Matlock / Bakewell gym - Blog
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 1st July 2019
Monday 1st July 2019
Hi, People who have successfully kept the weight off overwhelmingly have incorporated exercise (especially resistance training) into their lives - and in my experience, the people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off invariably find these people were consistent with their diet and exercise plans. I am not going to list all the benefits of regular exercise here (recent newsletters and social media posts cover this topic!) - but regular exercise has positive effects on your metabolism, allows you to eat more calories yet still be in a calorie deficit. This will help you to preserve lean body mass - which is essential to your health and metabolism. The many health benefits of regular exercise are well known, so I…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 24th June 2019
Monday 24th June 2019
Hi, Diet plans that offer weight loss by drinking their product for several meals followed by a “sensible dinner;” diets that allow you to eat their special cookies for most meals along with their pre-planned menu; or diets that attempt to have you eating their bars, drink, or pre-made meals, are of the diet A variety covered above. They’re easy to follow but destined for failure, long term. They all fail the “Can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” test, unless you really think you can eat cookies and shakes for the rest of your life. Bottom line here is, if the nutritional approach you use to lose weight, be it from a book, a class, a clinic,…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 17th June 2019
Monday 17th June 2019
Hi, What is the missing link for long term weight loss? When choosing a nutrition program for long term weight loss, you actually need to involve nutrition. It’s not just all about calories. But the missing link for long term weight loss for many people is exercise. Too many of you focus on dieting. Exercise is the essential component of long term weight loss. Many diet programs do not contain an exercise component - which means they are just awful for long term weight loss from the very start. Any program that has its focus on weight loss but does not include a comprehensive exercise plan is like buying a car without tires. Or a plane without wings. You can’t fly…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 10th June 2019
Monday 10th June 2019
Hi, The first newsletter I wrote after we moved to our new location listed all of the equipment we’d brought with us. Since then, I’ve consistently been adding new equipment. Today, 7 new pairs of Technogym dumbbells have been delivered so we now have 2 well equipped dumbbell areas: downstairs, there are 2 flat/incline benches with Jordans dumbbells from 10kg to 52.5kg. Upstairs, in a large matted area, there are 3 flat/incline benches and 28 pairs of dumbbell pairs from 1kg to 42.5kg. The ground floor space accommodates the majority of our weight lifting equipment. This includes: 1) Nytram Leg press 2) Power Fabrications Power cage 3) Power Fabrications Smith machine 4) Hammer Strength squat rack 5) Power Fabrications ISO row 6) Force lying leg curl 7) Life Fitness seated leg curl 8) Life Fitness seated leg…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 3rd June 2019
Monday 10th June 2019
Hi, Let’s do a diet A vs. diet B comparison. Diet A is going to supply you with their foods, as well as their special drinks or bars to eat, and tell you exactly when to eat them. You will lose – say – 30 lbs in two months. Diet B is going to attempt to help you learn which foods you should eat, how many calories you need to eat, why you need to eat them, and generally attempt to help teach you how to eat as part of a total lifestyle change that will allow you to make informed decisions about your nutrition. Diet B causes a slow steady weight loss of 8-10 lbs per month for the next…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 27th May 2019
Monday 27th May 2019
Hi, I get asked a lot about diet supplement companies and weight loss clubs. A well known Chinese Proverb is “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” This expression fits perfectly with the next essential step in how to decide what eating plan you should follow to lose weight permanently. Will the diet plan you are considering teach you how to eat long term - or does it spoon feed you information? Will the diet rely on special bars, shakes, supplements or pre-made foods they supply? If so, how do you eventually break free from that? Some pre-made meals are great. Just don’t base your entire…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 20th May 2019
Monday 20th May 2019
Hi, Getting the weight off is the easiest part. Seriously. Do you know what’s hardest? Keeping the weight off! If you take a close look at the many well known fad/commercial diets out there, and you are honest with yourself, and apply the “Can I eat this way for the rest of my life?” test, you will find most of them no longer appeal to you as they once did. Let’s say you can choose between 2 diets: Diet A will cause the most weight loss in the shortest amount of time but is unbalanced and essentially impossible to follow long term. This option may include lots of HIIT, zero resistance training and lots of muscle wastage. Diet B will take the weight off…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 13th May 2019
Tuesday 14th May 2019
Hi, It's that time of year when I get the "I'm going on holiday in 8 weeks and I need to lose 2 stone! Help!!!!" type messages. What I always wonder is what you've been doing in previous weeks that made you leave it until the last minute. You've not been exercising or watching your calorie intake for the last 44 weeks – and you’ve only given yourself 8 weeks to accomplish your goal? Losing weight is all about maths. Yeah I know, maths isn't sexy, but understanding the process can't hurt, can it? But let's break down this particular goal. So this person has a BMR of 1,365 calories per day. They would need to jump from a sedentary lifestyle to an…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 6th May 2019
Monday 6th May 2019
Hi, Some businesses in the fitness industry are offering little more than the modern equivalent of snake oil. Praying on the emotions of those looking for help and their willingness to grab hold of anything that looks like a magic bullet to quick success. The problem is - when the industry is skewed by businsses selling fake promises accompanied with Z-list celebrity endorsements and unscrupulous marketing - that soon becomes the perceived norm and therefore the route that should be taken by anybody who is new to fitness, nutrition and weight loss. As such, I seem too spend a lot of time trying to battle, not profit from, these misconceptions. What are people actually wanting to achieve? Your goals are whatever…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 29th April 2019
Monday 29th April 2019
Hi, Many fad diets you see out there will fail the “can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” test. The question is not whether the diet is effective in the short term - but if the diet can be followed indefinitely as a lifelong way of eating. Going from “their” way of eating back to “your” way of eating after you reach your target weight is a recipe for disaster and the cause of the well established yo-yo dieting syndrome. There are no short cuts. There is no free lunch. Only a commitment to a lifestyle change is going to keep the fat off long term. Even when you’ve achieved your goals, you have to then maintain…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 22nd April 2019
Monday 22nd April 2019
Hi, When choosing a diet, always use the “Can I eat that way for the rest of my life?” Test. I know, it does not exactly roll off your tongue, but it gets the point across. The lesson here is: any nutritional plan you pick to lose weight must be part of a lifestyle change you will be able to follow – in one form or another – forever. That is, if it’s not a way of eating you can comply with indefinitely, even after you get to your target weight, then it’s worthless. Personal trainers provide long-term guidance and motivation. As we age, it gets harder to stay motivated towards exercise, so having a trainer guide and motivate you can keep you…
The Woodlands newsletter: Monday 15th April 2019
Monday 15th April 2019
Hi, Someone recently asked me what a diet is. Quite simple, a diet is a short term strategy to lose weight. Long term weight loss is the result of an alteration in lifestyle. We are concerned with life long weight management - not quick fixes. I don’t like the term diet, as it represents a short term attempt to lose weight vs. a change in lifestyle. Want to lose a bunch of weight quickly? Ok, I will give you the information on how to do that here and now for no charge: For the next 100 days eat 12 boiled eggs (including the shells), one whole grapefruit, and 5 litres of water each day. You will lose plenty of weight. Will it…