During the holiday period our fitness quests can derail, its the season of poor food choices and increased alcohol levels.

Now before your holiday descends into a period of mass fat gains, I’d like to give you all a quick tip on how to reset the balance.

Keep Up your WATER intake!  This is the most effective way to assist your body to remain hydrated and better burn FAT!

Poor HYDRATION is most definitely high up there in terms of simple Fat Loss fails, Good hydration assists the body’s ability to torch FAT, as well as physical & mental performance.

The Benefits of Good Hydration:

1 Metabolic Boost putting the body in a better state to burn Fat.

2 Appetite suppression, many people mistake thirst for hunger.

3 Prevention of constipation & Kidney stones.

4 Prevention of Headaches & Migraines.

5 Improved energy levels.

Better hydration equals a leaner appearance in a matter of a few days.

The question is, How much should you drink?

A good guide is 1 oz per kg of body weight, for example I weigh 96kg so 96 oz a day, 96 oz = 1 pint, therefore I drink 6 pints per day just to function, if I exercise, its more!

Split through the day, that is one and a half pints in the morning and an hour before bed, the remaining 3 are consumed throughout the day.

STAY hydrated and offset The Christmas Fat gain!

During summer months dehydration can have a dramatic effect on sporting performance, so all my golfing friends take note!

For more information of your fitness & training performance, sustained Fat Loss & nutritional guides, drop me a line.

MW

Following a recent assessment, I have now moved to TPI Fitness Pro Level 2. In Level 1 I took some of you through Stability & Mobility screens and now I’m on hand to take you through Strength & Power Matrix screens as well as a 4×4 exercise sequencing to work from your current level up. Power is where most club Golfers are losing numbers and that starts with Strength training before introducing Speed work. The Strength Test consists of 4 Tests, Push, Pull, Lower Body & Grip. The Power Test consists of 4 Tests also, Vertical, Chest Pass, Chop & Rotary. There is even an aerobic Test to undergo! One thing is for sure, Golf is now an Athletes game, so don’t let your game go to pot! In the couple of seconds that you swing a Golf club you’re asking your body to rotate to extremes that it rarely ever does. You require a tremendous amount of strength to maintain stability as you try to crush that ball and lets be honest, none of us are trying to push it to the fairway are we. Contact me to book your screening today and set to work over winter to raise those Strength & Power numbers!

http://www.mytpi.com/articles/fitness/every_golfer_can_learn_from_justin_rose’s_approach_to_fitness

Following a morning session with one of my clients this week and hearing of his intense migraines, digestive issues and energy slumps I thought I’d send out a few general tips.

Firstly, it is important to point out that YOU are all in charge of a very technical & intelligent piece of apparatus, your body! And even with age, it still wants to regulate and move itself just as it did when you were aged 20 BUT that depends upon how YOU treat it! How you may have treated it over the last 5 years may have taken its toll but being the smart piece of kit that it is, if you follow these 12 Common Sense tips that most of us are aware of, then within a matter of weeks, I guarantee that you will already be feeling a whole lot better, give them a try.

1. Sleep: Often overlooked by many, we live in a world that places us under much stress and too often we take that stress to bed causing disturbed and unsettled sleeping patterns. Everyone feels that they function on a certain amount, I’d recommend 7-8 hours sleep and in the hour preceding bed omit the use of electronic screens and do something relaxing instead.

2. Water: I often hear the phrase, “I drink plenty of water.” However when the facts are discussed, many people have no idea how much water they drink or how much they actually should. As a guide, I weigh 95kg therefore I aim to drink 95fl/oz Water a day, thats roughly 5 pints of Water. When I wake up I drink 1 Pint to off set overnight dehydration, I drink 3 pints throughout the day and then another pint before bed.

3. Protein & Fat based Breakfast: I hope that by now, many of us realise that cereal is one of the worst breakfasts that we can eat? It spikes blood sugar and sets us up for a midmorning energy crash. A Protein & Fat based breakfast will better set you up for the day and also assist the body in handling Carbs for the rest of the day. Eggs are a great breakfast ingredient and your choice of cooking them is endless. They provide great Cholesterol & Protein.

4. Animal Protein, Carbs & Healthy Fat based diet:Most of you will now know my beliefs and the secret to sustained Fat Loss. Its a healthy diet. The ratio of Carbs, Fats & Protein can all be altered to provide differing physical responses but whatever your physical target and for general health, they all need to be present. My Carbs come from Fruit, Veg, Pulses, Potato, Bread & Rice etc. My Protein comes in the form of Organic Meat, Chicken & Fish and Fats from Nuts, Oils, Avocado, Olives & Cheese. Protein should be ingested at every meal, along with either Fats or Carbs.

5. Apple Cider Vinegar: Is a great tonic that I use in Green Tea. It has great health healing compounds that support Fat Loss. It can work as a natural probiotic also assisting in stomach acid control. Just a few drops in an expresso sized Green Tea.

6. Exercise: As much as I understand it when people say that they have had a busy day and that they were too tired to exercise, I also KNOW that if they’d just push through for 45-60 minutes a day, they would feel SO much better. Exercise breeds energy, it reinvigorates the body by pumping oxygenated blood around the body. The mind is often the tired party and with it you convince the body not to exercise. The body WANTS to exercise, it was designed to do so and when it does, the MIND feels so much BETTER! Can you see the revolving pattern?

7. Supplementation: A tough area to get across to people as there are many misconceptions about supplements. Firstly, lets get it straight, they are supplements, not a staple diet, they are designed to fit into a balanced dietary plan, NOT replace it. The list is endless but if you stick to the following as a base guide, you won’t go far wrong. And were always talking high quality, you pay for what you get!

Multi Vitamin, Vitamin D, Fish Oil, Amino Acids, L-Glutamine, Whey Protein.

8. Sugar: I think its the biggest detriment to health thats out there. We’re not talking about 2 sugars in our coffee anymore, its all the hidden sugar that foods now contain. I deal with so many people still blinded by the 80′s low fat epidemic where we were told to trim the fat from our meat, eat 1 egg a day etc etc, IT’s dated. It was never the fat that was making us Fat, The Low Fat phase that introduced hidden carbs and sugars was brought Obesity & Diabetes to record highs. Look out for it. Eat whole foods and you won’t have to worry about sugar anymore.

9. Processed Food: All the hidden sugar you’d ever want to eat is here. Tinned foods, Frozen foods, Packaged foods, Pastries, Junk Food, Sweets. Stay away from it.

10. Regular Fuelling: If we say that the longest period without eating should be when we sleep, 7-8 hours, how many of us go longer than that when we’re awake? So many people out there are starving themselves! I eat 5 meals a day. So does everyone who I help to shift Kg’s of weight from their bodies! On a gym day I’d go as follows:

6am Protein & Fat, 10am Protein & Carbs, 1pm Protein & Carbs, 4pm Protein & Carbs, 7pm Protein & Fat. I’d have a couple of coffee’s in there, 5 pints of water and some supplements.

Many people I deal with are more like this:

6am Nothing, 9am Cereal, 1pm Sandwich, 4pm Nothing, 8pm Salad

Bearing in mind I am not trying to gain or lose weight presently, draw the comparison on the 2 food intakes. One is well fuelled whilst the other is blatant starvation and your body will only run on that for a limited time before it breaks and gets ill. As we get older its more important to maintain strength rather than give it away freely!

11. Alcohol: A glass of wine isn’t going to kill anyone unless you’re really trying to shed the remaining last few pounds of Fat but understand the effect of alcohol. If you’re already dehydrated from too much caffeine or not enough water or both, then the alcohol is only going to add to that. Limit it for a couple of weeks, see how better your sleep & energy levels are.

12. Caffeine: Same as alcohol really, its not killing you unless you’re drinking Starbucks super sweetened varieties etc but it will dehydrate you more if you’re already dehydrated so be sensible. Try your morning coffee just after breakfast with a good coconut oil instead of sugar!

Give it a try for a couple of weeks, you’ll feel much better!

As we move into February I thought I’d post one of my most successful Fat-loss workouts used through January.

Remember, for the best Fat-loss results it is imperative to tailor your diet to your exercise schedule! Adopt a starvation diet plan and you WILL remain disappointed with your results. Structured Fast days have now become the norm with educated trainers when it comes to helping their clients to eliminate Fat but again the scheduling and pre preparation to a Fasting day is critical otherwise it can do further damage to a sluggish metabolism.

The Workout: Following a mobility warm up!

Set 1: The Exercises

Press Ups. TrX Pulls. Kettle-bell Lunges. TrX Squat Jumps. Burpee. TrX Hamstring Curl. Skipping or Battling Ropes.

Set 1: The Structure

Do as many of each exercise as possible in 40 seconds with good form. Rest for 1 minute before repeating the set twice more. Then rest 1 minute and move onto Set 2.

Set 2: The Exercises

Squat with Upright Row  (Ketttle-bell). Wide to Narrow Squat Jumps. Squat Thrusts. Kettle-bell Renegade Row. Band Military Press. Skipping or Battling Ropes.

Set 2 Structure: Same as Set 1.

The Nutritional aspect: When taking on an exercise circuit of this format with the intention of burning Fat, your food intake will be critical. I always prefer to get 2 meals in prior to my workout though that is not always possible. I start the day with a zero carb meal, combining Protein with Fat, such as an omelette. This start helps the body to handle carbs better for the rest of the day. I’d then be looking to get in some good Carbs and Protein around mid morning prior to training, I usually go for a Protein Smoothie with Fruit/Oats. I’d then take 2 more Protein & Carb meals following my training session and finish off the day with some good Fats and more Protein.

Remember your nutritional intake is unique to your own body and under eating will only help you to lose weight for approximately 2 weeks before your hormones go into Fat retention mode.

Give the workout a go and let me know how you do! MW

January, often dry (no alcohol), often a slog (that new resolution to get fit/slim) and often deflating (as that fad diet and unsuitable training plan ends in failure!).

It doesn’t have to be that way!

There is a common myth that maintaining fitness and our physique as we move past 40 is a mere pipedream and much of the press endorses this theory. Thankfully this is NOT true. Your fitness and your physique (Your Results) are reliant on just 2 vital components and they are of course the same 2 components that I have been reinforcing to you for the last 5 years, “Your Results=Your diet and Your exercise!”

Lets analyse that as if it were and equation: “Your Results=Your diet and Your exercise.”

It makes perfect sense doesn’t it? Your Results throughout January will equal the match between Your Diet & Your Exercise!

Now I have dealt with many of you over the years and the most important element in that equation is the word “Your.”

As were all aware, there are millions of diets, dieticians, nutritional advisors, exercise experts, allergy testers etc etc out there trying to claim the formula for success but as I have said, success is only dependant upon 2 key elements and the key element in the equation is YOU!

You see my diet and my exercise works for me but sadly it doesn’t work for everyone and that is because my physical make up will be different to most of yours, (so you will require a differing amount of calories to me), just as your physical make up will be different to most people you know. You are almost as unique as your finger print with it comes to the equation, “Your Results=Your diet & Your exercise.” And there is the secret. You need a dietary plan that is unique to you, for example, foods that you like to eat, in the quantity that your body requires & at the times that your body requires it. Therefore the latest diet on offer in the press will work for a small minority of the people that choose to follow it. Just as your friends dietary success will not mean the same success for you. You will also need a training plan that will be tailored for you, for example with resistances that will provide a stimulus for you muscle, with exercises that are suitable for you and with a timetable and schedule to work in complete synergy with the food plan that you are following.

It does not matter whether you are trying to increase muscle or lose fat or both, the success of that equation will be totally dependant on Your diet & Your Exercise. Make sure that they both work for you, the calorific balance and value needs to be tailored to you and the timing of the meals needs to be strategically placed around your training schedule.

If you are finding that January is proving to be a hard slog and that you aren’t getting the results that you hoped or you’re on the verge of giving up or even worse have given up, then I’m here to help you with advice, diet plans, training plans and scheduling of your week. Remember, it isn’t rocket science, its a formula that depends on 2 aspects.

If you’re off track, get back on and if you need assistance, get in touch. Perhaps your diet plan needs a tweak or you need a boost with your workout or a sports massage? I am still holding gym & breakfast mornings for groups of 3-6 if you fancy signing up for Feb?

I am now running my PT and Nutritional business from home, I have all the equipment required to deliver appropriately tailored workouts for people focussing on Strength, Fat Loss, Mobility or Injury prevention/correction.  Resistance up to 150kg, Kettlebells, Bands, Ropes, Bike, Balls, Balance aids etc etc. I am also working towards my T.P.I Level 2 for all you golfers out there.

Happy New Year

MW

This is the power of exercise and nutrition when you get it right!

In 3 weeks he has gone from 64kg to 70kg and he’s not putting on Fat, the results are plain to see.

He follows a strict dietary regimen loading his body with specific amounts of Protein, Carbs and Fat. He also has a supplement stack of Whey, BCAA & Glutamine. His training schedule is 3-5 hours weekly, up to 8 reps with a drop set on the last set.

Losing Fat is easier than gaining muscle in my opinion, you just need a few ingredients whatever your goal:

1. The correct nutritional intake

2. A good training plan

3. A dedicated mindset

4. A lot of heart

MW

1. Having your mobile with you. Why? Because its a constant distraction. I see people in the gym for an hour and they spend half of their hour texting! Give your gym the hour it deserves, your text can wait, your fitness can’t!

2. Not measuring rest periods. Why? Rest is overlooked, I have some clients who feel that they are wasting their money if they rest for a minute and their idea of a good workout is to be bludgeoned until they can take no more! Strength training can require an optimal recovery of 3 to 5 minutes, this is to full Phosphagen recovery between sets to allow maximum muscular force in each set. Cutting and Endurance trainers require less, between 30-60 seconds or a 1:1 ratio of work to rest. Circuit and interval training requires a rest period of 30-60 seconds dependent upon the work period, this can be as high as 6:1 Work:Rest. Don’t let your results go BANG!

3. Not having a gym plan or a target. Why? Why have a gym membership if you don’t have a target? Why set aside valuable time to achieve nothing? Would you want as job without a salary?  Plan everything & Track everything!

4. Following the same routine. Why? Your body will acclimatize and slip back into it’s comfort zone. It’s called the dreaded plateau, the painful scenario of gum without results. Been there?

5. Thinking stomach isolating exercises will achieve that 6 pack. Why? If you can’t see your defined abs, they’re generally covered in too much skin fat, this will be better dispersed weighted circuits using larger muscles better equipped for burning fat and tailoring your diet for Fat Loss. Simple Circuit:

Press Ups. Squats. Burpee. Pull Downs. Crunches. 40 Seconds each.

6. Thinking that you can out exercise your diet. Why? Good luck if you think you can but you need to create calorie deficits each week to lose fat whilst eating enough wholesome foods to preserve lean muscle mass. Timings of Food groups such as Protein, Fat and Carbs as well as combinations can also play havoc with your results.

7. Thinking Cardio is best for Fat Loss. Why? Less taxing activity burns more fat in relative terms but not in absolute amounts. This is not an efficient way to zero in on your gut or your butt!

8. Thinking that 1 P.T session each week will keep you in check. Why? We’re Trainers, Not Magicians! We don’t get away with one session a week so why would it work for you! You need to supplement, get equipment at home and a program from your trainer!

9. Thinking that 3 PT session’s each week is too expensive. Why? 1 session a week over a year is 52 sessions but you won’t get results off that. Condense your outlay, if 52 sessions is what you can afford annually do it in spurts, 4 a week for 4 weeks 3 times throughout the year and get some results, you’d still have 4 sessions left in the bank to take to assist you with your solo plans! Results Results results!

165Kg Jan 2014[/caption]

Sept 2014 115Kg[/caption]

10.  Thinking it’s just not possible. Why? I have dealt with people who have lost 50kg, that’s a small person! I have 50 year olds who have never done chins who can now do over 10! I have mat many people who thought that they couldn’t do it but they could and some of them did!

MW

For those of you who are on Fat Loss Phases, if you haven’t seen enough progress in 2015 its

Nutrition Rules:

1.

Keep your kitchen junk free! Ditch all the go to comfort foods that you stock up on! Eliminate any paths to failure. Then failure won’t be an option. Then get back to your successful food plans and stick to them, balance is key, good quality Proteins, Healthy Fats & Fibrous Carbohydrates, in the right quantities at the right times!

2.

Supplement with a multi vitamin, Omega 3 Fish oil & Vitamin D3. Being deficient in any of these will detract from progress.

3.

Balance out 5 meals a day with your Carbs consumed before and after training.

4.

Protein sources should be taken with every meal. Never eat Carb only meals, they instantly raise blood sugar thus putting your body into storage mode. The amounts of Protein, Fat & Carbs that we consume is unique to all of us so don’t just follow your friends diet. Cruciferous green veg is key as well, it helps the body to absorb the Protein so load up with this at meal time.

5.

Ditch all processed Carbs! Simple, replace them with Fruit, Veg and Pulses.

6.

Don’t eliminate Fat, this is the main path to failure. Your body will NOT burn Fat if you don’t eat healthy Fats!

7.

Hydrate well, with plenty of water, Green or Herb Tea. Moderate Coffee. Dehydration limits performance and decreases results. It causes fatigue and raises Cortisol, the killer stress hormone. Check your urine, a hydrated body should run clear.

8.

Supplement with workout shakes, these are a great way to replace meals, a Protein & Fruit laden shake is a perfect Protein & Carb combination after training.

9.

Stick to your plan for at least 4 weeks, Fat doesn’t just vanish but with a bit of effort and commitment Fat Loss is Easy!

Good Luck!

For those of you who are looking to improve your game, your strength phases should be fading out and its time to see if your body is up to swinging the club. It’s all well and good going to the gym but if you’re going for sporting improvement, it’s vital that you are following a program that will benefit performance. The best way to achieve this is to undergo a physical screening first. The images of the subject swing below are taken prior to and after an 8 week Golf course. You can see for yourself the difference in plane lines on the body at the top of the backswing. Often the problem can be Physical and NOT Technical.

If you’re finding time hard to come by and getting to the gym is becoming impossible it may be time to use home workouts. These are as simple as body weight routines or more advanced by incorporating Powerbands. There are a series of Power band workouts available on Youtube, just search MWPT Powerbands. The weighted Squat is shown below. These are also a great way of introducing juniors to Resistance training and mastering some Olympic lifts with less chance of injury.

Good Luck. MW

Foam rollers are a great way of providing a self massage or pre-exercise warm up without having to shell out on masseuse fees.

However many of you seem content with having to drive to the masseuse, physio or chiropractor (15-30 minutes), undergo 15-60 minutes of treatment and then shell out anywhere between £50-£120 before driving home! Yet you can’t find time for 20-30 minutes a day on your roller! This simple piece of kit will save you a small fortune every year and a lot of time, keeping your body in check to do the things that you really want to do!

Use your roller regularly to stay injury free and feel supple after your training sessions. Introduce your children to the roller, prolong their fitness and keep them on the sports field.

And if you don’t have one, order one from me today!

Make foam rolling your new year’s resolution.

January brings with it a feast of resolutions across the fitness spectrum and it’s definitely the right time for many of the people that I work with to get into a regime. 6 weeks until half term and 10 weeks until Spring.

FAT LOSS

Most people generally go on a diet following the indulgences of Christmas as they aim to shed a few pounds and as I reflect back to this time last year when I began working with Brad Young who was weighing in at 165kg it was vitally important that I set him realistic targets to hit. If I’d have said to him, “Brad I need to to lose 50kg this year!” I think he’d have given up but instead I set him reachable targets. The tough part with Brad was to keep him consistently losing fat and the skill was to manipulate his hormone system to prevent the dreaded diet plateau. Sure he had a few weeks with no losses but he brought the “will to continue” to the table and he remained “Driven” towards his target. If you’re trying to lose a stone or two this year, your goal may seem a way off now but with the right structure to your diet along with a training plan that is in complete synergy with your diet, if you show a little resilience,  you will find, as Brad proved, anything is possible!

                Here I am with Brad following his last gym session before he migrated back to Canada a mere 50kg lighter,                  Not bad for a years work!

It is important here to focus on what your goal is and then plot the best route to get there! Don’t blunder through 8 weeks of hoping that you hit your target, make sure that you get there, It IS possible. Make it happen!

GOLF

For all the golfers that I work with, now is the time to work in a strength phase without sacrificing flexibility or mobility. As most people lay off the course while the weather is poor it provides you with the perfect opportunity to access the gym to increase strength and power. In all my years working with golfers I still haven’t met anyone who wants to hit it 30 yards shorter!

Here we see Rory McIlroy performing The Overhead Squat mid round. This exercise is one of The Titleist Performance Institute Physical Screen tests and it is commonly renowned as one of the exercises that depicts Athleticism. Before any golfer undertakes a new exercise regimen, they should first undergo a screening to highlight the relevant area’s for improvement.

TENNIS

One of the most annoying injuries for Tennis players has to be Tennis Elbow, the most cost efficient and first go to solution for this injury is now renowned as Voodoo Floss Bands. The Floss Band is an essential performance tool and should be a staple in the gym bag of every athlete looking to improve range, restore joint mechanics, or unglue matted down or previously injured tissue. Compression tack and flossing (Voodoo Flossing) works on many levels; including re-perfusing tissues that have become stiff or gone cold after injury and by compressing swelling out of tissues and joints. Because the Floss band can be used while actually performing the movement the athlete is trying to change, its effect on sliding surface and restoration and tissue mobilization is unmatched. Floss bands are available through me online or at the gym at £11.50. A fraction of the cost of a trip to your Physio.

Good Luck to ALL of you in your 2015 Fitness quests! Remember if you set yourself a target that you really want, nothing will stop you from achieving it!

MW