1. Think about the movement you are making and the muscles you are supposed to be working.
Really be mindful of the mind to muscle connection. Don’t exercise absent mindedly and don’t think about your shopping list when you are training. Think about what you are doing, how you are meant to be making the movement, which muscles you need to be connecting, your breathing, implementing the technique and cues your coach has given you.

2. Slow down the movement, yes even in cardio, as technique trumps speed every time!
There is no point in going hard and fast if your technique sucks and you run the risk of hurting yourself. You are simply going to exhaust yourself for nothing, because the muscles you are meant to be working, including your lungs and fitness, will not see the results they should. Focus on your technique, even if it means slowing your movement right down. Work smarter not harder. This will ensure you maximum results for effort.

3. Complete a Warm Up before every training session.
This is vital any time of the year, but even more so, in winter. You can’t expect muscles and joints to dive into action when they are still cold. There is not enough blood flow flowing through for exercise if you go straight from inactive to active. That means your joints won’t be as lubricated, your muscles, ligaments and tendons won’t be as flexible and you will run the risk of serious injury. Not to mention, your muscles won’t be activated so won’t get the benefits of the exercise. Imagine putting an elastic band in the freezer for a few hours then taking it out and trying to stretch it; it will just snap. That’s the same your muscles. So warm up properly before you start training. If you aren’t sure what type of warm up, shoot us a message and we can help you out.

4. Cool Down after every training session.
Just as your body needs time to warm up before training, it needs time to cool down after training. You can’t go from high heart rate and blood flow to sedentary. Your heart needs time to slow back down. Not cooling down properly can cause serious cramping in your muscles, which can lead to tears in the muscles, and places strain on your heart. Again, if you aren’t sure what type of cool down to do, shoot us a message and we can help you out.

5. Nourish Your Body.
Firstly you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. Secondly, a bad diet, reduces the quality and results from your workout. In order for your body to perform at its best, you need to be fueling it with good quality nourishing food. You wouldn’t put cordial into your car’s fuel tank and expect the engine to run smoothly. The same goes for your body. If you aren’t sure if your food is nourishing enough, shoot us a message so we can help you out.

–        Coach Terri