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21st january 2011

Another week when the cold and ice has definitely played its part. Its been tough to get out there and run most of the time, unless you were running on some grass where there has been no frost, or on the beach of course. Even with the beach, there was frost on the areas where the sun hadn’t hit the sand!! In parts, it was like running on concrete so you had to be careful wherever you were running/walking!! I love it outside though so its my job to seek out all the best places!!!

Another issue in this weather is the cold weather when running, especially when you are putting, or trying to put in good performances! Its not uncommon to experience a shortness in breath when temperatures are so low, so i wouldn’t worry too much about putting your absolute best workout in during weather like this, unless you’re inside of course which will be no problem of course!!

A big positive sign this week has been the lighter mornings and lighter nights, its only 21st january and things are looking up already!!! The shortest day was already a month ago so you should be experiencing more and more opportunities to get some quality workouts in. When there’s more light out there, you are more encouraged to do more and your enthusiasm to do well should be returning quickly.

Another exciting way to look at things is that spring is only around 10 weeks away, the sort of time you need to look absolutely fantastic!! You really CAN make the necessary changes in your life by spring IF you decide to do it right now. This is the exact time of year when everyone seems on a diet anyway, so you may as well try and start eating healthily and starting an exercise programme.

Its all very well these presenters in the media saying taking a brisk walk, which is great, but you also need MEANINGFUL exercise with a PURPOSE!!! This is what really brings results and theres plenty of workouts in the training/exercise section. It all starts with you deciding to change and you giving it everything you have. If you can get this mindset, then you’re already halfway there so lets give it your best!!!!!

Twitt
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20th January 2011

Mixing up your training is the hardest thing to come to terms with, besides actually doing the training in the first place. Most of us prefer to do one form of training and be comfortable with something we are fairly good at.

I know many people over the years to be obsessed with running and that’s it, that’s all they would do and a steady run would be all the variety they would want to experience.

They had never tried sprint training, hill running, running on beaches, or any form of resistance/weight training, it simply didn’t suit them in their opinion of course.

The facts are that they were/are depriving themselves of an all round programme that could be designed to work far better than the one they are on right now.

Weight training/resistance training is used in every single sport in the world now as science proves its value, and has so many benefits it would be impossible to list them here.

Then there’s the trainers who would never leave the gym, the “gym” was everything to them and no other training existed. A run or cycle in the great outdoors was alien to them, after all it couldn’t really be better than a “gym workout” could it?!!!

These types of individuals are also missing out, training should be a very enjoyable journey for you, taking in different experiences in as the weeks, months and years hopefully go by. If you don’t offer variety into your training, that horrible word “plateau” will soon come into your life.

Deep down, you know you want to be experiencing the kind of results that impress yourself as well as everyone else. You want your health covered too, no point in looking great and internally, you are sick and need attention.

Fortunately, looking good inside usually leads to looking good on the outside. If you’re fired up to make a difference in your life, then you need to open your mind up to all different types o training, and different kinds of food too.

I you’re a one trick pony, you will tend to get one dimensional results. Any programme has limited results for a certain period of time, so open your mind to change and try something new this weekend and that will usually mean getting outdoors, you never know, you may get to like it, never look back and love being outdoors!!!

Twitt
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19th January, 2011

Most people who are overweight lose or have lost control of their eating and sometimes a long time ago.

It could be the over-sized lunch full of mayonnaise and salad cream, it could be the over-sized take aways every single night, it could be the chip shop every night, it could be the big fried breakfast every single day, it could be the bakery and special of the day (every day!), whatever it is or indeed i have met some individuals who do ALL of the above, and thats when it gets really scary and you’re totally out of control. It’s like being in charge of a car with no brakes, you know you’re out of control and the ending is not going to be good.

If you live your life like this, then heart disease, diabetes and blood pressure problems are likely to be big parts of your life.

Its very likely you have a food addiction and you have to face the fact that your life more than likely revolves around food.

This theory is supported by science in study after study.

Recent research found that people with a family history of alcoholism had increased risks of being overweight, suggesting that both conditions might be driven by the same tendency towards addictive behaviour.

A lot of researchers also believe that food addiction is the number one cause of the civilised world’s obesity ticking time bomb.

Fat, sugar and salt are such a major part of our diets these days that its no wonder more and more people are developing addictions to food.

A lot of people if not all eat too much food because they are finding comfort from other pain in their lives. Its ironic then that the massive weight gain and ill health always associated with eating in such quantities becomes the NEW source of pain and unhappiness in people’s lives. It then becomes a vicious circle and explains why despite many attempts, most people go back to the old way of eating, and also explains why most people are on a diet now, but are likely to fall off by mid-february, when life unfortunately goes back to “normal”.

You have to try and make the big leap now, get away from the life of salt, sugar and saturated fat, its only got misery for you to come if you don’t!!! Get back to plainer and more natural foods, avoid sugary drinks (the quickest way to put on weight), drink more water, don’t buy in sugary snacks (they only lead to more and more and are addictive.

The sooner you give up the junk, the sooner your life is back on track and you get close to where you want to be!!!!

Twitt
Posted on

Tuesday 18th January

This is a workout posted for Chris working down west, who contacted me earlier looking for a quick 20 minute workout he can do whilst he was on the road all week.

Here goes.

Its an extension of my basic 4 minute workout, when you pick out 5-6 basic but results giving exercises, and make your best efforts on each of those specific exercises. If chris is feeling like rubbish after christmas, and totally out of shape, he needs to start off slowly this week, just making sure he does the workouts, since i know chris, i know he very capable and more than able to get 3 good workouts in this week, so he does not need to start off at complete beginner, and his workout should look something like this!

Press ups-best effort

Arm dips-best effort

alternate squat thrusts-best effort

sit ups-best effort

plank-best effort

Then, he records how much he does in each exercise. For instance, if he can do 10 press ups, 10 arm dips, 20 alternate squat thrusts, 20 sit ups and 20 seconds on the plank, he needs to do a total of 3 circuits and they will then look like this.

The key is to halve his best totals so then-

Press ups-5

arm dips-5

alternate squat thrusts-10

sit ups-10

plank-10 seconds

As you can see i have halved everything to allow him to do a total of THREE circuits, which should allow him to get a sweat up, still working every area of his body. He should then rest the day after, then do this workout again, rest the day after, then do this workout again and this enables him to have a good week’s training.

If Chris is feeling energetic next week, and instead of dropping into the pub every night, i would recommend he does some light sprints up a nasty hill, look for 4 sprints of 30 yards both forwards and backwards, i would do this twice a week with a 3-4 day gap in between. Hopefully, Chris’ knee is okay as i know he’s had a problem years back with this, so i it causes any problems, let me know chris!!!

All of training won’t count for much unless he stays of the booze in the week, and eats some decent food, which he can find in any supermarket, keep it largely fresh and healthy food and he won’t go far wrong!!! See the diet and food section for that!!

Good luck and you have a great opportunity here to make a diffference!!!!

Twitt
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Monday, January 17th 2011

If you have started the new year with a bang, then good luck to you but its important to keep your structure going throughout January and beyond.

For example, if you haven’t trained for a while and started off 3 times a week training, then thought if 3 is good, then 6 times a week must be much better, possibly twice as good!!!

While you may get great results for a couple of weeks doing it this way, the likelihood of you reaching a plateau will be extremely high, or even getting an injury because your body will not be used to all of the extra work, I am talking 6 high quality workouts, not 3 good workouts and 3 good walks.

If you ask most people about their training, they seem to be pre-occupied to telling you how MANY times they have trained that week., the actual performance is usually never mentioned.

We never mentioned last week about 4 minute workouts, and the possibility of going from around 5 press ups in week 1, to easily 25 press ups in week 6. This way of training has to be totally focused on performance and focus on making measurable progress, this is what creates improvement in your body.

The ability to make improvements training 6 times a week is reserved for those who have excellent sleep every or most nights, those who are extremely good with their eating and have been training at a high level for a long time. Not saying that you can’t get there, but it does take a while and a lot of dedication to living a healthy lifestyle.

Bottom line this week is to make your workouts count in a big way. I you’re doing sprints up hill and you’re currently managing 4 sprints up a steep hill and 4 sprints backwards, then that total could easily be up to 8 sprints forwards and backwards by now, if you have been consistent since the new year.

If you have been cycling and had to keep it flat cycling, then it won’t be long before you’re strong enough to attack some hills, in the process becoming a much better and stronger cyclist.

If you have been doing some circuits in the gym or at home, then not only will they feel a lot more comfortable but you should be looking at adding some extra weight to a few of the exercises, creating a much more intense workout.

Assess your progress in training terms once a week, and look to make small gains every week, however small, and try not to get in a rut and don’t go through the motions.

Improving can become a very good habit, just as staying the same can become the norm. Always look to change things around and keep your body guessing. Keep your programme fresh and you will become a much better athlete full stop!!!

Twitt