A common misconception when comes to exercising is that if it feels difficult or hurts then it must be good.

Now there certainly is a niche in society for this type sadomasochistic pleasure and I’m not judging as we all have our tastes, but the gym is not the place you should seek it!

Picture this-

Your Online Personal Trainer gets you to perform a circuit of as many Push-Ups, Sit-Ups and Burpees as possible, changing the exercise every minute until you’ve done this circuit 10 times.

It would feel hard right?

Certainly this would feel difficult even to an experienced trainee, but is it really going to get you closer towards you goals?

Are they giving you this because they like to inflict pain or under the mistaken concept of trying to ‘burn calories’ in the gym!

It is really helping you to move forward when because of fatigue, your form is going to shit and you start to feel your lower back complaining?

A time lost due to an injury can be weeks and sometimes months.

Working hard for the sake of working hard isn’t a smart strategy.

Exercise itself is a STRESS and this needs to be prescribed with CARE & CONSIDERATION of the persons current level and progressively increased over time.

Thats the whole point, and why exercise works. You expose your body to something challenging which gives you body a signal to get stronger in order to better handle this experience next time it happens.

It’s very easy to just ‘smash’ someone in the gym but this isn’t necessarily good.

It’s finding a good balance in the ‘prescription’ of the programme which is a bit of an art.

Now don’t get me wrong in thinking if you come work with me you won’t be working hard. All of my clients work very hard but this effort is aimed strategically into exercises that are appropriate for their level, mitigate the risk of injury and will give them the best bang for buck of the time invested.

Things feeling hard is relative

Perceived effort and fitness can be very specific. You can make the most elite athlete participate in a sport/activity that they are unaccustomed too and they are going to feel fatigued very quickly.

Lance Armstrong would be knackered after a few minutes of vigorous Zumba and Micheal Phelps would gas quickly in a Muay Thai Class. You get better & more efficient at what your practice.

The time you spend in the gym needs to fit what are trying to achieve and leaving with a good sweat and pounding lungs isn’t a good measure of progress.

• Is a full splits necessary for most sports? Nope

• Do you need to be able to run a half marathon in order to build a healthy cardiovascular system? Absolutely not.

• Do you need to 3 x bodyweight in order to be able to play with your kids safely? Negative!

Aim Your Efforts Wisely: Strength Is The Answer

Through my 17 years experience training clients, research and self experimentation on my own body i’ve honed down the principles that actually work.

Your time in the gym should primarily be strength training. This is not a place to think about burning calories.

Your effort’s in the kitchen are what counts to ensure you are loosing weight if that is your goal.

It’s far more efficient to not eat calories than to burn them off.

The best way of thinking of strength training is-

“Armouring the body”

Your super structure; your bones, tendons & ligaments get stronger and become more resilient as does your muscle.

This doesn’t mean you get ‘bulky’ though, especially for Women. Muscle isn’t that easy to grow, it takes years of specific training, eating and patience to build anything resembling a bodybuilding physique.

This armour building is important for everyone from the average person raising a family to the professional athlete.

1, If you are picking up your squirming 15 month old toddler its important your hips & back are strong & mobile.

2. If you are a Jiu Jitsu player and you want to be able to invert safely without messing up your neck you need to ensure the rest of your back & shoulders are feeling connected and moving well.

3, If running is your thing then its crucial that your foot can efficiently absorb impact and transfer force into the ground. A poorly functioning foot it’s akin to driving around on a flat tyre and with duff shock absorbers.

If there’s one thing the covid era has highlighted for us very comfortable ‘1st world people’ its that life can be tough and sh*t happens. It’s a sound investment to prepare your body to deal with the challenges that life throws at you be it Physical, Mental or Immunological.