Private Gyms in Reading, Pangbourne & Mortimer Mobile Personal Trainer: Reading & Berkshire
T Bar rows are a great mass builder for the upper back…
– lift the bar into place with your legs
– keep your back straight and fold from your hips
– keep your head up
– retract your shoulder blades and pull the plates to your chest
– slowly lower and repeat
– return to the floor by bending your knees and hips
Data plays a huge part in the success of all businesses, organisations and even our homes…However we often forget to utilise the wealth of data available surrounding our health & fitness…
Tracking your workouts is an easy way to maximise your performance and outcomes…
A simple but effective tracking system will:
How To Track Workouts
There are many ways to keep a records, they don’t have to be complicated.
We keep a record of every session we do with our clients including:
– date, time & session focus
– exercises
– weight, sets & reps
– timing
– notes on form & teaching focus
This is exactly the same information we collect for our own workouts which we then cross reference to quarterly body composition measurements.
Available Tools:
– how many minutes/week you exercise
– Smart Phone
– Fitness Apps
– Wearable Tech (fitbit etc)
– Some gyms have personalised trackers linked to CV equipment
– Pen & Paper, Diary etc
Using the Data (Example):
I’m in the gym today and:
Every 6-12 weeks I then take my body composition measurements before setting my new structure for the next 3 months…If my chest grew more than my arms eg I may then steer my next 3 months to focus a little more on my arms
This approach can be applied to all of your fitness attributes and doesn’t have to be exactly the same as we’ve done it…you may choose just to focus on ensuring you spend 150 mins/week training or burn a certain number of calories through exercise each week.
We hope that you find this helpful
Go Get It!!!
With the UK set to reach record highs today we’ve got some top tips to help you stay fit during the summer.
It’s important to stay active even during the warm summer months, we need to be safe though, here’s how:
Have a great summer Fitness Friends,
Tom
It’s normal to be stiff or sore after a workout, however if the pain is severe of you’re just not healing it’s possible that you’re over training.
It’s great to be motivated and hit your training hard but not at the expense of your physical & mental health…
Training hard needs to be met with suitable rest & nutrition to fuel your recovery, without it:
– you’ll feel crap
– be at risk of injury
– won’t make progress
Signs of Over Training:
– severe muscle & joint pain
– persistent aches lasting longer than 2-3 days
– constant fatigue & tiredness
– decreased performance
– failure to progress
– stress, depression or low mood
– insomnia/poor sleep
Avoiding Over Training:
– structure training to ovoid using the same muscles on consecutive days
– if it’s sore don’t train it
– learn how to perform exercises properly
– train with your brain, not your ego
– get 8 hours sleep/night
– protein requirements more than double following resistance workouts (48 hours)
– take the time to understand & learn about nutrition & recovery
– stretch daily
– take at least 2 rest days/week
– invest time in relaxing & de-stressing
– No caffeine after lunch
Follow these key points and you’ll drastically reduce your risk of over training, however if you’re still experiencing symptoms take some rest & deload..If the symptoms persist, see your doctor.
Happy Health,
Tom’s
Is it a lunge or a split squat?
Both exercises look similar and are great for developing your legs, however there are a couple of differences.
Both exercises see one leg forward, one back and you lowering your hips until your knees are bent to right angles…The difference however is to do with the concentric phase (straightening the legs.
Lunges: place equal pressure on the heel of the front foot and ball of the rear foot
Split Squats: the rear leg rests whilst the lead leg does all of the work
Have you ever found yourself in a gym with limited equipment?
We can get comfortable in our routine using the same machines & set ups..this isn’t great for progress but also can leave you a little lost when they’re not available.
We’ve put together this leg workout that uses nothing but a barbell & the accompanying plates.
We’ve programmed it using higher (slow) rep ranges to produce a pump (metabolic overload), however you could change this to lower rep, higher weight range for the Squats & Deadlifts for a strength focused outcome.
Enjoy,
Tom’s
Strong Shoulders.. .
They look great & provide the foundation for all up upper body lifts…
Including shoulder development within your routine will help protect you from injury as well as aid you in continuing to progress in lifts such as your bench press…
We’ve got a simple & super effective shoulder workout for you:
– Military Press: heavy 5×5 (explosive press)
– Dumbell Circuit, slow, lot’s of tension 7reps each x 3 rounds
Front Raise
Lateral Raise
Rear Delt Flye
– Face Pull 3×10-15
– Y-Raise 3×10-15
Enjoy…
Hey Guys, Want Boulder Shoulders?
The military press is a universal favourite for hitting the anterior & medial deltoids as well as engaging the traps & triceps…
Here we look at how to get the most out of your overhead presses…
Bent Rows are awesome!
They are great for developing the middle of the back (traps) which controls scapular retraction…As a compound (multi joint) exercise they also engage the biceps and rear deltoids.
This makes them a great exercise for building strength & muscle mass… Today we’re looking at how to get the most from them & safely…
Technique – it’s essential to all exercises! Particularly Shrugs though…
So many people get this great exercise wrong, the consequence of which means stress on the Rotator Cuff & a high risk of Injury…
Furthermore, the better the technique, the better the results!
Tom's Health & Fitness 