Skip to main content

Not Your Average Gym

So I don’t know if you’ve heard but we’ve opened a new training studio. Take a look:

I think you can probably tell from the picture its not your average ‘gym’. No machines, no dumbbells/barbells, no treadmills, cross trainers or bikes…. Alright, I get it, there’s not a lot in there. But then do you really need all that stuff to get into the shape you want to be?
The answer is no. I’ll let you in on a little secret… I’ve been a personal trainer for six years and out of those six I’ve had a gym membership for a grand total of one year. That was during my first year at university. Even then I can count the number of times I actually used it on one hand because it became such a pain fighting for the weights with guys from Bath Rugby. They usually won. Well, they always won
‘So what did you do?’ I hear you ask. Surely you can’t be a personal trainer and not train yourself?! Of course I trained, but most of the time just at home, or outside. I started off with a bench and some adjustable dumbbells in my room like a lot of people do. Then a year or two later my family moved to a small farm and I was lucky enough to nab a bit of space there to workout in that wasn’t my bedroom. It wasn’t anything fancy, it was this thing:

Its an old container body off the back of a lorry/truck that was just sat out in the yard. By this point I’d given up on the bench and dumbbells. They took up a lot space, it took too long and was an awkward process trying to adjust the weights, and it just wasn’t cost effective to keep having to buy more weight as I got stronger. So instead of traditional weight training, I started focusing on using my own bodyweight. I had a pull up bar (some old scaffold tube), a pair of gymnastic rings, a few kettlebells for a bit of variety, and that was pretty much it.
Pull ups, press ups, dips, swings, squats and the odd Turkish get up. That’s how I trained in that old lorry body. There was no heating or electric, so in the winter it was bitter cold (icy pull up bars and kettlebell handles…. Brrrrrr), damp, and often dark, so I would have train using a headlamp. Then in the summer, there were no vents or windows (other than the doors) so it would heat up like a hot box and I felt like I was in a sauna. It was not glamorous, and it sounds like I’m complaining, but really I’m not. The whole time there was nothing stopping me from joining a shiny, bright, white commercial gym, but I didn’t want to. I had my space and it was great. And it taught me that you didn’t need all the high tech and fancy equipment, or the next new gimmick to get fit. All you need is a bit of space, your own body, a bit of knowhow and (most importantly) dedication. Oh yeah, and a pull up bar, cus who doesn’t love pull ups!!

That’s how I still train and how I’ve trained all my clients to date, in their own homes or outside in parks/gardens and they’ve gone on to achieve exactly want they wanted from their fitness, with a few even competing in triathlons.

And that’s what our new training studio is about. I understand not everyone knows how to get the most out of training when all you’ve got to work with is your body. But over the years I’d like to think I’ve learnt a thing or two about calisthenics and bodyweight training. So we’ve got the space and the knowledge, all you’ve got do is bring yourself and be prepared to work!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Importance of Fascia

Fascia is EVERYWHERE! The fascial web covers the entire body. This connective tissue both facilitates and restricts movement! SPIRAL LINE - is the link between the shoulder and the ankle of the opposite leg. Like a sling across the body. If you have a restriction along the line both 'ends' will be negatively affected. e.g. shoulder tightness (problem) = poor flexibility in the opposite ankle and hip. Imagine a tightly knitted jumper, tug one end you'll see the tug travel a long distance to the other end. Like a domino effect. This time pull on it again but hold for 8 hours (amount of time a lot of us sit @ a desk) or pull on it 2000 times (average steps done on a light run). The outcome? Well the jumper isn't going to look how it started out. Fascia just like all other connective tissue can change in response to stress/injury. Just as tendons thicken in response to repetitive motion/lifting heavy - fascia may also thicken. This leads to stiffening and red...
Post a Comment
Read more

Miracle cure for your lower back pain...?

This week we're talking about the infamous lower back!! Most of the adult population have suffered some sort of lower back pain at one point...(shock horror it's probably those chairs' fault again!!)People are constantly on the hunt for this magical exercise/stretch that will fix everyone's lower back pain, but it doesn't exist!! Firstly everyone is slightly different, what works for one person won't work for another. You'll most likely have to go through a few different exercises to see which is best for you. Secondly, we're constantly told our lower back is this fragile thing and we shouldn't move it in a way that would seem to aggravate it - your back is a muscle just like your quads, it needs to be worked, it should be strong (not weak like most of ours because we don't use it). We have to learn to move without the fear of doing damage to it. Say you've gone to the gym and tried a new workout which included a few Deadlift variations. Th...
1 comment
Read more

Scapula Health

The muscles responsible for scapula movement and control (known as the rotator cuff and serratus anterior) are often overlooked in favour of the bigger, superficial muscles we see in the mirror: pectorals, deltoids and latissimus dorsi. While these large muscles are responsible for developing the power in the overall movements, the smaller muscles deep within the shoulder stabilise the head of the humerus within the glenoid fossa (shoulder socket). If these are weak it can lead to imbalances, weakness, pain and even injury. Last summer, I thought I had injured my anterior deltoid, because of pain in my shoulder which also ran down the top of my arm. The pain became worse during pressing movements in my workouts and even began to effect my everyday life, causing extreme discomfort during driving. This went on for a few months, just thinking I'd pulled a muscle and it would fix itself eventually. However, this wasn't the case and finally enough was enough, so I got it checke...
Post a Comment
Read more