Overcoming your fear of exercise (part 2): injury

If you haven't exercised for a long time or you have suffered an exercise related injury in the past, the fear of injury may be deterring you from starting an exercise program. This fear is arguably the most legitimate fear of exercise: there is a known increased risk of injury occurring during exercise and in most cases those new to exercise or those who have suffered an injury in the past are at the greatest risk. The fear of injury occurring during exercise is one that I can relate very well to. Following a knee injury occurring during a sporting competition that required a reconstruction, I was very hesitant to return to my normal exercise routine. Even following a complete (and as successful as possible) rehabilitation I found it very difficult to approach exercise the same way I did pre-injury. It took me far longer to recover mentally then physically and the ever present risk of re-injury continues to concern me during some exercise movements. Despite this risk, I came to the realisation that it's more dangerous long term for me not to exercise; let me explain why.

Overcoming your fear of exercise (part 1): sweating & smelling

There are lot of reasons why people don't exercise. Often it is easy to blame laziness or lack of time, however, for a lot of people it is more complicated than this. Exercise can be scary- for a variety of different reasons. I found it difficult to understand how something I enjoyed so much could  be so scary to someone else but over the last 8 years working as a personal trainer I have learnt a lot about the fear of exercise and how it prevents people from enjoying the benefits of being fit and healthy. Being afraid of exercise is often difficult to admit and other more common excuses are used to explain away the lack of exercise and hide the real reason: unfortunately this makes it very difficult to help someone work through their exercise concerns. I would like to address 5 of the most common fears of exercising starting with the fear of sweating and smelling.

Top 6 tips for getting the most out of your personal training session

When you pay for a service you expect to get the most from it - your personal training session should be no exception. Here are my top 6 tips for getting the most out of your personal training session.

How to choose a personal trainer?

There is plenty of choice available to you if you are looking for a personal trainer. Employing the services of a personal trainer is an investment in your health and fitness and for that reason you should make your decision wisely. I have put together a short list of things to look for when shopping around for a PT.