Useful tips for beginning trainers.
There are many different ways to use the weight machines but stick to the method you were shown and do it correctly. As you become more experienced, you can try the different variations. If you are unsure of the correct method, ask the person in charge.
Keep a log of each training session. Note down the number of reps and the weight used. This way, you can keep an eye on your progress and increase the weights if it becomes too easy.
If you find it easy to achieve the required number of reps, then it is time to increase the weight. No-one will tell you to do this so you must do it yourself. You won’t be able to complete as many reps with a larger weight but over time, you will improve again. This is the way to make progress, tone up, increase stamina and build muscle. If you find the exercises easy, then you won’t see much improvement. We are a club, not a business. We are available for help and advice we are able to offer but we are not here to track your progress as would occur in a commercial gym. You must do this yourself with whatever help we can give or you ask for. Our main objective is to make the equipment available to trainers and maintain it.
If you can’t remember how to correctly do an exercise, ask the person in charge for advice. Don’t simply try to copy someone else doing the exercise. Often people become sloppy in their exercises and carry them out incorrectly. It’s therefore not a good idea to copy what they do. Other people also have different programs and carry out different exercises. Don’t change exercises simply because someone else is doing it and they seem to be successful. Stick to your program.
Beginning trainers should be exercising for about 30-50mins per session. Any less and you barely have time to warm up and stretch properly, risking injury. Any more and you could be overtraining or carrying out needless extra exercises. Try to train at least twice a week, with a rest day in between. Three days is better.
Body measurements such as waist, hips, chest and skinfold measurements may be a better guide to your progress than simply weight. As you train, you lose fat but gain muscle (this gives you a toned look). Since muscle weighs more than fat, you may not see the weight loss you anticipate but your other body measurements will improve. It’s not how much you weigh but how you look! Normal diets often do not include exercising so only fat is lost without muscle gain. The weight loss is faster but the body will not looked toned without underlying muscle to give it shape.
Training to improve fitness, body toning and lose weight is a medium to long term goal. You will not see some of the gains immediately, they may take a few months to occur. Too many people train for less than a month, become disillusioned and lose sight of their goals and stop. Look beyond the short term and keep your goals in mind. Set short term and medium term goals to aim for. Make them realistic and achievable, but not too easy. If you don’t keep up a regular training pattern, you will not see the results you wish for. You get out only what you put in – too many people don’t put enough in!
There are other benefits of exercise you will achieve rather than simply weight loss and toning. Increased strength, greater flexibility, lower heart rate, lower cholesterol, increased energy and better posture are some of them. Don’t concentrate on only one aspect such as weight loss.