Hi all,

As many of you who know, who have personal training in Manchesterwith us on a regular basis, training outdoors can get great results.

Many of our clients actually choose to have their personal training sessions outdoors. In my 10 years of experience I have had the pleasure of training clients in many of the parks across Manchester, Stockport and Cheshire. Over this time the quality of the parks have got a great deal better, with a much higher rate of community usage.

Here is my list of the top ten parks that I have conducted Personal Training Sessions in, now these are in no particular order:-

- Bruntwood Park
- Didsbury Park
- Tatton Park
- Sale Water Park
- Marie Louise Gardens
- Fletcher Moss
- Heaton Park
- Cringle Fields

So why not get outdoors and make the most of the great parks and outdoor training spaces we have in the North West!

Look out over the summer months for our FREE outdoor training programs that will appear on this blog!

Tom

Hi All,

Been meaning to get this written for a while. Fitpro is the leading magazine for personal trainers here in the UK. It has a long and established history, and has some of the countries (and the worlds) leading authorities in the fields of health, fitness and Wellbeing writing for it.  I have been a reader of Fit Pro for a number of years and you can’t walk into many staff rooms in gyms in the UK without coming across a copy of Fit Pro or one of its sister publications (Fit Pro Network and Fit Pro Business – look out for reviews of these in the next couple of weeks).

The magazine itself offers a wide range in terms of article subject matter.  One of the great features of Fit Pro Magazine is that it mixes both academic style articles based on reviews of current research with more practical base how to articles.  This allows the reader to pick up knowledge on a number of different levels from reading the one publication.  Fit Pro besides all the health, nutrition, physical activity and exercise based articles also looks at the business side of being involved in the fitness industry.  This is an area that a lot of publications miss out on but can have a massive effect on how well you operate as a personal trainer or fitness instructor.

The magazine also has a number of fun sections such as competitions to win all kinds of thing health related, it has also had a great range of seasonal ideas for the less imaginative personal trainer, such as Halloween special workouts and ski fit.  The magazine also places a great emphasis on interaction from readers, this is seen in the members forum section of the publication, where members can write in on whatever burning topics they wish.

One of the most impressive aspects of Fitpro magazie is that it is so responsive to the needs of the fitness community.  It always seems to be on the pulse of what is going on in the fitness industry and even better shows you a little glimpse of what is ahead.  The magazine is written in a friendly way that invites you to read it, it is not like some journals that are bogged down in the science and give little thought to the practicality of how to apply it.  Every time I have read a copy of Fit Pro I have taken away something new and it has improved my abilities as a Personal Trainer.

Fit Pro Magazine is well written and planned, it really is aimed solely at the specific needs of our industry.

If you are a Personal Trainer, Strength Coach, or anyone involved in Health and Fitness I strongly recommend that you take out a subscription to this awesome publication.

Have a look at the Website for more details.

TOM

Hi All,

I have been working with a number of new personal trainers in Manchester recently, I have been helping them to improve their base level skills and this we know will help them get much better results for their clients.

We have been working through a number of theories and principles over the past few days and I though some of these are so easy, they really can be applied by anyone to their choices of physical activity.  One of these principles is called FITT.

So What is the FITT Principle?

The FITT Principle is basically four variables that need to be controlled in order to dictate the intensity of your physical activity.

The four variables are:-

• Frequency
• Intensity
• Time
• Type

So what do these mean?

Frequency - How often are we choosing to perform a given activity? e.g. Once a day/week, every other day…

Intensity - How hard will we be working? e.g. light, moderate, vigorous, maybe going off a target Heart Rate

Time - How long will we do the activity for? e.g. 5 minutes, 30 reps…

Type - What type of activity will we use to be most effective at achieving our goal? e.g. walking, resistance machines…

Look out for our posts over the next few days applying this principle to the different types of exercise you need in your life! Then you can look at applying this to the activities you engage in!

TOM

HI All,

Not sure if you saw the first video that I posted containing Fritz (Wellness Mafia), be warned the video is a little different to the usual stuff that I post.  Awesome non the less so please do have a look!

What will Fritz do next?  Is he a Personal Trainer? Is he Human? Who knows!

TOM

TG: Hi Robert, thanks for being interviewed.  Could you start off by telling us a little about your background in the wellbeing industry?

RB: I started personal training initially out of one of the Fitness First health clubs in Queens Park.  I worked there as a freelance personal trainer for 2 years and really enjoyed my time there.  This gym was a hard gym to find clients in as most of the clients couldn’t really afford personal training but I managed to still get a 30 hour week of personal training on a regular basis here.  At the same time as working there I hired a personal training studio by the hour just off Baker Street where I trained one or two clients, this studio is actually where Power plate began and they shared an office with this studio.  This studio was tiny and had very little equipment it was at this point I decided I wanted my own studio at some point.

TG: Can you tell us a little about your studio?

RB: I opened Personal training studios W10 in 2006 as I wanted a place to train my clients from Notting Hill and Queens Park.  Personal training studios W10 is hired out to personal trainers by the hour and I am a personal trainer here to.  Personal training studios W10 is open 24 hours a day and we regularly train clients at 11:00pm and later.  Personal training studios W10 is a popular personal training location for businessmen and women who want to train in peace after a hard day.

TG: What do you think is the biggest myth in health and fitness?

RB: Just picking one is hard, but I would say my number one would be how often you need to workout, most guys think that if they workout 6 times a week they will get the best results, this is not the case, I tend to workout for 40 minutes at a time 3 times a week which for bodybuilding I find keeps me at the optimum level of muscle growth.

TG: What are your top 3 weight loss tips?

RB:

TG: What are the most common barriers that your clients have to sucsess and how do you overcome these?

RB: Time is always the main factor, this is what most people say holds them back, everyone has time to workout each week its just that it’s not a main priority so they never come around to doing it.

TG: What should someone look for when choosing a personal trainer?

RB: When looking for a personal trainer go on reputation, personal training testimonials are very important check out their testimonials on their websites.  Don’t get caught up on qualifications I know of many bad personal trainers who have loads of qualifications, experience I always think is more important but qualifications are essential to.  There are a huge number of bad personal trainers in London just doing the job as they think they can do a few hours work and make a good living from it, they often have no qualifications or experience so be warned.

TG: What are the three most important traits a personal trainer must have?

RB:

TG: Can you tell us a little about what you have on offer at your studio?

RB: At Personal training studios W10 we offer one on one personal training in a private luxury environment catering for most fitness and weight loss goals.  What ever time of day you want training we can train you.  The gym has parking right outside the door at 50p an hour so is easily accessible and the studio is available for exclusive hire so you can train in peace.

TG: Tell us a bit about what the future holds for you?

RB: We are currently looking to launch another Personal training studio in Mayfair in the next few months and we are launching an online supplement store soon to go live on our site.  If you are a personal trainer looking for a studio to work from then please come down and check us out, its an affordable studio to workout of and most of our trainers have been working here for years.

TG: Thanks for your time Robert, and we wish you all the best for the future!

Hi All,

Just a quick one we have just uploaded a load of information for those of you who are looking for quality personal training in the Stockport area. Look for your area below and get in contact!

Personal Training in Stockport

Personal Training in Bramhall, Personal Training in Breadbury, Personal Training in Brinnington, Personal Training in Cheadle, Personal Training in Cheadle Hulme, Personal Training in Davenport, Personal Training in Edgeley, Personal Training in Gatley, Personal Training in Hazel Grove, Personal Training in Heald Green, Personal Training in Heaton Chapel, Personal Training in Heaton Mersey, Personal Training in Heaton Moor, Personal Training in High Lane, Personal Training in Marple, Personal Training in Reddish, Personal Training in Romiley, Personal Training in Woodford, Personal Training in Woodley

Hi All,

As many of you know I am working with Mark Bowness of dontbuythismanapint.com to help him achieve his Wellbeing goal of staying off alcohol for a year. His blogging efforts have got me thinking about the ways that you can make yourself accountable.

Being accountable for your goals means that you have a system in place that is checking that you are keeping up with the steps you said you would take to move closer to your goal. Accountability greatly increases your chances of achieving your goals, you are no longer just accountable to yourself. But also to others this makes it alot harder to go easy on yourself.

When looking into this I came across a great blog written by Lauren Hutchinson, titled Shrinking Violet. She is on a weight loss mission, and is very open and honest about what she is doing to achieve this goal. She comments on her successes, failures and general feelings as she makes her way through this exciting and life changing process.

It is vital that you look for a method of accountability in the goals that you set yourself. This can be by sharing it with the world via a blog, or more low key by sharing your goals with a friend or family member who will support you. If it is a goal that you would like to keep more private, why not become accountable to yourself by making sure your goals are written down. Then keeping good records or a diary of your progress.

Make sure you have a look at Mark and Laurens blogs for some great inspiration.

Tom

This week I had the great pleasure of interviewing Alan Holl.  Alan has an wealth of knowledge within the wellbeing industry and is currently in charge of the personal training product for Fitness First.  We talked to him about the industry and how he feels that  people can make a change in their own lives.

TG: Hi Alan, thanks for being interviewed.  Could you start off by telling us a little about your background in the wellbeing industry?

AH:  I was originally a Physical Training Instructor in the Royal Navy until leaving and joining Fitness First.  I have been part of the National Fitness Team for 5 years now holding various roles including National Group Fitness.  I now head up Personal Training in the UK for Fitness First and I truly believe we are at a stage where we are leading the UK in our innovation and career opportunities with our Personal Training brand.

TG: What are the top 3 traits of a great personal trainer?

AH:  Personality, Be approachable and Dedication.

TG: What would you look for in a personal trainer?

AH:  That they are a people person…  They need to be able to inspire the clients that they are working with to go on and do things that they could not do alone.  A Personal Trainer needs to be dedicated to their clients and not to their own training and education, the training and education comes because they want to improve their clients chances of reaching their goals…. This sometimes gets overlooked.  There are some great training providers in the UK industry, notably Faster Global and we are starting to rival the US in some of our education, something I love about the UK industry.

TG: What is it that a personal trainer can give a client as opposed to the client working alone?

AH:  Motivation, empathy and that little extra push when times are hard.  When working out alone we all have off days, even I do.  With a trainer you almost become responsible to one another.

TG: In your experience what would you say are the 3 most important ground rules that should be set between clients and trainers?

AH:  Honesty, Integrity and most of all be able to laugh, even in the hard times.

TG: What would you say are your top 3 tips for weight loss?

AH:  Eat sensibly, Focus on your training sessions and rest.  Too many times people cut out all the things they are not supposed to eat and then fail, moderate things.  When you are training, give it your all just for that hour or so in the gym, it will soon be over.  Get to bed at a reasonable time and cut down the stress levels, this will help control your cortisol levels which is a huge reason why people don’t achieve.

TG: If you were the Prime Minister what would you do to get the nation back on the road to health?

AH:  Educate the nation properly.  Don’t just tell them to eat 5 a day, tell them why!!  The whole 5 a day thing is ok but when you are eating 3-5 pieces of fruit high in natural sugar you are sending your insulin levels into freefall so proper education into the reason why you should eat healthier would be better.

TG: How important is it that an individual sets themselves realistic weight loss goals?

AH:  Very.  The big mistake people make is measuring their achievements by weight.  Muscle is almost twice as heavy as fat so when you use weight as a gauge you can get disheartened when you don’t achieve and quit.  It is all about what you look like and how happy you are with yourself.  Pick a jean size and buy yourself some, there is your motivation!!

TG: Tell us a bit about what the future holds for you Alan?

AH:  To continue to support and inspire Personal Trainers to being the best they can be.  To grow the Fitness First Personal Training brand to be the obvious choice for every trainer in the UK.

TG: Thanks for your time Alan, and we wish you all the best for the future!

Have a look at fasterglobal.com!

Hi All,

If you would like a FREE copy of our new ’7 Days to a Healthier You’ Guide sign up below! FUll of great info for all those who want to loose weight and improve thier health, with action steps to get you to your weight loss goals!

Sign up Now for your FREE ’7 Day’s to a Healthier You’ Guide

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Enjoy!

Tom

HI All,

Just found a great video from one of my favorite YouTube posters, Wellness Mafia!

Think this video says a lot about how many people view fitness as something they just have to pay lip service to, rather than a lasting lifelong change!

It is not hard folks, eat well and  move more, these two things will massively improve your health!

TOM