Three fitness tests to try right now

Want to test your strength, flexibility, muscular endurance, vascular health and longevity to name a few? Try these simple at home tests and see how you score. Ways to improve are also detailed below.

Test 1

30 second sit-to-stand test (Tests lower body muscular strength and endurance)

Start by sitting in a chair (approx 17” high from seat to floor and without arm rests ideally) with your arms crossed over your chest in front of you and simply stand up then sit straight back down again as many times as you can in 30 seconds. Make sure you touch the seat chair with your glutes (bottom) and stand completely straight at the top of the move. Count how many times you complete one stand up and sit down. It may be easier to ask a friend to time you for the 30 seconds.
How did you do? (The following results are taken from 60 year old test subjects so if you are a lot younger than this then you should be able to perform the above average scores!)

Females:

Level 3 (Less than 12 ) = Below average

Level 2 (12-17) =Average

Level 1 (Greater than 17) = Above average

Males:

Level 3 (Less than 14) = Below average

Level 2 (14-19) = Average

Level 1 (Greater than 19) = Above average

Test 2 - 30 second standing on one leg test (Tests postural instability, vascular health and even dementia risk!)

Stand on your right leg and raise your left leg up off the floor several inches. (Your left foot must not touch your right leg/foot for support).

How long can you hold this stance for without too much wobbling? Dont forget to try the other leg too. If this was easy try it again but with your eyes closed this time!

Level 1 = 30 seconds + with eyes closed. Fantastic!

Level 2 = 20-30 seconds + eyes open. Not bad at all. This is what everyone should be aiming for at the minimum.

Level 3 - Less than 20 seconds = There may be balance issues/vascular damage that needs investigating. Is one side significantly easier than the other? Look into possible issues with the spine.

Want to improve your time? Try standing on your right leg whilst cleaning your top teeth and then standing on your left leg whilst cleaning the bottom teeth. In this way you will be incorporating balance training into our daily life.

Test 3

Standing straight touch toes test (Tests flexibility especially in legs and lower back)

There is some evidence that being able to touch your toes is a good marker of how flexible you arteries are and an inability to reach the floor with your fingertips can be a predictor of a future heart attack. Issues of mobility or stability must be looked into if you cannot yet touch your toes in this move.

To perform this test stand up straight with your feet close together but not touching. Reach up from the hips and then bend forwards towards your toes. Not touching the floor? Try this. Stand tall again and simply rotate your pelvis forwards into a slight posterior pelvic tilt (tuck your bum in and forwards). Keeping this position reach up and forwards again and see what happens? Did you get further down this time?

Everyone should be striving towards being able to touch their toes from this standing position and with regular practice this will be achieved. If you simply are not getting any closer, investigate mobility and stability issues with a personal trainer or physical therapist.

Red Hot Personal Training

One-to-one PT sessions, Group training, One-to-one Pilates sessions, One-to-one pre and post-natal sessions, Nutrition for weight loss

Do you fall into this category?

Are you one of the 40% of women who don’t get enough exercise?

A shocking study undertaken by the World Health organisation (WHO) * found that four in 10 females are not getting enough exercise to benefit their health. With a greater chance of developing type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia, mental health problems and even some cancers what is holding you back?

Fitness does not need to be made in a gym so excusing yourself from exercise because you “hate the gym” is not a reasonable excuse! The recommended guidelines are 75 minutes of intense activity such as running or 150 minutes of moderate activity such as walking per week, yes per week!! That means that there are still 9,930 minutes of the week to do other things! Surely we can all strive for this target.

As a personal traininer who trains women exclusively, I completely understand the struggles and barriers that many women face when trying to incorporate more exercise into their daily lives.

Having worked with hundreds of women I have had the opportunity to really gain an insight in to our busy lives. We have so many balls to juggle and personal fitness is usually the first thing to go when life gets busy.

As a working mother of two children, a wife, daughter, pet parent etc etc I know first hand how a plan to go for a run can quickly disappear when something more pressing comes up. Before you know it a whole week has past and none of the exercise sessions that you had planned for the week ahead had got done. You feel sluggish, tired and maybe a little irritated too! The weeks go by and then you realise you have simply got out of a fitness routine and your body starts giving you subtle signs that its not liking this more sedentary life! Aches and pains, loss of flexibility and strength or even going upstairs makes you feel out of breath!

Here are my top tips for getting back into fitness and upping that level of daily activity:

1. My number 1 top tip is to keep a training journal. If like me you love lists and enjoy the satisfaction of recording and ticking off activities then this may be a real help for you. Note down all the activity you managed to do each day. Both planned exercise sessions (PT session, gym, bike ride etc) and also unplanned too such as gardening, walking etc. It can be very satisfying to look back at the end of the week and see how much you have accomplished and over the months to see how you have progressed to!

2. Try exercising outdoors. It can be exhilarating to feel that fresh air and sunshine on your skin out in nature.

3. If you can’t get outside try putting on some music really loud and just dance (no one can see so go for it). Have a good stretch session afterwards too. Note how it makes you feel. It will make you want to do it again!

4. The best bit about exercising is the way it makes you feel. Let those feel good endorphins flood the body. Its a wonderful way too increase not only your energy, stamina etc but also increase your self confidence, reduce your stress , anxiety level and install a sense of calm too!

Source: *

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/british-women-exercise-inactivity-who-study-health-a8523321.html

Red Hot Personal Training, face-to-face, online, Pilates and Pre and Post Natal

Stand up for fitness!

Did you know that sitting down for too many hours every day can seriously impact your health? I wonder how many of you have just stood up!

Sitting facts:

• Research estimates that if you cut back on the time spent sitting down to under 3 hours a day in total, it could add two years to your life expectancy.
• An analysis of 18 studies found that people who sat for the longest periods of time were twice as likely to have or develop Type 2 Diabetes or heart disease, compared to those that sat the least.

Although a daily workout is absolutely essential for your health offering many physical and mental benefits, its equally important what you do in-between and if that is mainly sitting down in an office, at home or travelling try these suggestions below.

Here are some tips to get you moving:

1. Aim to not sit down for more than 15 minutes at a time without standing up or taking a quick walking break.
2.  Try standing up when you talk on the phone or use your computer/ipad etc.
3. Try and cut down on your TV time each day and incorporate regular standing breaks into your viewing time. (Go and make a cup of tea for example).
4. Simple body stretches performed after sitting down will help your circulation.
5. Do small bouts of exercise throughout the day. Every hour or two, take the opportunity to do some squats, standing lunges, high knees, toe touches, or push-ups against the wall. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy, complicated, or long. Just a few minutes will do!

Can Red Hot Personal Training help you? We offer the following:

• Online Personal Training
• One-to-one Personal Training
• Pilates Instructor
• Pre and Post-Natal Exercise

Hone and tone your bottom with this exercise!

Who wants to try one of the best exercises for great glutes (bottom) and build athletic speed and power whilst you are there! Red Hot Personal Training just loves this move for the great results it gets with clients. We featured this exercise in a previous blog last year and positive feedback was received from readers who gave it a try!

A step up from the 'Glute Bridge' exercise. This move adds an additional core challenge and increased range of motion. 

1. Sit on a stability/swiss ball. Slowly walk feet out until head and shoulders are resting on the ball, positioning feet hip-width apart under knees and place hands onto your hips.

2. Lower hips toward the floor, (try not to let your knees travel forwards) stopping a few inches above the ground. Pause, then engage abs and press up through the glutes and down into the heels to lift hips up in line with knees. Try no to hyperextend (don't lift up to high) Pause for 2 seconds squeezing your glute muscles (bottom).

3. Lower hips to start position. Try 3 sets of 10 reps.

(Remember to perform the exercise carefully and listen to your body, really focus on using your glute muscles to do the work). 

If you would like the help of a personal trainer please contact Red Hot Personal Training.

What is the best diet & exercise for your body type? (Part Two)

Want to know how to eat and workout for the best results for your body type?  In our last blog we identified the 3 distinct somatotype body types:  Please read Part 1 first if you have not already done so.

Once you have worked out your body type, use the information below to help fine tune your nutrition and exercise plans to get the most success with your goals whether they consist of weight loss, increased muscle or body sculpting.

ECTOMORPHS

Nutrition

SOURCE:RODALE WELLNESS

• Stay hydrated with plenty of fresh plain water
• Eat natural unprocessed foods
• Avoid drastically cutting carbs (eat enough vegetable carbs)
• Eat adequate calories to facilitate lean muscle growth (Don't use the excuse of having a faster metabolism to eat junk food as this does nothing to grow muscle)
• Eat plenty of broccoli, cauliflower, avocado, chicken, turkey, oats, brown rice, coconut oil or ghee, nuts, seeds and nut butter. 

Fitness training

• Focus on gaining strength
• Dont overtrain - dont overdo aerobic activities if your goal is to increase muscle and tone
• Ectomorphs tend to excel at cardio and avoid or do minimal weight/resistance training.  
• To increase muscle mass, increase strength and sculpt an ectomorph type body use heavy weights and body weight exercises
• Train 3 times a week to allow lots of recovery days to give muscles a chance to repair and grow.

MESOMORPH

Nutrition

• Stay hydrated with plenty of fresh plain water
• Eat natural unprocessed foods
• Watch overall food consumption as Mesomorphs tend to overeat as they feel its relatively easy to loose weight
• Include lots of healthy fats such as avocados, butter, olives, oily fish etc

Fitness training

• Try sprint training (build up to this if new to running) as its great for fat loss and muscle building
• Train 3 times a week to allow lots of recovery days to give muscles a chance to repair and grow
• Target multiple muscle groups each training session
• Pilates is great for mesomorph body types

ENDOMORPHS

Nutrition

• Stay hydrated with plenty of fresh plain water
• Eat natural unprocessed foods
• Watch carbohydrate consumption (especially later in the day) (try to get your carbs from vegetables as opposed to processed carbs such as bread, crackers, biscuits etc)
• No food within 3 hours of bedtime
• Fill up on protein at each meal and include loads of vegetables/salad
• Eliminate sweets and reduce alcohol
• Snacks if eaten should be smaller than the size of your palm
• Have a high protein and fibre breakfast such as an omelette of eggs, spinach, red peppers and spring onion

Fitness training

• Your goal should focus on burning fat whilst increasing muscle to gain a lean and toned body
• Train at a high intensity with little rest between sets to burn stored body fat
• Avoid long periods of sitting, exercise for 30 minutes a day (7 times a week) with two of those sessions using heavy weights/body weight exercises and one session being a HIIT session

With the above guidance you can take your nutrition and exercise to the next level and may see results faster and better then ever before.

If you are interested in knowing more about your body type and how we can help you achieve the best results please get in contact.

What is the best diet & exercise for your body type? (Part One)

Struggling to lose excess weight or wondering just why you can't gain any muscle? To take your physique to the next level it may be helpful to know your body type (somatotype) and how knowing what type it is could influence a successful outcome.  By eating the right foods and exercising in the way that is best for your particular body type success may be closer than you think.  Below you can see the three distinct body types consisting of Ectomorphs, Mesomorphs and Endomorphs.  

In this blog (Part 1) we will help you identify which body type you are. Most people may find they have a mix of types, however, there is usually characteristics of one type that resonates most with each person and this would be classed as your dominant body type. 

Source:Rodale Wellness

ECTOMORPH

• Long, lean and willowy with a small frame
• Small shoulders, chest and buttocks
• Low body fat percentage
• Hard to gain muscle mass
• Low muscular strength levels - finds resistance training a challenge, prefers low slow cardio
• Hard to gain weight 

MESOMORPH

• Gains muscle easily
• Naturally muscular and strong
• Naturally lean
• Broad Shoulders
• Gains fat easier than Ectomorphs

ENDOMORPH

• Harder to lose body fat and to keep it off
• High body fat percentage (may be overweight)
• Body shape more rounder, softer or curvier, or pear shaped
• Gains fat very easily
• Larger shoulders
• Sensitive to processed and refined carbohydrates 

Part 2 of our follow on blog will detail the appropriate training and nutrition that will help you get the most success for each body type.  Be sure not to miss the next blog by subscribing FREE. (On the right hand side of this page)

The Joy of Pilates

Increased flexibility, incredible core strength, enhanced endurance and great for creating a long and lean body too! Who doesn't strive for these?

Don't underestimate the benefits of practicing pilates as there are many and often more than meets the eye including stress reduction, injury prevention and rehabilitation and better mind and body connection.

If you have ever attended a large Pilates class and been stuck at the back wondering if you are doing the exercises correctly and struggled to locate your 'core' or even know what it truly is or how it works in conjunction with the exercises and everyday life, then trying a small group (2-6 people) or one-to-one sessions with a Pilates instructor could be just right for you.

To truly gain the benefits of Pilates really going back to the very principles at the heart of this amazing art is essential and from there progress can be made to identify and address weaknesses and build more challenging exercises into the sessions when you are ready. 

What we love about Pilates is that it is such an inclusive form of exercise whatever your age, fitness or experience , there is always a range of exercises and adaptions that are possible. 

Set some 'me time' aside and explore the joy of Pilates. 

Red Hot Personal Training and Pilates offers tailored one-to-one or small group Pilates sessions carried out in your own home, work or local park to help you realise the true Joy of Pilates.