Learn To Lift Training

The conclusion of our first block of Bootcamp for the year is fast approaching with a big finish planned for this week. Big lifts and PBs incoming! 👀

The next block kicks off next Tuesday, the 4th of March. It will be an 8 week block with the membership options as follows:

8 Weeks
✅2 sessions per week £144
✅3 sessions per week £184

Days & Times
🔹Tues & Thu 10am
🔹Tues & Thu 6pm, 7pm & 8pm
🔹Sat 9am, 10am & 11am

Keep your eyes peeled for the highlights of Block 1 coming soon and drop us a message if you want to sign up for the new block! 📨

Bootcamp is officially making its return for the first block of the year this Thursday 5th of January! 🎉

Looking back on last year the progress everyone made was absolutely wild (as you can probably see from their faces in the pic above 💪).

If you want to get involved this year and make some wild progress of your own drop us a message!

Some motivation for everyone and a big shout out 📢 to Sinead for her transformation she recently completed! 👌
--
Sinead is an Online Coaching 📱💻client and she had the ambitious goal of losing 10 kg in 12 weeks. 📉🎯
--
As you can see from the pics 📸 she absolutely smashed the target and built up some excellent habits with regards to both exercise and nutrition in doing so! 🎯✅
--
These are challenging times and it's obviously not ideal with the gyms being shut but there is still plenty you can do to improve your health and fitness. Sometimes all it takes is a little motivation, accountability and guidance along the right path.
--

🔹 Get The Steps In 🔹
--
Our third and final tip in our recent lockdown infographic was to get the steps in.
--
💪 Excellent For Physical & Mental Health 🧠
--
Unlimited outdoor activity is still permitted, in Scotland at least. Getting the heart and lungs working with some general activity can be very beneficial physically and the mental health benefits of being out in the fresh air should never be underestimated either.
--
🎯 8-10k Steps Per Day Is A Good Goal 👣
--
A simple target can serve as a powerful motivator and this range is generally a good starting point.
--
Smart watches are quite prevalent these days so if you have one you can track your steps on there or even use an activity app on your phone.
--
There is always a margin of error with these things but it's not too much of a concern for this purpose, the main thing is we have some measure of activity levels and a useful tool for providing some motivation.
--
🚶‍♀️Break It Up Into Smaller Chunks🚶
--
Getting a step target such as the 8-10k in one go can make for quite a long walk and this isn't always practical, especially for those who are still working.
--
Splitting the overall target into smaller efforts can work nicely for chipping away at the wider goal. If you are working from home this might mean a short local walk in the morning before work, perhaps also another short one in your lunch break and a slightly longer walk in the evening.
--
The weekend is fast approaching and for many it is the perfect time to get the activity levels up. Enjoy the fresh air everyone and hopefully the weather isn't too bad! 🤞😂
--

On our 3 things you can still focus on during lockdown with regards to your health & fitness infographic 🏃‍♀️🏃the second point we covered that is still within your control is was focusing on your nutrition 🍎.
--
It obviously goes without saying that lockdown 🔐 can impact everyone differently and be a very challenging time. Some people might not want to focus too much on their nutrition at this time and prefer to do other things such as up their activity levels 🚶‍♀️🚶, which is absolutely fine.
--
However, if you are interested in putting more of a focus on your nutrition, snacking from being at home all the time can be a big element 🍫🍪.
--
A good way to approach this might be to keep plenty of high protein snacks to hand. These tend to be more satiating, often lower calorie than their "junk" food counterparts and the extra protein can help contribute towards larger fitness goals you may have.
--
🍏🍊 Fruit is another excellent option. Relatively low calorie and full of beneficial things such as fibre, vitamins and minerals.
--
Simple strategies such as this can add up over time and make a big difference.
--

Last week in our post about factors still within your control during lockdown we spoke about bodyweight/low kit workouts. 💪
--
Here's a low kit workout you can do at home, all you need is a kettlebell of moderate weight!
--
A few notes to accompany the workout 📝:
--
🔹Perform a 5 min general warm up before starting, a few rounds of bodyweight squats, push ups, reverse lunges, plank, arm swings and leg swings should suffice.
--
🔹A1 and A2, B1 and B2 mean supersets. Perform a set of the first exercise followed by a set of the second, then rest a few mins. Repeat for the specified number of sets.
--
🔹Before performing each of the supersets get a short exercise specific warm up in. Again nothing over complicated, one set of 5 reps of each exercise should work just fine.
--
🔹For the finisher perform 21 KB Swings follows by 21 Weighted Toe Touches, then 18 of each, 15 of each and so on moving back and forth between the exercises. Split the reps up and rest as needed but try and complete the whole circuit in as little time as you feel you are able to.
--
🔹Google any exercises you aren't familiar with, technique is always a priority.
--
🔹You can obviously scale the workout to your ability level and the weight of the KB you have available by adding or subtracting reps and rounds too.
--
If you are able to hit workouts like these 3-5 times per week they can have some great benefits both physically and mentally.
--
Enjoy team! 🙌
--

💻 Online Coaching 💪
--
Unfortunately it feels like this lockdown is going to go on for quite a while. Particularly frustrating as it's at a time of year when people are really motivated to get training and there's nothing we love more than training clients in the gym and seeing the progress they make. 📈
--
Given the restrictions we are going to be doing a lot more Online Coaching 💻💪 at the start of this year.
--
This is something we have always done to great effect but not showcased to the same extent as Bootcamp and Personal Training clients.
--
The process includes the following:
--
✅ Training Program
🔹Designed based around your goals 🎯 and the equipment you have available. 💪
✅ Nutrition Program
🔹A sustainable structure that suits and you can consistently adhere to. 🍗🍏
✅ Training App
🔹Full program with detailed instructions in the app.
🔹Log your training on the app.📱
🔹Video demonstrations for all exercises. 🎥
✅ Nutrition eBook
🔹Breaking down everything you need to know for the nutrition side of things. 📖🍎
✅ Result Tracking
🔹Full measurement guide.
🔹Progress sheet to record results.
🔹Weekly check ins.
✅ Accountability, Motivation & Support
🔹Giving you the motivation and support along the way to achieve your health & fitness goals during this challenging time.
--
Drop us a message to find out more and get involved! 📨
--

More frustrating news with the tightening of lockdown measures being announced 🔐. We can't control what we can't control but on the positive side, there are still a number of key things within your control with regards to your health and fitness.
--
3 key thing you can do to improve your health and fitness during lockdown include:
--
✅ Bodyweight/Low Kit Workouts ✅
--
A bit clichéd by now and although we are big proponents of barbell and dumbbell based training, there is still plenty you can do with little or no equipment.
--
Unilateral lower body work, push ups, core work, tempos, supersets, circuits etc can all be utilised to improve your fitness levels, especially if you are new to training, or help maintain levels and blunt the impact of the lockdown if you are more advanced. 💪
--
Getting into a good rhythm of hitting 3-5 of these workouts per week can be of big benefit and help bring structure to a time when it can seem to be lacking the most.
--
✅ Focus On Your Nutrition ✅
--
You don't need to go into a full blown post Christmas cut tracking everything you consume with MyFitnessPal. Lockdown can be a stressful time and impacts everyone differently. Even simple actions such as the following can be of big benefit to your health and fitness during such a challenging time:
--
🍗 Consume a good portion of protein at every meal.
🥕🍏 Eat fruit or vegetables at most meals.
💧Aim to drink 2 litres of water or so per day.
🍟 Minimise junk food consumption.
--
Finding a structure that suits you is always the key but you don't need to overcomplicate things at a time that can present a great deal of challenges as it is.
--
✅ Get The Steps In ✅
--
Unlimited outdoor activity is still permitted and regular walks 🚶🚶‍♀️ can be a big plus for not only your physical health but mental as well.
--
They are a great way to get your general activity levels up and a simple step target 👣🎯 can be a good motivator for this. 8-10k steps per day is generally a good starting point.
--
You might not be able to approach things the way you normally would if the gyms were open but hopefully this helps highlight that there is still a lot of positive things you can do in the meantime!

Chin Ups are sometimes described as the Squat for the upper body. They are very effective at strengthening and building muscle in that area.
--
Here's 3 simple you can utilise to help improve your Chin Ups.
--
✅ Implement eccentrics ✅
--
For many people performing full reps on Chin Ups won't be possible right away. However, you will find that you are much stronger in the eccentric portion of the movement (the lowering phase) than the concentric (pulling yourself up phase).
--
Implementing eccentrics into your training can be a very powerful tool in building up the strength to perform full Chin Ups. To do this:
--
🔹Jump or if possible, climb up onto the rack so that you start in the top position with your chin over the bar.
--
🔹Lower yourself under control back to the point where you are hanging with your arms straight.
--
🔹Jump/climb back to the top again and repeat for sets and reps.
--
🔹Try and lower yourself as slowly as possible and at a steady pace throughout, increasing the time for this over the course of a few weeks to make it more and more challenging.
--
🔹You can also add additional reps and sets to progress things and accumulate more volume.
--
✅ Use bands to help build them up ✅
--
Bands essentially give you a boost from the bottom of the movement and make it easier to perform full reps.
--
Loop the band over the bar/rack and position one of your knees in the band or for an even bigger boost pull it all the way down so you can get a foot in it and extend your leg.
--
As you improve you can decrease the thickness of the band you use and thus the assistance offered. This is a good way to progress towards eventually removing the band altogether.
--
✅ Focus on driving your elbows towards your ribs ✅
--
This a good focal point technique wise and doing so will help contract your lats (one of the prime movers for the exercise) and pull your body into a good position to execute the movement.
--
Get building those Chin Ups team! 💪
--

We use the word "Bootcamp" to describe our group training. We use this word as it is what most people generally recognise as representing group training.

However, in truth we don't run a bootcamp. Not in the traditional sense at least. There's no running around in parks and countless bodyweight exercises such as burpees.

Not that there is anything wrong with this approach, it's just that we run our version of a Bootcamp, which would be better described as high level group strength and conditioning sessions.

We are very performance focused, emphasising results and progression in big barbell lifts and other key areas.

We love this approach for helping people achieve well rounded improvements in their lives, both physically and mentally.

From goals such as fat loss to muscle building but most importantly of all feeling more confident, happier and empowered.

We are extremely proud of our fun, friendly and supportive community of Bootcampers and wanted to share some of their results from focusing on a performance based approach despite very different goals.

🔹Abi - from skeletor (her word not ours, we think she looked great before and after) to athletic and strong. It's fantastic to see the difference in Abi, not only has she added good quality lean mass in her back, shoulders, arms and glutes but she has also developed extremely impressive lb for lb strength! 💪

🔹 - what a difference in Ashley, not only has she become much leaner but she has gone from learning how to lift to becoming extremely strong, athletic and even competing in Powerlifting.

🔹 - John has packed on a huge amount of muscle and his strength levels have gone through the roof! So much so that he now competes in the sport of Strongman with impressive competition performances already under his belt and even more big things to come soon.

🔹 - 4 stone lighter and getting stronger every time he touches a bar. Massive difference in Chris already and he keeps improving!

Big well done guys! 🙌📈🔥