Interact and be energised!

So here I am sat in my second office (aka Costa) to do my blog. As I was driving here I thought I would write about National Fitness Day which was yesterday (25th September), however, when I arrived I was more shocked than usual about what I saw. Now I often look in disbelief at couples, families, friends, who go out and interact with their phones more than they do each other! Unfortunately it seems to be the norm and acceptable........I actually think it is bloody rude, if you are out with someone and they are glued to their phones!!

Now don't get me wrong I think it is great how technology has evolved and how it can make lots of services more accessible to people, including fitness. However, when it takes over good old fashioned conversation and interacting with people, then I think people have a problem. We have an Obesity epidemic which is on the increase, the last thing we need is a nation of people who no longer know how to hold a conversation too!

When I am not at work, I can check emails, go on Social media at any point of the day where I am on my own, why would anyone want to go on their phones when in the company of an actual person? Now don't get me wrong I use technology on a daily basis and it is a key part of my business(es), however, just like I have a healthy balance when it comes to health and fitness I think that the same can be said when it comes to technology. A few weeks ago I disabled facebook on my phone and have to say it is one of the best things I have done. I only put it on once a week and it is amazing how much time I used to waste scrolling on there looking at pointless stuff! I have an app for booking people into bootcamp and I actually feel bad that my phone is out at the beginning of the session to book people in! I have seen in the past instructors or PT's on their phones during in a session.....if you have experienced that then you need to change your instructor!



For me interacting with people creates energy, if you have energy then you are more likely to be active. So if you want some time out from the technological world and train with an instructor who is focused on what is happening in the session and not the outside world then click one of the links below.

Click here to switch off from technology and be active

Click here to fuel your fitness and detox 

Andrea (likes to speak to people) Springthorpe

07949 959 547
info@fit4force.co.uk
www.fit4force.co.uk

VO2 max of an excellent 20 year old.....wahoo!

I was out for my usual Sunday run with my friend and we were discussing her new Garmin. She was telling me how it told her her VO2 max (measurement of maximum amount of oxygen a person can utilize during exercise). It then got me questioning my own Garmin as I thought that it didn't' give me that information.

So when I got home I connected it to the Garmin app (something I only do once in a while) and low and behold there it was. Not only did it tell me my VO2 max it also said that it was at a level of an excellent 20 year old!! Wahoo not bad going for a 40 year old! When I saw my brother I was telling him (as he recently got the same watch) well within 10 seconds he showed me how to access it on my watch!

I got my watch as a birthday present so it has only taken me 9 months to discover how to use some of the features!! I can only imagine what else I am missing out on. Now I could use the excuse of being a technophobe, however, in all honesty I have no patience to a) sit and read the instructions or b) to have a play around and see what it can do. Watches, phones, computers etc I just want to be able to switch on and for them to work!

Now when I saw that my VO2 max compared to that of a 20 year old (an excellent one at that) this sparked my interest to look at what else it measures. Likewise should it have come up with a less than positive reading then it would have made me want to do something about it (as I am very competitive with myself).



Just like I neglected my watch, many people neglect their bodies and don't utilize them to their full potential. Like my watch they sit for months, often years, not using all of the features. Features which are designed to be used on a regular basis, features which get better the more they move and features that give positive results to health & well-being. Now one thing we don't need for our bodies is an instruction manual, we don't need to read how to walk, how to eat or drink or perform everyday tasks, these are something we learned at an early age and come naturally.

Exercise is one thing that should come naturally, however, over the decades we have become more sedentary and less confident in our own ability to move on a regular basis. Now I don't have a 50 page manual you have to download just to know how to move, however, I can take the stress out of knowing what to do!

So if you want to use all your features click one of the links below.

Click here to unlock all your features

Click here to fuel something that will last you a lifetime!

Andrea (really need to increase my patience) Springthorpe

07949 959 547
info@fit4force.co.uk
www.fit4force.co.uk

 

Success is not in what you have, but who you are!

Well it's been a busy week since I did my last blog......

Last Friday I headed up to the :Lakes with a group of friends, we have had a very busy week at Sporting Age and Fit 4 Force is still going strong!

I also had my 75th coaching session with my business coach - well I call him a business coach, however, he helps with both my professional and personal life. When I first started working with Adrian I was running Fit 4 Force and working part time in a secondary school. If I am honest I wasn't in a place I wanted to be in, I struggled to pay my bills, I was unhappy as I felt like nothing was changing or moving forward in my personal life and I had a car which was costing me more and more money each month! I constantly compared myself to my friends and felt disappointed that they had the things that I wanted.

3 years and 75 sessions later I can say that I am happy with the person I have grown into and the success that has come along the way. Now if I was to measure success on paper I would say that I have a long way to go, especially in my personal life - I am still waiting for the hunk of a hubby and a couple of kids of my own!! Working with someone who believes in me, gave me the confidence to go for another job. That job at the time was Legacy Sport and that opportunity was one of the best so far in my career, I became Director and last year we officially launched Sporting Age and became one of the Directors there too. So not only can I follow my passion on an evening by putting my adult clients through hell ;) I also get to help inspire primary school children to be more physically active.

It has been a whirlwind 3 years, I have learnt new skills, put myself out of my comfort zone and learned to relax and stop trying to control things in my life which I can't. I have also updated the clapped out Corsa!! Also a by product of me being more relaxed was Fit 4 Force has grown too!



When I was in the Lakes at the weekend I did a 10k trial run (which was more like a fell run!), it was a last minute signing on my part, I have struggled with a few injuries this year and not trained - so talk about having a shock to the system. If anyone has ever done a hardcore trail run then you will probably know that when the hellish hills kick in, most people start to walk. I am actually such a wuss when it comes to going down hill too - I was probably as slow going down as I was going up. Now the fact that people walked made me feel better as I had to walk too, if that had have happened on a road race I would have felt guilty and annoyed at myself that I had to walk. For me the success of the weekend was to complete my first fell(ish) race and not die lol! 5 or 10 years ago I would have been chasing a time, been worried about what others were doing or beat myself up because I walked or acted like a wuss going down hill. However, I went and enjoyed (well not at the time) the experience. I would like to say I soaked up the views however, all I saw was the floor and my feet!

The main thing I have learnt over my time working with Adrian is not to give a s**t about what other people are doing. I have learnt to focus on myself and be happy with what I have in life and be patient for the things that are yet to come........

Over 8 years of teaching bootcamp I have seen so many people progress and achieve things they may never have thought possible. What is a success to one person is the norm to another. Even though train in a group, everyone is made to feel individual - they can work at their own level, celebrate their own success and most of all have a fantastic tribe of people around them who help them celebrate. One concern people may have when coming to bootcamp is that other people will be watching what they do. I can tell you know that everyone else is so focused on their own achievements that they don;t have the energy to watch anyone else!

The main thing that kept me focused and feeling good about myself, even when I perceived things to be a bit s**t was exercise!

So if you want to invest in yourself (both physically and mentally) and focus on yourself then click one of the links below

Click here for personal success

Click here for feel good nutrition

Andrea (was glad of the ice-cream van at end of that awful run!) Springthorpe

07949 959 547
info@fit4force.co.uk
www.fit4force.co.uk

 

When you don't want something to end......

There are many enjoyable things in life which we don't want to end, favourite movie, a great conversation, favourite meal or chocolate bar and summer......I am really not ready for summer to end!



I am clinging on to the last bit of nice weather we might have, shorts were still on for bootcamp on Monday and my sandals have still been worn for work. My alarm has been going off this week and I thought it was faulty as it felt like the middle of the night as it was still dark :(

I definitely need to retire somewhere warm or have a holiday home in the sun!

Now when it comes to training there are many times I wish the sessions were over, when you are doing a tough gym session, a hard class or your lungs or on fire from doing a run. I can say that probably 8 out of 10 times I am glad that the session is over! However even though I am often glad it is over it is only ever short term feeling - as I always (well 90% of the time) feel good once it is complete.

On the flip side, the by product of a hard session is the health benefits you gain - which is something I want to continue as long as possible! I was lucky enough to have healthy, fit role models in my parents. Ever since I can remember they have been into fitness, even now they are older with a few aches and pains under their belts the benefits of years of training still show.

Now I can't stop the summer ending or have a never ending bag of Cadbury's giant buttons (one of my faves in case you haven't guessed). However I can control how long my health and fitness lasts by investing time into training and eating healthy.

So if you want help to make health infinite click one of the links below.

Click here for never ending health benefits

Click here to eat for longevity

Andrea (partial to Cardbury's buttons) Springthorpe

07949 959 547
info@fit4force.co.uk
www.fit4force.co.uk