Hi and welcome to another week,
Really tough classes last week. The 5-minute rounds (with lot’s of abs) on Tuesday was tough, the 3-minute rounds (with lot’s of plyometrics) on Wednesday was tougher again and the introduction of the kettlebells on Thursday was toughest of all.
For me at least Friday’s ‘Back to Basics’ class was just a great fun session – unfortunately I backed it up by doing the ‘Train the Trainer’ session immediately afterwards and had to endure a bit more pain and suffering.
Last weekend was a big one for me in that it was my first weekend involved with the State u18 football side – we journeyed up to Darwin to play the Northern Territory on Sunday night. The weekend itself was an exercise in waiting around – we arrived at lunchtime Saturday, played Sunday night and arrived home Monday evening – which made it a trying time for players, coaches and support staff alike. But we got away with the win which was the main aim of the trip.
Despite this result, a lot of criticism has been directed at the group for the small margin of victory when measured against their pre-match expectations. I find those comments disappointing – sure the performance could have been better but to me winning against good opposition in unfamiliar surrounds is a solid first up effort – but I also see a lot of synergy between those sort of comments and ‘negative’ feedback that people often receive when trying to improve their health and fitness at the gym.
Receiving messages that might relate to someone else’s perception of your progress (too slow? too fast??) or their opinions about how often you are training (too much? not enough??) or how hard you are training (too hard? not hard enough??) can often be hard to take. When you are doing the absolute best you can to improve yourself and your health, being criticised by your friends and colleagues for doing exactly that can be very difficult to deal with.
For me at least, the key to overcoming negative messages is to meet them head on rather than try to avoid them. Process what was said to you and understand that while you may have pushed it down and repressed it nothing will make it just go away you will inevitably have to deal with it. You don’t need to constantly replay the message in your mind and obsess on it but make an effort to understand why and how it hurt you and how it might affect your everyday life. Thinking back to last week when this blog commented on trying to train in the cold and wet – dealing with external conditions as WELL as trying to deal with internal conflict about whether or not you should train could become too much to overcome!
Countering these negative messages with positive messages about yourself is a great step in changing those messages once and for all. During a class, enjoy the company of the others who are slogging it out alongside you and the experience you are sharing – remind yourself how great the session is for your body, about how far you have come (I can do pushups on my feet now! I can do my pushups with a CLAP now!), how strong it’s making your heart, how healthy it’s making your entire body, and how you are now one step closer to achieving your goals.
Gym Update #1
Look for a few changes in the reception/office area over the next couple of weeks. A little while back some additional power was installed adjacent to the stairs and the intention is that the ‘reception desk’ will move over to that area immediately in front of the front door.
The idea here is just to simplify things for everyone when they come into the gym – check in at the desk becomes the first thing to do (not run straight up the stairs! J ) and the kitchen area is more easily available for people wanting to fill their water bottles etc.
Mailbag
The casual booking system was a hot topic in my inbox this week – I received one email saying ‘Having to book makes me not want to come’.
I can understand this sentiment on one level – the booking system is a relatively new requirement and many people are resistant to change of any kind. But I do hope most casual users understand that in order for the classes to run successfully I do need to have a way of having some control over casual users during peak times. The classes change format every day – and not all class plans can support the same number of gym users (which is related to the variety of the sessions)…
The system really is a simple one – phone / email the gym on the morning of the day you want to train and indicate what session you want to book in for (and the names of any people coming with you). When you arrive at the gym that night, get your name crossed off the list. To me this isn’t a big ask, and is a far better system that the only other alternative – ‘first come, first served’.
Remember, Round One members do NOT have to book in for classes.
Facebook Highlights
For anyone who is a member of the Round 1 Fitness ‘Facebook Group’ you would have noticed I have been trying to make it a little more ‘active’ lately. If you aren’t a member of the group (or are, but haven’t checked it out lately), this week there has been quite a bit of activity:
Click HERE to connect to our Facebook group and get involved in the conversation.
May Challenge Update
Technically the May Challenge is OVER…but it will be extended until the end of June. Basically there is a complete log jam at the top of the leader board and I am pretty keen to see someone break through the 1.8km barrier…jump on the Summit Trainer and have a go.
Call to Arms – Fun Runners (and Basketball players!)
As per the last couple of blogs, have a look at the ‘City to Surf’ website if you are interested in setting yourself a short-term fitness challenge. Round 1 singlets will be provided to anyone who wants to have a go and as those people who worked through the ‘Run for a Reason’ event a couple of weeks back will tell you, finishing gives you a great sense of achievement.
I have had a couple of people mention starting up a Round 1 Fitness basketball team – if you think you might be interested let me know and I will put all those people interested in touch with one another. The idea would be to play in a ‘high energy, high rotation’ style (5 minutes on, 1 minute off) with the intention being to supplement your training not win sheep stations. If that sounds like a fun way to spend an evening each week (or if you are thinking of another sporting endeavour) let me know and I will assist with uniforms etc.
Member Profiles
All of the member profiles are now complete with photos – I have another 10 or so profiles ready to go and as soon as I get a couple of photos, will start adding some more updates to this section of the website.
As always, if you are interested in doing a profile, please let me know…the more the merrier.
Link of the week
This weeks link is to an article about ‘pre-training’ meals/snacks. This is one of the questions I am asked about most often, and I will prelude the link with one simple comment…’whatever works for you’. Some people need to eat before a session to avoid feeling light-headed – others still feel sick if there is food sitting in their stomachs. For me, the advice in this article under ‘pre-training snack’ is the best – a small piece of fruit (half a banana, a few grapes, half an apple) works most effectively…but we are all different.
http://www.expert-nutrition.com/pre-workout-meal.html
Anyway, that is it from me for another week.
See you in the gym!
Michael.
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