The chances are you’ll have already heard the saying that “life begins at forty” or that middle age begins around the same time. What you might not have heard is that from around forty-four years your risk factor for coronary heart disease starts to increase. If you are already in training and working hard you’d like to think that you’re covered and protected however it depends on what training you are actually taking part in, and at what level.
If you are looking at beating your personal best you need to look at your training, your race day planning, your fitness and of course your fuel. What you eat before you start your run can have a significant effect on your performance which is why you should consider including these foods.
Its been a busy month with PT sessions and very enjoyable with some of you reaching your summer fitness goals.
Caffeine is bad, caffeine should be avoided and we should all use only caffeine-free or reduced caffeine products. That is what we're told anyway. Caffeine isn't however quite the monster that some people would have us believe, particularly when you are using it to boost your endurance performance.
Working out is brilliant in that it helps you get closer to your health and fitness goals and also helps you achieve the look or shape that you are aiming for. What about how exercise affects your mind though?
An effective workout is individual to you; your wants, your needs, your experience and your general health and fitness on day one. Use these top tips to create a workout that is enjoyable, effective and personal to you.
June is always a big month for both myself and for clients. This weekend (18/6/16) I’ll be taking part in the Rat Race- The Wall which is running for its fifth year. Athletes taking part cover sixty-nine miles in one day overall. On the 26th June I’ll also be taking part in the local Merchant Taylors Triathlon Event. What both of these fun yet incredibly challenging events have in common is that they are both endurance events.
When working on a fitness plan with clients I advise setting short term goals as well as long term ones. The end goal may be a few stones away for example and this may be demotivating at times. When it comes to successful weight loss even shorter goals are key to success. Those most successful on a weight loss journey are those who take it day by day and make small yet significant changes to their everyday habits.
The summer is a popular time for outdoor sporting events however there are seasonal quirks that you must be aware of to ensure that your summer sporting is as safe as it is fun. It is important to dress for the weather and also be aware of how your body reacts to summer heat. For example, some might choose to wear a lightweight full-sleeved top to protect them from the sun.
Obstacle races were once upon a time something children did for fun and soldiers did for training. These days obstacle course racing (OCR) is a popular and involved fitness event which takes guts, training and a little bit of OCR know-how if you want to get to the end intact!Obstacle races were once upon a time something children did for fun and soldiers did for training.
We were very pleased with the response from last month in regards to our newsletter launch, thank you for your feedback! We've listened and got you a packed June Newsletter.
Many of my clients enjoying getting out and enjoying the fresh air, experiencing fabulous scenery and of course boosting their fitness by taking part in hikes. One of the questions I am frequently asked regarding hikes is “how do I stay hydrated”. This is a good question and these points should help you work out the best way to ensure that you adequately and safely hydrated throughout the hike.
Clearly I am a big fan of keeping active! I enjoy a wide range of activities including running, cycling and the odd obstacle course race amongst other things. I believe that being active is important for the whole family which is why I was delighted when my daughters inherited my love of sports and athletics. Both take part in local events; enjoy getting out and about and my eldest runs for Watford Athletic Club.
The media tells us to run away (fast!) from fats and to do our best to eliminate or at least reduce them from our diets. The insinuation that you can never lose weight or get fit when you have fat in your diet is as ludicrous as supposing that all fats are the same. Some fats are not only good for you, they are essential in maintaining a healthy body and may actually help you achieve that much sought-after flat belly!
Your thyroid is important, very important actually as its "job" is to regulate more or less all of the major metabolic functions in your body. It is responsible for regulating sensitivity to other hormones, controls new protein building, controls how fast/slow your metabolic rate is, calorie burning and that's just the beginning.
Grounding and earthing might sound like something out of your high school electronics class however what we're looking at here is a natural way to boost your health while going barefoot. Bear with me! There is scientific backing behind the phenomenon that is known as grounding or earthing, which in basic terms is connecting with the ground while barefoot to boost your negative electron levels.
You only get one first marathon and it is almost always a steep learning curve, regardless of how much you've trained for the event. In fact, whether you have run a marathon before or not these tips could help you make the most of your experience and it never hurts to remind yourself of the basics.
Walk past any health food shop, open any magazine or have a click around the internet and you'll see that there are a vast number of supplements, teas and more all guaranteed to help you lose weight. As a personal trainer and someone with a keen insight into nutritional matters the majority of these supplements and what not have little effect, other than perhaps the placebo effect which helps you "stick" to your healthy diet and rev up your activity levels.
Back in the 1970's a rather damning (and somewhat flawed as it turns out) report coming out of the MIT gave nitrates and nitrites a bad name. These two compounds natural occur in the human body and largely in vegetables. In a knee-jerk reaction to this report the FDA of the day cut the allowable levels of nitrates and nitrites allowed In food products. This especially had a knock-on effect on the reputation of cured meats.
Fats are the work of the devil, they should be shunned, avoided, banned from your diet... or not. While the old thinking suggests that all fats are bad, particularly for anyone engaged in an athletic routine personal trainers like myself, alongside labs full of researchers will tell you that not all fats are created equal and that people do indeed use them to boost their athletic performance.