Posted on

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
Posted on

Monday, 30th April

One  big reason to practice functional training instead of “run of the mill” workouts is sheer range of movement and “real life” application.

You aren’t going to get as many meaningful benefits from just using machines compared to the multi-benefits of functional exercise.

For instance, a simple test i do on individuals and turn it into an exercise is simply standing up and down on a chair.

Most people can do this, some cannot however and will really struggle to get up. This shows a lack of mobility and underlying strength.

This shows a lack of strength in the core more specifically, and this will give me significant clues about the programme that needs to be prescribed.

How many people do you know who need a lift up from a chair? Quite a few i would imagine especially after the age of 50? When you think about it, this is FAR too young to be experiencing mobility problems and work needs to be immediately done on this vital source of power and movement for the body.

Every exercise i give an individual, i will be looking for “real life” benefits from it. Every workout should help the individual live a better quality of life, that’s my mission every time.

So you can i get more than a little frustrated with people whose sole focus is “losing weight”! This means the individual doesnt really know the vast and true possibilities and opportunities that correct exercise selection brings.

Yes, you WILL drop some weight, body fat from the exercises i give you, sometimes a substantial amount if needed, but appreciating the big picture will make your health and fitness programme far more rewarding for you.

 This is why i really despise weight loss clubs and their false claims. They only focus on the weight, usually done in an unsustainable way too, so in my book they will always be a total “no no”!

Enjoy your training and the many real life benefits it brings.

Twitt
Posted on

Thursday, 26th April

Back pain often comes from imbalances throughout the body as we have talked about a million times on here.

It can come from simple things you never even thought about in your day.

From driving and reaching over the radio all the time to one side, to lounging in the chair while watching television, the causes are more simple than you thought and can be sorted out purely through behavioural change.

I have seen nasty back situations develop from reading a book in bed on one side, doing things only on one side will eventually lead to imbalances that need to be sorted and the sooner the better.

Simply by choosing to live your life with better posture habits will count for a lot when it comes to long term back health full stop. Make sure you make this vital change today.

Other back weakness can develop through working one side of the body and ignoring the other.

For example, if you only work the thighs and never work your hamstrings, then your back will eventually suffer, as well as poor hamstring strength of course, leading to injury, pain, cramping possibly at times, and you guessed it back pain!!!

Always work both sides of the body.

If you work your chest and shoulders but fail to do a range of back exercises, then it doesn’t take a genius to work out that back weakness will likely comes your way.

If you only run or just cycle, and you don’t do any strength or core stability work, then back pain is quite common amongst most participants.

These examples should really ram home the point about doing your core stability/balance work, doing the exercises we always talk about on here that you know are so good for you, and ignorance/reluctance to change is the only thing that may be stopping you have a very strong and healthy back!

Make it happen today.

Twitt
Posted on

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
Posted on

Thursday, 19th April

If you are a strong exerciser, or at least you consider yourself a regular exerciser, then the next question you need to ask yourself is what you are getting out of your exercise programme.

If you do the same thing, day in day out, workout to workout, chances are that you are stuck in a rut and haven’t really improved one bit for a substantial period of time.

This may be a mad statement for someone who trains regular but in my view, staying still in life is the exact wrong thing you should be doing and you should be looking at where your progress is going to come from next, instead of accepting the status quo and leaving ambition leave your life.

If you only do cardio the whole time, and by this I mean treadmill and bike maybe, with the occasional stepper session and maybe rowing machine thrown in from time to time, you are limiting your progress.

Of course you will be doing yourself a lot of good, but there’s much more in you if you think of other things to do.

For example, if you don’t do any resistance/weight training, then you are missing out on bone density improvements, a level of hardness in your body that you have never experienced before and a ton of other benefits that you never thought existed!

If you are not doing the kind of core stability work that I always advocate on here, then you are missing out on fundamental improvements on your balance, your strength at your body’s most important point, you are missing out on greater back strength, and in fact, your spine will be a whole lot healthier due to the muscles that are supporting it becoming much, much stronger and more stable.

If you have never boxed or hit a punch bag in your life, then you probably have the misconception that you “don’t want to be like a boxer”.

The truth is that the benefits again of boxing are tenfold, and if you are interested in a tighter waist, stronger back and hips, leaner arms and shoulders, and leaner stronger legs, then you need to get boxing and soon!!!

Don’t get stuck in a rut, the old saying is that the difference between a rut and a grave is only the depth!!

Twitt