As FIt As a Butchers Dog

Just stumbling around the internet as I often do and came across a get UK based website for all those who are out there looking for a partner to do various sports with or for a coach.


Well go to http://afaabd.com/ and get yourself a profile, let everyone know what you are looking for and you might find a group, club, or training partner in the sport or activity you are looking for.

While your on there why not look us up my profile is Tomforesight and if you are one of our clients it would be very much appreciated if you could give us a rating!

Until next time,

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Q+A: I am planning to have a baby, should i continue exercising if I get pregnant?

It is a great idea to continue your training throughout your pregnancy, it will of course need some modification, so let your personal trainer know. They will be able to make sure that the exercises that they give you are appropriate for the trimester you are currently in.

There are many great benefits of exercising while pregnant, these include:-

• Mothers who exercise tend to have a shorter labour.
• Mothers who exercise tend to have a more comfortable pregnancy.
• Mothers who exercise need less medical intervention during labour

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Fat Basics

What is fat?

Fat is the most concentrated form of energy in our diet, yielding 9 calories per gram compared to 4 calories per gram with carbohydrates and proteins. Fats are also important carriers of vitamins A, D, E and K. Fats are found both in solid form (fat) and liquid form (oils) at room temperature. Fats are made up of fatty acids, different combinations of these building blocks of fat are what gives different fats its different properties. Fatty acids are basically chains of carbon atoms.

What is fat used for in the body?

In the body fats are used for a wide variety of functions. These include protection of the bodies organs, providing insulation, give the body its shape, protect the brain and coat the nervous system.

Are there different types of fat?

There are three main types of fat, these are discussed below:-

• Saturated fats – usually solid at room temperature. Primarily from animal fats but also coconut and palm oil. These fats are the culprits of heart disease as they are high in the harmful LDL cholesterol.
• Unsaturated fats – usually liquid at room temperature. Primarily from vegetable oils and oily fish. There are two types of unsaturated fats, monounsaturated (olive oil, rapeseed oil, peanut oil) and polyunsaturated (sunflower oil, safflower oil, corn oil). These fats contain HDL cholesterol, or the good cholesterol. HDL can help to eliminate, or cancel out the harmful LDL.
• Cis or trans fats – unsaturated fats that have been treated to give them the properties of saturated fats. These are thought to be worse than saturated fats, as they appear to reduce good HDL and increase LDL levels.

What problems are associated with a high fat diet?

High fat diet are associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease, also many suffer from higher cholesterol levels. Due to the fact that fat is high in calories high fat diets are also associated with obesity.

What problems are associated with a low fat diet?

Fat is an essential part of our diet, fat is present in every single one of our bodies cells. In women with a lower body at percentage than 15-20% may experience an absence of periods, due to hormonal imbalances. This may lead to fertility problems in the future. Low fat diets in general can result in missing out on essential fatty acids and vitamins needed by the body.

How much fat should I eat?

It is recommended that approx 15 – 30% of your daily calorie intake should be made up of fat. This is a very general figure and should be discussed fully with a nutritional therapist.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Setting Effective New Years Resolutions

It is that time of year again when we are looking towards/back at Christmas, then looking down at that bit of a budge that we have put on. It springs into many people minds to set themselves some new years resolutions based around health and fitness. But lets face it, how many of you have looked back at the resolutions you set last year, or what we are going to refer to as goals, and have achieved them? Unfortunately not many people do go on to achieve what they have set out to do, but why?

I feel that by following some simple goal setting rules, and this is not just post Christmas, but all year round, you can greatly increase your chance of achieving your goals. So lets take a look at the SMARTER system for setting goals, all goals must be:-

Specific - Goals must be specific to what you want to achieve, a goal such as to ‘get fitter’ is too vague to be used motivationally. A specific goal needs to be along the lines of 'to improve my fitness levels to a point where I can run a 10K'.

Measurable - All goals must have some form or measurable element such as a time, a weight or the completion of an event, so you clearly know when you have achieved your goal. A goal such as 'to lose weight' is useless as it has no clear end point.

Agreed - If you do not feel that you can achieve a goal, then you will have no ownership of it and therefore it loses it's motivating power. Goals must therefore be considered achievable and agreed to by all parties involved.

Realistic - A goal must be challenging but achievable. If you feel you can't achieve the goals that have been set by you then they will have no motivational effect.

Time Framed - If a goal is not time framed then it is easy to put it off, therefore increasing the risk for failure.

Exciting - Goals must excite you, if you are excited about it you are much more likely to get up and work towards achieving it.

Recorded - Writing down your goal allows you to fix and focus on what you are looking to achieve.

If I take a common example of a guy who comes to a personal trainer and would like to loose 2 stone. The goal outline might look like the following:-

'To loose 2 stone, over the next year, so I weigh 12 stone on the 31^st December 2009’.

This goal meets all the criteria of the SMARTER principle, it is specific in that he wants to loose 2 stone, it is measurable as a specific time has been set. It has been agreed between the two parties who both think it is challenging but realistic. And a specific date it is set by which he would like to achieve the weight loss, so it is time framed.

Once you have set yourself a goal it is then time to work on your strategy that will help you achieve it. This is done by initially setting a number of sub-goals with motivating rewards. These should also follow the SMARTER principle!

So for our guy he might se similar goals at 3 months, 6 months and 9 month. These would take the format of ‘I would like to loose 8lb by 1^st April, making my weight 13st6lb’. He may also set goals that might add to his main goals such as ‘ take a course of Personal Training in my first 3 months of training’ or ‘use a nutritionist to help me formulate a diet plan, during my first 3 months of training’.

Once this goal outline is completed it should not be put away in a drawer to gather dust, read over it regularly place it somewhere prominent where you will see it daily. By doing this you are focusing your mind on the goal that you have set yourself and you are preventing deviation from it.

Although goal setting like this may seem like a lengthy process compared to the relative ease of just saying in your head ‘I am going to lose 2 stone’, once you get into the habit of doing it you will soon start to see the motivational rewards of having a clearly defined goal and achievement.

I hope that by this time next year you will be looking back seeing a year of achievement, whatever your goals may be.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Q+A: If I do resistance work on my triceps will I loose my Bingo Wings?

Many women experience an increased amount of fat on the back of their arms, a situation many of my clients would like to address. Most of the time this is a additional layer of fat over the Tricep muscle.

By using resistance based exercise, the Tricep muscle can be toned. This can help to improve the appearance of the upper arm area. Unfortunately when it comes to reducing the fat in this area and whole body approach has to be taken. It has been proven that the theory of ‘Spot Reduction’ (exercising one area, will reduce the fat in that area) does not work.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Wellbeing in the Workplace

Wellbeing initiatives are fast becoming a major part of employee benefit packages and/or absentee management policies. By providing your employees with the tools they need to maintain their optimal levels of wellbeing you can have a direct effect on reducing the losses that your organisation may suffer due to absenteeism and also have a impact on tackling stress in the workplace. Not to mention the improvements in staff motivation and general workplace morale.

This short article will look at the three main areas that add up to affecting your employees wellbeing. These are health and fitness levels, nutritional standards and stress management.

Benefits of Focusing on Wellbeing

By helping your employees to improve their personal levels of wellbeing your organisation can expect the following benefits:-

• improved productivity and performance
• reduced staff turnover
• reduced levels of absenteeism
• reduced levels of stress
• improved customer satisfaction
• improved organisation reputation

Health and fitness in the workplace

The old saying healthy body healthy mind is very true when it comes to the workplace. Fit and active people tend to be more efficient and effective in the work place. Not to mention the reduced levels of absenteeism amongst healthier employees.

Providing employees with encouragement to maintain good levels of health and fitness can be done in a number of ways:-

· Work based wellbeing clinics - short sessions (effective sessions can be as short as 30 mins) where employees can meet with a wellbeing consultant. This time allows individual’s to discuss possible ways of improving their daily physical activity levels and general wellbeing.

· Wellbeing testing - many companies now offer their employees the option to have their personal levels of wellbeing assessed. These sessions normally consist of a range of fitness and wellbeing tests allowing individuals to identify areas in their own wellbeing that could be improved.

· Work based fitness classes - by providing a range of on site fitness and wellbeing classes at various times, employees can find it more time effective to attend fitness classes.

· Work based gym - larger organisations may consider the provision of a on site gym for use of their staff. These gyms range in size and level of service dependent on organisational resources.

· Corporate gym memberships - by taking out a corporate membership at a local gym, employees can make substantial savings on membership costs, at a small cost to the organisation.

Nutrition in the workplace

Nutritional standards have a vital role to play in an individuals overall wellbeing levels. By providing healthy options within the workplace an organisation can have a major impact on their employees wellbeing. This can be done by ensuring that snack, meal, and drink facilities include healthy options such as selections of fruit and the provision of easily accessible drinking water.

Larger organisations who have on site catering facilities may also wish to involve catering staff with the process of developing a more healthy workplace. Most people state the major barrier they face to healthy eating is that it is not convenient. So any interventions that you make within the workplace need to be convenient and accessible in order to be successful.

Stress management in the workplace

Stress levels within your organisation can be a major factor when trying to improve levels of workplace productivity via the implementation of a wellbeing policy. Stress is one of the biggest factors that account for employee absenteeism and loss of productivity.

The main problem within the workplace is that employees often do not have a get away point where they can take their minds off work for an all important break. Employees who tend to be un-contactable and can turn off from work during breaks tend to be more effective and efficient when back on the job.

One of the most effective and simplest strategies to have come out of many stress management programs is to turn your canteen or other staff areas into a no work zone. This means no work talk, no taking work into these designated areas, and most importantly no work calls.

Education is also a key element of effective stress management. From top to bottom employees need to be educated in identification of stress factors and coping strategies. Those in a managerial position should also be trained in the identification of stress indicators in their teams and how to manage stress in the workplace.

Conclusions

By implementing a thoroughly thought out wellbeing policy that covers the three main areas of health and fitness, nutrition and stress management your organisation could start to see massive rewards in terms of increased productivity and reduced losses due to absenteeism.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Pre Natal Specialists

Over the last few months some of the training team have been working hard and studying all there is to know about pre-natal fitness. This has been facilitated by the following the NASM Pre-Natal Specialist course.

Using a Personal Trainer during your pregnancy has a number of very important benefits, these include:-

• women who are active during pregnancy tend to have a more comfortable labour.
• Women who exercise during pregnancy tend to need less medical interventions and have a shorter labour.
• Women who exercise in the 1st and 2nd trimester tend to have a easier 3rd trimester than those who don't.
• Women who exercise throughout pregnancy tend to recover and resume usual exercise levels post pregnancy.

Pregnant females can exercise with a few modifications throughout their pregnancy. When working under a Foresight Pregnancy Specialist you will be in the very best hands during your pregnancy. Foresight Pregnancy Specialist are also trained in post natal exercise, where they can help you to recover from the child birth experience and are specialists in the rebuilding of the abdominal wall.

For more information on or range of pregnancy services call the office on 0161 614 0166 or e-mail info@foresight-fitness.co.uk.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Protein Basics

What is protein?

Proteins are what we are essentially made up of. The proteins that we eat are broken down by the body into their smaller components called amino acids. These amino acids are termed the ‘building blocks of life’ as they are what all the proteins in the human body are made up of. Such as your organs, muscles, tissues, etc... Proteins are also used as chemical catalysts, messengers, hormones, to build new tissues and as a fuel within the body. There are 20 amino acids needed by the body, which combine in different formations to allow the body to produce the vastly different forms of protein which make up the human body.

Are there different types of protein?

We need to eat a wide verity of proteins in our diet to allow us to have a ready supply of all the different amino acids (building blocks) that our bodies need. There are 8 amino acids which are essential in our diet as our bodies can’t produce them. The other 12 amino acids that the body needs can be produced from the 8 essential ones in the liver.

There are two types of protein complete and incomplete. Complete proteins contain all 8 essential proteins in sufficient amounts that the body needs (e.g. meat, diary, poultry, soy foods, tofu). Incomplete proteins contain all 8 essential amino acids but not all of them are in sufficient amounts that the body needs (e.g. rice, beans, pasta, nuts).

Where can I get protein from?

Proteins can be got from both animal and non-animal sources. animal produce tends to give us a complete source of protein (the only non-animal sources of complete protein are soy products and tofu). Where as non-animal sources tend to be deficient in one or more essential amino acid. So if a diet is eaten that does not include animal produce then eating complementary proteins is necessary (see vegiterian/vegan factsheet).

Many athletes take protein or amino acid supplements, these tend not to be called for as it is relatively easy for the average person with a well balanced diet to take in sufficient amounts of protein to fulfil their bodies needs. There is little evidence that taking a excess of protein will help to build up muscle or body bulk.

How much protein do I need?

Below is a very rough guide of how much protein that different lifestyle groups should take in on a daily basis. It is important that this chart is only used in conjunction with a full nutritional assessment from a trained nutritional therapist.

Lifestyle Type	g of protein per kg of body weight
Sedentary Adult	0.75
Average Adult	1.2
Aerobic Fitness	1.4 – 1.6
Speed Athlete	1.8
Strength/Muscle Mass	2.0
Maximum Useable Protein	2.0

Can I eat too much protein?

The human body can only use a maximum of 2g of protein per kg of body weight per day. So any excess of this amount goes to waste within the body, as unlike many other substances used by the body protein can not be stored for later use. Regular extreme excesses of protein can theoretically lead to liver and kidney damage. Protein excesses can be spotted by strong smelling dark urine, if you have any concerns about liver or kidney damage discuss this issue with a doctor.

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Carb Basics

What is carbohydrate?

Carbohydrates are broken down by the body into glucose, which is a useable molecule of energy. Glucose can be stored within the muscles and liver as glycogen, any glycogen over the amount that the muscles and liver can hold is stored as fat. Both fat and carbohydrates are the bodies main sources of energy.

At any one time the body uses a mix of fuels to provide itself with energy. In the most cases these are blends of fat and carbohydrate, and if necessary protein. At rest we burn predominantly fat, but as our activity levels increase we start to burn a larger amount of fat. However as the intensity of the activities we are taking part in increase, we start to burn more and more carbohydrate. So at extreme intensities the majority of our bodies fuel comes from carbohydrate. If the bodies carbohydrate stores run out then fatigue will be experienced and the high levels of workload will not be able to be maintained.

Are there different types of carbohydrate?

There are two types of carbohydrate simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are sugars, these can give a fast boost of energy to the body. Due to their chemical structure they provide a source of energy that can be absorbed into the body at a very fast rate. Sources of simple carbohydrate include fruit, energy sweets, and honey. Complex carbohydrates take a longer time to be absorbed into the body, due to the chemical make up of these molecules. So this gives a slower sustained release of energy. Sources include breads, pasta, cereals, potatoes, etc...

How much carbohydrate do I need?

Activity Level (amount of exercise)	g of carbs. per kg of body weight
Light (less than 1 hour per day)	4 – 5
Light/Moderate (1 hour per day)	5 – 6
Moderate (1-2 hours per day)	6 – 7
Moderate/Heavy (2-4 hours per day)	7 – 8
Heavy (more than 4 hour per day)	8 – 10

The above chart is a very rough guide of how much carbohydrate that different lifestyle groups should take in on a daily basis. It is important that this chart is only used in conjunction with a full nutritional assessment from a trained nutritional therapist.

How do I know if I am not getting enough carbohydrate?

If you experience any of the following symptoms you may not be getting enough carbohydrate in your diet:-

• early fatigue
• reduced training intensity
• reduced training gains
• poor performance
• slow recovery

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

What to Look for in a Gym

When you are looking at which gym to join, it is not always as straight forward as you think it might be. There are so many factors that need to be taken into consideration to make sure that the gym you join meets your specific needs. By finding a gym that suits your needs you will greatly increase your chance of sticking to your new training program, and you give your less chance for excuses and/or loosing interest.

First of all you need to consider what your fitness goals are and what you will need from a gym in order to achieve them. Gyms are great places and when you find one that caters for all your needs it can become your second home. They can also be a place that people find all manner of excuses to avoid at all costs.

Below I have listed some of what I think are the most important aspects of a gym, and how they might effect your decision.

Gym – The gym floor itself, should provide you with a good range of equipment, including both cardiovascular and resistance type machines, also a good selection of free weights. There should also be a decent sized stretching area. The most important thing is that there would be enough space available at the times you are planning to go to the gym, you do not want to have to be waiting around for equipment.

Classes – If you enjoy the odd spin class or are a circuit addict, check the studio timetable and make sure that the classes you like are firstly available and secondly at a time that is accessible to you.

Pool – Make sure that the pool caters to what you would like to do in it, if you are a serious swimmer make sure that your prospective gym closes off lanes at the times you are in. Or if you just want to go in a float about with the kids then make sure you are aware of the times that the pool is open to the kids. The pool also hosts a range of classes such as aqua aerobics, if you like the water this is a class that is well worth trying out.

Atmosphere – This is an often overlooked aspect of joining a gym, in order to maintain your new found gym going it is vital that you feel comfortable in the club. The best way to find this out is to ask for a guest pass and train at the gym at a time you normally world and experience it for yourself. If this is not a possibility on your tour take your time to have a look around and see what feel you get for the gym and those who are using it.

Services – What else would you be looking for from the club you join? Lots of gym offer the expected such as Personal Training, Nutritional Advice, and Physio. Many larger health clubs will also offer beauty therapy, hairdressers, crèche’s and much more.

Convenience – In my opinion this is the most important factor when choosing a gym. Many people join gyms that they would have to travel to, and this is then often used as an excuse not to attend on those low energy days. If you choose a gym that is very local to home, work or ideally on your way between the two you are much more likely to keep your attendance up. Also parking can often be a problem, so ensure that your new gym has adequate parking spaces, especially at peak times.

Price – The monthly membership fees must be affordable and reflect what you consider to be value for money. You should consider how many visits to the gym you will realistically make each month and work out the price on a cost per visit basis. Most gyms now make you sign up for a twelve month contract, if you decide to join a gym using such a contract make sure that you thoroughly read the contract, especially the cancellation terms.

All gyms should give you a guided tour and allow you to have a look round before you join, also you will have the chance to ask any questions that you might have. Some gyms, if you ask, will also give you a free day pass before you join so that you can try all the various facilities before you buy.

Hopefully by looking at the above factors, and deciding what is important to you before you start to visit gyms, you will find the perfect gym for you. Remember a gym should be a place you are happy to be and enjoy training at, this will greatly improve your chances of sticking to your new exercise program, and most importantly getting the results you want!

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Leisure Indusrty Week

Recently a contingent of Foresight Fitness Personal Trainers made their way down fom across Manchester and Cheshire to the NEC in Birmingham for the annual Leisure Industry Week. The event covers the whole of the leisure industry and sees suppliers and professionals getting together to see the latest products, training courses, and also to attend workshops and talks by some of the industries leading figures.

As always we go down to find out what new products and also what new courses our Personal Training Team may consider to give our clients the very best from their time working with us.

On the course front we had a good look at some of the new offerings from Premier Training which seem very interesting, the one that particularly caught my eye is the new Level 4 qualification in the Management of Low Back Pain. Many of my clients past and present have experienced low back pain and the addition of this qualification would ensure that my personal knowledge is updated. I have also been investigating a number of Premier nutrition courses to complement my Personal Training qualifications, i would like to add on to my basic nutritional qualification with the Diploma in Nutritional Therapy. But as I am sure many of my clients already know I am a learning junkie, so I will have to see where i can fit this in on my CPD plan. If you are interested in my qualifications and CPD plan, they can be seen on my website.

As for products, we have placed orders for some new bowflex dumbbells, if you have not seen them they are a set of adjustable dumbbells that allow the user to select a weight to train with. Very useful for home based training.

We also place an order for a couple of sets of kettlebells, if you have not used these great pieces of strength training kit yet, you are in for a treat. They are awesome. These together with a number of orders for new and updated bits of kit means that the training team will have loads of new toys to play with, making your sessions a bit different.

We also got the chance to listen to a load of great industry speakers. Including the FitPro Business conference, The Wright Forum for Exercise Referral, and REP's.

A great couple of days,

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Padbox

Some of the personal training team here at Foresight have recently done the Padbox Course. The course was designed by Ian Burbedge, an ex armature boxer and Andrew Scott, a sports scientist. The course offers personal trainers the chance to learn actual boxing skills and apply them to a fitness setting. The course covered areas of footwork, technique, combinations, pad work, show boxing and much more.

My experience in martial arts set me up with what I thought was the basics of how to use focus mitts, but the pad box course gave me a great deal more skills. The trainer were great, very supportive and encouraging. Above all they seemed to understand that we were not looking to become pro boxers and was looking at the skills from a fitness perspective, but gave us a great deal of information in a very short period of time. Well done!

The course as a whole was one of the best practical based courses i have done, and many of my clients should enjoy the new combos, and skills that the course has enabled me to pass on to them. Myself and the rest of the Foresight team who have done the course really rate it and can't wait for further modules to be added to this initial offering.

Cheers for some great training!

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Sorry

Hi all,

Just a quick one to let you know that I have not forgotten my commitment to this blog. Things have been incredibly busy here at Foresight over the last month with us working with a load of new clients and helping them to work towards their wellbeing goals, which is of course a great thing.

Just a quick one, positivity is a vital part of my job. It is not something that came to me very easily, i have had times in my life where I have been very negative in my attitude. However since I have been working as a Personal Trainer (over 8 years) my attitude has dramatically changed. I look at many things that i would have previously looked at as a negative, as a challenge. A challenge is fun, and has the competitive element that drives you to seek an effective solution.

My Challenge to you all is to turn some of those negatives you are currently experiencing into challenges, and see how much more motivating life can be.

Until next time!

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Fitness and Wellbeing Readining List

For a few weeks now I have been meaning to add a reading list to the site, many of my clients have asked about what books I recommend to help them in their journey to improved levels of wellbeing. So I thought I would put up a short list of my top 5 books.

I hope you like them and I would love to hear your thoughts.

Eat, Move and Be Healthy By Paul Chek

The Optimum Nutrition Bible By Patrick Holford

New Rules of Lifting By Alwyn Cosgrove

Anatomy of Exercise By Pat Manocchia

Nutrition for Dummies (UK Edition)

I will be reviewing some of the above books in the coming months, so keep your eyes on the blog! All the above can be found on Amazon!

Until Next Time,

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Fitness Social Networks

Anyone and everyone seems to be part of one of the many social networking services that there are on the net. One of the most common ones and one that I have finally given into is Facebook As I am new to this I might not have got all the following details right, so please do let me know if I need to correct anything.

Facebook – has a number of groups you can join that cover the areas of health and fitness. There are also a lot of sports groups too, that should cover every conservable type of sport you could possibly play. Facebook has a group for loads of gyms, and other sporting and fitness related groups. There are also a load of groups for all different types of wellbeing goals, so why not have a search and see what groups you might be interested in joining.

As I am a newbie to Facebook, I am sure that there is much more I could have written about, but I still have to find a lot out about it myself yet. If you have any tips for wellbeing on facebook, why not add it as a comment then others can see.

Until next time, train hard!

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Web Sites

The internet now has a number of great web resources out there for anyone looking to improve their personal levels of fitness and wellbeing. I have been a user of the internet for a long while and it has been very valuable to me when researching new methods and possibilities for new exercises to use with clients.

Below I have listed some of the great resources that I use, but remember that not all you read, see, or hear on-line is true (the links below I consider reputable) but always careful consider anything on-line and look into the background of the author.

You Tube - Has a great range of fitness professionals putting up some great content, I find you tube very useful as it allows clients to view various exercises and use the video footage as a prompt to help them when training away from their trainer.

Some of the content that I consider to be the best on You Tube include Underground Wellness, Paul Chek, Dax Moy, cbathletics, michaelboyle, etc…

Look out for the Foresight Fitness Channel launching very soon!

Lifestylexperts – Is a UK based wellbeing site with a good collection of articles and information on a very wide range of topics (including stress, lifestyle, life coaching, and of course fitness). The site also has a board of advisors that all have specialist areas of expertise, with a facility to ask them questions via e-mail (I am one of the Experts, so if you would like to ask me a question on-line please do).

Fitness Venues – Started off as a UK based listing site for gyms and personal trainers, however it has expanded to include a wide range of articles, a forum and reviews. A great resource for the UK based fitness enthusiast.

BBC – The BBC has a excellent wellbeing section on their website, it is up to date with the latest news in the field of wellbeing, nutrition and exercise. A great resource for both personal Trainers and clients.

T Nation – This site was set up as a mainly body building based resource but has some great articles by well known coaches and trainer that will be of use to anyone who is interested in strength and conditioning.

In my next entry I will be looking at some of the social networks and what they offer to the fitness community.

Until next time train hard!

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Fitness Forums

I have been a user of forums for a number of years, I think they can be great places for the free exchange of ideas between like minded people within the health and fitness community.

JP Fitness Forum – is one of the best all round fitness and related forums I have found on the internet. The forum is used by a lot of people with a very high standard of knowledge in the field of Health, Fitness, and Wellbeing. Well worth a look if you ever have any questions or are looking to increase your personal wellbeing knowledge. The forum covers many areas of strength and conditioning, nutrition and injury management. It is well established so if you want to know the answer to something you can bet it has been discussed at one time or another, and the searchable history makes it easy to find the answer.

Fitness Venues - is an off shoot of a UK based Fitness Services Listing and Article based site. The forum has not been going too long but already has a good group of contributors. It covers a very wide range of wellbeing related subjects, including fitness and exercise, diet and weight loss, health and beauty, nutrition and supplements, and leisure jobs. This site has a great deal of potential and will, I am sure come into it’s own over the next year!

Martial Arts Planet - started off as a Martial Arts based discussion group, but has for the past few years had a thriving fitness section. Again this forum has a great deal of knowledgeable contributors, who have varied backgrounds mainly with a martial arts slant. The sections on this site cover areas such as weight training, body weight training, flexibility, nutrition, injury prevention and management, and CV training. A must for anyone who is into martial arts and fitness.

T Magnum - This is the forum section of the well know Testosterone Nation website. A mainly US based web site covering all aspects of wellbeing generally from a strength and conditioning stand point. The site and forum are well established and have a number of the greats from the world of strength and conditioning as regular contributors.

These are just four forums of the many the net has to offer, they are the ones that I regularly use and can be seen on (screen name Tom@foresight). I do suggest that if you are looking to improve your knowledge on the subject of health and wellbeing have a look at one or two of these sites. They really are fun, no attitude, but knowledgeable places.

In my next entry I will be looking at some of the websites that I use and recommend to clients on the subject of health and fitness.

Until Next Time,

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

The On-line Fitness Community

Foresight Fitness Services, and especially me have been embracing the great development of the on-line fitness community over the past couple of years. Which have helped us to keep in contact with people who share our passion for health and fitness from around the world! As well as trying to put personal training (and us personal trainers) in Manchester and Cheshire on the internet map, by doing things like this blog.

Over my next couple of blog entries I am going to look at some of the on-line resources that are available to the fitness community. I will be splitting it all down into Forums, Web Sites, and Social Networks. So if you have any sites or forums that you use that you think we should include in this let me know!

I will be finishing off this series of blog entries by going over some of the web based services that I have built into our product range and how is see them developing over the coming months.

Until next time,

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Article: How to get a Beach Body

It is that time of year again we are all thinking about our holidays, we all want to look good on the beach or next to the pool. So how do you actually go about getting the body that looks good in a bikini/trunks? The answer is simple really, a lot of hard work and keeping a close eye on your diet.This short article is going to look at some of the main points to consider, when looking to loose a few pounds and tone up ready to hit the beach looking great!

The key to all weight loss is in the nutrition, most importantly you want to avoid all the fad type diets that often appear at this time of year(such as the maple syrup diet, cabbage soup diet, etc…) in favour of healthy well balanced nutrition. Fad diets are on the whole are not realistic, and un-realistic diets can hardly ever be maintained.

Below I have listed what I consider to be the major factors that lead to having a well balanced diet:-

• Spread your calorie intake over five smaller meals per day (always start the day with a breakfast).
• Cut you fat intake as much as possible.
• Browns over Whites – Brown rice, bread, etc…
• Avoid sweets, sugar, chocolate and other empty calories.
• Increase the amount of vegetables you are eating (minimum of 5 portions per day).
• Increase the amount of fruit you are eating (minimum 2 – 3 portions per day)
• Drink water (2.5 litres per day)

To go with all the great, well balanced meals that you are taking on you need to match this with an increase in physical activity levels. This does not mean that you have to become a sprinter overnight to see results, physical activity includes anything that gets your heart going faster than it would be pumping at rest. So everything including gardening, walking up stairs, running, vigorous cleaning, going to the gym, playing a sport, playing around with the kids, all count as activity.

As with nutrition you want to set yourself safe and realistic goals, so if you have not done any exercise for a while start off with some more gentle activities, where as if you are already a gym user/player of a sport you could maybe start with a more vigorous form of exercise.

The general rule with this is the harder you work the faster you will see results (within reason). So for example if you walk for half an hour everyday it will take you longer to see results than if you ran for half an hour each day. This is where the balancing act comes in you have to push yourself but remember that exercise should not be painful. If you have gone to the point of pain you have gone too far.

Remember there are no miracle cures when it comes to losing weight and toning up, so keep in mind the general rule that if it seems too good to be true it often is. If you implement the general rules above you should be able to make some good fat loss in time for those summer holidays.

There is a lot of help out there now for people who would like to control their weight and keep healthy, try talking to your doctor, nutritionist or personal trainer for further information.

There is also a vast quantity of on-line resources available for those who are looking to improve their wellbeing. For links see http://foresight-fitness.co.uk/main/links.html.

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk

Product Review: Soulmate Food

Recently I came across a product that I have been looking for the likes of for a while. A product that can wipe away all those problems with knowing what to eat, how much to eat and when to eat it.

In my view nutrition is one of the cornerstones of wellbeing (the others being Physical Activity, Lifestyle, and Mental Wellness), Soulmate Food aims to help you with this by providing nutritional sound meals, that help to complement your efforts in the remaining three areas to improve your overall levels of wellbeing.

In my ten years working in the wellbeing industry I have often been told by clients that they find nutritional control the hardest thing to deal with. As opposed to exercise which many people find it relatively easy (once they get in the right mind set) to slot into their diary time to exercise. There are so many distractions when it comes to nutrition that making headway to an improved diet can be hard. The common obstacles seem to be, I don’t know what I should eat, I don’t have time to shop for the right food, and I don’t have time to make the right food. Well Soulmate helps to remove all those barriers.

The product itself is a very simple and effective idea, initially you fill in a form on-line that identifies your goals, allowing the people at Soulmate to give you a nutritional program to match what you are looking to achieve. Common ones seem to be weight control, predominately loss but they can also provide weight gain diets, the company also works with a number of sporting teams, providing the diets that fit with the players individual needs.

The second section on the web site allows you to mark off foods that you do not like, this section is amazingly detailed. For example allowing you to cross off tomatoes but allow tomato paste. I was amazed at how even the most fussy eater could easily send in the information to ensure that the food that turns up at their door only contained what they liked.

The food is then delivered in three day blocks, it can be delivered wherever you like within the UK. It comes in a cold box ready to just pop in the fridge.

The food itself was high quality, all came individually rapped and labelled (detailing contents, how to cook, and when to eat), and most importantly tasted great. All meals can either be eaten how they arrive or require short pan or oven cooking, making dinner time extremely easy. There was also a great variety of meals over the days, which meant that the food never became boring.

At first glance the product does seem quiet expensive, at an average cost of £25 per day. But if you stop to consider that you are getting 5 meal a day, that have been specifically designed for your nutritional needs. You do not have to go shopping or on the whole cook and most importantly this product will help you to achieve your goals! The price does look alot more reasonable.

All in all I was very impressed by Soulmate product and the professionalism and knowledge of the staff. This product will have a great impact on helping individuals to achieve their wellbeing goals and especially weight control. So I give it a 10 out of 10, well done Soulmate!

For more information contact Soulmate

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk