Personal Trainer Northampton Blog

Since I have taken on more web work, I find myself spending a lot more time sat down and feel very inactive.  If you find yourself in a similar situation each day, you will appreciate the importance of keeping active.  Whether it merely be a 5 minute break to go and stretch your legs, up to a run in the evening when you get home.  It makes you feel so much better and shakes of that lethargic feeling that can grow throughout the day. When you exercise, your body releases hormones that make you feel happier and more alert.

Make sure that you keep active, no matter how much or little you can do.

I talk a lot on here aobut weight lifting techniques and body building, largely because it is my main passion.  Saying this however, the cardiovascualr side of training should in no way be overlooked.  Bodybuilders certainly don’t.  It is a great way to burn body fat and also help to tone muscle groups.  Great examples are running and swimming.  Swimming is advantageous to the extent that it is very easy on the joints, due to the ‘weightless’ feeling of the water.  This greatly reduces the risk of injury and is a great aerobic activity.  However, not everyone can swim, myself included.  Running is a great alternative for a good aerobic workout.  I love nothing better than to run in the countryside, in the fresh air.  But, mentioned above, this can cause impact injuries on the joints.  Running on a treadmill can get around this problem.  At the moment, the reebok irun treadmill is a great buy.  It is cheap, an important factor in these difficult economic times and great for training at home.

Swimming is great for those of all ages.  If you don’t feel confident running, go for a jog or simply for a walk.  The important thing is to get up and get active.  Trust me, you will feel better for it.

I personally love weight lifting and training but even so, sometimes your routines can get stale.  You can find yourself not looking forward to training or almost just going through the motions.  This shouldn’t be the case! You should enjoy what you are doing, whatever it is.  In addition, if you are looking to gain muscle mass, a stale routine probably also means that you aren’t getting the gains you want.  Your body is very clever and can get accustomed to routines that never change.  To get muscle growth again, you have to shock it out of this routine.  Try a heavier weight and do less sets.  Or have a session of pyramid lifting.  This techniques is where you start at a low weight with an exercise and gradually go up in weight each set, until you reach a maximum.  Then, go back down again.  I am talking maybe just 5 or 10 kg difference each time.  It may sound simple, but by the end you are are lifting a normally light weight and it feels anything but!

Another good technique is negative reps.  Get your traiing partner/spotter to help you lift one way when you are tired and you control the opposite movement.  For example, if you reach your limit on bench press, have him/her lift the weight and you slowly control the downward motion.  Although not a complete repetition, you are still pushing your muscles furhter than you would have done.

Please always be safe when using such techniques as lifting when you’re muscles are fatigued is very different. ALWAYS have a spotter with you.

Well yet again I have lost a month. I don’t know how exactly!

During that time though I have well and truly been thrown into making a go of things for myself.  The whey protein king website is now my full time project and I am pleased to say it is going very well.  There is still much more work to do though however.

I have a goal to once again get some more fitness related posts back on to Personal Trainer Northampton.  I won’t ever neglect it altogehter for this is where I started everything.  From my first post, I know am in charge of or helping with about 7 websites.  I love the experience and the learning curve and I will get back to my fitness roots on here so do please keep reading.

Best wishes

David