Rachael Attard: My five top tips for health and happiness as a personal trainer

A leading personal trainer has listed the five things that have made her the ‘healthiest and happiest’ she’s ever been after 15 years in the industry.

Rachael Attard, an Australian nutritionist and coach known for helping women build their dream bodies without getting ‘bulky’ said she’s finally figured out what works for her after working towards it for years.

The first is ditching HIIT workouts in favour of less intense exercise. 

‘Low impact workouts instead of long, high intensity workouts that left me feeling exhausted,’ she said.

She also opts for walking instead of running and spin classes. 

‘Walking gives me better results and is also less stressful on my body,’ she said.

‘[I also] rest instead of pushing myself to the extreme, do self care because it’s a necessity, not a luxury and choose intuitive eating instead of extreme diets and restrictive eating.’

It’s not the first time Rachael, 35, has sung the praises of walking, with the trainer regularly saying it’s the secret to slim and toned legs and thighs. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

‘Walking is the best type of exercise for lean legs. It will help get rid of excess fat on your legs and lean them out,’ she said previously. 

‘[I also rest instead of pushing myself to the extreme, do self care because it’s a necessity, not a luxury and choose intuitive eating instead of extreme diets and restrictive eating,’ she said

When you do cardio at a low to moderate intensity, she explained, the body burns stored glycogen (carbs) first, then fats.   ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

‘The longer you exercise, the more fat your body will burn. So, by doing longer power walks, your body will burn more fat and it will help you get lean legs,’ she said.

Rachael said she tried ‘every single workout under the sun’ but found ‘nothing is as effective in getting thinner thighs and legs overall as walking’.   

‘Through my years of working as a PT with girls that had the same goal (specifically to get skinny legs), this has always been the best method,’ she added.

Rachael’s workouts have help thousands of women sculpt their dream bodies fast 

What does your body type say about how you should train? 

ECTOMORPH

Ectomorphs are usually naturally slim (like Victoria’s Secret models) and they find it difficult to build muscle.

If you are an ectomorph body type, you probably already have naturally thinner legs. So, your goal here is to maintain (or perhaps lose a bit of stubborn lower body fat) while building lean muscle. 

This way your leg will get tone and definition and you’ll avoid the skinny fat look. 

MESOMORPH 

Mesomorphs can be quite athletic and respond quickly to exercise, which means they build muscles easily.

They can lose weight very fast, but can also gain weight quickly too. Usually, they are of average size.

If you are a mesomorph, overdoing workouts like squats and lunges can easily result in bulky legs. So, your goal here is to reduce body fat percentage and avoid exercises that will bulk up your legs in the process. 

ENDOMORPH 

Endomorphs naturally have a strong build and larger frame. They can build muscle very quickly and it’s slightly harder for them to lose weight. But, it’s not impossible!

If you are an endomorph body type, your goal is to really focus on reducing overall body fat and to completely avoid any workouts that may cause you to bulk up. 

‘Your body type plays a massive role in how you tend to build muscle and lose weight and some body types are more likely to bulk up,’ Rachael added

Rachael added that a walk first thing in the morning will lead to better results.

‘If you do cardio before you eat in the morning you will have less stored glycogen, and your body will, therefore, burn more fat and muscle,’ Rachael said.

‘Less fat and less muscle size equals slimmer legs but for this to work, you need to eat low carb (try not to eat carbs for dinner the night before so your glycogen levels are already low) and you need to do cardio for a fairly long period of time (over 60-90 minutes).’ 

She is often asked by clients whether walking or running is better for the legs – she always advises them to walk 

‘Walking is the best type of exercise for lean legs. It will help get rid of excess fat on your legs and lean them out,’ she said

Bottom line is there are three main steps to reducing muscle size and sculpting slim, toned legs: learning your body type, doing the right type of cardio (walking) and eating at a slight calorie deficit with low carbs. 

‘Your body type plays a massive role in how you tend to build muscle and lose weight and some body types are more likely to bulk up,’ Rachael added.

Knowing your body type (ectomorph, endomorph or mesomorph) is super important, she says, as some body types tend to bulk up more easily in their legs (and in general) than others.