Brunswick is getting busy

The leg room at Doherty's Gym in Brunswick.

It's a little ironic; I've been focussing on promoting the new Oakleigh Personal Training studio that I've neglected the Brunswick side of my business a little bit. For some reason things have kicked up a notch in Brunswick anyway and I've added quite a few more sessions with new clients already this year.

It looks like I'll be spending my mornings in Oakleigh and mid afternoon through to evenings in Brunswick now, and there's still a few sessions left Monday - Thursday. So if you're looking for Personal Training in the Brunswick area, now's the time to get in while the getting is good!

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Video demonstration: Overhead lateral raise

Here's a little video I made demonstrating one of my new favourite exercises for shoulders. Usually the side lateral raise is used to target the middle deltoid muscle, but this variation adds some emphasis to the rear delt and trapezius muscles, which happen to be two muscle groups I am trying my best to develop at the moment.

Give this one a try, it's a nice one!

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What's the deal with aerobic steps?

I've been looking in to getting some aerobic steps for my Oakleigh Personal Training studio and wow, how expensive are these things? Expensive isn't really an issue, if you need something you need something and it costs what it costs... BUT... is it just me or all these things not high enough to be of any use?

Mainly I intend to use these for step - ups and also for teaching people how to correctly perform a squat. For those who don't know already, the correct form for a squat is a lot like putting your butt out behind you as if you're going to sit down on something... it's not supposed to be coming forward at the knees as if to kneel down in front, or bending too much forward at the hips as if to do a deadlift. Along with doing squats with an exercise ball against a wall, I find getting people to sit on a low bench or a high step, then stand up, then sit down again is a good way to learn good squatting form.

The problem is that unless you buy stackable steps and put one on top of the other, they don't seem to be high enough to be used for this purpose. And they're overpriced in the first place, even without doubling up on them!

So I think I am going to take a leaf out of the crossfit people's book in custom building my own damn steps to meet my requirements, as well as some plyometric boxes for the new studio. Actually that's a half-truth, I want to be sure these things are safe(!), so I'll be asking a friend who's a bodybuilder and also a carpenter to make some up for me and then test them out against his weight. If they can hold him, they can hold most people!

By the way we are still on track to open at the end of January, so if you want to book in for Personal Training or Group Fitness in February, just shoot me a message. Anyone who joins in February will get a LOT of special bonuses as a foundation member, so get in while the getting is good!

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My "home workout workshop" & grand opening of the new studio.

You know I'm always thinking a few steps a head because I've only taken one look at the new location, haven't even got the power turned on yet much less started moving equipment in, and I've already started inviting people to the grand opening!

It's that time of year where people are making new year's resolutions (well, I guess it goes without saying that this is the time of year that happens!) to get into shape, so a few people have been asking me what sort of home workout equipment they should be looking into. So to give all my friends a look at the new place as well as to answer this question, I'll be holding a "home workout workshop" teaching people how to train at home using some of my favourite low cost options, namely resistance bands, stability balls and body weight exercises.

I have big plans for the Oakleigh Personal Training studio in the new year and this seems like the perfect way to start it off with a nice fun group training session with some of my friends. You can be sure I'll take some photos and perhaps some videos too and post them up here afterwards.

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Double Two Day Split Program

What do you guys think is worse? A personal trainer who thinks he/she knows EVERYTHING just because they have a certificate, or a trainer who's aware of how many different approaches there are to training and nutrition, and is still trying to learn? I spend a lot of time networking with other trainers, bodybuilders and so forth and I ask a lot of questions and take a lot of stuff on board. Sometimes I wonder if people are thinking "this guy is a trainer, why is he asking questions? He should know this stuff!" but my attitude is "I know some things, but I'm still trying to learn more". I think that's better than just arrogantly insisting that you know it all already and anything you don't know is not worth learning, wouldn't you agree?

Here's one of my favourite quotes:

"What is wisdom? It has little to do with beliefs. These change year by year from person to person. Only one who does not dare give up beliefs because he has no wisdom will insist that others believe as he does.Cleverness learns something, but wisdom gives up some certainty every day."


So anyway I was thinking a lot about my own training and reading a bit and discussing things with other guys and girls, and I've decided to change my approach a little. As you might know, I like to train a different body part each day in what's known as a "five day split", which means I can do a hell of a lot of exercises on each body part and then give them a full week to recover. I mix it up a bit with some other approaches from time to time but the 5 day split is what I always come back to.

Well, I was thinking about this and how certain body parts seem to be responding & progressing better than others. For example I think my arms and shoulders (front delts at least) are doing pretty well, but I'm a little frustrated that chest and legs aren't really keeping up with them. So why would that be? I apply pretty much the same approach to each body part with most of my programs.

I'll tell you what I decided. In actual fact I am training arms TWICE a week and everything else once a week. If you understand exercise and physiology to some extent you'll be aware that when training chest, the tricep also contributes, and when training back, the biceps contribute. So for example I would really be training triceps on Monday, biceps on Tuesday, and then biceps and triceps together on Friday. It's no wonder my arms are showing better results than any other body part, they get worked twice as often!

So I'm changing my approach and starting out with what I call a "double two day split". How it works is that on day one I am doing all PUSHing exercises such as for chest, triceps, quadriceps and calves, and on day two it's all PULLing exercises such as for back, biceps and hamstrings. There's a rest day after this, and then I start over again but with some different exercises for each day. This way I will be hitting every muscle group twice every week, just like I've always been doing with my arms.

I'm sticking with more or less the same exercises and rep ranges as I utilised in my previous 5 day split program, but just spread out over the whole week instead of one day at a time. I made good progress overall with this program last month, so with this new strategy I'm sure to get even greater results.

Happy new year everyone! Make this a great year by training hard, eating right, and being good to yourself and the people you care about!

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