Reps September 2014

JOURNAL

THE

TECH NOLO GY

SEPTEMBER 2014 £3.30

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TOMORROW S TECHNOLOGY TODAY

A LOOK AT NUFFIELD HEALTH AND THE NEW TECHNOLOGY IN GYMS

PT BUSINESS HOW HAVE THE FUNDAMENTALS CHANGED IN THE LAST 10 YEARS?

MEDICINE BALL AB ROUTINE ADD THIS TO YOUR CLIENTS ROUTINE AND KEEP THINGS FRESH

ISSUE

Published by Magic Fountain Media, publishers of PT Magazine

Hello & Welcome

Contents Members Spotlight 4 Industry Focus 6 Earn points with CPD questions

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REPs News 9 Louise Hazel 11

A

s I write this piece, the Commonwealth Games are in full flow and, as with the London Olympics in 2012, the ability of a multi-sports event to inspire and excite is proving to be a powerful tool for those of us who work in health and fitness. I must give special mention to Zoe Smith, who will be part of our National Convention, on winning weightlifting gold and setting a Games record in the 58kg class. Well done Zoe!

All’s well that ends well

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Medicine Ball Workout

14

Conditioning to the core

17

Nuffield Health monitoring app

20

Functional Training equipment

22

Bosu Workout 24 REPs Eats with Barenaked Foods

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The power of referrals

29

Technology and the PT

30

Power Plate Competition

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Research News 34

In my last welcome I mentioned developments at REPs which I said I would share with you. The first of these is the CPD audit taking place at the end of October, which you may have already received an email about. The aim of this audit is to remind our members of the importance of CPD and the requirement of undertaking it which is a condition of REPs membership.

ON THE COVER: Nuffield Health introduce self monitoring app for members (Page 20)

I also hope that you are taking advantage of the deals and discounts now available to you as part of your membership benefits package.

Rewarding you with these discounts and offers is something we’ve wanted to do for a while, and I’m delighted it is now in place.

Editors Jessica Rowley Ryan Bahia

Many thanks to those who attended our South East Convention, which was held in association with FitPro. We were treated to two days of thought-provoking and expert presentations, and I would suggest that if you have never been to a REPs convention, then you should try and make the effort to attend. Our next event is the big one at Leisure Industry Week in Birmingham at the start of October (more on page 8). It is always nice to meet our members face-toface, and we gain a lot of insight from hearing and understanding your thoughts and opinions.

Enjoy this issue and see you in Birmingham in October.

Rob Wilkie

Publisher Myles Davies

Design Juliet Symes Juliet@repsjournal.co.uk Advertising Sales Adam Reynolds adam@repsjournal.co.uk Yasmine Brown Yasmine@repsjournal.co.uk Jay Jerome jay@repsjournal.co.uk General info@repsjournal.co.uk

@REPsUK

/REPsUK

HEAD OF STANDARDS AND COMPLIANCE

Publishers: REPs Journal is published 3 times a year on behalf of SkillsActive Ltd by Magic Fountain Media Ltd. Registered Offices: SkillsActive, 1st Floor, 6 Graphite Square, Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5EE (as of 19th September). Magic Fountain Media Ltd, Suit G, Epsilon House, Masterlord Office Village, Ransomes Europark, Ipswich, IP3 9FJ. Printed by: The Magazine Printing Company PLC. PLEASE NOTE: Points of View expressed in articles by contributing writers and in advertisements included in REPs Journal, do not necessarily represent those of the publishers or SkillsActive. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information contained within REPs Journal, no legal responsibility will be accepted by the publishers (Or SkillsActive) for incidents arising from use of information published. All rights included moral rights, reserved. COPYRIGHT: No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievable system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written consent of the publishers. © Magic Fountain Media Ltd. Printed in the UK by The Magazine Printing Company using only paper from FSC/PEFC suppliers www.magprint.co.uk

PROFILE Dan on board Coldplay’s private jet

A GAMBLE THAT PAID OFF

by Dan Portanier

I

n 2003 as I approached my 30th birthday, my life was going nowhere. I hated my job, trading penny stocks in the city. I used to spend my weekends dreading going back to work on Monday, knowing I needed to sound enthusiastic about a stock which would probably go bust, and have to pitch it to clients who just months ago, had lost thousands of pounds in some other stock I had sold them.

I had been planning a joint 30th birthday bash with some close friends in Vegas, for which I had some money put aside. However, I had been into fitness for a few years, and decided I had to do something about the direction of my career, so instead of going I quit my job and put all my savings into a personal training course.

promotional tour of the United States, to see if things would work out. I had a fantastic time, travelling on private planes, eating at top restaurants and meeting lots of A-list celebs. After this successful trial, the band took me on as their trainer, and I still work with them to this day.

When the band are not touring, I work as a freelance trainer in North London, where I have a large mix of clients, and I also teach 5 spin classes a week in various North London Gyms. Becoming a PT is the best decision I ever made, and I could not be happier with my life now.

“…TRAVELLING ON PRIVATE PLANES, EATING AT TOP RESTAURANTS AND MEETING LOTS OF A-LIST CELEBS.”

After 3 months of full time study, I was qualified as a Personal Trainer, and managed to get a job in a local gym. After working for a while at the gym, I began to pick up a lot of private clients and as a result of this, I was able to go freelance. This meant paying the gym rent, and earning a good living training clients and teaching spin classes, which I enjoyed very much. Then in March 2005, one of my clients, (who just happened to be the base guitarist for the band Coldplay) asked me if I would like to be the band’s trainer and go on tour with them. Obviously I had to think hard about this for about 1 tenth of a second before I said yes!

A meeting was set up with the rest of the band and the tour manager, where we agreed that I would come on a 5 week

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However, I feel that I must point out that of the 25 or so people who were on my PT course; only myself and one other are still working in the industry. The market is flooded with trainers who think that clients will come flocking to them as soon as they pass their course. This is not how it works! As well as having a slice of luck, I had to go out and pick up clients by selling myself to them. The learning process continues after you pass your course, and you become a better trainer by working with clients, gaining tips and experience from others in the industry and constantly going on courses.

Saying all that, I would still recommend to anyone thinking of becoming a PT who has the drive and ambition, to go for it. As long as you are prepared to put the effort in, the sky is the limit.

Have you got a story to tell? Share it with marketing@skillsactive.com

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INDUSTRY NEWS

SOCIAL

SCENE BARENAKED FOODS SIGN MAJOR MORRISONS DEAL Barenaked Noodles are made using the Asian-grown Konjac plant; a miracle plant low in carbohydrates, sugar and calories. Containing only 8 calories per 100g, they can be used as a replacement in meals for carbohydrates such as pasta and noodles.

Ross said, ”We are delighted that Morrisons are stocking our original low carb, gluten free noodles on their “International Foods” aisles. Barenaked Noodles are fantastic for those looking to manage their weight, consumers with restricted diets, such as coeliacs and diabetics, or people simply looking for a tasty alternative to heavier pasta or noodles.”

For more information and tasty recipe ideas for Barenaked Noodles, visit www.barenakedfoods.co.uk

BT SPORT AND THE WOMEN’S SPORT TRUST ANNOUNCE NEW PARTNERSHIP TO RAISE THE PROFILE OF WOMEN’S SPORT IN THE UK BT Sport is building on its investment in women’s sport by becoming a media partner of leading charity, the Women’s Sport Trust.

The partnership will see both organisations creating platforms to showcase the best of women’s sport. Co-branded programming, events and media coverage will meet a growing audience appetite for great sport played by established and emerging female stars. Both BT Sport and the Women’s Sport Trust are committed to maintaining and growing interest in women’s sport.

In addition to BT Sport’s existing women’s sport coverage there will be an enhanced BT Action Woman of The Year Awards (won this year by Downhill mountain biking star Rachel Atherton), coverage of the annual #BeAGameChanger women’s sports awards sponsored by Microsoft, and a new weekly women’s sport column by journalist Sue Mott plus the “Sportswoman to Sportswoman” podcasts featuring athletes interviewing one another about their sporting lives.

See more at www.womenssporttrust.com

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SOCIAL

SCENE @REPsUK

/REPsUK

Welcome to the REPs Journal Social Scene.

Each issue we are going to highlight some of our favorite social media posts, readers’ thoughts and ideas… We want your insight into the magazine, the Register and the industry… So what are you waiting for? Get along to one of our channels and drop us a line.

INDUSTRY NEWS PORTABLE MIRRORS, VERSATILE IN ANY SITUATION Portable Mirrors, versatile in any situation Mirrors for Training offer the very best quality in mirrored solutions, specialising in the Performing Arts/ Leisure Industry they offer cost effective solutions, throughout the UK and Europe. A truly versatile solution to your clients training needs.

Portable Mirrors (Mirrors on Wheels) are a fantastic facility to add to your facilities, and worth every penny of the investment as they can be used in so many different ways, not only for Dance, Popular for use in all kinds of Fitness, Performing Arts, Archery, Rowing and Golf.

They can turn any room into a multifunctional studio or professional training area.

For more information please visit www.mirrorsfortraining.co.uk.

‘KETTLERCISE® INSTRUCTOR’, 1 DAY GROUP FITNESS COURSE - KETTLEBELL SEMINARS LTD Finally, a kettlebell course that shows you how to integrate Kettlebell training in to your business in a proven, effective, results driven class format! Kettlercise® is a one day course aimed at personal trainers, fitness professionals, gym owners and health tour operators and integrates the traditional kettlebell in to a high volume, low intensity; all over body work out delivered in a 50 minute heart pumping, fat burning, and muscle toning class routine and allows you to instantly add the program to your existing class timetable and put more money on your bottom line. REPs Accredited: Early Bird Booking Course Price £167.00 (plus vat).

To find out more or to book now go to: www.rkps.org or Tel: 01282 698698.

BOXERCISE On 4th October Boxercise will run their free materclass.

This is the 6th year of the Masterclass which is open to all Boxercise Instructors designed to offer new ideas to freshen up classes and PT sessions. The masterclass qualifies for 4 REPs CPDs - get booked now at www. boxercise.co.uk/instructors/ masterclass.php

@REPsUK

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INDUSTRY NEWS Answer the following questions online to earn CPD points To give your answers please visit www.exerciseregister.org/cpd-training/technical-articles

Q1

(Looking for the answer? Turn to page 8)

Compared to non-runners, what percentage lower risk of death did runners in this study have? a) 30% lower risk b) 45% lower risk c) 50% How many minutes of running a week does the study suggest will reduce the chances of dying? a) 30 b) 51 c) 18 Participants who regularly ran for an average of how many years experienced the biggest benefit? a) 15 b) 6 c) 7

RUNNING SEVEN MINUTES A DAY ‘CUTS RISK OF DYING FROM HEART DISEASE’* Running for just a few minutes each day can reduce the risk of dying from heart disease, research has shown.

The findings, from a study which took place over 15 years using 55,137 adults aged 18 to 100, suggest that healthy exercise does not necessarily have to be exhausting or time-consuming.

Q2 (Looking for the answer? Turn to page 20)

People who ran for less than an hour a week benefited as much as those running more than three hours a week.

Participants who ran regularly for an average of six years experienced the biggest benefit. Their risk of death from heart disease or stroke was reduced by 50%.

The findings are published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. * According to research from Iowa State University

At what Level can you apply to be a health mentor? a) Junior PTs b) Senior PTs c) Entry level PTs Healthscore provides information for research. In a recent project with the London School of Economics what percentage of the population experience anxiety problem once a week? a) 44% b) 11% c) 46%

Runners, who made up just under a quarter of the study population, had a 30% lower risk of death from all causes and a 45% lower risk of death from heart disease or stroke than nonrunners. They also lived an average three years longer.

Running for less than 51 minutes a week – or about seven minutes a day - fewer than six miles, or slower than six miles an hour all reduced the chances of dying.

According to the article, in a first meeting what will a personal trainer check and measure? a) Blood pressure, cholesterol and hip-to-weight ratio b) Blood pressure, cholesterol and height c) BMI, blood pressure and cholesterol

Q3 (Looking for the answer? Turn to page 29)

How many new sales may you expect from 5000 flyers? a) Between 100 – 500 b) Between 50 – 150 c) 2000 – 3000 What engagement rate can you expect as successful from a cold lead? a) Between 10 and 15% b) Between 1% and 3% c) Between 7% and 15% For a ‘client referred lead’ what conversion rates can you expect to see? a) 30% b) 40% c) 60%

REPs PARTNERS WITH TIMELY We are very pleased to announce that we have partnered with Timely as our recommended business software supplier for our members. This software provides REPs members with a range of features that will directly improve the way you operate.

A cloud-based product, REPs’ partnership with Timely includes an initial 30 day free trial.

Plans start at only £19 a month, however as a REPs member, you will receive a 20% discount for the first 12 months as well as 200 SMS credits to help you get started.

REPs Head of Membership Greg Small said: “I’m delighted we have entered into this partnership with Timely. Through their products and services, our members will now have access to an excellent diary management tool that I’m sure will prove very effective.”

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To access your discount code, please visit the Members Area.

NEWS

ATTEND THE REPs NATIONAL CONVENTION IN OCTOBER 2014 We are looking forward to this year’s National Convention which will be hosted at Leisure Industry Week (LIW) on 1st and 2nd October.

Taking place in Birmingham, the REPs National Convention this year sees a bigger, more action-packed programme with something for everyone. The event will also see Olympian and REPs Ambassador Louise Hazel deliver the keynote speech.

Speaking to REPs Louise Hazel said: “I’m really looking forward to delivering the Keynote speech at this year’s convention. As a REPs member myself I’m also looking forward to be able to meet and network with fellow fitness professionals, whilst gaining some new skills along the way.”

REPs Ambassador Louise won’t be the only Olympian delivering at the event. Fresh from her Commonwealth Glasgow 2014 gold, weightlifter Zoe Smith will be joined by her KBT Education colleague and coach Sam Dovey to present a workshop discussing the essential factors when developing a programme that will ensure an athlete peaks at the right time.

This year’s programme, which can be found in full on the REPs website, also includes workshops with leading Training Providers such as Belrobics Limited, Fitness Anywhere UK (TRX Training) and British Military Fitness.

To join in on the action why not share your thoughts on this year’s convention with us via our Facebook and Twitter pages #LIW2014.

Tickets will cost £45 for members, £65 for non-members and are available to buy from the REPs website.

NEWS REPs LAUNCHES MEMBER BENEFITS Back in June we were delighted to launch our new partnership with AddMore to provide you with a fantastic selection of discounts and offers ranging from Virgin Media to Sainsbury’s (and pretty much everything in between).

Greg Small, Head of Membership for REPs, commented: “It is important for us to reward and recognise the commitment our members have to Continuing Professional Development and their careers, which is why I am delighted that we are working in partnership with AddMore in order to provide a great range of offers for REPs members.”

In order for you to access your member benefits and to see all the available discounts and offers, you will need to log into the Members Area, select the REPs logo and then select the ‘Member offers’ button which can be found on the right hand side of the page.

We are always keen to hear from our members, so let us know how you’ve been spending your rewards! Simply tweet us (@ REPsUK) or find us on Facebook (/REPsUK) #RewardingYou.

5 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE CPD AUDIT 1. Don’t be scared! The purpose of the audit is to remind our members that completion of CPD is a requirement of membership. It is not intended to catch anyone out or ruin their career.

2. With over 30,000 members, we won’t be able to look at everyone’s record. Therefore, we will only sample those members who have been with us for two years and have at least seven months left on their membership.

3. We will look at how much CPD you have logged in the last two years of your membership. Ideally, this should total 24 points of CPD. If you have done CPD but not logged it, please visit your Members Area.

4. There are many ways to gain CPD points, not all of which involve attending courses. The REPs website has free CPD available and points can be gained by attending one of our REPs conventions. The next one is at LIW in Birmingham on the 1st and 2nd October.

5. If we see that you have not fully completed your CPD requirements, we will give you 6 months to make up the difference. If you have not achieved your points by this date, we will have to consider removing you from REPs. If you have any questions at all regarding this, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Rob Wilkie, Head of Standards and Compliance. e: robert.wilkie@skillsactiveregisters.org *Please note that members associated with the following organisations are exempt from the audit as their CPD is managed independently: British Wheel of Yoga; EMDP; Body Control Pilates; Extend.

@REPsUK

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CONVENTION

LOUISE HAZEL London 2012 Olympian and 2010 Commonwealth champion to deliver on day one of the Convention, that is again taking place at Leisure Industry Week.

We are delighted that we can share the news that Louise Hazel will be delivering the keynote speech at the REPs National Convention this October. The REPs Ambassador, who won heptathlon gold in Delhi in 2010, shares her thoughts on the event and why she’s looking forward to taking part in this year’s convention.

I

’m really looking forward to presenting at this year’s REPs National Convention at LIW.

The event is a great chance not just for REPs members, but for trainers and other exercise professionals, to come together an learn new skills that they can take away and use with their clients.

My session is something I’m really excited about. I’ve been an elite athlete for 18 years and have been following a rigorous training programme since I can remember. Now, as a personal trainer, training is still a key element but it’s got a different edge.

I’m using everything I’ve taken from my career and building it into my training programmes for clients, giving them a unique insight into how athletes train.

One of the great things about working in fitness is you get to work with all different sorts of people. There’s no set criteria to

TO DELIVER KEYNOTE AT REPs NATIONAL CONVENTION determine who can get fit in the same way there is with sports.

This gives us the chance to work with such a range of people, and means we need to be prepared for this.

Whilst I will be focusing on my elite training, it is not just the physical side that I take to my personal training. The mental side is just as important. Athletes have a focus and a mind-set like you wouldn’t believe, and what we can do is try to bring this into our clients’ thinking. The mental side is crucial in achieving your goals in fitness, and I’ve found supporting clients in this way has had a huge impact.

My session will be informative, but as fitness professionals I know we like to be as active as possible, so I’ll be involving the audience by running through routines, showcasing demonstrations and hopefully helping them to learn from my experiences along the way.

To book your ticket to attend the REPs Convention, please visit www. exerciseregister.org/news-events

@REPsUK

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PROFILE

“WHAT’S AN OLD BIRD LIKE ME DOING IN A JOB LIKE THIS?”

A

late starter, some might say, being kind. Bonkers, they would probably be thinking. But no job for an older woman? I beg to differ.

I was fifty-one when my husband died, and was used to working all hours to keep our small business going. Then one of those moments happened – you know, one of those lightbulb moments that can sometimes change your life – and I said to myself, “I do no exercise at all, and yet I’m reasonably fit. This situation is not going to last, unless I do something about it.” So I joined up at the local leisure centre and thought I’d try aerobics. But right at the back, of course, so that no one would see how inept, uncoordinated and OLD I was. That’s when I discovered the perennial popularity of the longest row in the class! These days, I love to devise routines in which I turn the class, nip round the back, and greet the shrinking violets with a cheery “Hello, back row!”

“

into a future person; from a solitary middle-aged widow into a sociable woman with Things To Do, and Stuff To Achieve. It was my new partner who persuaded me to apply for the YMCA ETM course. I pmsl’ed at the very idea of training to become an instructor at the age of 58, but to their credit, the Y didn’t. The course was inclusive, inspiring, challenging, exhausting, scary and wonderful. It made a huge impression, and provided material – fictionalised, obviously - for some of the scenes in my first novel. I told my tutor at the Y that I wanted to specialise in teaching older people, mainly because I didn’t think I’d be taken seriously as anything else. But amazingly, there has never been a time when I felt I was obliged to sell myself exclusively as a seniors class instructor; even now, twelve years on, two of my weekly gigs are mixed age and ability. This is a business which has the constant potential to surprise.

FROM A SOLITARY MIDDLE-AGED WIDOW INTO A SOCIABLE WOMAN WITH THINGS TO DO, AND STUFF TO ACHIEVE”

But isn’t it odd – have you noticed? – how a quiet, reticent participant can morph into a competitive demon? Yes, I know it shouldn’t happen, aerobics not being about competition, an’ all that. But after the first few faltering appearances in the back row of the class, I began to get ideas above my station, and moved closer to the front. Row one was, as it always is, populated by the stronger-higher-further set, the core regulars who give the rest something to aim for. I settled for a second-row position, from where I could strive to match the star performers. There’s nothing like shadowing the best to make you try harder!

I became fit. This fact transformed my life in numerous ways.

Perhaps the best of these was changing me from a past person

Of course, it’s a young industry, full of brilliant young people bursting with energy and motivation, and that’s as it should be.

But as long as older instructors remain inspired and open to change, as long as their knees hold out and their client numbers continue to rock, there is a place for them too. Age can actually bestow natural advantages; try warmth, experience, patience, empathy – and don’t forget low cunning…

Fitness is a broad church. Let’s keep it that way.

Suzanne Egerton is a very old freestyle fitness instructor and writer, living and working in Scotland. She has been a member of REPs since qualifying in 2002, and has no plans to retire any time soon.

@REPsUK

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WORKOUT

MEDICINE BALL

Medicine ball from www.physicalcompany.co.uk Clothing: www.lijastyle.co.uk Photography: Marcel Grabowski (www.marcelgphotography.com) Model: Harriet Thompson

AB ROUTINE ADDING THE MED BALL THROW TO THIS SERIES OF AB EXERCISES INCREASES THE CHALLENGE AND MAKES THE MOVES MORE DYNAMIC. TRY USING THIS ROUTINE AS A STANDALONE SERIES OF EXERCISES AT THE START OR END OF A SESSION, AS PART OF A CIRCUIT, OR EVEN AS STRESS-REST BETWEEN SETS OF OTHER EXERCISES. Kristoph Thomson

SIDE TOSS Instruct the client to kneel on the floor then stand to their left, holding the med ball.

Throw the med ball to the client roughly level with their waist.

Once the ball has been caught, rotate the upper body to the right. Keep the ball, chest and head aligned. Rotate back to the left, tossing the ball by using the force generated from the abs. Complete one set then repeat on the other side.

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WORKOUT

MED BALL TOSS

Instruct the client to sit up, feet flat on the floor with hips and knees bent. Stand just in front of them, holding the med ball. Throw them the med to them. Vary the challenge by changing the speed at which you throw the ball, or the looping it up so that it is traveling more quickly when it arrives at their hands.

Once the ball has been caught, lower the upper body to the floor, gently touching the ball against the floor behind the head.

Sit up and throw the ball in one movement, generating the as much force as possible from the abs. The further you stand away from the client, the harder they will have to throw the ball in order to reach you.

DOUBLE KNEE TOUCH

Instruct the client to sit up, feet flat on the floor with hips and knees bent. Stand just in front of them, holding the med ball. Throw them the med ball.

Once the ball has been caught, lower the upper body back to the floor, gently touching the ball against the floor behind the head.

Crunch up, bringing the ball and one knee together to meet, whilst extending the other leg straight out. Lower back tapping the ball on floor behind the head, straightening both legs then repeat with the other leg.

Lower the upper body to the floor once more, taking the ball behind the head and extending both legs.

Crunch up again, bending both knees and bring the ball to meet them.

Lower the upper body to the floor, taking the ball behind the head and extending the legs, then sit up and throw the ball in one movement, generating the as much force as possible from the abs.

@REPsUK

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ANTI EXTENSION

EXERCISES A

frequent mistake people make about stabilisation is that effective performance and, for the purpose of this book, successful performance of the core stability exercises, is predicated on absolutely no movement. A principle function of the central nervous system is not the selection of individual muscles, but rather to optimise the use of integrated muscle interaction. It is this efficient interaction that stabilisation facilitates.

No singular muscle works in isolation to perform tasks such as osteoarticular maintenance and fictional dynamic stabilisation. Similarly, although the core is the focus of this book, elements of stabilisation are realised throughout the entirety of the kinetic chain, from proximal to distal, deep stabilisers to other mobilisers.

Efficient functional movement, high-intensity sport performance, compensation suppression, and many other benefits are derived from a stable spine. In this chapter we focus on stabilisation from simple uniplanar bracing activities to increasing range of motion via multidirectional patterns and, finally, to progressively manipulating instability, load, frequency, duration, and intensity. A strong and stable core will improve neuromuscular efficiency through the kinetic chain and lay the groundwork for intensified sport performance and reduced injury risk.

The following are just some of the recommended Anti-Extension Stability Exercises. For a full rundown please refer to Conditioning to the Core via the link at the end of the article.

(This article is taken from Conditioning to the Core, available from www.humankinetics.com)

ELBOW PLANK 1. Lie face down on the floor in a prone position with the feet together.

2. Place upper-body weight on the forearms; dorsiflex the feet and toes toward the shins.

3. Lock the knees, tighten the glutes, and brace the core.

4. Lift the body so the only contact points are the balls of the feet, toes, elbows, and forearms on the floor.

5. Maintain a completely straight line in the body with the ears, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles in alignment. Hold this position of a predetermined amount of time.

TECHINCAL ARTICLE

ELBOW PLANK (UNSTABLE UPPER)

1. Place the elbows and forearms on a moderately unstable apparatus (thick foam pad, wobble board, balance disc, pillows, etc.).

2. Lift the body so the only contact points are the balls of the feet and toes on the floor and the elbows and forearms on the unstable apparatus.

ELBOW PLANK

ELBOW PLANK

1. Position the elbows and forearms on a stability ball.

1. Place the feet on a raised platform (box, bench, or stair).

(UPPER UNSTABLE, ARMS ELEVATED) 2. Lift the body so the only contact points are the balls of the feet and toes on the floor and the elbows and forearms on the stability ball.

(FEET ELEVATED)

2. Lift the body so the only contact points are the elbows and forearms on the floor and the balls of the feet and toes on the platform.

ELBOW PLANK (UNSTABLE LOWER, FEET ELEVATED) 1. Place the feet on a stability ball or a moderately unstable apparatus positioned on a raised platform. Note: Make sure that the unstable apparatus is relatively secure on the raised platform.

2. With the elbows and forearms on the floor, lift the body so some part of the lower body is in contact with the unstable apparatus.

Note: There are many kinds of unstable apparatus.

As an example, if using a stability ball, the difficulty progression might look something like this:

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1. Knees on ball 2. Ankles on ball 3. Balls of feet and toes on ball

TECHINCAL ARTICLE

ELBOW PLANK

(UNSTABLE UPPER AND LOWER) 1. Carefully place the forearms on a moderately unstable apparatus.

2. Place the feet on another moderately unstable apparatus (it does not have to be the same type of moderately unstable apparatus used for the upper body).

3. Lift the body so all contact points (balls of the feet, toes, elbows, forearms) are on the unstable apparatus.

ELBOW PLANK

ELBOW PLANK

1. With the elbows and forearms on the floor, lift the body so only the ball of one foot and that foot’s toes contact the floor.

1. Place the elbows and forearms on a stability ball.

(SINGLE-LEG HIP EXTENSION)

2. Engage the glutes and extend the hip to raise the opposite straight leg off the floor.

3. Avoid extension of the lumbar spine.

(UNSTABLE UPPER, SINGLE-LEG HIP EXTENSION FEET ELIVATED) 2. Lift the body so the only contact points are the forearms and elbows on the ball, and the ball of one foot and that foot’s toes on the raised platform.

3. Engage the glutes and extend the hip to raise the opposite straight leg off the floor.

4. Avoid extension of the lumbar spine.

ELBOW PLANK (UNSTABLE UPPER, SINGLE LEG HIP EXTENSION, ARMS EVELVAED) 1. Position the elbows and forearms on a stability ball.

2. Lift the body so the only contact points are the elbows and forearms on the stability ball and the ball of one foot and that foot’s toes on the floor.

3. Engage the glutes and extend the hip to raise the opposite straight leg off the floor.

4. Avoid extension of the lumbar spine.

@REPsUK

19

TECHNOLOGY

NUFFIELD HEALTH INTRODUCE

MEMBER SELF MONITORING APP

O

ld habits are hard to kick - none more so than poor exercise and a bad diet. To help tackle this, Nuffield Health gives each of our 325,000 members a health MOT when they join. At this first meeting, a personal trainer will check blood pressure, cholesterol and hip-to-weight ratio, giving a valuable snapshot of wellbeing and allowing the right goals to be set. Now, Nuffield Health personal trainers get an extra tool to help their clients hit targets, thanks to the support of the very latest technology.

The app Nuffield Healthscore™ is specifically designed so members can self-monitor their progress and, when needed, get the support of a health expert. Each member is given a personal Healthscore™, after answering a detailed questionnaire – this provides a general indicator of their current health status. The number will go up and down depending on the person’s physical activity, diet, sleep and stress levels. The app can also link up with other activity trackers to provide a central pool of wellbeing information.

Research shows that three months after a health assessment, many people settle back into old, bad ways. With the help of Healthscore™, our personal trainers can improve their motivational ability and encourage greater commitment to each individual’s exercise regime. As the client’s Healthscore™ rises, they can see

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their wellbeing improve each day via phone, tablet or laptop.

Early last year, we began training our personal trainers on how to mentor their clients to achieve personal goals. Healthscore™helps a personal trainer set, track and trend weight-loss goals remotely and in person.

Health Mentors, a role only our senior personal trainers can apply for, can also set, track and trend wellbeing variables like blood pressure, cholesterol, and emotional wellbeing, helping to coach their client to a healthier lifestyle.

Using Healthscore™ means Nuffield Health members can benefit from group interaction too. Weight-loss groups are a good example of this, but all too often the person puts back on the weight and has to start all over again. Healthscore™ gives members the chance to compare and compete with their peers so that exercise, not just diet, becomes part of their daily routine.

And by considering all these elements in the round, diet, exercise, sleep and stress, better attention can be paid to what causes an unhealthy diet or overeating.

By assessing all this valuable data, our personal trainers can then guide each member to see the right health professional, perhaps a nutritionist, doctor or physiotherapist.

TECHNOLOGY excellent benefits to GPs as they are able to access the medical information they need far easier, enabling them to diagnose and treat their patients more efficiently.

“It is important to remember that this technological development will also revolutionise the public sector, as it stands the Government is working to free up access for people to view their NHS health records. The current aim is for 95 per cent of patients to have access by next April. As Medical Director of Nuffield Health Wellbeing, I believe this will lead to people living healthier because they and their doctor will be able monitor their health more easily and take quick action if or when it is needed.”

“

RESEARCH SHOWS THAT THREE MONTHS AFTER A HEALTH ASSESSMENT, MANY PEOPLE SETTLE BACK INTO OLD, BAD WAYS”

Not only will the amount of exercise we do be easier to monitor but also the machines we use will become far more advanced.

Already, Nuffield Health has installed the Wattbike in more than 50 sites; including our fitness centres, corporate facilities, and schools.

The Wattbike enables personal trainers to analyse live pedalling technique and can pinpoint imbalances which can be used to help treat lower-body injuries by expert-on-site physiotherapists.

Nuffield Health believes it is the combination of face-to-face meetings with health experts, on-going digital self-monitoring and extra support when needed, which delivers better and longerlasting results.

Our research also reveals that the technology of Healthscore™ provides a much needed resource. Last year, we worked with the London School of Economics on a study that revealed 44 per cent of the population experience anxiety symptoms once a week- up by 11 per cent since 2008. Peoples’ lives have become more stressful, and medication is often not the appropriate response.

In fact, our research showed GPs are 46 times more likely to prescribe medication than explore alternative options such as exercise. Sadly, only one per cent of GPs recommended exercise as a way to alleviate symptoms.

Dr Davina Deniszczyc, Director of Medical Wellbeing said: “As digital technology advances, it will become much easier for people to monitor their overall, day-to-day health – a phrase coined in America for this very revolution is self-quantification.

This is especially important as people are living longer with conditions such as type 2 diabetes. Those living with long-term illnesses will have the knowledge they need right at the push of a button to manage their symptoms.This will also have some

Rick Crawford, Fitness Innovation and Development Manager at Nuffield Health, explains: “Both our existing and new members are excited to have access to Wattbikes. Cyclists and triathletes are very keen to use the bike and we are also pleased to see more people, who are new to fitness, trying them out and feeling the benefits.”

“Our members range from those who simply want to improve their lifestyle through to elite athletes. The flexibility of the Wattbike’s setup and in-built testing features means that we can use it with all of our members in different ways to help them get results.”

“We know that many of our members like being able to record what they’ve achieved. The storage of data on the Wattbike is really useful for this and can be used by our experts to help measure progress in a productive way.”

He added: “Our members like the Wattbike because it replicates the feel of riding outdoors better than any other product. It is the feedback data that the Wattbikes provide that members love too, whether that be training to a certain power output or making improvements on pedalling technique.”

Thanks to Alex Pascoe from Nuffield Health

@REPsUK

21

SHOWCASE

Kettlercise® Kettlebells Official Kettlercise® Kettlebells - the difference really is in the design... Each Kettlercise® kettlebell has been specifically designed to ensure that two hands can be on the kettlebell at any time. All of our Kettlercise® Kettlebells are of the finest quality, highly finished, black cast iron and specially coated in orange neoprene to ensure there is no damage to your flooring when working out. Prices start from £14.99 (2kg bell). Available from: www.kettlercise.com

Tornado Ball The Jordan Fitness premium quality textured rubber Tornado Balls are a colourful addition to any studio. Ideal for athletes training in racquet sports, and excellent for rhythmical stabilisation drills.

The rope runs through the middle of the ball, making it a robust and durable piece of equipment, and also great for explosive rebounding exercises. Price: from £28.33. Available from: www.jordanfitness.co.uk

Gripad the kitbag essential

FUNCTIONA L

Have your clients had enough of lifting gloves that just make their hands sweaty, don’t have enough grip, or really aren’t that comfortable?

TR AINING

Showcase

THIS MONTH WE TAKE A LOOK AT SOME FANTASTIC FUNCTIONAL TRAINING EQUIPMENT NO GYM SHOULD BE WITHOUT. FOUR GREAT PIECES OF KIT TO HELP KEEP WORKOUTS VARIED AND YOUR CLIENTS MOTIVATED, AS WELL AS A TRAINING AID NO PAIR HANDS SHOULD BE WITHOUT.

Gripad provides a firm and comfortable grip without covering the hand. Air can circulate, the hand can breathe, giving you a much more comfortable experience. The stretchable finger loops ensures that one size fits most; and caring for Gripads couldn’t be easier, just chuck them in the wash with your gym kit. Available from: www.gripad.co.uk. RRP £9.95 a pair + p&p.

Professional Fixed Dumbbells The Gorilla Sports range of Professional Fixed Dumbbells are robust, stylish hand held weights ranging from 2.5kg to 32.5kg. Made from a cast iron core with a thick rubber coating, these dumbbells can withstand the roughest of treatment. Fixed weights are particularly secure and the textured handles make them safe and comfortable to use.

For gyms and studios looking to store this range of weights there is a freestanding rack that holds up to five pairs of dumbbells. Prices for the dumbbells start at £7.99, while the rack is £179.99. Order online from www.gorillasports.co.uk.

SandRope™ The new SandRope™ from Hyperwear offers more than your average battling rope.

Containing shifting sand that ups the intensity of the workout, providing a challenging, fun and versatile personal training tool. At just three metres long, it takes up less space than a traditional battling rope making it ideal for use in a personal training studio. Available in two weights: 15Ibs and 30Ibs priced at £153.95 and £167.95 (excludes VAT). Available from www.physicalcompany.co.uk

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THE LEADERS IN HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING

BOOTCAMP INSTRUCTOR TODAY! BECOME A

Courses available: • BootCamp Instructor • Advanced BootCamp Instructor • Mega Band Training • The Trainers Toolbox

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WORKOUT

EXPERT TRAINING SERIES

BOSU

®

HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING

The BOSU® is a fun and versatile piece of equipment, allowing you to work the whole body and develop a range of different training goals including speed, power, strength and stability.

This BOSU® HIIT program is based on one of the most famous high intensity interval protocols in the world, proven to simultaneously develop aerobic and anaerobic fitness. Each set is short but performed at maximum intensity to deliver the greatest fat burning and metabolism boosting effects.

V-SIT CRUNCH Lie on the BOSU® in a position where you are balanced with your legs and torso off the floor, without arching your back over the BOSU®. Flex your trunk and your hips so you can reach forward and touch your heels. Keep your abdominals engaged throughout the exercise and perform the reps very slowly, especially on the way down. Your whole abdominal wall has to work hard in this exercise and because of all the tiny adjustments required to balance on the BOSU® the burn gets pretty intense.

Perform eight 20-second sets of each exercise, with ten seconds of rest between each set. Repeat for all four exercises.

ALTERNATE SINGLE LEG HOP Start with one foot on the top of the BOSU® and raise the the opposite arm.

Jump up as high as you can and land on the opposite leg. Try to keep all of your weight on the leg on the BOSU®, just using the back leg for stability. As soon as the back foot hits the ground jump back up.

This explosive lower body exercise uses all the large muscle groups of the lower body and will quickly elevate heart rate and breathing rate. Go big or go home!

AVAILABLE FROM PHYSICALCOMPANY.CO.UK

PRESS UP WALK DOWN Place your hands flat on top of the BOSU® with your shoulders directly above your hands. Take small steps backwards until you are nearly in a straight line from hands to feet and then walk back up. Keep your back neutral and your body in line throughout. Try to avoid excessive hip movement and keep your shoulders down away from your ears. If you are struggling to maintain good posture and alignment, limit the range of movement to the point at which form begins to deteriorate. This is an amazing exercise for building shoulder stability and for developing the ability to transfer force through the trunk.

ALTERNATE TRANSVERSE SQUAT JUMP Stand 90 degrees to the side of the BOSU®. Jump up, turn 90 degrees and land on the BOSU® with both feet at the same time. Stick the landing, taking a second to show balance and control. Jump off the BOSU® and turn 90 degrees the other way. Land softly and repeat. Try to minimise any wobble in your knees on the landings and maintain good knee alignment throughout. This exercise requires a lot of balance and control, and is a progression from regular explosive jumps to shock the nervous system and get your heart rate up.

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Get 50% off your supplements Earn profits every time your clients order online at www.sci-mx.co.uk Earn commission of up to 15% Save your clients money with discounted prices Get access to freebies and special offers!

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EATS

NOODLES AS NATURE INTENDED… Three tasty meals in under 20 minutes Massive thanks to Ross at Barenaked foods for these fantastic recipies.

For more more information please visit www.barenakedfoods.co.uk

If you are looking for some quick tasty, filling meal alternatives, then try these out for size. We have put together three fantastic meals that you can prepare in under 20 minutes. Perfect for that post training fuel, or to give to your clients as part of their nutritional plan.

Giving it a go? Let us know @REPsUK

WHY NOT TRY USING… Rice

Veggie Stir Fry A great light and tasty way to fill your belly!

Gluten free Sugar free, Fat free, Low carbohydrates varieties are available and taste great! Fab with your favorite curry! Quick & easy no carb fried rice dishes!

Typical values per 100g of rice: Energy 8kcal Protein 0.3g Fat 0.1g Carbohydrate 0.1g Sugars 0.1g Dietary Fibre 3.4g Salt 0.2g Available from all good supermarkets

Thai Green Curry Paste 285g INGREDIENTS: 1 Pack Mixed Veg Stir Fry 2T Sweet Chilli Sauce 1 Pack Noodles METHOD: 1. Get your wok or pan nice and hot 2. Rinse your noodles and add them to the pan 3. Throw in your veg and cook for 5 mins 4. Add your cooking sauce 5. Let simmer for 2 mins then serve and enjoy!

Serves: 2 Prep: 8 mins Average calorie content per serving: 123

Green curry is probably Thailand’s most popular dish, with a delicate spiciness. Blue Dragon Green Curry Paste is delightfully aromatic with a flavour that is totally Thai.

Typical values per 100g: Energy 451 kj/108kcal Protein 0.8g Carbohydrates 8.1g Of which sugars 3.6 Fat 7.7g Of which saturates 0.5g Fibre 0.9g Sodium 0.53g Available from all good supermarkets

Mixed Stir Fry Vegetables Available from all good supermarkets, we prefer peppers, courgettes, onions, sweetcorn and peas, but there is no specific ingredients o just add what you like and have some culinary fun.

* REPs Journal and the Register of Exercise professionals are not nutritional experts and the above recipes are put together as inspiration for you and your clients. A full PDF of this page is available on request, please email info@repsjournal.co.uk listing the page number in the subject.

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EATS

Thai Green Curry Beautifully tasty and light curry for any night of the week!

INGREDIENTS 1 large potato 1c of prawns, 1 pack of rice 1 red chilli 1 low fat thai green curry sauce

Serves: 2 Prep: 15 mins Average calorie content per serving: 345

METHOD 1. Cook the noodles for approx. 2 minutes 2. Slice your prawns and add to another pan 3. Chop your potatoes into small cubes 4. Cook both the prawns and potato for 5 minutes, then add the green curry sauce and let it simmer for 10 minutes 5. Turn up the heat and cook the rice on high for 2 mins Serve and enjoy!

Giving it a go? Let us know @REPsUK

Beef Chow Mein INGREDIENTS 1 Pack Noodles 2 x Frying Steak 1 Clove Garlic – Sliced 1 Onion 3 Spring Onions Or 1 Leek 1 Sachet Chow Mein Sauce Or Soy Sauce 1 Cup Bean Sprouts

Serves: 2 Prep: 15 mins Average calorie content per serving: 281

METHOD 1. Get your pan nice and hot with a touch of olive oil. Then kick start the noodles with some chilli and beef. Makes a great post-gym filling meal!

2. Chop your onion into bite-sized chunky pieces and crush the garlic 3. Thinly slice your beef into even strips 4. Add your onions and garlic and a touch of olive oil to the pan and lightly fry 5. Add the beef to the onion mix, Cook them to your liking 6. Throw in your noodles, Add your spring onions 7. Add your stripped leeks, Fry for a few minutes 8. Add a tablespoon or so of soy sauce or chow mein sauce 9. Add beansprouts and cook for a further 2 minutes Serve and enjoy!

@REPsUK @REPsUK

27 27

BUSINESS

UNDERUSED + UNDERAPPRECIATED:

THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO INCREASE YOUR CLIENT BASE… REFERRALS

H

owever small your client base, you need to utilise them effectively to increase your marketability, and encourage them to engage with their friends, family and colleagues on your behalf.

The simple facts are: A cold lead (flyers, adverts, etc) from a random source has a very small closing rate. In many cases, you could experience successful engagement rates of approximately 1% to 3%, and then you have to attempt to convert them into clients. Example: 5000 flyers distributed may yield between 50 – 150 new sales opportunities at best. It then becomes dependent on your sales ability to convert those contacts into clients, whilst also taking into consideration the costs of artwork, distribution and managing the process.

With a client referred lead, you have the advantage of knowing that the individual has an interest in your services and product.

This places you in a stronger position for closing the sale. Expect to see conversion rates of 40% plus in these cases, with the added benefits of not engaging ‘cold lead’ individuals and a significant reduction in both time and investment.

By simply focusing on a referral-based sales process, personal trainers will often see a dramatic increase in their numbers both for personal training sessions and for group fitness workouts.

Business studies have shown that up to 87% of satisfied customers are happy to pass on leads to sales representatives, but only 7% of sales reps would actually ask for them. Transfer that thinking to the fitness industry and consider that every individual in your workout class or personal training has an 87% chance of recommending your services to a potential new client. Are you in

by Richard Callender Creator of Armageddon Fitness and Master Trainer on ITV’s The Biggest Loser.

the 7% of PTs who will actually ask?

In my experience, two main issues keep personal trainers from asking for referrals: fear and ego.

Asking a client for a referral opens up a potential can of worms in the form of negative feedback or a “no”. As a result personal trainers avoid it in order to keep their relationship with their client positive and avoid any form of awkwardness that they see as an unnecessary obstacle in their client/trainer relationship. Fighting the fear and asking for a referral will result in one of two things: either the client says ‘no, because of XYZ’ which gives you the opportunity to improve your services through feedback, or best result they say ‘yes, of course!’

The other aspect that holds PTs back from asking for referrals is this: Personal trainers typically have big, healthy egos. You are OF SATISFIED CUSTOMERS trained and conditioned WOULD PASS ON LEADS to believe you can sell in the face of adversity and deliver an amazing fitness experience at all times – in fact, to some degree, you have to in order to be a successful OF PROFESSIONALS trainer. You believe that WOULD ACTUALLY ASK FOR THEM your methods are best and you can develop your business without help and that is where the problem lies. The concept of asking for referrals for a trainer is often misconstrued as feeling like you are asking for help, which is why so many opportunities are lost.

87% 7%

I know this issue well because as a novice personal trainer I fell into the ego trap. I did not want to ask for referrals because I did not want my clients to think I was desperate for new business, when in reality I actually was. It is important to your business and future as a fitness professional to get past the fear and ego hurdles in order to maximise your business opportunities and increase your revenue. Good luck and get asking!

@REPsUK

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BUSINESS

MAKING YOUR

LIFE EASIER

WITH ONLINE TOOLS

I

n this article we are going to look at how you the exercise professional can make your life easier, more productive but most of all save yourself some time that you could spend on other things! To do this we are going to look at a number online tools and apps you can use to great effect to make you more efficient and productive!

Social Media The modern world revolves around social media and keeping you and your business plugged in to services such as Twitter, Instagram, and the almighty Facebook. Social media has fast become a vital part of any personal trainers marketing strategy.

One of the hardest elements of using social media is keeping updated with the constant flow of information.

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by Tom Godwin

There are a number of tools that can help you by pulling all these social feeds under one roof. I have used these kinds of social management tools to great effect over the years. These tools generally allow you to view all you various feeds, reply to posts or messages, and schedule posts to be sent out at a specified time. This kind of service can save you huge amounts of time over logging into each service separately multiple times per day.

There are many of these kinds of services that range in price and also features; some of these include Hootsuite, Sendible, and Sprout.

Programming/Client Management As a fitness professional much of your time away from teaching

BUSINESS

will be spent planning and recording what your clients have achieved and what you would like them to do. There are some great tools that allow you to record exercise plans online and some even allow clients to upload the results of workouts you have programmed for them to do on their own.

Additionally many of these have features to help you keep track of sales and numbers of sessions used/left. This kind of information can make life so much more simple allowing the trainer to be alerted as sessions run low and some packages even send out emails to the client to inform them of the fact they are coming to the end of their package and they can then log in to the service and pay for additional sessions.

I have been using these types of software for a number of years and they really have saved me hours of time and made me much more organised.

Food Diaries As we all know keeping track of what clients have eaten is a vital part of helping clients towards any weight loss effort. The old paper and pen method has gone out of the widow in favour of mainly phone based apps. These apps enable clients to easily and conveniently track their diet. There are a range of apps out there but the industry leader is one called My Fitness Pal. This app has some great features, most importantly it is very simple to use with a small amount of coaching. It has most foods stored in its extensive database, it remembers you favourite meals, and even allows you to simply scan the barcodes of the food you eat.

Targets can be set that give the client a desired calorie intake per day, and gives the client a running total of what they have eaten making it so much easier to stay on target. The app also

generates some great graphical breakdowns of overall food intake, by macronutrient allowing both you the trainer and the client to easily see the make up of their meals.

To make tracking clients food easier the client can add you as a ‘friend’ allowing you to view their food diary. You can check in anytime of day or night, so helping you and the client to stay on top of the food they are eating.

“

THERE ARE A NUMBER OF TOOLS THAT CAN HELP YOU BY PULLING ALL THESE SOCIAL FEEDS UNDER ONE ROOF”

E-Mail

One of the best ways to keep in contact with existing clients and leads is to keep in regular contact via e-mail. There are some great packages such as Aweber, Constant Contact and Mail Chimp that allow you to send out e-mails at a designated time to different sections of your list. This kind of service really is a must as it can really streamline your e-mail marketing strategy, keeping you well connected to your clients.

These packages have some additional handy features such as the ability to embed an e-mail capture form on your website allowing you to build your list, set up a series of e-mails to be sent out on sign up, and design graphical newsletters.

Reading Keeping updated with the latest research in the world of fitness can be a hard task. One of the key sources of information are blogs written by industry experts, there is a great tool called Feedly that allows you to list all of your favourite blogs and then be able to read them at your convenience from the Feedly app.

This saves loads of time over the alternative of logging onto each site individually to catch up on the latest posts.

I hope that the tools discussed above help you to achieve more with your time and make you a more efficient fitness professional.

At the end of the day we want to do the job we started out to do… get people fit and active. All these tools in my opinion make you more time efficient, leaving you more time to do the things you love to do!

Tom Godwin (@TomForesight) is the Managing Director of Foresight Fitness Services. He is a specialist in exercise referral, corrective exercise and helping other personal trainers improve their business. He is also involved with personal trainer education as a tutor, assessor, and course developer for Fitness Industry Education. www.TomGodwin.co.uk

@REPsUK

31

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COMPETITION

COMPETITION A SHOW OF POWER

P

ower Plate® vibration training has long been recognised as a highly effective element to gym-based training.

Now it’s time for exercise professionals to take Power Plate to the next level and literally shake up their clients’ workouts by combining whole body vibration training with resistance training using functional equipment.

The science behind this integrated fitness concept is undeniable but in order for it to catch on, people need to be know where to get started…. and that’s where you come in.

Performance Health Systems – makers of Power Plate – is challenging REPs members to devise a ‘Power Plate Power 5’ integrated fitness workout that combines functional moves with vibration training.

The ‘Power Plate Power 5’ workout should comprise either five minutes’ integrated exercise or five consecutive integrated moves. It should include upper and lower body moves and use at

Top Tip

least two additional training modalities such as ViPR™, kettlebells, resistance bands, dumbbells and medicine balls.

The Power Plate Power 5 workout must be filmed in high res – iphone or tablet quality is the lowest resolution accepted – and show clearly how to perform each exercise. Imagine someone has downloaded this to their phone to follow in the gym. The moves must be clear and easy to follow so avoid stylised angles and close-ups. You can include an explanatory voice-over or let the moves speak for themselves.

“This is a great chance for our members to use their initiative and skills to develop a short, effective workout on Power Plate,” says Rob Wilkie, Compliance and Standards Manager at REPs. “Power Plate is very well established but here is an opportunity to use it in a whole new way by integrating functional kit and moves with the challenge of the vibrating platform. We are looking forward to seeing how the best trainers in the business can bring this concept to life.”

Power Plate will be at LIW from September 30-October 2 and will welcome any entrants to come to Stand H610 to show or discuss their ideas. The Integrated Fitness concept will be set up on the stand making this the ideal chance to try out your workout and expert trainers will be on hand to offer advice and answer questions.

WHAT YOU CAN WIN The winner will receive a year’s REPs membership (qualifications dependent) and EXOS training from Power Plate worth £1,000. EXOS is the leader in integrated performance training, nutrition, and physical therapy for elite and professional athletes.

The winner’s club will also benefit by being given an integrated fitness package which includes a functional mat, banner with links to exercises that can be downloaded and an onsite integrated fitness workshop with a Power Plate Master Trainer. From this, trainers can create a bespoke zone for integrated fitness training which is bound to attract attention and business in the gym.

For details of how to enter and to download an entry form, please visit www.exerciseregister.org/blog

@REPsUK

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INTERNATIONAL

THE INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF REGISTERS FOR EXERCISE PROFESSIONALS

(ICREPS)

I

CREPs is a non profit, membership based organisation.

Our members all operate independent, competency based registration systems for exercise/fitness professionals. ICREPs members operate in 4 continents, and eight countries, and collectively register over 200,000 individual exercise professionals. ICREPs has also produced a global matrix that maps each ICREPs member’s registration levels against the others, which provides a clear pathway for exercise professionals considering moving countries.

The last 24 months have been an extremely active time for the development of national registration bodies for exerciseprofessionals, with both Canada and the UAE joining ICREPs. Subsequently, UAE has completed its mapping process with other ICREPs members (meaning exercise professionals have clear pathway maps to/from the UAE) and Canada’s mapping currently in progress.

Additionally, the world’s largest global register US REPs, which only went live in early 2014, has already gained over 130,000 exercise professionals on its register. US REPs was conferred full membership of ICREPs in March 2014 at the IHRSA conference in San Diego, bringing the collective pool of registered exercise professionals globally to almost a quarter of a million.

Richard Beddie, Chair ICREPs: “This is an exciting time for both ICREPs and, more importantly, the global exercise community. The more we can work together for the betterment of the industry through the use of agreed standards, the more we can realise many of the exercise industry’s ambitions to work more closely with the health sector, and contribute more to the health and wellness of the public we ultimately serve”.

For more details on ICREPs, including support resources for organisations considering setting up a national register, and how ICREPs accredits training providers, please visit www.icreps. org to find out more.

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www.exerciseregister.org

ESTABLISHED MEMBER NATIONAL REGISTERS (listed in alphabetical order)

Australia Canada Ireland New Zealand South Africa United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States of America

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