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Having a go is the number one thing!

We touched on the fact that we need to be more performance orientated in our training and hopefully, im not trying to say here that half hearted exercise is a waste of time because its not.

We all have times when we are not really in the mood to exercise. For example, some of us may go out on a Friday or Saturday night, have a few drinks and wake up with a bad head. The first thought on our minds may not be going for a run or any workout of any kind!

However, I have said on here countless times how important it is to train the morning after  the night before. Anyone who has done this will tell you that “performance” is definitely not as important on that Sunday morning!!

Simply the process of getting through a workout is the big achievement, and it will make you feel incredibly better. This whole attitude makes you realise that nobody’s perfect, not one single person and we all like a laugh from time to time.

Jean I think is doing so well now because she still has a drink at the weekend and the odd treat, because she has been so good in the week. I don’t think its sustainable for ANYONE to go without a treat for too long.

Remember this workout plan and eating regime is not really just that, it’s the lifestyle change that’s the important thing!

Simon from Chicago has been e-mailing me about his progress and about the fact that he likes the short intense workouts inside. He loves them too because of chicago’s notoriously freezing winters, when outside workouts are almost impossible, especially with his asthma.

Simon asked the other day should he do 5 inside workouts per week instead of 3? I said not to and include 2 other cardio workouts instead. This will keep him fresh, still keep his performance high and avoid injury.

Its natural to want to do something a lot if you’re getting big results from it, but in this case more is definitely not better.

You need to let your muscles rest and recover ready for your next workout. Remember I keep on saying, this is a lifestyle change and it means that. For the rest of your life you need to have an achievable workout schedule and a good eating plan.

As I said, nobody’s expecting you to be perfect, but as long as you keep having a go week in week out, you will be very satisfied with a lifetime of good health!!

Twitt
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Check your workouts

So hows your workouts going and are they working?

Have you started off with good intentions but reverted to “your old ways”?

No doubt that the workouts i ask you to do are intense, are tough sometimes but the good part is that they are relatively short in duration. The main point of them is to get fitter and healthier, on EVERY measurable level there is simple as that!

So the song remains the same because it tends to work big time for most people.

The inside workouts need to work the whole body because you dont want to leave any body part out. Also, this is the most efficient way to train because you burn more calories, you burn more fat, you get greater lung capacity, you get a harder and leaner body, and they pretty much get you ready for anything after you’ve given them a chance to work.

So you need to pick 6-8 exercises at the very most in each workout, and aim to do them for a total of 3 circuits without a break, thats your goal but it wont come fast. You will need to give it some time but you WILL get there if you are consistent with your workouts and eat well.

The inside workouts i would do 3 times per week with a day off in between each of these workouts to give your body some rest. If you keep it to 3 days per week, you will remain fresh in your workouts and attitudes towards them so we’re thinking long term too.

The other days and i would suggest 2 other days, i would try and not too long boring walks, running or cycling, i would focus on intensity and actual performance in your workouts. So you need to be aiming for 30-40 minutes and look to improve regularly.

It could be doing 8 sprints for 30 yards up a steep hill, running forwards and backwards eventually (8 forwards and 8 backwards would be an awesome standard).

It could be interval sprints, jogging one streetlight, sprinting the next, jogging the next, sprinting the next and so on, you could easily be very tired in 5 minutes, and this is something you can work on until you get to 15-20 minutes, which will be a huge standard!!

The same with your cycling, in quieter times on the coastal path, you could do sprinting phases of say 100 yards and use a marker in front of you and give it your all until you get there. Then go quietly for the next 100 yards and then belt it again! This is a great way of becoming a better and more powerful cyclist, and bringing some huge benefits to your fitness.

If you cant be bothered to be running some days, go for a longer walk but pick the big hills and this will have a terrific effect on your legs and lungs, plus you get to take in some very good scenery in the area. All enjoyable workouts.

So the bottom line is to do work hard and in shorter periods of time to really improve your fitness all the time, and this will naturally reduce your body fat and automatically make you feel 10 years younger after 6 weeks of training this way.

Before attempting any of this harder training, make sure you have at least 6 weeks of building up slowly first, as this is definitely not beginner’s training! Make sure you have AT LEAST one day off complete rest, no matter how advanced your training is!

Good luck and let me know how you get on!

Twitt
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Staying positive in the gloom is vital to get you through!

People doing well should be encouraged and appreciated at the moment. There is more than enough bad news in the media pretty much all the time. Some people like bad news and thrive on negativity. With the spending review of the government coming out tomorrow, there will be a lot of edgy people out there.

So it may not be fashionable at the moment, but lets try and concentrate on the good things going on and whatever bad things come, let’s promise to work our way through them as best we can.

Jean for instance, is on a roll to say the least and seems to be gathering fresh new momentum every day. This is a perfect situation for jean, as when you have momentum, you will always feel fitter, lighter and more eager to take on more and more challenges, which will automatically bring further gains.

As we discuss regularly, its not a matter of doing more and more training in terms of minutes and hours, its about keeping the quality of your training very high and making sure your body gets used to very good performances, results in being in great physical condition.

The only thing that can stop almost constant progress is negativity. If we listen to people who are always negative, then we become negative and the emphasis then is never to even attempt anything positive, because the risks are then too “negative”, there is too much of “what if it goes wrong, or what if it doesn’t work” type of talk.

If we associate with more positive people, attempting meaningful things in life becomes the norm and second nature. Its this type of atmosphere and environment we really need and can thrive in. The talk then becomes of whats really possible in life and the rewards of attempting big things in your life.

How many times do we talk about on here about positive things? Every single day is the answer because this is the only way to go, the only option available and the only way to end up truly fulfilled and happy.

You have many different choices over the week, the month and year and those moments when you are faced with tougher decisions that directly affect your health are the critical ones. Staying and getting into shape is never as easy as A,B,C, but if you face all the difficult choices in a highly positive manner, the chances of your getting and staying there will be very high.

Will start posting more workout schedules from tomorrow so see what you think?

Twitt
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Get away from time, concentrate more on performance!

Who do you think is fitter out of the following and in the best physical condition?

The 100m runner who runs it in under 10 seconds or the one who does it in 12 seconds?

The runner who can run up a 2 mile gradient in 14 minutes or the one who takes 25minutes?

The swimmer who takes 10 lengths in 15 minutes or the one who does it in 25 minutes?

The cyclist who can cycle around pembrey country park in 30 minutes or the one who does it in 60 minutes?

The person who does his/her 3 circuits of inside workouts without a break, or the one who has to take a break after each exercise?

The person who power walks with her dog or the one who ambles along stopping to talk to everyone over the same distance and takes twice as long?

The one who recovers very quickly from a tough exercise session or the one who takes all day to recover from a tough session?

The one who can do 10 sprints up steep hills without much of a break apart from walking back down the hill, or the one who needs 3 minutes break in between each sprint?

The person who focuses on constant improvement every month or the ones who goes through the motions every day, every week, every month, every year, not focusing on improvement, just “getting through it”.

There are exceptions to a couple of these but in the main, if you are faster and stronger at something, it is a great sign that usually your body fat is lower, your strength is better and your health is in great shape. Since we don’t really want to be getting involved in races against our friends, we need to start competing with ourselves a bit more!!!

You should be able to tell if you’re improving right away. Are you better than last week, last month or especially last year? Are you going through the motions in your training or do you really try to do your best in most sessions? Did you have health worries in the past and have you tried living your lifestyle in a much healthier way to alleviate those concerns? These are the questions you should be asking yourself, especially as we come to the end of the year. Its always a time for reflection and its not too late to finish the year off at a high if you really want to.

Those distance high’s may seem a long way off, but if you train regularly, eat well and sleep well, and have patience, those once proud moments in your life will be your again!

Lets give it a go and get going!! Nine weeks to christmas so lets get a move on!!!

Twitt
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Your way of life

Okay, we discussed over the last couple of days how easy it is to get into your workouts, how they don’t have to take you all day, and how important it is to work with purpose in your workouts, rather than against the clock.

We talked about half an hour in your day is possible to bring about excellent progress in your training, as long as you knew what you were doing and you gave a real effort each day you trained, i have to make it clear right now that you shouldnt kill yourself and work TOO hard, that is not necessary, we need progress and we dont need anyone collapsing so thats a big warning on safety reasons!! PROGRESS AND SAFETY, yes it can be done and i get people doing it every day.

I think this is an excellent way of making sure you train for a lifetime and not just for one month, one week, or one year. If you set yourself unrealistic expectations, you will be setting yourself up for failure full stop. One of those unreasonable expectations would be to train for 2 hours at a time. I have met so many people who do so and you know they are not  going to keep that kind of schedule up for a lifetime.

People who will do that longer period of training (90-120 minutes per day) are usually around 18 years of age and perhaps thats their main focus on life, as responsibilities are pretty much non-existant in their life. Once life changes for them, they often quit exercising and make that famous excuse “i havent got time” again.

I think 90-120 minutes training is not only nearly impossible to stick to and keep up, its not productive. I know some of you have/do train for long periods, but was it/is it really sustainable long term without breaks? Wouldnt you like more time in your day to have fun and do other things?

I have had a couple of people train with me in the last couple of weeks (sons of parents i train) who said they usually workout for these long periods and i swear to god, we did a workout which was pretty non-stop and they lasted 29-30 minutes, and both of them very fit to start with. They couldnt believe how much they really did in half and hour and wanted to train this way forever, because there were BETTER things to do than hang out in the gym all day training!! They told me that they had never worked so hard, but it was of high-quality and they felt sure great results would come.

Thats the bottom line, if you can get some great, results-orientated training in your life and it only takes 30 minutes, WHAT are you waiting for. This lets you get awesome results, allows more time to do other things and keeps the chances of you staying fresh and actually KEEPING to the programme very high.

What more do you want?

The science is there now to support all of this, lets make this a way of life you can keep up AND get fantastic results from!!!

Twitt