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Tuesday, 22nd December

This time of year makes you realise that it’s the ideal time to improve your fitness. Gyms are usually a lot quieter this time of year, and suddenly you have a lot more room and time to “get good’ at those things you may have been putting off for a long time.

This is the time to “experiment” between what makes you feel good and what sucks the energy out of you.

You will soon realise that an exercise session, however short, will automatically bring your energy levels back to life and make you feel alive again.

You must know of many gym-goers who right now are having time off, planning a whole array of over the top meals (pizza and chips etc) on a daily basis, along with setting records for most boxes of chocolates consumed.

This is the time you get to know you body. If you are still exercising on a regular basis, you will notice how eating and drinking badly will affect your performance in the gym.

Eating rubbish “party” food for example, will immediately hit your performance, make you feel nauseous at times in your workout and usually hit your strength workouts too. Eating this kind of food immediately makes you crave good quality “clean” food straight after your workout, which is yet another reason to keep on training.

Nothing wrong with having a blow out over christmas, but turning it into a two week or even one month all out blowout will mean only one thing.

Once you get back to training in january, not only won’t you have any energy, drive or your usual ambition, but your immune system will be down too. You will be susceptible to colds and other illnesses (this is why there are far more adverts by drug companies for their products such as lemsip etc this time of year) which will further detract you from your “recover after christmas” efforts.

If you just stay more active, get more fresh air, and keep a core of healthy foods and snacks amonsgt the unavoidable treats, then you wont go far wrong and stay strong into the new year.

Twitt
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Wednesday, 16th December 2015

It was around 1988 that i had two weeks off training for christmas last. I said to myself “that’s it i’m having a break, no training, and eating and drinking anything i like”. After all, i felt i has “deserved it”!

Here’s what happened on my first session back.

I went on a run with plenty of hills. Approaching my first hill, which normally was not that challenging, i suddenly had a tightness in my chest, could hardly breathe and i was struggling like i have never done before!!! Needless to say, i walked up that hill for the first time ever.

My run didn’t get much better. I ran downhill for a bit, but had to walk ALL of the remaining hills. My chest remained tight the rest of the evening, and i swore there and then would i ever have a break over christmas like that again. My workouts the rest of the week were ALL challenging and unpleasant. That continued to a lesser degree the week after too.

I swore that i would never completely abandon my diet and exercise in future. I swore i would remain as active as possible, even if it wasn’t at the same level as the rest of the year.

As a childhood filled with hospital visits due to my asthma, the thought of not being able to breathe properly again was a scary one and a very bad memory brought alive again.

This is why i strongly encourage all of you to exercise right up to christmas. It’s not just the weight gain thing either, it’s simply to allow yourself to feel that much better, to breathe properly and to simply feel good.

There’s nothing wrong with having treats over christmas, we all do. The problem starts when you abandon all that you have achieved throughout the year, all of the good stuff that has made you feel amazing, and swap it for a lifestyle that will make you wheeze, feel amazingly lethargic, pessimistic, and just downright “not great”!

Simply moving more, getting in any type of exercise on a regular basis, doing things more in moderation will make the difference between an awful, slow, start to the new year and a start fuelled with real momentum that’s likely to give you a massive kickstart much more likely to lead to success.

Twitt
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Monday, 26th October

So many of you are now approaching week 4 in your programme. You have learned how to go flat out on your programme, and what’s ahead in the next four weeks will require a brand new demand on your energy systems.

You have different energy systems and we will be using all of them as we go through all sorts of different programmes.

It’s vital this week then that you give it everything, you give it your very best and find out how far you can really go in these 4 weeks.

Your food is ultra-important right now, the energy demands are vast so you need to be ready and up for it at all times. The old saying is that you can “never out-train a bad diet” being very true.

If you’re not properly hydrated (drinking enough water), then your workouts will always be a big struggle, and you are not going to recover as quick too.

If you are sleeping poorly or not getting to bed as early as you should after a tough workout, then your body will not recover as quick, and there’s no way you will be energised for your next day’s workout either.

Your workouts are vital, but the support you give them through proper nutrition and sleep are absolutely paramount so let’s prepare even more and take your performances and results to a whole new level!!!

Twitt
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Monday, 5th September

Assessing where you are right now, and making a judgement on what’s its going to take to go to another level is ONE VITAL thing you can carry out right now.

We are all trying to do the right thing, we aim to get better, we aim for a better experience, a better life and all of this adds to our daily levels of fulfilment and expectation.

None of us aim for mediocrity, but if we let things drift, then mediocrity is where many people in life are headed.

Ask yourself this question-how much of your day do you dedicate to doing something that you will be proud of later?

Steve Jobs (the late Apple CEO), would look into the mirror and ask himself every day if he was making the big choices in life. He realised early on that he would be dead soon, that he had nothing to lose and there was no need to feel embarrassed about going for what he really wanted in life, and to follow his heart and go for it in a big way.

For you right now, if getting in shape is like blazing a new path for yourself then you would be right!! It’s most likely something you have never done before, certainly not to this degree anyway and this sustainable because you know you are doing it the right way!!

See yourself as creating a body of work. It’s where your limited time, energy, focus, assets and time go to create something really special and it will affect everyone. When you’re fit and healthy and at your best, the impact that will make on everyone in your life will be incredible.

This creates value in your life and others’ life like you won’t believe-the benefits will be incredible.

See your workouts as not only about looking good but life-changing too, as your contribution to others will go up dramatically through your increased health, wellness, positivity, encouragement and power.

Make every workout a great one, record it and realise that only great things are happening!!

Twitt
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Tuesday, September 1st

September marks the start of autumn and your chance to make a charge at your highest levels of the year. Most of you have an incredible base and foundation anyway, so let’s aim high and smash out of the way what has gone before.

Many of you will have been hamstrung over the summer months due to babysitting commitments, the kids were off and that’s always tough to fit training in. Now though you may have a little more time so let’s pick up the pace and really make it count.

Now it’s all about slamming the sessions in, there’s no substitute for regular training. From hitting regular sessions, your body gets used to performing at a higher level again. When you are at this higher level, you feel a lot more capable of reaching out and hitting your best levels.

When you at your best levels, nothing feels better! Your clothes feel incredible on you, your energy levels are off the chart and your optimism and enthusiasm to do better in everything in life are huge!!!

September 1st sees the return of momentum in your training, your appetite to eat healthy and consistently, your desire to start looking your best again and seeing how far you can take your body if you give it the chance!!

There are no excuses not to dig deeper, to reach higher and do it on a regular basis. This is your time so let’s make it a massive month!!!

Twitt