The Ascendancy Continues...

So today I signed up for the Creating Chaos Advanced Kettlebell course.

As my clients know, I love kettlebells, they require you to encorporate so many different muscle groups that its extremely hard not to get an effective workout with these bad boys.

So, I thought I'd progress to the advanced level!

I don't know many Advanced Kettlebell Instructors, so I'm very excited at the possibilities that this will bring to all of our workouts, and is just another stepping stone to becoming a MASTER Personal Trainer.

I believe I speak for both my business partners in saying that we would all like nothing more than to be classed as a Master Personal Trainer, or have a number of level 4 Personal Training qualifications.

I look forward to all 3 of us doing loads more courses in the coming months and years, taking our training, quite literally to the next level. The sky well and truly is the limit.

See you in the gym!

Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate. The world wasn't formed in a day, and neither were we. Set small goals and build upon them.
Lee Haney
CJK
C & J Fitness

Personal Training, Circuits and Kettlebells
and most importantly....
Training to Inspire!

"But I'm not fit enough for a Personal Trainer, you will kill me!"

I hear these all the time:

• I'm going to get fit first and then have some Personal Training
• I'm not fit enough for a Personal Trainer
• You're going to kill me, aren't you?

Hopefully, people are talking in the context of training in the last of those bullet points...

A common misconception of Personal Trainers is that we are here to just make you a sweating, puking and bleeding mess on the floor....and yes, when it becomes appropriate, or if it applies to your exercise goals, then we will train you this hard.

But only when it is appropriate!

As fitness professionals we design workouts appropriate for you and your goals, we don't plan a workout a think HAHAHA ALL WILL DIE WITH THIS ONE WORKOUT!!! (a Personal Trainer such as this would not be allowed into our company).

It is our job to build and progress you towards your goals, to set goals, to monitor your progress, to train you appropriately for your fitness level, age and ability.

fit·ness

   /ˈfɪtnɪs/ Show Spelled[fit-nis] Show IPA

noun

1.Health.

2. Capability of the body of distributing inhaled oxygen to muscle tissue during increased physical effort.

3. Also called Darwinian fitness. Biology .

a. The genetic contribution of an individual to the next generation's gene pool relative to the average for the population, usually measured by the number of offspring or close kin that survive to reproductive age.

b. The ability of a population to maintain or increase its numbers in succeeding generations.

If you have never stuck to a fitness plan before, it is highly unlikely you will stick with a plan just in order to hire a Personal Trainer, we know how to build your fitness up to levels to where you never thought was possible. Hire a Personal Trainer TO GET YOU FIT in the most efficient, most effective and enjoyable way, this is what we are here to do, rather than WHEN you are fit.

Once you are fit enough through our training you can stick with us for that extra push, that extra 10% and to help keep you motivated, or should you decide to then "go it alone" you'll have all the tools in your armoury to stay in shape, to eat well and to stay as healthy as possible.

Personal Trainers want to get you fit and build you into an athlete that CAN train hard, not just ruin you for our own enjoyment.

Although, when you ARE ready...ITS ON, AND WE WILL NOT HOLD BACK! And once you have reached the other side of a workout where your body is pushed to the absolute limit, you will be empowered, stronger for it, and closer to your exercise goals.

Don't be afraid, we are here to help.

CJK

Chris Kershaw
Personal Trainer
Kettlebell Instructor
Circuit Trainer
Co-founder of C and J Fitness

Bodybuilding Mistake #2 A lack of post-workout nutrition

Here is a link to a Natural Bodybuilding forum in which post-workout products and shakes are discussed, I found it very useful, both for research into this little article and for my own nutrition.

http://forums.bnbf.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=3534&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

I've noticed many people seem afraid to have food straight after a workout, this is a big mistake, a mistake many exercisers make.

During weight-training you are using ATP, stored in your muscles and used to fuel muscle contraction, delpeting the muscle towards exhaustion, so theoretically the best time, and most important time to aid recovery (therefore, theoretically, improve muscle size due to the enhanced recovery), I have a fruit salad as soon as I finish working out as this contains plenty of simple sugars, which (again in theory) helps the muscle utilise protein better to enhance growth and recovery, this is also an excellent time to have a supplement such as creatine monohydrate.

When you train a significant portion of the energy you burn will be from carbs, some will also be from fat, and very very little will be from protein, it is essential to replace these carbs, as the guys on the forum have suggested, I find 1g carbs per kg of bodyweight in the 30-40 minutes after a workout enhances my recovery immensely.

As a Natural Bodybuilder I also take BCAA's (branch chain amino acids) to boost my recovery. I haven't read any research on these supplements, but feel good while and after taking them, hopefully in a future article I will be able to go into some of the research to see what the studies say.

My post-workout nutrition comprises of:

• a Maximuscle protein shake, largely due to convieniance, not as I feel it is necessarily the best protein shake to have
• A large fruit salad
• Banana and cashew butter (providing some excellent fats)
• A handful of spinach if it's been a particularly brutal session (so after leg training essentially!)
• NRGFUEL 100% Pure BCAA & Glutamine
• 2 scoops Creatine Monohydrate

Breakdown

Maximuscle Promax RTD Amount Per Serving:Total Calories: 92
Protein: 23g
Total Carbohydrates: 0g
-Sugars: 0g
-Dietary Fibre: 0g
Fat: 0g
-Saturates: 0g
Sodium: <0.1mg
Sainsbury's Exotic Fruit Salad (380g):

FSA Traffic Lights Labeling:

		per 100g	per 380g
Cal		43kCal	163kcal
Fat		0.2g	0.8g
Sat Fat		Trace	Trace
Sugar		8.9g	34g
Salt		Trace

Banana

1 Medium Sized Banana

 

 2 Tablespoons of Cashew Butter
1tsp

 

Spinach

 

100% Pure BCAA & Glutamine

• 45kcals
• 10g Protein
• 1g CHO
• 0g Fat

Totals

• 600kcals
• 41g Protein (27.3% kcals)
• 71g Carbohydrate (47.3% kcals)
• 16.8g Fat  (25.2% kcals)

Conclusion
By the analysis of my post-workout nutrition, even I need slightly higher carbs straight after my workout (maybe another 10g or so). Replace what you have expended and boost your recovery, otherwise, in the long run, you will end up breaking more muscle down than you are building through your hours of toil, blood, sweat and tears spent in the gym.

CJK
Level 3 Personal Trainer
Kettlebell Instructor
Co-founder of C and J Fitness and Personal Training

Training to Inspire!

Bodybuilding Mistake #1 "I don't eat fruit or vegetables!"

So, you've bought all your supplements, bought endless amounts of chicken and protein, maybe even some good sources of carbs, you're not dehydrated and you have an excellent workout plan lined up that you're motivated enough to stick with, you think you're all sorted before you say to your trainer one of the following things.....

• I don't eat fruit or vege
• I don't like fruit or vegetables so I won't eat them
• I don't eat rabbit food
• I'm well aware of the fact that we have co-evolved over millions of years with these fruits and vegetables and I'm well aware of all the micronutrients, minerals and antioxidants with all the vital roles in energy production, recovery, hormone production and utilisation, yes, I'm well aware of all these things and think it's not going to be detrimental to my hard earned progress if I don't eat fruit or vegetables

Okay, I doubt anyone has said the final bullet point, but I have regularly encountered the others, and while it has been said (probably from every direction since childbirth) that "You must eat your greens!" Well yes, that is true! Especially if you're a bodybuilder then if you're not eating a variety of fruit and vegetables, you're massively hindering you're progress, you are shooting yourself in the foot and are just giving yourself an uphill struggle before you have even stepped foot in the gym.

The point is: If fruit and vegetables aren't a significant part of your daily nutrition then you are behaving like an idiot.

Whether to cook or eat vegetables raw is beyond the scope of today's article, but either Jen or myself will be covering this issue at a later date, as well going into the debate of whether organic food is actually any better for you than the commercial, processed, pesticide ridden fruits and vegetables you find in the supermarkets. Jen will also soon be coming out with a range of healthy recipes for you to try out with hopefully an open mind. So with that caveat, let's have a look at a range of common fruits and vegetables in order to go into what you're body is missing out on.

Vegetables
Dictionary.com has this definition of the humble vegetable:

veg·e·ta·ble

   /ˈvɛdʒtəbəl, ˈvɛdʒɪtə-/ Show Spelled[vej-tuh-buhl, vej-i-tuh-]

noun

1. Any plant whose fruit, seeds, roots, tubers, bulbs, stems, leaves, or flower parts are used as food, as the tomato, bean, beet, potato, onion, asparagus, spinach, or cauliflower.

2. The edible part of such a plant, as the tuber of the potato.

3. Any member of the vegetable kingdom; plant.

 

So by the most general definition, a vegetable is an edible part of a plant, which has been a staple of our diet since the before the dawn of man. So what are you missing out on?

 

Reconstruction of 3 Neatherthal skulls

 

Broccoli

 

 

Considered by many a bodybuilder to be the king of the vegetable kingdom, Broccoli is an excellent source of Protein, Thiamin, Pantothenic Acid, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium and Phosphorus, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin K, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Potassium and Manganese.

Asparagus

 

 

Another superhero of the food world, THE MIGHTY ASPARAGUS is a good source of Pantothenic Acid, Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc and Selenium, Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Iron, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.
 

Spinach

 

My vegetable of choice for the past few months, vegetable titan Spinach is a good source of Niacin and Zinc, and a very good source of Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.

Fruit

fruit

   /frut/ Show Spelled [froot] noun, plural fruits, (especially collectively) fruit, verb

noun

1. Any product of plant growth useful to humans or animals.

2. the developed ovary of a seed plant with its contents and accessory parts, as the pea pod, nut, tomato, or pineapple.

3. The edible part of a plant developed from a flower, with any accessory tissues, as the peach, mulberry, or banana.

4. The spores and accessory organs of ferns, mosses, fungi, algae, or lichen.

 

 

Ah, the fruit, being a sucker for everything Haribo, I've had to replace them with something equally tasty. I'd happily eat fruit all day if i could, here's what you're missing in 3 popular fruits.

 

Banana 

 

 

The ever-conquering Banana, high in Vitamin C, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin B6.

Apple

 

 

An excellent source of Vitamin C!

 

Oranges

 

 The fruit supremo the Orange! A good source of Thiamin, Folate and Potassium, and a very good source of Vitamin C.
So we've been through a selection of fruits and vegetables, now for a limited selection of the specific micronutrients that form the composite parts of these amazing foods.

Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)

 

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient for many animal species, a large percentage of these animals produce it within their own bodies, humans, however, must get their Vitamin C through diet and nutrition.

It is also an excellent antioxidant and helps to prevent oxidative damage in the body (another reason bodybuilders should be hammering foods containing vitamin C)

It is involved in the reactions of many enzymes and metabolic reactions within the body, and is massively involved in the recovery of wounds and injuries. Vitamin C also helps prevent bleeding from the capillaries, so one can see how important it is for bodybuilders in particular to take in plenty of this vitamin. Anyway, if you don't get enough, you end up with scurvy which = BAD TIMES (and bad teeth).

Vitamin A

This is a vitamin essential for the retina and the maintenance of low light and colour vision, so, my bodybuilding friends, if you want to keep on seeing those sculpted guns, by scoffing these leafy vegetables, you're doing yourself a massive favour.

Folate

Folate is essential to the human body for a number of reasons, including playing a massively important role in DNA synthesis and the repair of DNA. Folate is integral for the production of healthy red blood cells, therefore helps in preventing anemia, which in turn will make your body more likely to grow through training due to having a plentiful oxygen supply due to the health of the red blood cells.

Conclusion
Do yourself a favour and consume a significant amount and a varied selection of fruits and vegetables, there are so many ways of cooking them, ways in which you may never even have considered, so to say "I don't like" this fruit or this vegetable is ridiculous, try them in combination with other foods, prepare it in different ways or just try getting your foods from a farmers market instead of a supermarket and I promise you will find a huge selection that you will come to know and love.

If you are consuming a variety of these foods every day you have absolutely no reason to worry about recommended daily allowances or deficiencies in any of the micronutrients, you will be obtaining them all, and by not using a large array of vitamin supplements, there is very little chance of you taking in any micronutrient to the point where they become toxic.

Make your training worthwhile, aid your recovery and eat for health as well as enjoyment. Get it done my friends!

Training (and now eating) to inspire!

CJK
Level 3 Personal Trainer
Kettlebell Instructor
Co-founder of C and J Fitness and Personal Training

 

25 Mistakes of Both the Natural and Drug Assisted Bodybuilder

Each one of these could be an article in its own right, so that's exactly what I'm going to do, an article per bullet point. How many of these apply to you?

1. "I don't eat fruit or vegetables"
2. Not eating straight after a workout
3. Not enough protein
4. Not enough COMPLEX CHO
5. Too much simple CHO
6. Dehydration
7. Not training intensely enough
8. Training for too long
9. Not training legs
10. No periodisation
11. Bad form
12. Lack of compound exercises and overusing the smith machine
13. Scared of cardio/ Lack of intensity in cardio
14. Not having any input from a fitness professional
15. Scared of bodyweight exercises
16. Lack of any kind of variety in the workout
17. No stretching
18. No deloading
19. Lack of specific goal setting or direction
20. "I'm by myself therefore can't train hard enough"
21. Afraid to train core
22. Lack of unilateral training
23. Lack of any kind of planning before a session
24. Not warming up
25. 'Overspotting'

By Chris Kershaw
Level 3 Personal Trainer
Co-founder of C and J Fitness

Choosing a Personal Trainer and the Questions to Ask

The Best Personal Trainer For You?

As individuals and as a fitness company, the three of us have noticed that the Personal Training industry is rife with dishonesty, with too much focus on getting the most amount of money out of people, and unfortunately, is often not even results driven.

With this in mind this list should help you out in deciding if your Personal Trainer is actually correct for you, and if you are considering hiring a Personal Trainer, will give you the valid questions to ask to establish whether the Trainer you approach is actually appropriate to your individual needs.

1. Personal Training Qualifications
Many people don't know anything about the qualifications and courses involved, and as trainers it is EXTREMELY rare to be asked about our qualifications.
To be a fully insured, REPS (Register of Exercise Professional's) recognised  Personal Trainer you must complete a recognised Level 3 Personal Training Diploma. To stay on REPS each Trainer must accumulate a certain amount of points to stay on the register, these points are awarded for doing courses, attending conferences and through online questionnaires throughout the year.
There are many so-called Personal Trainers who simply haven't bothered to complete even the most basic of Personal Training courses and have simply put Personal Trainer on their back, and began trading. Make sure you ask about your Trainer's qualifications, and establish whether they are insured or not, otherwise you my regret your choice.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: It brings me such displeasure to have to add this note, however it has been brought to my attention that a number of so-called Personal Trainers i.e. FITNESS INSTRUCTORS are charging very minimal amounts (e.g. £10 a session) and not informing their clients (which they shouldn't have in the first place) that they are not fully qualified Personal Trainers. A standard Personal Training session with most Personal Trainers in my area will be an investment of AT LEAST £35. If someone with Personal Trainer plastered across their back offers you a number of sessions for as little as £10 each, ask yourself what you are paying for, ask to see their qualifications and if they cannot produce them, then THEY ARE COMPLETELY UNINSURED TO TRADE AS A PERSONAL TRAINER.

This is exactly the kind of dishonesty that needs to be stamped out of Personal Training and the fitness industry in general. I am angry, shocked and appalled by individuals making me, (doing a job I love and would give my life for) look bad. If you are an individual that this applies to, then you should be ashamed.

Let's see how REPS distinguishes between the two qualifications:

Level 2 Gym Instructor

A fitness instructor's role includes planning, instructing and evaluating gym based inductions and ongoing client/member programmes. They should also assist more qualified instructors in the delivery of personal training programmes. A fitness instructor should also actively encourage potential client/members to join and adhere to regular exercise programmes, employing appropriate motivational strategies to achieve this.

Level 3 Personal Trainer

A Personal Trainer's role includes designing and implementing exercise programmes for a range of individual clients by collecting and analysing client information to ensure the effectiveness of personal exercise programmes. A personal trainer should also actively encourage potential clients/members to join and adhere to regular exercise programmes, employing appropriate motivational strategies to achieve this.

Differences: Personal Trainers are qualified to take INDIVIDUAL CLIENTS THROUGH PROGRAMMES DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR THEM, a gym instructor is there to provide inductions, basic program cards and to encourage you to exercise.

From the REPS Code of Ethical Conduct Principle 4:

Principle 4: Professional Standards

‘Exercise professionals will seek to adopt the highest level of professional standards in their work and the development of their career’

Compliance with this principle requires exercise professionals to commit to the attainment of appropriate qualifications and ongoing training to responsibly demonstrate:

• Engagement in actively seeking to update knowledge and improve their professional skills in order to maintain a quality standard of service, reflecting on their own practice, identifying development needs and undertaking relevant development activities.
• Willingness to accept responsibility and be accountable for professional decisions or actions, welcome evaluation of their work and recognise the need when appropriate to refer to another professional specialist.
• A personal responsibility to maintain their own effectiveness and confine themselves to practice those activities for which their training and competence is recognised by the Register. (emphasis mine)

Enough said.

2. Training of other clients
This mostly applies to Personal Trainers in a commercial gym setting. Watch your potential Personal Trainer with their own clients, here is a list of things that if spotted, should set alarm bell ringing:

• If they are training multiple people at once (this isn't referring to training people together, which creates a competitive element, and can give the client an even more effective workout, and the trainer must work harder to cater to a greater degree of individual needs), this is specifically referring to Trainers trying to train multiple clients SEPARATELY, without a competitive element, perhaps overlapping sessions this is a money making scheme and not Personal Training which we as a company abhorr and will not stand for.
• Clients doing the same workout week in, week out with little to no progression, variation or planning.
• Leaving clients regularly for long peiods of time, talking on the phone, selling themselves to others and generally not devoting their attention to the client.
• If a trainer predominantly uses machines for a range of clients
• When a trainer is regularly late or simply doesn't show up

3. Between Sessions
Personal Trainers are like anyone else, they deserve a break, so watch the PT's in your gym, how often are they stood around doing nothing productive? As a Personal Trainer I know how long it takes to stay ahead with session planning, research and marketing myself, if your potential trainer spends all day behind a desk talking away then they can't be taking the job seriously enough.

4. Prices
Ask to see a price list, as was said earlier Personal training tends not to be the most honest of professions, when approaching a Personal Trainer ask to see a price list, don't just ask about prices. I've even heard of Trainers charging varying amounts judging from the car the client drives! This is simply wrong, and should not and will not be tolerated by our company. Ask for a price list.

5. Portfolio
This one is a little less cut and dry, as newly qualified Personal Trainers can be just as good, if not better than established Personal Trainers, but if the Trainer claims to have a number of years experience then they should definitely have a portfolio and or testimonials to show off previous and current client success stories, if this isn't the case then you must wonder what these trainers are doing for their clients.

An important side note to this section: MAKE SURE you ask where the trainer got his testimonials and pictures from, some trainers will actually just take pictures from the internet and just pass it off as their own work, have you ever seen the Trainer with the people featured in the testimonial? Should a Trainer have to make up a portfolio, progress pictures and testimonials to look impressive, even taking out the moral implications, it must also be apparent that they really can't be much of a Personal Trainer to have to do this.

6. Future Plans
Establishing what your Trainer's future plans are should help you decide if they are enjoying their job, how they wish to improve their services, where your training may ultimately lead and whether they will be planning on moving on to other areas, careers etc in the near future.

7. Being Wrong
As Personal Trainers and as people, we often get things wrong and make mistakes, a Personal Trainer who refuses to admit this is a liar, what mistakes has your potential Personal Trainer made in the past and what did they learn from these? Have they taken steps to ensure that these mistakes don't happen again?

8.Inductions/ Introductions
People have a tendency just to go with the first Personal Trainer they encounter without considering any of the previous points, leading to many people having trainers that are not appropriate to their needs, but by considering many of the preceding points, you should be able to ask them the correct questions in order to establish whether you feel they are right for you.

9.Personal Training/ Life Experience
Have a think abour your exercise goals, ask the potential Personal Trainer about their experience in helping people achieve similar goals, should they have experience in this area then excellent, but many will not and there will often be a Personal Trainer far more suited to helping you get to where you want to be. Ask about their exercise history, injury history, looking at a portfolio will also be an excellent indicator of a trainers sucess in a particular field.

10. Respect of Fellow Fitness Professionals
Ask other Personal Trainers, staff and clients about the Personal Trainer you are considering, should they not have the respect of other PT's, staff and clients then I'd suggest you move on to another Trainer.

I hope this will help you all to consider whether you have the correct Personal Trainer, and will arm you with the relevant questions to ask when approaching a PT when enquiring about their services.

By Chris Kershaw

Reps Level 3 Personal Trainer
Kettlebell Instructor
Co-founder of C and J Fitness and Personal Training
cjkpersonaltraining@hotmail.com

Training to Inspire!