Matlock / Bakewell gym - Blog
The Woodlands newsletter: Sunday 15th January 2023
Sunday 15th January 2023
Hi,
Psychology plays a major role in determining if people are successful with long term weight loss.
If it's not addressed as part of the overall plan, it can be the factor that makes or breaks your success.
This, however, is not an area most nutrition programs can adequately tackle and should not be expected to.
However, the better programs do generally attempt to help with motivation, goal setting, and support.
1). Do you have a tendency to evaluate self-worth in terms of weight and shape?
2). Do you have a lack of vigilance with regard to weight control
3). Do you have a dichotomous (black-and-white) thinking style
4). Do you have the tendency to use eating to regulate mood.
If you answered yes to any of the above questions or if you have failed to maintain your weight long term, then maybe you will need to address those issues via counselling, support groups, etc.
Don't expect any weight loss program to cover this topic adequately but do look for programs that attempt to offer support, goal setting, and resources that will keep you on track.
For more guidance, tips and information, please read the rest of our newsletter.
But first, here are our opening times, links to our website, some prices and more...
Gym Only memberships:
Joint/Student (per month):
12 months: £22
3 months: £24
1 month: £28
Single (per month):
For single prices, please check our special offers:
www.woodlandsfitnessrowsley.co.uk/special-offers
Student prices are only for students in full time education.
Small Group Personal Training:
How would you like to have personal training every single time you attend Woodlands?
Well now you can!
Our Small Group PT membership offers an appointment controlled personal training system where a personal trainer will train up to 6 members at any one time.
We offer a variety of group exercise sessions throughout the day to help you achieve you build fitness, strength, co-ordination and flexibility whilst burning fat.
Group sessions are strictly limited to 6-8 people:
There are 36 group training sessions per week, including:
Condition
Total
Upper
Lower
Core
Circuit
HIIT
Kettlebells
We also offer '30m' groups: these 30 minute Classes Group training sessions are condensed versions of our normal 45 minute groups, designed to pack in high intensity exercise to push you to the next level and really make the most of your time here!
These shared personal training sessions are strictly limited to 6 (sometimes 8) people! This is to ensure you get a higher quality of coaching and support.
We always prefer an informal approach - so we will be maintaining the booking forms in the gym.
All bookings can be made in the gym, by phone, e-mail or via social media.
How you book in isn't important; we just care that you attend regularly.
Here is a list of our group training sessions:
www.woodlandsfitnessrowsley.co.uk/group-pt-timetable
Small Group PT membership prices:
Joint/Student:
12 months: £32pm
3 months: £34pm
1 month: £38pm
Single:
For single prices, please check our special offers:
www.woodlandsfitnessrowsley.co.uk/special-offers
2 x 45membership:
This membership includes:
✔2 x 45 minute PT sessions per month (worth £23 each)
✔Small Group PT membership
✔Gym membership
✔Calorie target setting advice
✔Nutritional support
✔Discounted additional personal training sessions
12 month: £43pm
3 month: £46
1 month: £49
The benefits of personal training outweigh your fears by a long shot and we can really help you achieve your goals. At Woodlands, we want to maximise your fitness experience.
Personal Training Packages:
The benefits of personal training outweigh your fears by a long shot and we can really help you achieve your goals. At Woodlands, we want to maximise your fitness experience.
30 mins:
4 weeks x 2 per week
6 x 30 mins: £72 (£89)
5 weeks x 2 per week
10 x 30 mins: £108 (£135)
45 mins:
3 weeks x 2 per week
6 x 45 mins: £98 (£1202
4 weeks x 2 per week
8 x 45 mins: £128 (£161)
60 mins:
4 weeks x 1 per week
4 x 60 mins: £88 (£109)
4 weeks x 2 per week
8 x 60 mins: £169 (£213)
The price in brackets is for non-members.
All of our PT packages include:
Small Group PT membership.
Gym membership.
Calorie target setting advice.
Nutritional support.
All PT sessions must be used within time periods listed above.
We use time limits with our personal training packages to encourage frequent and consistent training. Packages can be designed to your individual needs.
At least 24 hours notice of cancellation is required for all appointments - just so we have sufficient time to rebook the slot. Notice of less than 24 hours will incur a full payment of the session fee. These are standard terms for all good PT's.
We can adjust the time limits in advance to take into account holidays, business trips, etc.
All of our PT packages include full gym, group personal training & classes membership.
Opening Hours:
Monday: 7.30am - 8.45pm
Tuesday: 8.30am - 8.45pm
Wednesday: 7.30am - 8.45pm
Thursday: 8.30am - 8.45pm
Friday: 7.30am - 8.00pm
Saturday: 8.00am - 2.00pm
Sunday 8.00am - 2.00pm
We always want to know what you think of the Woodlands Fitness Centre - the gym, prices, personal training, group personal training, and anything else.
Please speak to us at the gym, email any feedback and suggestions to the email address at the end of this newsletter.
Thanks,
GW
Avocados
Avocados are a unique fruit. While most fruits are high in carbs, avocados are loaded with healthy fats.
Avocados are particularly high in monounsaturated oleic acid, the same type of fat found in olive oil. Despite being mostly fat, avocados also contain a lot of water and fiber, making them less energy-dense than you may think.
What's more, Avocadoes are a perfect addition to vegetable salads, as studies show that their fat content can significantly increase carotenoid antioxidant absorption from the vegetables.
They also contain many important nutrients, including fiber and potassium. Avocados are a good example of a healthy fat source you can include in your diet while trying to lose weight. Just make sure to keep your intake moderate.
I hope all of the above makes sense but if you have any questions please come and ask me.
The 2-Day Full Body Workout (Part 1)
Can you Build Muscle by Training only Twice a Week?
In this article - which will extend over more than 1 newsletter - I'm going to show you a highly effective 2-day full-body workout routine that you can use to build muscle.
First, I want to answer a very common question:
Is working out twice a week enough? Or is it just a complete waste of time?
Any amount of time spent lifting weights, be it once a week, twice a week or whatever, is never a waste of time. It's not time spent, it's time invested.
A 2-day workout split might not represent the optimal approach to building muscle.
However, it can be a very effective way to accomplish a number of different goals, including:
1). Gaining muscle and getting stronger, particularly if you're in the beginner/intermediate stages of training.
2). Preserving muscle size and strength while you strip away the fat. When it comes to getting lean, your diet is more important than what you do in the gym.
3). Holding on to the muscle mass you've gained while you focus on improving something else, like your cardiovascular fitness or a sport-specific skill.
4). Maintaining the muscle you already have, either because a) you're happy with the amount you have at the moment and don't want to gain any more, or b) you don't have the time or the inclination to train more often, and just want to do the bare minimum to hold on to what you've got.
What is a Full Body Workout?
As the name suggests, a full-body workout involves training your whole body - chest, back, shoulders, arms and legs - in a single training session.
Rather than splitting your body into different areas (as you would do with a push/pull/legs routine or upper/lower split) and work each area separately, you train everything at the same time.
One of the more popular ways of setting up a full-body workout is to base it on movement patterns.
What exactly do I mean by that?
Most of the compound exercises you do can be put into one of these categories:
• Pushing Exercises (e.g. bench press, overhead press)
• Pulling Exercises (e.g. pull-up, dumbbell row)
• Leg Exercises (e.g. squat, deadlift)
All you do is take one exercise from each category, and do 4-6 sets of each one. Here's an example of how a simple full-body workout might look:
• Squat
• Bench Press
• Pull-Up
This way, you've got a pushing movement (bench press), a pulling movement (pull-up or pull-up alternative) and a leg exercise (squat).
Even with just those three exercises, you're covering a surprisingly large number of muscles.
• The bench press hits the chest, shoulders and triceps.
• The pull-up is working your lats, biceps and rear delts.
• The squats take care of your quads, glutes and lower back.
This minimalist approach to training does have its benefits. The workout itself is relatively short and simple to follow.
What's more, you don't need a lot of equipment to get it done, making it ideal if you're training at home with a barbell, bench and squat rack.
However, there are some downsides.
For one, exercise selection is limited, so there are various muscles that are missing out on the stimulation required to make them grow. And we know that maximising the development of a muscle requires the use of several exercises, rather than just one.
Doing the same exercises all the time, especially if you're lifting heavy weights, can also take a toll on your joints. Throwing some different exercises into the mix will often make things a lot easier on your knees, elbows, wrists and shoulders.
The obvious solution is to choose a different exercise from each category.
Rather than use the bench press as your only pushing exercise, for example, you'd alternate between the overhead press and bench press. The chin-up would be alternated with some kind of rowing movement, like dumbbell rows, T-bar rows or cable rows.
Here's an example of how it might look:
Workout 1
• Squat
• Bench Press
• Pull-Up
Workout 2
• Deadlift
• Overhead Press
• Seated Cable Row
Again, this type of training program is very simple, and can work well for a lot of people.
However, while you're now getting more variety in terms of exercise selection, one problem has been replaced with another.
The main limitation here is that the training frequency for some muscle groups has now dropped from twice to once a week.
The chest, for example, is now being trained directly just once a week. And the quads, while they are worked to a degree during the deadlift, aren't getting the same level of stimulation they were when you were squatting twice a week.
Why is that a problem?
Hitting a muscle group just once a week can and will make that muscle grow.
But most people are going to see better results (and by better results, I mean a faster rate of muscle growth) training each muscle group at least twice every seven days.
What is the solution? Find out next week.
If you need any further information or advice on how to implement these into your training, please come and talk to me.
Recipe of the week: Hungarian pork stew
Ingredients:
40g/1½oz lard
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2-3 tbsp paprika
1.8kg/4lb pork steak, diced
1 tsp tomato purée
1 green pepper, thinly sliced
3 medium tomatoes, sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp cornflour
Method:
Heat the lard in a lidded frying pan, add the onion and fry for five minutes, or until softened.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the paprika, adding more or less to taste. Add the pork and a splash of water.
Simmer over a low heat for about 5 minutes.
Add enough boiled water to cover the meat, bring back to the boil and add the tomato purée, green pepper and tomatoes.
Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover with a lid and simmer for 1 hour or until the pork is tender.
To thicken the sauce, mix the cornflour and two tablespoons of cold water to form a paste, then stir into the stew.
Bring to the boil again to thicken.
Check the seasoning, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Serve the stew with creamy mashed potato, or macaroni.
The dish also goes well with finely sliced cucumber which can be lightly pickled with a splash of white wine vinegar and a sprinkling of caster sugar.
Enjoy!
Exercise of the week: Bench dips
This is easy to do on a chair, stair or coffee table. It works the arms, chest and shoulders and is great if you want people to notice that you've started working out as it builds triceps effectively.
How to do it:
Stand facing away from a bench, grab it with both hands at shoulder-width.
Extend your legs out in front of you. Slowly lower your body by flexing at the elbows until your arm at forearm create a 90 degree angle.
Using your triceps lift yourself back to the starting position.
This is 1 rep.
Make sure you maintain good technique throughout all sets and repetitions.
Do 3-4 sets of 8-12 repetitions.
I hope all of the above makes sense but if you have any questions please come and ask me.
Things to consider
Always focus on form:
It sucks to sit out with an injury, especially because it kills your progress. Keep your form strict, and you'll build more muscle while reducing the risk of getting hurt.
Watch the Salt
One thing restaurants (and individuals) typically overdo it on when cooking is salt, and that can easily cause unhealthy bloating and weight gain.
In fact, one British study found that for every additional 1,000 milligrams of sodium you eat a day, your risk of obesity spikes by 25 percent, so ditch the salt and stick to metabolism-boosting spices such as cayenne and mustard instead.
Be consistent:
Going to the gym once a week won't get you bigger. Pick a number of days to work out (3-4 is optimal), show up, and work hard, and you'll see results quickly. Here's how to stay motivated to work out.
Buy Berries
Berries are more than just morsels of sweetness that you can toss on yogurt or work into a smoothie; they can help you lose weight, too! Raspberries pack more fibre and liquid than most other fruits, which boosts satiety.
Smoothies are a rich source of ketones, antioxidants that can make you slimmer by incinerating stored fat cells.
And like other berries, raspberries are loaded with polyphenols, powerful natural chemicals that have been shown to decrease the formation of fat cells and eliminate abdominal fat.
Not to be outdone, research suggests blueberries can also help blast away stubborn belly fat by engaging your get-lean genes.
After a 90-day trial, University of Michigan researchers discovered rats that were fed a blueberry-enriched diet showed significantly reduced belly fat compared to those who skipped the berries.
Chill out:
Tension and stress stimulate your body to release cortisol, a stress hormone that inhibits muscle-building and promotes muscle breakdown. Try to breathe easy throughout the day, and practice mental exercises to keep stress at a minimum throughout the day. It'll maximise your muscle, and improve your overall sense of well-being.
Don't limit yourself:
If you're stuck at a weight and unsure if you can make that jump up to 225 from 215 on the bench press, don't just walk away from it.
Grab a spotter who knows what they're doing, and give it a shot. Worst-case scenario? You fail, then you can try again next week. Best case? Boom—you've got a new PR.
Use a spotter:
Spotters help you get that extra rep, and can help you keep an eye on your form and count reps when you're focused on moving a massive weight.
Those extra reps and improved form will lead to muscle gains in the long run.
Useless Facts
Bees have 5 eyes. There are 3 small eyes on the top of a bee's head and 2 larger ones in front.
Kate Furniss is so fast she can run round the World and punch herself in the back of the head.
Only female mosquito's' bite and most are attracted to the colour blue twice as much as to any other colour.
If one places a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
If one places a tiny amount of liquor on Sam "Wasps" Smith, she will instantly go mad and sting you to death. I've seen her do it. Twice. Once in a cinema.
It is illegal to hunt camels in the state of Arizona.
Jim McCann doesn't have an ESC key on his computer; no one ever escapes Jim McCann.
The Woodlands Fitness Centre Ltd
A: Unit 27, Molyneux Business Park, Darley Dale, Derbyshire, DE4 2HJ
T: (01629) 733 123
E: woodlandsfitness@yahoo.co.uk
W: www.woodlandsfitnessrowsley.co.uk