April 29, 2020

Staying Active at Home

Staying Active at Home

View our  Facebook Live Timetable HERE

Low Level/Specialised Workouts:

Yoga:

Full body / HIIT:

Mindfulness / Breathing Exercises:

1. Mindfulness Practice with Nikki –  Listen on SoundCloud 

Our fitness instructor Nikki has create an amazing mindfulness practice – a breath awareness exercise. Listen on SoundCloud by clicking the link above.

This exercise must be practised in a safe environment e.g it should not be listened to while driving a car or operating machinery as its a deeply relaxing practice. 

2. A Guided Relaxation Practice with Nikki – Listen on SoundCloud 

This guided relaxation is a basic body scan bringing the body and mind into a state of rest. 

Lockdown has understandably increased anxiety and stress, with some people experiencing anxiety for the first time, so I’m hoping it’ll be beneficial to many. 

I usually use Relaxation at the end of yoga class or following exercise. But It can be practiced to wind down after a busy or emotional day, to prepare your body for sleep or to help get you back to sleep. It can help move your attention away from worry and stress by changing your focus. 

I would recommend for anybody practicing to have pillows and cushions to hand to make yourself comfortable and a blanket to keep yourself warm during this practice. 

Kids Exercise Videos:

Kids Exercise Videos can be found HERE

1. Tennis at Home – Family Activities and Exercises

LTA has created 12 fun activities and exercises that parents and children can play at home, to hone their tennis skills while getting crucial exercise.

View Activities and Exercises here

Written Workouts:

Home workout from Colin Hunt MBE

The principles behind this workout routine are based on body weight and good technique and if I can say although time controlled it is not about how quickly you can complete the sets!! So remember Good Form please 😊

19 x Squats

  1. Stand with feet a little wider than hip width apart,  toes facing front.
  2. Drive your hips back – bending at the knees and ankles and pressing your knees slightly open  – as you …..
  3. Sit into a SQUAT position while still keeping your heels and toes firmly on the ground, chest up and shoulders back.
  4. Raise your body back into a standing position keeping your back straight as you do so and repeat. 

19 x Press -ups

  1. The Correct setup for a standard press-ups to position your hands shoulder-width apart, or a little wider if you want to make it harder.
  2. As you bend your elbows and lower towards the ground , your elbows should be at about a 45 – degree angle to your body.
  3. When you reach the bottom of your press start to lift back up extending your arms back up into a straight arm position.
  4. Repeat and again lower down to press. 

19 x Burpee’s

  1. Stand with your feet shoulder – width apart, arms by your sides.
  2. Push your hips back, bend your knees and lower your body into a squat.
  3. Reach forward to place your hands on the floor, directly in front of and just inside your feet. Shifting your weight onto your hands.
  4. Jump your feet back to softly land on the balls of your feet in a plank position. Your body should form a straight line from your head to heels. Be careful not to let your back sag or your bottom to stick up in the air, as both can keep you from effectively working your core.
  5. Jump your feet back so that they land just outside of your hands.
  6. Reach your arms over your head and explosively jump up into the air.
  7. Land safely and immediately lower back into a squat for your next rep.
  8. Kick your legs straight out behind you and immediately lower your entire body down to the ground, bending at the elbows. 

These 3 exercises should be repeated  x 6 times and take a 20 / 30 second rest in between sets. I expect this to be completed in under 19 minutes …….

 Work to your own ability and fitness level and if you need to adapt any of the exercises to suit you then feel free to do so. (An example of this would be to use a Step or a Box / Crate to rest your hands on  – or even a bench!)

For those of you who come to my classes you will find similar routines in Rev’s plus held on a Monday evening at Wirral Tennis and Sports Centre and Pure Core held at Leasowe Recreation Centre on a Thursday evening when we are back to normal.  I will be testing you all out on our return 😊Good luck with it.

Home workout from Charles - Lower Body

Whilst following the following workout you need to rest for 30 seconds between sets and 90 seconds between workouts. If weights are needed you can use dumbbells, barbells, bands, food items, cans, bags of clothes etc, you just need to be inventive!

Jumping Squats          2 x 25 reps

Goblet squats             4 x 15 reps

RDL                                4 X 15 reps

Lunges                          3 x 15 reps (each leg)

Hip Thrusts                3 x 15 reps failure          

Standing calf rises    4 x failure

Wall sit                         3 x 30 seconds               

Home workout from Kirsten - 10 minute blast

1 minute     Burpee side jumps 

1 minute      Wide arm press up

1 minute     One burpee press up side jump repeat

1 minute      Feet hip distance squat 

1 minute     Hip distance squat jumps

1 minute     1 squat, 1 squat jump. 

1 minute      Mountain climber 

1 minute      plank ( on elbows)

1 minute      10 mountain climber..10 second plank

1 minute      Sprint to finish

Home workout from Kirsten - Abs Blast

Make sure you have a full body warm up, have a stop watch to hand and rest for 20/30 seconds between each set

SET 1

30 second plank

30 second repeater crunch.

REPEAT FOR 20 SECONDS EACH

REPEAT FOR 10 SECONDS EACH

SET 2.

( hands under hips for easier option)

30 seconds .. lay flat legs in and out

30 seconds … lay flat legs up and down REPEAT 20 SECONDS EACH REPEAT 10 SECONDS EACH 3.

SET 3

(Can side dip to make it harder)

30 second side plank right arm/elbow

30 seconds side plank left arm/elbow

REPEAT 20 SECONDS EACH

REPEAT 10 SECONDS EACH

SET 4

30 second Russian twist

30 second V sit

REPEAT 20 SECONDS EACH

REPEAT 10 SECONDS EACH

SET 5

30 second V sit hold

30 second flutter kicks

REPEAT 20 SECONDS EACH

REPEAT 10 SECONDS EACH

Ron's Lockdown workout

The 3 workouts below are all 5 minutes long and are created for 3 levels, Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced.

Level 1. Beginner  Equipment. 1 dining chair. 2 tins beans ( if you want).

Beginner workout. 5 mins sitting in a chair.

  1. March on the spot
  2. Seated Swim. ( front crawl / breaststroke)
  3. Seated Punching out in front
  4. Repeat 5 times
  5. 20 seconds on each exercise.

Level 2. Intermediate Equipment : 2 tins beans/ 2 medium dumbbells(weights)

Intermediate workout. 5 mins whilst standing:

  1. Brisk March.
  2. Jump jacks
  3. High knees.
  4. 20 secs on each.
  5. Repeat 5 times.

Level3. Advanced No equipment.

  1. Sprint on spot
  2. Burpees
  3. Pushups
  4. Repeat 5 times
  5. 20 secs on each.

Remember to warm up and cool down before exercise If you are a regular exerciser you will know how to do this. If you are a beginner. Do some arm swings and some high knee lifts (can be done seated) before your exercise.Unless you are training at an advanced level, ( you won’t need these), you can do these workouts everyday. Repeat as often as you feel you need/want. Move up a level if the level you are at is too easy.  

Les Mills On Demand 

In addition to these great home workout videos, Les Mills at home have also created over 100 FREE fitness videos for everyone to follow to help in our plans to stay fit and healthy.

They can be viewed here: Les Mills On Demand

WIRRAL LEISURE DISCLAIMER Read More

April 24, 2020

Kids Home Exercise Videos

Our wonderful instructors at Wirral Leisure have created a number of Kids Home Exercise Videos for you to try out with the little ones!

All the videos attached below can also be found on our YouTube Channel: Wirral Leisure

April 20, 2020

Ladies who Launch

Wirral Sailing Centre hosts a very special group of sailors & windsurfers on Wednesday mornings and Thursday evenings during the season – our “Ladies who Launch”! A couple of friendly, fun hours on the water are followed by coffee and a good gossip and we make the best of any sunshine on offer.

The group was started in spring 2016 and we now have a strong and faithful following. Beginners are always welcome and it’s been brilliant to see them building both skills and confidence on the water; several have gone on to gain RYA awards. Everyone learns at their own pace in a supportive, non-competitive environment – even the instructors are ladies, although just occasionally we may have to engage a gentleman instructor to cover holiday; we ensure that he’s absolutely charming! 

Lady Sailing on Marine Lake

Our beginners usually sail together in a big double-handed dinghy – comfortable and sociable, with an instructor onboard, whilst our more advanced sailors relish the stronger winds that West Kirby Marine Lake is renowned for! Sessions aren’t restricted to sailing though; we have windsurfing ladies and when conditions haven’t been suitable for sail sports we’ve turned our hand to power boating and paddle boarding too. The instructors love the sessions every bit as much as our customers, especially the après sail! One of our founding members, Bernie Hailwood, has since gone on to qualify as an RYA Dinghy Instructor herself, and is now a regular and much loved member of our team.

On the back of Ladies who Launch the centre hosted a Ladies Day last summer which around 100 ladies attended and all got on the water, many for the first time. The whole day was absolutely wonderful, with light winds offering a gentle introduction to a whole range of water sports activities. We decorated the yard with bunting and flags and set up a refreshment area, which was amply supplied with offerings from our regular ladies, most of whom can bake a darn good cake!

Ladies who launch
Ladies who launch Zoom catch up

Two years ago six of our group enjoyed a wonderful adventure to Greece. We transferred our sailing skills to a yacht and cruised the enticing blue waters of Corfu! Most of us onboard had little or no experience on a big boat but we were beautifully taught by our skipper, Gill, so much so that after a particularly accomplished anchoring we were enthusiastically greeted by two German ladies, who were swimming close by, with the words “Frau Power!” Sadly, we can’t guarantee a trip to the Mediterranean but if any readers would like to join our friendly group we can promise a very warm welcome!

We didn’t want the current situation to prevent us from keeping in touch so during this period of lockdown we’ve hosted a Ladies who Launch virtual coffee morning, every Wednesday, using Zoom! It’s been lovely to keep in touch with everyone and we’ll be meeting online every week until we can get back on the water.

Ladies who may be interested in joining the group are more than welcome; please contact lizgilliver@wirral.gov.uk for more details and please don’t feel you have to wait – if you’d like to join us now, for a virtual coffee and catch up, that’s just fine !

In the meantime “frau power”, ladies! Miss you all!

April 17, 2020

What type of yoga do you teach? – Colin’s Yoga Blog

I’m often asked ‘What type of yoga do you teach?’ So, in this post, I’ve decided to discuss the subject in more detail. Hopefully I’ve gotten my facts correct, but I encourage you to do your own research to verify what I’ve written.

Outside of India, yoga is mostly practised just for physical exercise (asana) and relaxation.

Personally, I don’t see any harm done from practising yoga just as a form of exercise, however, traditional yoga is a very spiritual practice with the ultimate aim of achieving ‘Liberation’ (a higher state of consciousness). Nonetheless, yoga isn’t a religion, it’s arguably more like a science. There are several traditional styles of yoga (or ‘union’), and some have been practised in India for at least 5000 years!

To achieve Liberation, traditional yoga devotees will spend many hours each day seated in meditation . And, if necessary, they will give up many of the material things of modern life to achieve their goal. That’s why many devotees of traditional yoga join ashrams or, for example, they will live in a mountain cave – it’s so that they can escape the distractions of everyday life and focus entirely on their spiritual practice.

Nowadays, the majority of yoga that is practised is called ‘Modern Postural Yoga’. I teach Modern Postural Yoga at the leisure centres, in a style which is called Vinyasa Flow Yoga. As the name implies, we ‘flow’ from one posture to the next, only stopping to hold a stretch or balance. There are many styles of Modern Postural Yoga but they all borrow postures/stretches (asana) from a very ancient traditional style of yoga called Hatha Yoga.

What is Hatha Yoga?

In a nutshell, Hatha Yoga is a methodology of physical and mental techniques, which the practitioner follows until, eventually, they achieve Liberation. It involves the practise of techniques that (allegedly) increase the flow of energy through the practitioners body; for example, internal body cleansing, asanas (posture/stretching) and pranayama (breath control). With constant practise of these techniques, the devotee develops great strength and self-discipline.

During the evolution of Modern Postural Yoga some of the postures, that were borrowed from Hatha Yoga, have been modified to make them safer or more appropriate for a gym or studio setting. Sports science and physiotherapy have played a part in this evolution.

Furthermore, new postures have been added; for example, it may surprise you to learn that the sun salutation (surya namaskara) is a 20th Century invention? To sum up, I teach Modern Postural Yoga which emphasises physical fitness rather than the pursuit of higher states of consciousness. However, many of the postures that we practise in Modern Postural Yoga have been borrowed from the very ancient, traditional Indian form of yoga known as Hatha Yoga.

April 3, 2020

Yoga at Home – Things to Consider – Colin’s Yoga Blog

Yoga at Home – Things to Consider

Our Wirral Leisure Fitness Instructor Colin G has created this informative blog on things to consider when doing Yoga practices at home to ensure everyone is keeping safe while enjoying their practices!

Now that the gyms and leisure centres are all closed, practising yoga at home is your only
alternative. But I know from experience that this can be difficult to sustain. So, here’s a few
things to consider before you start. It’s not an exhaustive list, but it may help some of you,
particularly those with more experience.

ARE THEY QUALIFIED?

If you have decided to watch and practice yoga from the internet, then here are some
things you should think about:

  • The unqualified can create a yoga video and upload it onto the internet.
  • Just because the video has had thousands of views/likes doesn’t mean that it is
    safe and appropriate for your body.
  • Some videos contain very advanced postures/stretches which may only be suitable for practitioners with decades of experience.
  • If you are desperate to learn the Headstand, now is not the time to do it – do not try
    to copy the amazing yogi in the YouTube video! Wait until you can find a teacher for
    one-on-one instruction.

THE PRACTICE

I would not worry about trying to complete a 60 or 90 minute class. Instead, keep the
practice short but frequent. Aim for at least 3 practice days per week. Regular practice is the key to maintaining your flexibility and strength. Keep it simple, and practice what you know. Work a little bit more on the postures that you can do safely, but find difficult.

WARM-UP

Tell yourself that this is non-negotiable. It has been scientifically proven that warming the
muscles and joints through gentle movements of the torso and limbs reduces the risk of
injury. So, before you stretch take a few minutes to move your limbs and torso through
various, but gentle, movement.

BREATHING

Your rate of breathing is a good indicator of how you are performing. It should be slow and
relaxed, especially in a stretch. If your breathing becomes fast and laboured then you need
to rest or slow down your practice until your breathing becomes relaxed and steady again.

DON’T USE FORCE

Never, ever force yourself into a stretch/posture. Muscles will only stretch correctly when
they are warm and relaxed. If your muscles are tense and you then force them to stretch,
you may injure yourself. Always move into a stretch gently, slowly and cautiously. Be
constantly aware of how your body feels in the stretch/posture. If you feel pain or it just
doesn’t feel right when you come into a posture/stretch, then please stop doing it!

KEEP YOUR KNEES SAFE

Knees are a hinge joint. They allow your lower leg to move up and down in one direction.
Don’t twist your knees because it is very bad for them. For example, have you ever been
tempted to put your leg/legs in a Lotus, like the amazing yogini in the YouTube video? But,
your foot does not want to go over your shin or thigh? So you have to force it over?
Understand that every time you force your foot over your shin or thigh in the lotus posture,
a powerful turning force will be transmitted directly to your knee joint which may, one day
soon, cause your knee meniscus to tear! Once the meniscus is torn, only surgery can
repair it.

BEND YOUR KNEES

When you bend forward and rise back up, don’t forget to keep bending your knees! Unless
you are very flexible and strong, straight legs may lead to a lower back injury.

USE YOUR HIPS TO BEND FORWARD

Forward bends are initiated from the hips, not your lower back! Once your hips stop
moving forward, don’t be tempted to continue movement by bending your lower back.

BACKBENDS

Be cautious – your spine is important! As always, your goal is a very gentle stretch . Don’t
compress your lower back in an effort to get into a deeper stretch. And don’t hold your
breath in the stretch – keep breathing!

DO WHAT YOU KNOW

Practice what you know. Don’t try to learn new complicated and/or challenging postures
without the help of a qualified teacher. Furthermore, some of the advanced postures need
to be ‘spotted’ by the teacher, who will physically help you out of the posture, should
anything go wrong.

RELAX

Don’t forgot relaxation (Savasana) at the end of your practice.
It doesn’t have to be intense or of a long duration, but please try to keep a regular home
yoga practice, and you will maintain a lot of your current strength and flexibility. Then,
when the classes eventually resume, you will ‘hit the ground running’!

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February 25, 2020

Pre and Post Gym Beauty Hacks

Going to the gym should be an empowering time dedicated to self-improvement and connecting with yourself. But we know that isn’t always the case. In-between a hectic morning commute, lugging a gym bag around, and fighting against the weather, sometimes it’s not quite as effective as you’d hope.

That’s why we’ve compiled this short list of Pre and Post Gym Beauty Hacks, to help streamline your day!

Pre-Gym

  • Plait your hair.

No time to wash your hair post work-out? Don’t just chuck it into a ponytail- plait your hair instead!

Braids are stronger and will do a better job of holding your hair in place, whilst any heat or moisture you build up will help to set the braids, resulting in lovely loose waves when you take them out. Not to mention, you’ll also avoid that dreaded ponytail dent.

  • Use dry shampoo.

Hair not long enough for braids? Dry shampoo is your new best friend.

It’s a common tip to use it after exercise, however, the best trick is to apply it before! The dry shampoo will get to work the entire time, and once you’ve finished your workout, a quick blast from the hair dryer will rid you of any moisture and disperse the dry shampoo throughout your hair.

  • Take your make-up off.

As you exercise, your pores open up in order to release sweat. Makeup can form a pore blocking barrier on your skin, leading to a congesting mix of makeup, oil and perspiration that can result in spots, blackheads or irritation.

Skip the make up and save yourself time (and money) in covering your skin in the future. Your pores will thank you for it!

  • Wear gym-proof makeup.

If you prefer wearing makeup, make sure it won’t let you down.

Waterproof or clear mascara will prevent those pesky black smears, and oil-free, lightweight foundation/ BB cream is the least likely to cause any skin troubles.

During Gym

  • Use deodorant wipes

Don’t have time for a post gym shower? No judgement here- deodorant wipes will sort you out.

Instead of using a towel to mop up sweat, deodorant wipes will work the hardest, effectively wicking away moisture and odorous bacteria, leaving you smelling and feeling fresh.

These are only to be used in the tightest of times however. Got to think of the planet!

  • Deep condition your hair.

Believe it or not, the gym is the perfect time for an indulgent hair treatment – just not the proper gunky stuff (unless you don’t mind the stares!)

Spritz a lightweight, hydrating formula into your locks, scrape them back and let it get to work. The heat you generate will open up your hair cuticles, and the product can better penetrate each strand.

  • Use hand-sanitizer.

Whilst your pores are open, you don’t want germs getting in there. Try to avoid touching your face during your workout, or better yet, keep a hand sanitizer on… hand.

Post-Gym

  • Take a cold shower.

Yep. Embrace the freeze. It’ll help lower your core body temperature, stop you from sweating and reduce redness in the skin.

If you can’t brave a full cold shower, go for an icy blast right at the end.

  • Exfoliate

Post-gym is a great time to exfoliate due to your opened pores. This makes it the perfect time to wash away dirt, bacteria, and impurities.

If you’re a gym junkie, make sure you don’t do this every time! Over exfoliating can cause inflammation and exacerbate acne. Once every 2-3 days should be more than enough.

  • Moisturise immediately after stepping out of the shower.

The earlier you moisturise, the more time your skin has to absorb the product, and the less likely you’ll struggle into jeans with sticky skin! Also, the product will absorb any moisture left on your skin, leaving you feeling even silkier.

  • Use lotion to remove panda eyes.

Double up your product usage with moisturiser as a makeup remover. Any mascara or eyeliner smears can be quickly removed with a dot of lotion on a cotton swab, or the corner of your towel.

  • Opt for creamy makeup.

Post workout skin can seem a bit sticky, which can make powder foundations, bronzers or blush sit on the skin a little awkwardly. Creamy foundations, blush, or contour sticks can blend easier on the skin, for a more natural finish.

  • Use multi-purpose products.

Streamline your gym bag and minimise the time spent finding things. Vaseline as a lip balm and highlight. Lip stain that doubles up as a blush. The same powder for brows and eyeshadow. The list is endless!

Got any more Pre or Post Gym Beauty Hacks? Let us know on Facebook!

Fancy trying our centres out for free? Register for a 3 Day Pass today!

February 18, 2020

Hilbre Explorer Boat Trip

Hilbre Explorer boat trip – a special way to explore the stunning Wirral coastline

The Trip

The trip, which is run by Wirral Sailing Centre, offers passengers the opportunity to discover Hilbre Island and the surrounding area from a different perspective. Aboard our manoeuvrable RIB (Rigid Inflatable Boat) we get up close and personal with the wildlife, enjoy the magnificent scenery and learn a little about the fascinating history and geology of the area. All from the ever changing environment of the tidal waters that make up the Dee Estuary.

The idea was conceived in 2010 following a conversation with Dave Cavanagh, the popular Coastal Ranger who looked after Hilbre at the time. Initially we wanted to offer our passengers a closer look at the colony of Atlantic Grey Seals which can be seen hauled out on Hoyle Bank when the tide is out – curious by nature, we knew the seals would reciprocate! An exploratory trip with Dave, however, opened our eyes to the wealth of riches on the estuary, and the following year the trip (fondly nicknamed “DeeTour”) opened to the public trouvé sur ce site.

Every Trip is Different

Every trip is different according to the changing seasons and the weather. Although it’s wonderful to be on the water in glorious sunshine we’ve learned that we’ll see considerably more seals on an overcast day. We usually find them early in the trip, feeding in an area of choppy water just off Tanskey Rocks. The big bull males, with their large Romanesque noses (their Latin name ‘Halichoerus grypus’ translates literally as ‘hook nosed sea pig’!) regard us with big, brown eyes. If we are especially lucky we may also spot harbour porpoise – related to the bottle nosed dolphin. These elusive creatures can be spotted when they surface for air, their dorsal fins cutting through the surface of the water in an elegant arc.

Early autumn is a dream come true for bird watchers; the islands are important as a stopping-off point for the twice yearly migration of birds along the west coast of Britain, as well as being a high tide roost when the vast expanse of mud flats is covered by water. Huge colonies of oyster catchers, dunlin and knot congregate both on the islands and on the shoreline of West Kirby beach. Binoculars are a must!

Whats Included?

We take some time to explore Little Eye, Middle Eye & Hilbre. Passengers can hear tales of lost love by Ladies Cave and of smuggling and wrecking as we pass the Devil’s Hole – without giving too much away (in case you’re thinking of taking the trip) did you know there used to be a pub on Hilbre called ‘The Seagull’? By all accounts the landlord, who took full advantage of the Wirral’s treacherous waters, was a very wealthy man.

A trip on a RIB is not complete without a short joyride! We are, of course, careful to drive the boat sedately in the vicinity of any wildlife, but once well clear of the islands we throttle up, to the delight of our passengers! It’s not uncommon to hear a few whoops! We usually find the time to visit Thurstaston before concluding the trip with a close look at the colourful boats on the moorings at West Kirby.

With Several Seasons Under Our Belt

With several seasons under our belt the Hilbre Explorer has consistently received excellent feedback. It’s proved especially popular with our more mature customers (some of whom find the walk out to Hilbre a little too far these days) but definitely has something for everyone. The boat is licenced by the Maritime Coastguard Agency, carries full safety kit and the crew are experienced, knowledgeable and friendly. We look forward to welcoming readers aboard this summer!

“Sealtastic!”

“Excellent, entertaining, educational” D.Andrew

“We thought it was going to be good, but it was fantastic!” D.Taylor

Just a taste of the enthusiastic feedback we’ve received from passengers who’ve taken the Hilbre Explorer boat trip.

Hilbre Island
Atlantic Grey Seal

For further details please contact Wirral Sailing Centre on 0151 929 7707.

Please note, we also offer a full range of water sports courses; choose from sailing, windsurfing, stand up paddle boards, kayaking or power boating. Call the centre on the number above to find out more. Wirral Sailing Centre is an RYA Training Centre and is operated by Wirral Borough Council.

View Wirral Sailing Centres Web page & Facebook Wirral Sailing Centre for more information.

Photo Credit: Ron Thomas

January 24, 2020

Getting into Strength Training

Getting into strength training can be intimidating, but don’t let your preconceived ideas stop you. The benefits of strength training are endless!

Whilst increased strength and muscle growth is a common desired outcome, there are lots of different reasons to lift weights, such as:

  • Improving athletic performance
  • Increasing movement efficiency and function
  • General metabolic health
  • Body composition management (eg muscle > fat)
  • Bone density and tackling signs of aging

Remember, strength training doesn’t always result in bulk! Depending on how you train, it can provide you with a lean physique, or help to build certain areas, such as glutes.

Whatever your goal and your reason for becoming stronger, here are 5 top tips to ensure that your transition to strength training is safe and effective.

  1. Treat Your Strength Training as a Practice

This is a subtle one but will make a huge difference to the long-term effectiveness of your strength training. To ‘train’ is to complete without thought, but, to ‘practice’ is to mindfully execute with great precision.

When you practice, you’re more likely to make good decisions about your strength training, such as the appropriate load for your current skill level or the tempo of your lifting being in sync with your co-ordination. Keeping the mind-body connection enhances your development, and for some, can become meditative in nature.

When you train, you may have the mentality of ‘just getting it done’ and have little to no connection to the benefit of each movement. In time, you’re likely to become so dissociated to the exercise that you risk injury or losing the motivation to turn up.

  1. Learn The Primal Movements

When you’re getting started, there’s nothing more important than technique. Remember, there’s plenty of body weight exercises you can perform, which may assist you in your transition to the weight training area.

Seek out a trusted trainer to help you learn great technique. Too often, newbies to strength training are encouraged to complete a certain technique from an off the shelf strength program, but this falls short when it comes to correcting improper form .

To start, a trainer can help you perfect these key techniques:

  1. Understand Scaling Exercise

To scale an exercise is to match its complexity and intensity to your own physical function and capacity.

As a general rule of thumb, if it feels sketchy and uncomfortable, it generally is and needs to be scaled down. If it has been perfectly practiced and executed easily, it can be scaled up. The best practice is to make small, incremental progressions, that when consistently updated over a period of time, make for some transformative change in your strength and function.

Intensity is the main reason why scaling is so important; because it allows every person to find a level of work or intensity that is appropriate to their fitness level.  The reason why you want your workout scaled to your level is because the most intense, and safe, workout will result in the fastest positive results for your strength. Nothing kills progress like injury.

  1. Get a Program and Track Progress

Have your trusted trainer help you create a weekly program.

We should all be aiming for a minimum of 2 strength training sessions a week, and between each session, a 24-48hr recovery window. Don’t skip your rest time! You won’t get results any faster! In fact, you’re more likely to slow your progress, as your recovery window is the time in which your muscles have to repair, adapt, and grow stronger.

Once you have a plan in place, it’s essential that you track your progress. Keeping a training diary will help you to track the exercises, reps, sets and weights over time, helping you to plan further workouts and look back on how far you’ve come. Seeing the progress you’ve made will fuel your motivation to keep moving forwards and progressing your function further.

  1. Keep It Fresh

As you consistently practice your program, your body begins to desensitise to the training. It’s not necessary to always do something different but looking for new challenges every 4-6 weeks is necessary to evolve over time.

Even small changes in intensity and movements can freshen up your program. You will be amazed by what you can achieve in a year of consistent practice and evolving challenges.

So… Reckon you’re up for it?

3 Day Free Pass: Register Here

January 24, 2020

Boost Your Fitness with Greater Recovery

Boost Your Fitness with Greater Recovery! 

More often than not, a health and fitness regime is a two pronged approach: make sure you’re being active, and make sure you’re eating healthily. And following these 2 rules can help anyone to make great progress, however, this narrow focus can miss one of the critical foundations of health and fitness development. A secret not often shared…

Our body has the capacity to grow and positively adapt when our nervous system is in a calm state.

Meaning: you’re body is better prepared and ready to adapt to new challenges (physical and otherwise) when you’re not stressed out!

The science.

The nervous system has 2 divisions that can be stimulated:

  • More commonly known as the ‘rest and digest’ or ‘feed and breed’ state.

This is a slow system, responsible for controlling homeostasis: the balance and maintenance of the body, ensuring it can function properly. This is when your muscles are relaxed and your body is able to rest and heal. It’s also responsible for the digestion of your food, as well as detoxifying and building immunity. Activating the ‘rest and digest’ nervous system will decrease recovery time after exercise, enhancing your adaptation and getting you ready for your next session sooner.

  • More commonly known as the ‘fight or flight’ response.

This is our response to stress: responsible for fast energy and a heightened state of awareness, typically used for fueling our survival in extreme circumstances. Traditionally, this was fighting rival tribes or running from dangerous animals, however, it can be stimulated as a response to the stresses of modern life and when our lives are full of work pressure, financial strain and over stimulation, we can end up in a permanent state of moderate ‘fight or flight’. This state releases adrenaline, which is great when we need it, however it also blocks our ‘rest and digest’ state, diverting energy from healing, and building tissue .

Restoring rest and digest dominance.

Once we understand the difference between the 2 divisions of the nervous system, we can actively try to address the balance. ‘Fight or flight’ will always be there when we need it, but to be in a growth state, we need to cultivate a ‘rest and digest’ dominance.

Here are 7 strategies for restoring balance:

  1. Evaluate your stressors.

Take some time to think through the stresses in your life. Is it feasible to remove some of them? Great! If not, can you truly accept that stress as a part of your life, to try to reduce your reaction towards it?

Sometimes, the impact of stressors on our nervous system can be increased when we are sleep deprived. To reduce our negative reactions, the most impactful intervention on reducing stress is to ensure you are getting a good 7-9 hours sleep.

  1. Meditation

Even on a good night’s sleep, we can’t remove all external stress. Meditation is another way to decrease our reactivity to stress we can’t control. It helps prevent us from leaping into every stressful thought, as well as reducing our pace of breathing, slowing our hearts, and decreasing our blood pressure: all signs of ‘rest and digest’ activation.

  1. Massage 

Regular massage really helps to restore nervous system balance. Massage makes us stronger, calmer, and more able to resist infection. Recovery from exercise will also be enhanced by the increased blood flow.

Ask your trainer to help you with some self-massage techniques using a foam roller or massage ball.

  1. Breathing

Breathing is completely linked to our nervous system. Remember the last time you became stressed and how your breathing rate became shorter and more rapid? Whilst this is an automatic process, we can reverse engineer our ‘fight of flight’ activation by practicing deep breathing.

Try taking 3-5 minutes out to focus on your breath. Inhale for 3 seconds, hold your breath for 5, exhale for 7 and repeat. Try to breathe into your belly instead of your chest.

  1. Yoga

Like meditation, yoga will heighten your ‘rest and digest’ division of your nervous system, whilst also giving you more resilience to cope with fight or flight activation.

It’s also great for increasing flexibility and balance.

Book into a yoga class at one of our centres and enjoy the focus on yourself.

  1. Nutrition

Can what you eat affect your stress response? Absolutely yes!

Too much sugar, caffeine or alcohol (as well as cigarettes), can produce the ‘fight or flight’ response. Eating real food rather than processed, boosting your vitamin and nutrient intake as well as limiting your daily caffeine, can be highly beneficial to balancing your stress.

  1. Exercise

Yep, we’ve gone full circle.

It’s not alllll about exercise, but exercise is still very important. In fact, light continuous movement for 30-45 minutes will radically increase your ‘rest and digest’ activation for the next 24 hours.

The key to getting healthy, stress reducing exercise, is to monitor the appropriate scaling of each activity to ensure it suits your current health, function and capacity

References: https://robertsontrainingsystems.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/BioForce-HRV.png

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January 22, 2020

Busy Mums Guide To Exercise

Here is your Busy Mums Guide To Exercise..

As a Mum, your life can feel full to the brim with work commitments, household tasks, arrangements with family and friends and maybe fitting in some time for a shower now and then!

With so many plates to spin, keeping up an exercise routine can feel like a chore, especially when you can’t find the time or energy to expend. But the purpose of this article isn’t to add more to your agenda or shame you for not ‘doing it all’, it’s to help guide you to an exercise commitment that feels more uplifting than draining, and more integrated than oppressive.

What if you could create a plan that returned great sensations, feelings of personal accomplishment and a long-term commitment? Would you go for it?

If it’s a YES, great! To start, we need a vision and a realistic plan to connect you with the commitment needed to manifest a positive outcome.

So, lets get cracking:

Step One: Start with the end in mind.

A positive mental attitude may not be enough. We have to truly visualise our future and see the positive impact of exercise and healthy behaviour.

What’s the overarching theme of this goal?

Is it to stay fit? Impact body composition? Be able to keep up with the kids ? Or, is it finding some time for yourself?

Once you have this in mind, go a bit deeper. What will be your end result?

The goal should be something quantifiable and tangible. Here are some ideas and examples:

Goals for Staying Fit

  • For the last month, I have taken an average of 10,000 steps a day.
  • 3 times a week, I do Pilates before the kids get up.

Goals for Impacting Body Composition

  • For the last month I strength trained 2 x each week.
  • I drink 2.5 litres of water a day.

Goals for Keeping Up with the Kids

  • I am in bed and asleep before 2230 each evening.
  • I walk around the lake in less than 45 minutes.

Goals for Finding Some Time for Yourself

  • I have been at Yoga each week for the last month.
  • I walk slowly in nature for 10 minutes each day.

So, what’s your goal?

Make sure it’s written down, positively stated and in the present tense. It’s also worth letting people around you know what you’re up to, as this will create a support network that could give you that extra push.

Step Two: Know your why.

A lot of fitness success is founded in creating change, then seeing the rewards that come with these changes. However, change can often come with sacrifice, and sacrifice can be difficult, which leads to the risk of relapse.

At these times, you need to remember your why…

Your why is the deep lying, big picture reason behind your goals. This is the thing that drives your change and becomes your motivation at times of challenge.

What is your why?

If your goal is to keep up with your kids, is your why the desire to be present for your family? If your goal is to find some time for yourself, is your why to find personal growth during time you feel is not your own? Do you want to move away from a particular health risk? Or, do you thrive on challenge?

Your why is the reason why your change and sacrifice is worth it. It’s a decisional balance. Certainty in your why will outweigh your challenges and be the glue that makes your changes stick.

Step Three: Plan your commitment.

Once you’ve set your goal, and spent a little time contemplating your why, it’s time to plan your minimum weekly commitment to your exercise and health practice.

Find ways to implement a routine that integrates with your current life. For example, walking the kids to school instead of driving, exercising before they wake up etc.

Remember to start your efforts slowly and allow the challenge of your exercise to grow organically over time. Nothing meaningful is created with a short-term approach; make decisions that are long term and encourage continuity.

A great habit is to keep a training diary or a completion calendar, tick off your successes and record your numbers. Over a period of time we always forget how far we’ve come and looking back on a series of successes does wonders for our self-belief.

Step Four: Get some guidance

Despite the challenge, there’s always good reason for exercise.

Before you became a busy mum, you may have enjoyed long sweaty workouts. Now that your time is a bit more limited, it’s necessary to be a little more targeted with your training.

If you can only exercise twice a week for 30 minutes, it’s best to ensure that your time is used wisely. Identify your weakest areas and work on those to ensure the lack of time doesn’t mean lack of progress. For example, if you’re struggling with stability, Pilates would be a great choice. If you’re particularly tight, try yoga.

If time allows, it’s worth booking some time with a trainer or attending a class, as your efforts will be directed, and every movement will be made more effective.

Step Five: Be good to yourself

Remember, we always overestimate what we can achieve in a day, but we underestimate what we can achieve in a year. Missing a session or two will not keep you from your goal when you have continuity over a long period of time.

There is no failure in missing a day of exercise. Simply remember your why and the long-term project. Ultimately, this whole process is about putting yourself and your needs first.

Remember your why, and remember that we are made to move 😊

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