INGRID'S CHallenge 2023

You can read all about me, my fitness qualifications and career at https://ingridbarclay.com/ingrid-bio/

You’re never too old to improve your health and fitness. I am in my 50’s and in the best shape of my life. I train people in their 60’s and 70’s. There is no good reason you can’t make major changes at any age. Just get your medical clearance!

Absolutely you can. I have done a home program for exactly these conditions. Ideally it would be great to have a fit ball. They are so versatile and cheap and I can get you doing any number of exercises with it. We can work with a floor and a chair! If you happen to have some bands, a handful of dumbbells, kettlebell, bench or similar they are just bonuses. I have some exchanges in the event that you have a squat rack. A cheap and helpful addition could be a skipping rope. You do not need to outlay much or even any money to be able to do this at home following my home program. And yes! You can achieve wonderful things and even win – there is no reason why you can’t. I trained a figure girl once to a Miss Australia in what was basically a poorly equipped home gym!”

Those of you familiar with me and my ethos know I don’t “do” diets. It’s not high carb, low carb, intermittent fasting, keto, paleo, none of that. It’s real food. You can catch it, pick it off a tree or pull it out of the ground. Don’t expect a lot of packaged food sources. Man-made processed junk is not part of my list of healthy foods for body recomposition. There are no surprises in it – you are unlikely to find ice-cream and tim-tams in your food sources, you are very likely to find chicken and stone fruit on the other-hand.

In short, most definitely. I have covered food choices and sensitivities in my nutrition program. Whatever is on there that you cannot or do not wish to eat – simply don’t eat it. If there is something on there that you enjoy a lot, you can choose to consume it a lot. If it is not do-able and sustainable for you, you won’t succeed and I want to set you up with every chance of success. It’s for meat- eaters and plant-based only people alike and everything in-between.

Again, it doesn’t matter what your food intolerances are. If you can’t eat something off the food sources list, then don’t eat it! Gluten intolerance is common. You can easily work around it. My nutrition program is very flexible so you can adapt it for most special dietary needs.

Lactose intolerance is even more common than gluten intolerance. It’s easy to work around it because my food sources are healthy and is so flexible. You don’t have to eat dairy products if you don’t want to. Simple.

No, you do not. Again, I have witnessed outstanding achievements through good nutrition, recovery and weight training alone. However, there are a couple, three to be precise that I would definitely recommend that I refer to as my “Holy Trinity”. In options level 2,3 and 4 you would hear all about these, what their benefits for you are and how I suggest that you take them.

In short no. You can take any approach to this you like. Weight training only. Food only. Weights and food change. Food and cardio. Weights and cardio. The advantage of having some guidance with what to do through me is I can teach you how to cardio whilst not losing any muscle as remember, recomposition is the challenge! Keep in mind, walking is excellent as a recovery tool.

I have ensured I have covered most scenario’s in the program options. But the answer to this is easy. Because you will have access to the live Q and A, in your first week you can simply ask me what suitable exchanges you can make for any exercises you have uncertainties about. You also have the ability to ask me WHY I have a particular exercise in there as part of the program as a great coach will have a good answer for this question.

This is NOT a weight loss challenge, it’s a body recomposition challenge. You can expect to lose about 1-2 pounds of FAT per week, without losing muscle. If you sign up to levels 2, 3 4  or 5 you will know it’s pure fat because I’ll teach you how to test and track your body fat level. If you enter at level 2, all of your information again is aimed at losing fat and gaining muscle. If you’re very heavy, then 1% of your body weight per week (about 1-1.5kg if you’re 90kg’s plus) is safe and realistic (larger and fatter individuals are more likely to lose faster than smaller and leaner individuals). Extra weight loss is common the first week or two, but that’s usually water weight. Faster fat loss is possible but not likely for most people.

The answer to this question also relates to your ability to stay consistent and compliant. It is likely that those who have less “free days/free meals” and don’t blow off their workouts are going to have a higher chance of winning or placing in this competition.

You can choose to take your starting photo at any time in the week prior to the Challenge start date.

Image requirements are as follows:

Newspaper:

• You must be holding a copy of any national daily newspaper published in Australia, or your country (but not a local paper please) with the front page clearly showing and within 24 hours of the newspapers date. This is done to verify the date the picture was taken at the correct time for this competition.

Clothing:

• Male – Form-fitting shorts or bathers are preferred, showing legs and torso.
• Female – two-piece bathing suit or bra and undies are best.
• *Be sure not to cut your legs off or cover them in long pants. If you cover up parts of your body it will be difficult to show your progress. Basically, less is best!

Position:

• Stand with your arms at your sides in the image—no posing – facing forwards.
• Hold a copy of a newspaper (as per above) clearly displaying the front page, but not covering your body (or as minimal as possible).
• Take your photo in front of a white or plain background if possible.
• Try to include your whole body from head to toe in the image, or as much as possible.
• Try to fill the photograph with your whole body. If you stand too far away, it may be hard to see your progress and impressive results.
• No picture can be treated or in any way enhanced after they have been taken.

Please make sure you read my article on “How to take Great “Before and After” Photos.

I do not refund for change of mind. For full information on my payment and refund policy please refer to my Terms & Conditions.

If you enter Level 2 option you will receive all of your accompanying information within 48 hours of payment.

If you enter Level 3, 4 or 5 options you will be emailed a copy of my metabolic classification and lifestyle snapshot within 24 hours. You will need to fill that out in as much detail as possible as the more information I have about you the better. You will then have your highly individualised program and nutritional advice emailed to you within 48 hours of having sent through your metabolic classification and lifestyle snapshot. The exception to this, is if I have further questions and you are tardy with your email response.

Level 3, 4 and 5 are time consuming and of course more detailed and targeted and thus, accordingly take more time as I need to learn more about you as an individual. All first educations/zoom meetings for the on-line course and in-house training will begin the week starting January 4^th.

If you are overseas when the Challenge finishes, yet you started the challenge in Australia, you can still complete the process as long as you have access to the internet and Ingrid Barclay website. www.ingridbarclay.com

If you won’t have access (or are unsure if you will) you can prepare your answers to the finishing questions, to complete your essay in advance, take your photos, and give these along with your login details to someone who will have access to the internet, who can complete it on your behalf.

If you are unable to have someone do it for you, you can still participate in the Challenge but unfortunately you will not ‘officially’ complete the Challenge, and simply will not be eligible for judging.

They will only see the before/after/progress photos, and any fitness stats or information you have logged attached, (e.g. weight, fitness test results etc). They will not however be able to see any of your private details like your phone number, or address, which are only recorded for the purposes of getting in contact with you or awarding prizes.

If you wish to change to another level above basic, providing the option is not already full, you can upgrade by calling Ingrid Barclay on 0424180093, emailing at [email protected] and making the balance of payment over the phone or doing a direct transfer.

1. Starting and Finishing weight: Skinfolds (if done), Dexa scan (if done), Body Fat % (if done).
2. What did you like most about the challenge?
3. What was the hardest thing about your challenge?
4. What impact has the challenge had on your life?
5. What would you say to people who are thinking of doing the challenge?
6. Anything else you would like to tell us about your challenge?

This is a very important part of the challenge. In particular it might really be the deciding factor in for example, the “encouragement award”. So open up, be vulnerable and share your challenge journey!