My Training Begins

I would like to start by reassuring you, just in case you should think that strength training is not for you because of the commitment involved or because of a perception that the results you want won't come quickly enough.  

First of all, a word or two about commitment: Let's be frank, most things in life require commitment and a proper fitness and/or nutrition regime is definitely no exception to this rule.  If you think that sitting in a chair with a belt of electrodes strapped round your middle will give you washboard abs in 30 days, while you put your feet up and scoff cake in front of the TV....?  Well, we all know where that conversation will lead!  I hate to be blunt, but you're in the wrong place to be lulled by the promise of sugar-coated miracles.  I hope you're reading this because you liked my first blog and I've whet your appetite enough to discover more about what strength training can do for you.  If so, then I shall refrain from preaching to the converted as you already understand that commitment is necessary and you'll have the mindset to make it. 

Second of all is time which works hand-in-hand with commitment of course.  Wouldn't we all like someone to answer our prayers overnight by waving a magic wand or by feeding us a miracle pill?  Well, where's the fun in that?  The journey of self-discovery and self-belief that will empower you would be totally lost.  Now, there are some 'quacks' out there who claim to have that proverbial magic wand or pill.  

Being prepared to make the commitment and take the time will set you on a path of something you'll really enjoy, will kickstart a complete lifestyle change and will give you sustainable results.  It's a win-win for your health and self esteem!

If you're suffering from any health condition which requires you to be seeking healthcare advice from your GP,  physiotherapist, dietician, etc, then a degree of common-sense is needed.  I'm essentially speaking to the reasonably fit and able-bodied here.  BUT, please don't be put off if you're inhibited by any incapacity (be it temporary or otherwise) but DO take appropriate advice before you start ANY form of fitness regime.  Please stay tuned because I hope to share with you reasons why you should.  

So, back to the reassuring part: do be assured that once you have the mindset in place, changes WILL begin to happen soon after you start.  You won't have to wait a full 12 months before you look in the mirror and suddenly see a toned and buff reflection!  No, changes will begin much sooner.  Changes in your body composition will be noticeable to others, if not to yourself. 

Of course, these changes will also come about much quicker if you set clear goals for yourself from the outset, and this will more likely include incorporating a proper nutrition plan.  There'll be more about nutrition later; in the meantime, the importance of goals will be covered below.

Getting Started

My training sessions started off well and were valuable but they weren't goal specific, which was my fault.  Farhana encouraged me from the outset to think what my training goals were but I've never been any good at setting goals, not even during my career days.  My project paths from A to B were always wiggly ones because they lacked a clear set of goals.  I remember turning up for my first training session a year ago, and Farhana asking me what my goal was and I replied: "I don't know, I guess I just want to improve everything."

What Farhana says about the importance of having a training goal:

"I like to say that training without a goal is like driving your car without a destination in mind. When you’re new to fitness it’s ok to just “find your way” but afterwards for the sake of consistency and results the need for goals becomes more important.

Often, in the beginning, people come to me with aesthetic goals and there is nothing wrong with that.  However without clear training goals, what often happens is people tend not to push themselves to what they are capable of and without that push the level of satisfaction they would otherwise feel becomes a little harder to achieve.  As a trainer there is nothing more satisfying than seeing your client come for their sessions with a little nervous excitement about how their session will go and how far they’ve come. That smile and buzz they get when they’ve reached a set goal is just the best!

Having a goal (as well as several smaller 'milestones' to help you achieve it) is imperative to keeping someone motivated and ensuring their sessions is all about self improvement. It provides a clear focal point that is measurable. In the gym it really is you vs you."

Doubtless then, my training would have got off to a better start if I'd set a clear goal from the outset.  I would almost go as far as saying that I'd wasted some valuable time by not doing so.  That certainly wasn't my trainer's fault, she prepared a training plan based on the best that I'd given her but, of course, a trainer is a financial investment so you need to be prepared and make it work for you.  So, do think about this before turning up for your first training day. 

So, for the first four months, Farhana got me working on a the full spectrum of exercises to work every muscle group.  For three days a week, we would alternate between full, upper and lower body exercises independently.  During this time, I huffed and puffed my way through every kind of exercise from Farhana's expertly compiled hit list.  I pressed, thrusted, squatted, lifted and ab-crunched my way through my full, upper and lower body days.  I pushed, pulled, sweated and grimaced along and I was unquestionably getting somewhere.  Heck, I KNOW I was getting somewhere.  One of the first things I noticed after just a few weeks, was just how much my biceps were beginning to take shape, and just how much more tone and definition, generally, there was in my shoulders and arms.  Farhana had previously told me this would be the first part of my body to change.  My squats were getting deeper and, what's more, I could get up and down without the use of a bench, so that meant my legs were getting stronger too!  All this, was apparent in only the first few weeks!

Beginner Squat: Well, you've got to start somewhere!

I also learned about technique and form, particularly when it came to progressing up the weights.  The importance of correct technique and form cannot be underemphasized so, over to the expert, the lovely Farhana, to explain why:

"Correct technique and form is crucial for not only ensuring you don’t risk injury, but to ensure we are targeting the correct muscles that we are trying to elicit a response from. Which only means getting you closer to your goals in a safe way. 

Having a professional who is able to work with you and find the correct technique for your own individual biomechanics is important. We are all built differently, with different bone structures which impact our technique. For example a textbook version of a squat is impossible for many people due to reasons such as femur length, hip structure, and mobility. Doesn’t mean you can’t do them, just means your own structure will change what is correct for you. 

When progressing with weights your trainer will also factor in “periodisation”. So you will work through training cycles which will progress you slowly and gradually through phases to get you the best results without risk of injury and factoring in your ability to recover. 

There is a lot that goes into planning individual training plans based on your lifestyle, health, fitness levels and abilities.  It is so valuable from every perspective to seek professional help in this area.

After a while, I did start to think about setting a training goal.  I remember turning up for a session one day and saying to Farhana that I'd like to nail some pull ups and maybe push ups as well.  Little did I know, in those early days, that I'd happened to pick two of the most difficult exercises to master (or even attempt to master!).  I was to learn quite quickly that these are hugely demanding and not everyone is capable of doing them. Why? Simply because they require you to lift the majority of your body weight and they also challenge your core to the max.  This is especially true of push ups.  If you haven't got a reasonably well-developed core, forget push ups and master your ability to plank first. 

Two of my favourite 'go to' resources for strength training, Men's Health and T-Nation (Testosterone Nation) have excellent articles on both of these exercises and how to approach them.  And, ladies, don't be put off by the obvious gender insinuation here, believe in your power to be equal!

Men's Health: Your Ultimate Guide to PullUps

T-Nation: Guide to Push-Ups

So, I had my first goal, or so I thought.  My upper body days became more focused towards improving both of these exercises.  Of course (and again, this is the value of having a trainer) Farhana set out some logical steps in order that I could work on realistically achieving both.  Of push-ups in particular, Farhana is an advocate of starting from the toes and when we talked about it, this is what she told me: 

My advice for doing them off the toes is more geared for people who do have the strength to actually do a good couple which you did!

I’m not a huge fan of press ups off the knees as I find most people don’t get in the right position. Therefore, when trying to progress they get “stuck” at this level more often than not. This is why I believe starting off the toes is a better more transferable approach when the aim is to press up of the floor eventually. 

For someone who can’t do one off their toes, I would suggest they do elevated press ups first learning how to engage their core in the press up. My top tip is to squeeze the glutes hard (which will engage the core) push the shoulders down and then start to descend. If you start to feel your core is getting disengaged that is when you know you’ve gone beyond your range of motion (this is when the back starts to arch). This approach takes away the focus on the arms and allows you to use your entire body, creating a solid line across the body from head to toe.

 Once you are comfortable doing the press ups as described you can then start lowering the point of elevation and eventually do them off the floor. With a clear plan of action it is completely doable!"

I've always been very hard on myself, so I soon became frustrated with my feeble attempts with these exercises and it wasn't until much later that I learned to stop beating myself up about it.  Looking back, I realise I'd picked the wrong goal for me at that point in my training; I just wasn't ready.  Farhana (as always) quietly encouraged me while I persevered but was equally supportive when the task was postponed and I concentrated on something else.  To counter my disappointment, we started to incorporate more hip-thrusts and deadlifts into my training days.  Shortly after, the world became blighted by COVID-19 and we were placed on lockdown.  My training sessions were put on hold but by then I was hip thrusting 70kg and deadlifting 30kg.  

Early days and trying everything!

Coming up: Training through lockdown and how I used that time to really think about a realistic training goal. 

Muscling up to the Menopause

Introduction

I awoke one morning and padded to the bathroom. As I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and blinked at the body reflected back at me in the mirror, I barely recognized myself.  At aged 53 the menopause fairy was tightening its grip (deliberate avoidance of gender identity here).  I then began to suffer from all the insecurities and anxieties about my body that so many women face while going through the menopause (as if hormonal meltdowns were not bad enough!)  My once tighter, more youthful skin was riddling itself with cellulite and wrinkles, and bits of me were increasing their rapid descent over my knees as if in some insane race to be first to reach my ankles!  Any muscle tone I once possessed, to hold it all in place, appeared to have simply vanished overnight.   

Having only recently remarried (to Scott, my best friend) I began to dread the thought of him seeing me naked, fearing he might look at me differently.  I started undressing in the dark. He noticed of course and when he asked why, and I told him the reason I was hiding myself, he reassured me that he could never look at me differently.  "You don't know how sexy you are", he once said to me lovingly. Well they say "love is blind" and it was clear that he saw a different body to the one greeting me in the mirror.  My angst, however, was only slightly calmed. The insecure voice continued to goad me silently in my mind telling me that I didn't look good enough to be married to this gorgeous individual!

It's utterly ridiculous as well as utterly vain of me, right?  I hear you and can also appreciate your desire to give me a good shake by the shoulders.  I do believe, however, there are many women who can identify with these feelings, which is why I'm prepared to admit my folly.  Perhaps you need to have found love, like me, for the second time around and later in life, to fully understand.  I'll be honest, if my dearly departed first husband were still alive, I really don't think I'd have been so hard on myself.  The reason is simple: he'd known me when I had the beach body, the endlessly long legs, the youthful skin.  Of course, he would have still loved me either way, I know that.  I just felt I was starting from a hugely different position this second time around.  Scott hadn't known me when I was younger and, furthermore, for several years, we'd been no more or no less than best friends, so for him to see me naked just wasn't supposed to happen!  But, I knew these problems were all mine, and not his.  I needed to have a word with myself, and that's what I did. 

I redirected my thoughts and sought to banish my insecurities once and for all. I armed myself emotionally for my battle with the menopause fairy and to prising from me its hideously gnarled fingers that were threatening to pull me apart in body and mind. 

Vanity aside, there's the obvious health considerations of one's passage through menopause.  For me, the primary concern was our family's propensity for early onset osteoporosis.  We know this is a major risk for post-menopausal women and the earlier you reach menopause, the bigger the risk of developing the condition. 

So here I was, facing one of the biggest challenges in my life so far.  I needed a plan.  I needed to act!

So, where next?

If not and you're still searching for an answer, I hope that sharing my journey will inspire you to follow the same path.  I'll tell you how I'm squaring up to the menopause and how the choices I've made are already positively impacting on my health and my outlook.  A year on from when I started, I am feeling more energetic, I'd swear my hormones are more balanced, and my cognitive function has also improved (evidenced by the fact I'm doing far fewer dumb things like opening the fridge door to retrieve the bowl of steaming hot porridge that'd just ‘pinged’ in the microwave!  Yes, I actually did that!)   

Improving my health and wellbeing became my goal. If you're woman in my position (and I do still claim to be one, despite the occasional sprouting chest hair!), you'll have done your research on the symptoms of menopause and how best to deal with them.  If you've seen a specialist in menopause symptoms, you're lucky.  In any event, you'll already know why your health and diet has never been more important.  With any luck, you'll have a good plan in place to deal with the huge biological change going on in your body  and things will be going well for you.  I certainly hope so.  

I'd been conducting extensive research into which fitness program would be right for me.  I was already pretty active but given that osteoporosis prevention was a concern,  I had long since been reading about the benefits of weight and resistance training.  Whatever their age, for a while now, science has been advocating for women to pick up a pair of dumbbells, resistance bands, or to simply use their own bodyweight to challenge their muscles and get stronger.  If you're not already aware, there is plenty of evidence to prove that strength training can improve and even reverse arthritis and osteoporosis and certainly prevent its onset if you strength train early.  There's much information out there if you want to find out more but, in a nutshell, the 8 most notable benefits of strength training are: 

1. It builds and maintains muscle mass
2. It makes your joints stronger
3. It's one of the best forms of low-impact cardio exercise
4. It supports weight loss and weight management 
5. It improves your cardio-vascular health
6. It protects bone health
7. It improves your mood and mental health (definitely GOOD news for women in menopause)
8. It may actually help you live longer.

I concluded, therefore, that strength training was right for me.  

So, I had a plan but how was I going to execute it?  My mission was about to begin.

First understand that you'll struggle to do this alone

I hadn't planned on hiring the services of a personal trainer.  I 'faffed' about on YouTube and one or two Facebook Pages but, try as I might, I just couldn't make anything 'fit'.  I knew I needed help. That help came to me in the perfectly toned form of Farhana Gooding, a Personal Trainer of Body Sculpting - Personal Training (you can find her on Facebook).  I came to know of her via a friend recommendation. We made contact and met for coffee.  I told Farhana what I felt I needed to do and she told me how she could help me achieve it.  I warmed to her lovely personality and clear evidential knowledge right there and then and signed up without hesitating.  Now I completely understand if you cannot afford a personal trainer but I would encourage you to consider committing to one, if only in the short term to give you a solid foundation upon which to build.  

Farhana's advice on approaching weight training correctly: 

"First and foremost, don't be nervous or afraid, be empowered that getting stronger and taking control is the best decision you'll ever make! 

Investing in a trainer will ensure that you learn correctly from the very start and thereby minimize any risk to injury. When it comes to selecting the right trainer, remember though there is a huge disparity. So, do your research and find one who specializes in strength training as they have far superior knowledge in biomechanics and can really help you understand technique.  They will also be able to guide you through correct movement patterns relating to each movement to be worked on, and also what movements you can start loading safely with the appropriate weight you can handle.

Another valuable aspect of having a trainer is that they will work out what your body is able to recover from. This is so important for managing fatigue, injury and indeed your results." 

 

My training began shortly after our first meeting and little did I know just how hooked I would become.  I've been strength training for a year now taking into account the odd break, most notably the three months we were on lockdown.  Despite that, my body shape has changed dramatically and much of the benefits described above are pretty evident.  I'm still in early days and have a long way to go; indeed, I have the rest of my life to enjoy this journey. In the last year, Farhana has taught me so much about correct technique and, more importantly, how correct 'form' is vital to preventing injury. I honestly wouldn't have got so far without her. 

It's important for me to tell you at this point that this is definitely NOT a quick fix program.  Quick fixes simply aren't sustainable anyway so don't believe anyone who might tell you differently.  No, a proper strength training program done correctly takes time but reaps huge benefits in the long term.  This is a lifestyle change and it requires commitment but don't be put off by this, there's some serious enjoyment to be had, honest!

Left: October 2019 and Right: August 2020

Well, this is easy!  (I think the socks really set off the look!)

Coming up: Starting my strength training journey and why having a training goal is important.