- So why do I DISLIKE/HATE Boot-Camps ? . . . -

- - - -  So why do I DISLIKE/HATE Boot-Camps ? . . .  - - - - 

Let's think about this. Why would someone pay Cheap Rates and Expect to get in AMAZING shape ? It's not 100% possible for NUMEROUS reasons. Think about the last time you went to a boot-camp. Was it Hard ? Did you feel every exercise was out of your - depth ? Feeling like your Trainer was asking the WORLD OF YOU and you felt like you UNDER ACHIEVED ? If you answered YES to these let me tell you why . . . 

1) - Always REMEMBER we all have to Crawl - before we can walk - walk before we can run - run before we can sprint etc . . . <--- Think about that...


2) - Majority of boot-camps ARE NOT tailored made - what does this mean ? . . . How can a Trainer state perform 10 Burpees when you have a Athlete like myself in say the same group as a 20 Stone (obese man) I may be able to pull this off yes . . . but the other man ? . . . Off course not !?! It's not only Dangerous to EXPECT this off him (heart attack / hypertension etc. . . ) but will PUT HIM OFF coming back for more being surrounded with others of different abilities. 


3) - Majority of these Trainers have INSURANCE that DOES NOT COVER YOU if YOU GET INJURED . Have you ever had to Sign a Release form prior to taking part ? . . . yes ? Then that trainer is not insured . Another reason this may be is because their Insurance does't cover OUTDOOR activities. Meaning Park boot-camps . Outdoor boot-camps and more etc . . . 


4) - Are they even Qualified ? . . . The 65% Majority of Trainers who perform boot-camps ARE NOT CORRECTLY QUALIFIED in their chosen field . Ask for proof of qualifications. Are they Minimum Level 3 PT do they hold any extra quals ? An actual boot-camp qualification ? Who is their insurance policy with ? Do they have a Diploma a Degree ? . . . Don't be afraid to ask it's your HARD-EARNED CASH being Spent. 


5) - REMEMBER they aren't tailor made - If you expect to be able to PERFORM like an Athlete you must start from the bottom and work your way up . Ask or Look around for one to one's OR at least PT's who perform group PT Session 3 people to 1 Personal Training not BOOT-CAMPS this way the Trainer can identify and produce exercises tailor made to your needs and build you up SLOWLY and PROGRESSIVELY meaning you become STRONGER for LONGER and always come back for more. . . . You will far more feel a Sense of Achievement then a sense of under-performing in front of others around you that isn't exactly in a Private environment etc . . . 

I could right loads more but I won't it saddens me to see people pay hard earned money on Boot-camp (Sign-Up Schemes) and either NOT GET THE RESULTS they want OR drop-out 2 Weeks into their stint. Do it Properly . Hire a Personal Trainer. They're with your from Day one to they Very End . Your Goal is Their Goal . And people like myself want nothing better than your RESULTS to Flourish ! The proof is in the pudding as they say. I have Numerous Clients Results. Weather WEIGHT-GAIN - WEIGHT-LOSS - Strength for Purpose - OR - Personal Client Goals i.e Great North Run - 

REMEMBER Personal Trainers offer Nutrition - One to Ones - Massage (in my case ) - Lifestyle Coaching - And much more . . . You may pay more . . . But you GET MORE ! . . . 

JLH - Fitness - JLH -

https://www.facebook.com/pages/JLH-Fitness/259834187380015

How to break through a strength training plateau?

How to break through a strength training plateau?

Drinking down protein shakes? Regularly hitting the gym, and still not getting stronger?

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Welcome to the in-famous fitness plateau. But don’t be alarmed they are ways to stop feeling 

stagnant and move forward on that fitness quest. The key? Variation/varying workouts…

Remember, as people and individuals gain strength in a specific movement, the body requires 

always new stimulus to grow. Research suggests that after anyway from 1 to 6 weeks the body will 

adapt to a typical fitness routine.

There is no one reason why gym rats may stop seeing progress from both beginners and 

professionals or any type of athlete alike, may see their strength gains start to wane/lower. One 

answer is to change things up, find below some tips below to keep making progress and keep things 

fresh…

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• Add intensity - slow and steady doesn't always win the race. Try upping the intensity to continue building muscle. Swap out a long slow run with some treadmill intervals and lunges instead of walking to the next exercise machine/station.

- - - - 

• Change the moves - been sticking to the bench press? Try a push up instead. /Unconventional dead-lifts? Switch to the sumo position. This will target the same muscles in a different way. 

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• Cross train - mixing in a variety of training styles will target different muscles while also challenging the mind. Cross training may even reduce the risk of injury as well, so always ensure you mix up your machines.

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• Switch the order - try changing the order of strength training exercises to tire the muscles at different times. (Those push-ups will be a lot harder at the end of the work out.) Just remember bigger muscle groups should almost always be worked first, and avoid saving explosive-based training for the end.

- - - - 

• The theory repetitions - no need to stick to the same number of reps in sets for every move,switch up the number of squats and Superman’s to surprise and challenge the body. Going heavy for fewer wraps? Just be sure to increase weight gradually. Higher weight will stimulate hormones that aid in muscle growth, but adding too much weight on it once could lead to injury.

- - - - 

• Change rest between sets - there’s a big difference between resting for 60 seconds, and the time it takes to fill out an application form. To mix things up in the weight room shorten or lengthen the rest time to affect muscle endurance. Or skip the rest altogether and head into a super set or possibly a circuit.

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• Pinpoint the problem - hear some tough love. Hating squats doesn't mean leaving them out. Identify the exercise that causes some trouble and in the words of Nike ‘just do it.’ It’ll only make the body stronger!

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• Rest - on those days off, muscles rebuild in stronger formations. So don’t forget to take it easy every now and then, the amount of rest depends on the person really to see that strength develop.

- - - - 

• Keep on keeping on - don’t get frustrated by a lack of progress and never ever give up! Need some reinforcement? Try using a workout journal or up to keep track of workouts-and watch those new PR’s stack up!

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Just a little change will keep the body challenged and that hard work will continue to pay off and don’t forget about the importance of diet too. What happens in the kitchen affects performance at the gym. Make sure to get enough protein, fruits and veggies ensure that you steer clear of too much sugar and simple carbs save the glazed doughnuts for a special occasion with some hard work patients, and a solid game plan, that fitness plateau should be old news.

- The Power of Now -

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- The most common excuse people nowadays use is ' oh i'll start tomorrow OR oh i'll start on Monday ! ' , F*CK THAT ! - Make that Change now ! Too many people need to realize that by ' PUTTING OFF THEIR CHORES or PUTTING OFF THE GYM or PUTTING OFF THEIR LIFESTYLE CHANGES ' till the next day or the following Monday will somehow make a Difference ! I'm afraid the answer is simply 'NO!' - If your mindset knows and understands you are in need of change, yet you consciously know your saying ' hmmmmm. . . . nar i'll leave it will later ! ' this just goes to show that , 

1.) You realize , know and understand the fact you need change . 

2.) Your being ' LAZY ' and holding yourself back . 

3.) IF YOU DON'T MAKE CHANGE NOW YOU NEVER WILL 

- Nobody got where they are without CHANGE ! Make it NOW ! Their is NEVER a bad time. And Nobody is going to make that Change for you ' ONLY YOU CAN ! '...

' In Order for Change to take place , you 1st must learn to do something different to what you've never done before ! - Never put off till tomorrow for the things you can do today ! ' - 

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- The Beginners Guide to Meditation , Relaxation & De-stress. -

The Beginners Guide to Meditation , Relaxation & De-stress.

Meditation has a host of health benefits--from lowering blood pressure and inflammation, helping overall Fitness & most of all mental well-being.

So how do you meditate? Do you have to say "omm," visit a monastery, or levitate? Nah, just follow these simple steps.

- -  HOW TO MEDITATE: BEGINNING STEPS - - 

1.         Find a comfortable, quiet, & private place.

2.         Sit or lie down, front or back, whatever seems most convenient. The position doesn’t matter, as LONG AS YOU’RE RELAXED.

3.         Set a timer for 5 minutes. (Choose a soothing alarm sound)

4.         Close your eyes.

5.         Scan down your body from head to toe, think ABOUT CONSCIOUSLY relaxing each muscle. Let everything sink downward. In particular, let your face droop.

6.         Now,  FOCUS on your breathing. You don’t need to breathe in any special way. Just breathe and   notice what it feels like. Observe how the air moves in and out.

7.         Count 10 breaths, observing each one. What does breathing feel like? Does it make any sound?

8.         Let thoughts drift in and out, like lazy cats. Let them wander in, then shoo them away. They’ll be back. You don’t need to hold on to them.

9.         Observe only. Don’t judge your thoughts. There is no “should”. If you think of something, don’t think, "Oh my God I’m thinking I’m not supposed to be thinking stop thinking ahhh there I go again I suck at this!! Crap" Just think, “Hey, there’s a thought. OK, bye bye for now. Thanks for playing, thought. Shoo the lazy cat out.” If you hear a noise, or have an itch, simply think, there’s a noise or I have an itch. Make a note of it, then move on.

10.       Keep coming back to your breathing. There’s no rush; just keep wandering back to it. What’s it doing now?

11.       Repeat until your time is up. (soothing alarm sound goes off. Slowly move to turn it off)

12.       Finish with 5 good breaths to “finalize” the session.

13.       Open your eyes.

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Click Video Below for Superb Relaxation Music ! Give it a Go ! 

Superb Relaxation Music , CLICK Link Below ! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3JGo5XPwWc

My 3 Personal Pet Hates at the Gym . . .

My 3 Personal pet hates at the gym,

1.)    Weight lifting belts. Why? Well to be honest I dont have a problem with them, as they actually have a purpose however, the majority of gym goers who use them, use them wrong!

The weightlifting belt is in fact only good for one purpose, to STOP the athlete from hyper extending the back when performing a deadlift, russian deadlift, squat etc... and so on. It’s purpose is there as a reminder to the athlete not to hyper-extend. 

So why do gym-users persist on using them in the GYM for things such as free weighted exercises. Inlcine dumbbell press and so on. Its useless?!  Unless. . .

For example the reason strong men use them is becuase their training consists of working consistantly at the 85% + of the their 1RM (rep max) moving such a HEAVY load from one area to the next! Or moving such a HEAVY load in a STRICT MOVEMENT!  This is exceptable.

The other reason i DISAGREE with Weightlifting belts is your back has a muscle called your fascia in which takes up most of the mid-lower back region. This like any other muscle in the body  it needs trraining, YES?  If your wearing a weight Lifting belt you are then placing the load from your back onto the BELT = no training purpose what so ever meaning in the long run if your consistantly training with your belt if you ever FORGET your belt , or chose not to use it YOU will find that

A.) You wont be able to lift the load as you could with the belt, why ? becuase you havent trained it correctly.

B.) You will SERIOUSLY put your back out! 

Lesson learnt here only use your weightlifting belt when either ,

1.) Your about to perform between 2 reps or your 1 rep max’x reminding you to enforce a straight back and to push from your heels!

2.) It’s part of your training, if your a Strongman thats fine or a Powerlifter also, etc...

2.)    Quite a simple one, yet people still dont realise the impact it actually has on their workout! I myself am guilty of this one once in a while, and when I twig on I proper have a go at myself. Number 2 is REST times between SETs, they are their for a reason.

Endurance athletes will use only 30s-1min MAX between sets. As they normally work between 55-75% of their 1RM (repmaxs)

Hypertrophy will only use 1min-2min between sets. As they train between 70% 80% & 90% of their 1RM (repmaxs)

Far too many people end up chit chatting or delaying their results as they arn’t functioning the muscles in the correct manner. Hence they never see the results as quick as they would like.

My advice if your taking your phone into the GYM use the STOPWATCH and STICK TO IT you will soon find out whether you’ve been training correctly or incorrectly.

The results will soon show. If youve been talking or not talking.

Also if your talking too much on a piece of equipment you will soon find out whether your fellow gym goers will get aggravated if your taking too long a machine if your chatting and not working.

3.)    EGO’s now this can be a touchy subject but what i mean by ego’s is whether an individual is training for the CORRECT purposes or TRAINING for the WRONG purposes i.e i can lift more then this guy that guy etc..

Depening on your training you should NEVER feel imtimidtaed of feel demeaning, by others. A great friend and mentor./teacher of mine Chris Ranshaw told me one of my favourite quotes “ We train together, we leave out ego’s at the door, as long as your working to YOUR 100% thats all you need!” . . .  And he’s right forget about others Train the correct way. You should never be hyper-extending trying lift a million Kg’s instead focus on the HYPERTROHPY of the muscles.

Ensure you are getting the correct pump and contraction of the muscle fibres to ensure GROWTH. Instead of trying to move such an enourmous object you will end up putting mucle on in the WRONG places as your body incorporates other MUSCLEs into the contraction to move the weight!

Your body is basicly saying I CAN’T MOVE this so i will bring this muscle into the movement, and so on. YOUR ARE NOT training to TRAIN LIKE STRONGMAN, so DONT DO IT !

I could talk for 1000’s of words on this subject but i’ll leave it at that.

If you’d like to any information on anything just let me know.

JLH-FITNESS.