Training Hints and Tips

Our Fitness Teams will be updating the Y:Active Blog on a regular basis with hints and tips to keep you safe and motivated throughout your training sessions.

Here are some important training do’s and dont’s:

Warm Up

  • Always warm up – the muscle groups should always be warm before every strength training session.

Good Posture

  • Always maintain good posture – incorrect posture can lead to injuries.  If you ever start to lose your form, technique or posture, then you must stop the exercise and reposition yourself properly. Please ask for a member of the fitness team if you are unsure of the correct posture technique.

Listen To Your Body

  • If a particular exercise “hurts” it is your body’s way of politely asking you to stop. Constantly training through the “pain barrier” is detrimental to the integrity of your bones, ligaments and joints. Work within your parameters and increase your exercise programme as and when you and your instructor are happy with the developments of your fitness journey. Also see below for tips on increasing your levels of fitness.

Stretch

  • Always stretch. It is important to finish any exercise whether cardio or resistance, with a stretching programme specific to you.

If you need to refresh your training techniques, would like advice or need to revisit your fitness programme Book a One to One Consultation.

Exercise and Building Foundations

We all have to start somewhere and if you are prepared to give it a good go, you will be able to build up to more challenging activities. However it is more productive and safe to do this in stages, assisted by our fitness instructors.  Here are a few tips on how to raise your levels of fitness.

Stage 1

  • Begin to enjoy being active. A 10 minute walk or 20 minutes of housework will do the trick to start with. Did you know? By taking part in 30 minutes of exercise at least three times per week, you increase your chances of living longer and improving your quality of life.

Stage 2

  • Do aerobic workouts. Exercise is now a part of your life so why not build regular workouts into your daily routine.  By challenging the cardiovascular system, you will begin to actively fight the effects of ageing and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Stage 3

  • Start strength training. You should add weight training into your workouts. Weight training will give you benefits you cannot attain with aerobic exercise, alone.  You can protect and build lean, muscle mass and promote healthier, stronger bones by weight training. It also increases your metabolic rate (the speed in which you burn fat) even when resting.

Stage 4

  • Stretch to increase flexibility. This is a MUST!! You must stretch before and after your workouts.

Stage 5

  • Complete your peak performance. It’s good to have a goal in mind. When you achieve it you’ll feel fantastic! Maybe a 10k run or an increase in repetitions or weight. Check out Events and Challenges for inspiration!