Training

Positive Health Wellness have produced a definitive guide via an infographic with images of 19 reasons to start and benefits of strength training. This infographic was written by Karen Reed. The reasons to start strength training include:

- Reving up Our Metabolism 

- Protecting our Heart

All too often I hear people say that “I don’t have enough time to exercise” or “I am too busy to find time to train”. After asking people why this is, they often assume that you need to spend hours in the gym slogging away, for instance, on a cross trainer or treadmill. I then enquire about the type of training they do in the gym and the intensity they train at. The regular response is often something similar to “I spend 45 minutes on the cross trainer and then 30 minutes on the rowing machine and am sweating at the end”.

From my experience of working with clients, in order to help you achieve your health and fitness goals, the 3 key areas to focus on are training, nutrition and rest/recovery. However, a crucial component that people often overlook is rest/recovery. Rest days should form a vital part of your training programme. People often assume (wrongly) that you get stronger and fitter whilst training, for instance in the gym or going running.

I often get asked - especially by ladies - "will lifting weights make me too muscular and bulky". The answer to this is no. To gain large amounts of muscle size (like body builders) you would need to do years of highly intensive heavy weight lifting and follow a high calorie surplus diet (consuming more calories than you are burning off) with supplements. For most of us however, by following an appropriate resistance training programme and nutritional plan, we will lose body fat and improve our muscular definition and body composition but not gain significant bulk and size.

Lots of people say to me that over the Christmas and New Year period they are concerned about "putting weight on" or "losing their fitness" due to the excesses of the period e.g. over eating and lack of exercise. I understand where people are coming from because it is a time when there are lots of temptations, for instance, family parties and left over food/drink to consume.

One of the most important parts of my role as a Personal Trainer is to ensure that my clients keep on progressing and stay on the track to success. Staying focused can be difficult at times, however the following are some of the tips that I have used with my clients to keep them on the path to success:

In order to achieve your health and fitness goals it is vital to follow the 80/20 rule - eat nutritionally well and train hard 80% of the time and then rest and reward yourself the remaining 20%.