“How Discovering I Had HIV Made Me Improve My Diet and Fitness Regime!”

29-year old Gay Rights activist, Huffington Post blogger and HIV positive Philip Christopher Baldwin has recently undertaken a strict new fitness regime and balanced, healthier diet with amazing results.

After having joined Soho Gyms in Covent Garden just three months ago and with the aid of personal trainer Adam Bernadout and his devised diet plan and fitness regime; health-conscious Philip is looking and feeling better than ever before. Being HIV positive, Philip aims to live as healthy a lifestyle as possible and after recently debuting his new look, speaks out on why and how he got there.

Philip discovered he was HIV and Hep C positive 5 years ago, a diagnosis which was at first incredibly frightening but which has since come to empower him. After finding out the result of his illness while on his lunch break working at a top London law firm; Philip left work early and headed straight for the gym, in a state of complete confusion.

“I didn’t want to stop being a muscular, fun and happy young man, but was overwhelmed by sadness, experiencing a sense of loss as powerful as grief” he says.

Philip assimilated his HIV into his identity, proving it sometimes our vulnerabilities which can also be our strengths. Although the shock news has been a painful experience for Philip, his sexual orientation and health status are among the key characteristics that define him as a person today. “Being open has allowed me to develop more fully as a person” he adds. Equality and diversity constitute a fundamental part of Philip’s ethos and he is healthy, happy and successful.

Given his health status, Philip aims to live as fit and healthy as possible and particularly with summer just around the corner, his recent transformation has proven fantastic results. Adding to his persona rather than hindering it, Philip’s diagnosis has encouraged him to undertake a new fitness regime, regular exercise and improved diet. After recently attracting a wide array media attention and being photographed among celebrity friends Alan Carr, Chloe Sims and Sir Ian McKellen has seen Philip upgrade his physique and introduce healthier foods into his daily life.

Philip has never been one to shy away from the camera and in turn, takes great deal in looking after his appearance. Since he discovered his health status when he was 24, Philip – now 29, continues to regularly visit the gym, attend personal training sessions, eat clean, drink plenty of water and stick to a balanced, healthy diet. Although the regular symptoms of the illness can often impact daily life, Philip doesn’t let this affect him and the activities he most enjoys doing. More determined than ever to continuously stick to his new and improved routine, Philip is feeling and looking better than ever.

Intelligent and sincere, yet also fun and spontaneous, Philip has recently attended a number of celebrity events, charity galas and press breakfasts, growing his public image more rapidly than ever before. Making perfect opportunities to show off his new look, Philip can be relied upon to help any party go with a swing.

Speaking of his new look and improved health and fitness, Philip says: “I’m really pleased with the results of my three month fitness transformation. Health is very important to me. I try to live as healthy a lifestyle as possible, given that I am HIV and Hep C positive. My fitness transformation was by no means easy, but I think the results were worth it. I feel more confident and happier in the way I look. The biggest challenge for me was sticking to the low carb diet. I hate diets and have struggled with them in the past! I have a sweet tooth and, whilst eating lots of fruit and veg, I like sweets and crisps as well. Sometimes I binge, especially when I am stressed out. I liked the training and diet regime which Adam Benardout at Soho Gyms created for me. The mix of filling, yet healthy meals, allowed me to lose fat and gain muscle. I’m now looking forward to the summer. About two-thirds of the way through my training regime I caught a cold which lasted for two weeks. This disrupted my training regime and I had to work extra hard in the final few weeks to lose fat. I threw myself into this and am really pleased with what I achieved. Going forwards my aim is to eat more healthily and stick to my diet as much as possible.”

Key Tips for a Healthy and Balanced Diet to “Stay Healthy AND Lose Weight!”

1. Green tea in the morning is a great way to revitalise your body, full of anti-oxidants and makes you want to start the day. Great before cardio for a slight natural energy burst.

2. Morning cardio is best to lose body fat. Your body has used its energy during the night, so when you do cardio before breakfast in the morning your body uses the next best energy source which is fat cells.

3. Blueberries and porridge oats are great for breakfast. Not only are blueberries full of anti-oxidants but porridge oats also gives “long chain” carbohydrates which are digested slowly and keep your energy levels high throughout the day.

4. Broccoli is great! Your Grandma may have said to eat your greens, and she was most definitely right! Broccoli and spinach have high iron levels. Broccoli is great for dieting – you can eat lots of broccoli without having to worry about gaining weight!

5. Olive oil is a healthy unsaturated fat for your healthy, balanced diet. Unsaturated fats are good for your cholesterol balance and actually help you to lose weight. You need some healthy fats in your diet to maintain correct bodily functions.

6. After a workout it is important to have some short acting protein (whey protein) to feed your muscles and allow them to recover! The protein is digested in the body and absorbed by the muscles which helps to rebuild them after intense exercise. Glutamine is also very useful because it is the most abundant amino acid found inside muscle tissue (muscles are made up of proteins, which are made up of amino acids). Glutamine is also good for a healthy immune system.

7. Having salmon for dinner means that you get a healthy dose of protein and good fats which are healthy for the body, we limit the carbohydrate intake at dinner because you don’t need energy in your last meal if you are going to bed soon after.

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