living Beauty Team Patricia, Gemma and Sasha

Yesterday Leah Mills (pictured below with Amelia) presented the trophies – well done! Also welcome to Leah who will train with Living Beauty for 2012.

Amelia & Leah

I have been experimenting with raw recipes and here is a new one I have invented! My husband is allergic to nuts to I have not used any (nuts feature a lot in raw eating). I love them but hubby cannot have them.

Living Beauty Avocado and Lime Raw Pie

 Crust
1 cup linseeds ground down into a fine consistency
1 cup rice flakes
½ cup crystallised ginger
3-4 tbsp organic maple syrup
Filling
1 cup pepitas and sunflower mixed seeds, soaked in water for 2 hours
1 ripe avocado
½ cup fresh lime juice
1tsp grated lime zest
300g packet silken tofu
* You can add 3 tbsp rapadura sugar but I prefer this without

Method

Use coconut oil to grease a round cake tin and line with baking paper. Combine all crust ingredients in a food processor and then press into cake tin. Freeze for 20 minutes.
Add all filling ingredients together and blend until smooth. Pour into cake tin and refrigerate for 5 hours.

Raw Avocado Lime Pie

Have a great week.

Love and Light

Amelia x o

Patricia, make up artist Mary, Sasha & Leah

Amelia Ricci in Oxygen Magazine October 2011
I am featured in the light weight & living beauty ad this month from my July 2011 shoot with Mariya Mova

After judging yesterday’s INBA (international natural bodybuilding association) show in Adelaide I know why I love this industry. It is my passion, my enjoyment, the way I like spending my time. There were some amazing bodies up on stage. There is a real sense of community, a group of people uniting in their common interest.

When judging we are looking at symmetry, muscularity, percentage body fat and an overall balanced physique. There was some amazing muscle striation in the overall men’s winners glutes, great separation in the quads of many of the males and the female figure competitors had some crazy definition on their back muscles. The overall female winner had great abs and spot on condition. The Sports Model division was an excellent quality line up with all girls presenting a beautiful look on stage. Such high quality from all competitors was great to see for this growing sport.

Bodybuilding and sports model preparation can be a lonely sport but Living Beauty trains our girls with a sense of team spirit and friendship. No money in the world could replace the feeling of being part of a team.

I am really happy with the quality of Living Beauty athletes this season so stay tuned for more great results. It is also a pleasure to train mum’s and brides to be and a number of these girls have been achieving great results. I will be posting some new photos onto the client gallery of the Living Beauty web site next week.
Until then have a great week.

Thank you Assistant Coach Gemma with Rikki, Helen and Leah the gorgeous promotions girls

Love and Light

Amelia x o

Patricia, Sasha, Kelly, Gemma, Amelia, Nicole and Sam.

Sometimes life gets tough and you just don’t know what to do. I say surround yourself with your girlfriends and have a laugh. It might be the last thing you feel like doing but if you can pick up the phone or see a friend and talk about it you will feel better.

Everyone feels like crap at some stage or another. If you constantly push yourself to work at a cracking pace, train like a demon, keep up with family obligations and be all things to all people you are bound to get tired. This can lead to eating energy draining foods and generally feeling tired and de-motivated at the gym.

Here’s what I did this week:

1. Re- focused and changed my weekly schedule
2. Negotiated some extensions on work projects
3. Yesterday at work I laughed and took some deep breaths when things were stressful
4. Set some goals on a personal level that focused on me and my family

Yesterday I organised a luncheon for a government Minister, and as the Event Manager this lasted from 8am when I met the catering company to 5pm when the function finished with drinks. I generally get up at 5:30am, train am at work at 8am, limited breaks, work til 5:30pm and sometimes also train at night, so being Friday I was tired yesterday! I was on call all day as the people attending the lunch were nervous and I had to reiterate the running schedule to make them calm. During the lunch there were a few high tempers and fires I had to fight. Post lunch I had to assist with presentations using Power Point and during the afternoon I was spoken to rudely by at least two or three people who were stressed out! At the end of the day you have to understand that the people stressing are just human, they are nervous and under pressure. One particular guy had not eaten all day, smoked a pack of cigarettes, and had about 5 coffees followed by a few beers, no wonder why his behaviour was out of line. Yep I got the bad behaviour head on – not fun!

Next time you are faced with a tough situation, talk to a friend and get it off your chest. Grab a cup of herbal tea and sit in your backyard and just chill. Problems and stress seem huge but sometimes the answers are simpler than you think.
I am trying to get work life balance I have not nailed it yet but hey Life’s a journey!

HUGE MILESTONE – Living Beauty girls had a shoot two weeks
ago and here I will share a photo with you. These are just a handful of the
girls who I trained this year and these are the reasons why I do this. These
girls are GOLD so much fun, absolutely great personalities oh and hot bodies too!! Stay tuned for more photos soon.

Love and Light
Amelia x o

Amelia Ricci

Stay tuned for competition results! From next Saturday onwards I will be reporting on the results from the upcoming shows in Adelaide. We have four competitions in Adelaide until the end of October and then many of the Living Beauty athletes will travel to the National shows. Keep up to date with the latest photos on my blog!

We will also post photos from our team photo shoot yesterday.

I am passionate about my clients getting results. I am a coach with 15 years of experience and a desire to share my knowledge so that all women can learn the tools of training and nutrition to be their best.

The key is eating lots of nutrient dense food and training hard. With a structure in place anyone can change their body, but the desire must be there. As well as desire to change you must put the steps in place such as setting aside time for shopping and cooking fresh food and putting your training in your diary.

Spring has sprung! This time of year is great for a Cleanse and there is nothing better than feeling lighter and energized. Change of season is a great time to do a cleanse program and not only will it rejuvenate your body, mind and spirit but it will clean your body from the inside out!

I have put together the Living Beauty Cleanse program with this in mind. This is a tried and tested program which will leave your cells bursting with nutrients and energy. Your eyes will be brighter, your skin will glow and you will literally leap out of bed each morning with energy!

The plan lasts for two days so it is easy to stick to. There is a little bit of walking and stretching involved but nothing strenuous. You need a juicer, fresh fruits and vegetables and time to prepare the juices and recipes. The program is best done on two consecutive days off and I normally do this plan over a weekend.

If you want a cleanse you can trust, something that will uplift and rejuvenate your body and kick start your cell renewal then contact Amelia today!

The investment is $90. To sign up just email Amelia today! amelia@livingbeauty.com.au

See our latest client photo gallery at www.livingbeauty.com.au

I work in the corporate world and it is challenging on a day
to day basis. Here are some tips I use to live Lean and Healthy, the Living
Beauty way:

1. Do not worry about others comments about what I
   am eating. I have accepted the fact that I will eat in a meeting or at my desk,
   or in the lunch room and because my food is “different” there will always be
   those people who comment.
2. Keep my eyes and ears open in my surrounding
   environment. I have located my nearest chiropractor and when I need it urgently
   it takes me 2 minutes to get to this building next door. This is in case I have
   really stiff neck or back I can address this immediately and keep up my
   training schedule.
3. Use the closest gym. It is rare that I can train
   at lunchtime but I do try and I always feel better afterwards. This week I went
   twice at lunch so it is an option.
4. Be in control of my time and say no when
   necessary. I often have back to back meetings and when asked to add extra
   meetings, be on a committee or too many additional responsibilities I have
   learned to say no. My time and expertise is no use to any one if spread too
   thin.
5. Stress less by doing yoga and stretching daily
   after my workout and really focus on breathing deeply for 10 breaths when I am
   stressed at work.

These are just a few of the tips we gave at the latest
Living Lean and Healthy Seminar. Last weekend the beautiful Amber Walker came
to Adelaide to co-present the seminar with me. It was a great day and the
energy was very positive with the group of like minded females all coming
together to learn to be their best. We had a great day and I cannot wait to put
on another seminar, stay tuned!

Love and Light

Amelia x o