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