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Wednesday, 9th May

Are you one of those who is feeling very tired after the long bank holiday weekend? If so, then you are not alone!!

Most people who have not exercised at the weekend will automatically feel more tired yesterday in particular, and maybe today too.

This shows that if you do not move around on a regular basis, then you are not helping your energy levels one bit. Some people think that if they sit around all day, somehow they will have more energy and that exercise is somehow “counter-productive” to their day. This is the ultimate in negative thinking and does by those who are usually way out of shape!

If you listen to the anecdotal evidence from those who exercise on a regular basis, then you will have heard energy only comes from exercising and eating fresh natural food. Most people who exercise regularly are more positive than their sedentary counterparts.

So if you have been one of the more inactive individuals at the weekend, then you should know what i am talking about.

Hopefully, you have got a great workout in over the last two days or even got two workouts in, chances are by now you feel 200% better by now!

Energy is earned by your body and not a god-given right!

Your body will look after itself if you look after it, this is always something to remember the next time you think you should “retire” from exercise. This lack of ambition will get you nowhere, and its time to make that  “SOMEDAY” happen today in terms of getting into shape, and dumping all that rubbish refined sugar loaded food straight into the black bags and head them straight over to the rubbish dump!!!

Actions speak louder than words so lets make sure you make it happen!!

Twitt
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Tuesday, May 8th

The revolution in training goes on and some remarkable changes have happened the last few years in particular.

The return of bodyweight training, and the rise and rise of functional training (exercises that have real life meaning) has been fantastic for me, because it what i have done for many, many years and its great to see a lot of people embracing this style of training!

I spoke to an equipment supplier last week and he told me what i already thought-that steppers, cross trainers, treadmills even were on the way out, and that steppers were totally out, and on the way to joining the dinosaurs!!! A lot of companies dont even make steppers anymore!!

I have been banging on for years that these machines should not form the foundation of your training. Steppers in particular don’t offer much value in terms of results, and are an example of a machine doing a lot of the work for you, plus wasting a lot of money.

Treadmills have their place if you are forced to exercise inside, but there are a million other options thats for sure!

If you’re fed up about me talking about  medicine balls, bosu balls, swiss balls etc, then tough! This is the way you should be training for all kinds of amazing results. If you want a strong back, then this is for you. If you want a strong tight stomach, then this way of training is for you, if you want great balance, then this way will work big time for you.

Bottom line is that if you want to be fitter, stronger, better balanced and healthier in every single way, then you have to learn how to handle your own bodyweight and really “find” your body again and its true source of power. This isnt some kind of mystical thing either, its entirely possible and its about time you made it happen!!!

Twitt
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Thursday, 3rd May

Getting out of your comfort zone regularly when it comes to your training should be your number one priority but most people are either scared, cant be bothered or don’t know how to change the programme they initially started with the first day they were shown how to train.

This is almost a “silent killer” when it comes to progressing year after year.

Do this experiment-think of all the people you know who regularly exercise and perhaps they have been for many years.

Then think of in terms of a percentage, how many of them have actually IMPROVED year in year out over those years.

If you get 20% you would be lucky.

Then, another experiment for you to try!

If you know a couple of these people well enough to ask, then trying questioning them on how they train, and then ask them on the last time they actually changed anything substantial with their training?

I’m not talking about one or two exercises, I am talking about their speed or tempo of their workout, their rep ranges, the workout frequency, whether they just use weight, just do cardio, mix them both up, and do they do any core stability work, and what lengths do they go to in the core strengthening?

Do they use medicine balls, bosu balls, swiss balls for example, and what variations of these exercises do they use?

If you carry on with this line of questioning and they soon get agitated or fed up that you want to know, or just dismissive saying they are on the “best programme and that’s that”!!! Then you know they are becoming all defensive and they know deep down that they are now unwilling to change at this “late stage” seemingly in their “training career”.

The truth is that everyone needs to change regularly and test themselves in different ways. This not only keeps things fresh and fun, but will give you the regular results and health benefits we are all looking for!

Twitt
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May 1st!

Start of the month and although you may not think it, it is after all MAY!!! Wild winds and rain may be greeting us but this is, in my experience anyway, THE best month when it comes to good weather, sunshine and warmer temperatures!

You may think the rest of the summer is in front of us, and it is, but may is usually the big statement when it comes to announcing the summer to come, or at least giving us a couple of weeks of fantastic weather.

May is also the month when we realise if we have been working hard throughout the winter or not! I have been banging on here all winter long about how much you will appreciate all the hard work gone in…………..by the time may comes around and now we are finally here!

May on the opposite side of the scale is the month when people panic, go on all sorts of crazy diets and try to lose weight very quickly and this means usually TOO quickly. Faddy diets are waiting to steal your hard earned money again, a kind of a “smash and grab” situation that they are used to doing, because they know their diets are not sustainable and this is why their classes go up and down so much.

May is the perfect month for you to put in your calendar so that you can remind yourself how important it is to train all year round, and how it is virtually impossible to get to may and somehow be in shape in two weeks flat! You know it can’t happen secretly and as long as you learn this vital lesson, then you know you will improve from this day onwards.

This is what life is about, constant improvement and looking to better yourself and find ways how you can become a better version of yourself, in all sorts of ways!

Start May well and stay positive for a big summer!!

Twitt
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Tuesday, 24th April

If when you start an exercise programme, you are simple shown around machines and then told basically to get on with it, you need to seriously ask WHY you are paying that gym or whatever, MONEY to help get fit?!!!

Its impossible to know how to get fit after just one session, it simply cannot happen. Its like learning a new job, it takes a while before you get comfortable with the way things work and the order you do them.

Joining a gym that is just interested in your money is very much a big gamble with your health and you should seriously think about a different approach.

Okay, lets say you get over the typical approach by many gyms, and you actually get to the stage where you know what you’re doing, then how about that original programme you were given? Has it expanded at all? Have you progressed? Or are you stuck in the same old rut all the time?

This is another BIG problem i see. People are given programmes to follow, however basic, but are never told when to move on, how to move on, IF they should be moving on!! The lack of back up support is often appalling, and this is another big reason  why people quit gyms in a big way.

You could and should look to improve your programme at least every 2 weeks, some will be able to do it every week, especially if you are new to fitness and if you respond well to exercise. The programme is always fluid and will change on the individual’s response entirely in my view.

Since i train individually, i know only too well that people respond at different rates and times, and ALL of them need maximum support when they start off, and even when they may have been training for years, they constantly need new prorgrammes, fresh dietary advice and always fresh motivation!!!!

If you are not being treated as an individual, then you are being cheated and progress for you is not likely to come quick!!

Twitt