I’m a personal trainer AMA

[Whitechocraspberrycheesecake]

Anything health/ fitness related

Most exercise I've tried tends to trigger my migraines. Do you a have any recommendations for exercise which is less likely to cause headaches please?

What's the best way to tone upper arms?

@belimoo

Most exercise I've tried tends to trigger my migraines. Do you a have any recommendations for exercise which is less likely to cause headaches please?

Have you had this checked with your GP?

@loopsaloo

What's the best way to tone upper arms?

I would advise resistance training, targeting your whole upper body- so chest, back, shoulders and then biceps and triceps.

Exercise examples;
Dumbbell bench press
Press ups (if not able to do full, start with wall press ups and then move on to incline)
Seated rows
Dumbbell over head press
Lat pull downs
Lateral raises
Front raises
Bicep curls/ hammer curls
Tricep dips/ dumbbell overhead tricep extensions

Pick a couple of these for each workout- keep it balanced so if you work chest, also work your back. If you work biceps, also work triceps.

Start with 2 sets of 8-12 reps, then increase to 3 sets once you can manage a full set of 12 in both sets.

As a nearly-60 year old woman who is five stone overweight with bad feet (can't walk more than about half a mile without a lot of pain) where on earth should I start to get fit and tone up?

Do you actually make any money? I see loads of hand made signs around here advertising that they are a personal trainer. Is there enough work?

Ooh exciting! I exercise every day but I'm not sure if I'm doing enough. My goals are to lose weight, have more energy and feel stronger.

I walk around 8,000 steps a day. I fit in HIIT X 2, running X 2, upper body strength, lower body strength and core x 2 each week but I only do yoga once, should I be doing more stretching?

Thanks!

Oh and I am also stiff and not very flexible and also have lost my agility. I feel really old and would like not to. Advice on where to start most gratefully received.

What is the best weight to get into using weights? I've only ever done cardio at the gym, I really want to start weight training but feel intimidated by the equipment/lack of knowledge/men surrounding the weight area.

interesting ama thanks

out of interest, does your training include female anatomy?

@Whitechocraspberrycheesecake

Anything health/ fitness related

Oh fantastic thanks for making the thread!!

I'm trying to lose weight gained due to taking mirtazipine. About 1.5-2 stone. What's the best approach to diet? I'm doing exercises in the evenings and trying in increase my step count and swimming lots more.

• What's the quickest way to burn body fat and tone up? What are your favourite fast results exercises?

@Masdintle

As a nearly-60 year old woman who is five stone overweight with bad feet (can't walk more than about half a mile without a lot of pain) where on earth should I start to get fit and tone up?

A good place to start would perhaps be swimming/ aqua aerobics or similar?

If you want to go to the gym, a bike would be a good place to start cardio wise.

Pilates would also be good for mobility and core strength.

@camperqueen54

Do you actually make any money? I see loads of hand made signs around here advertising that they are a personal trainer. Is there enough work?

Ha ha- yes if you’re good at your job then there is a wage to be made.

I gave birth at the end of 2020 and was in the process of trying to get my pre baby body back. I was a trim size 8 and went up to a 12, with most of the weight going on tummy, hips and top of my legs. I am now 8 weeks pregnant with my second child 😍 but would like to keep my fitness up so that the task to lose some baby weight isn’t as daunting in 8 months time. What kind of exercise is safe for me? I also work about 60 hours a week so needs to be quick things I can do at home.

Do you work at a big chain gym? That seems like a tough gig because you have to be there at certain times and your rates are set, or your rent is huge. The PTs I know that work out of small independent gyms, have their own space on an industrial unit or are quite creative with using outdoor space seem to have a better deal. How do you feel about your set up?

@WheekestLink

Ooh exciting! I exercise every day but I'm not sure if I'm doing enough. My goals are to lose weight, have more energy and feel stronger.

I walk around 8,000 steps a day. I fit in HIIT X 2, running X 2, upper body strength, lower body strength and core x 2 each week but I only do yoga once, should I be doing more stretching?

Thanks!

Lose weight= ensure you’re in a calorie deficit with adequate protein intake.

More energy= ensure you are sleeping 7-8hrs per night and fuelling your body well. Limit caffeine.

If you’re looking to get stronger, personally I would reduce your HIIT and increase your strength training and ensure that you are progressively overloading yourself consistently.

Keep the running in for cardio if you enjoy it. I encourage clients to stretch after every training session- if you feel you need more then there would be no harm in adding some stretch yoga into your routine.

I would do running x2 and resistance 3-4x per week and incorporate core into those sessions.

@Neverhot

What is the best weight to get into using weights? I've only ever done cardio at the gym, I really want to start weight training but feel intimidated by the equipment/lack of knowledge/men surrounding the weight area.

If I were you I would book in with a PT to get you started- even just one session and then writing you a program will help.

Initially learning correct form is most important before adding too much weight.

@purplesequins

interesting ama thanks

out of interest, does your training include female anatomy?

Initially it’s very limited in the basic qualifications but I have gone on to specialise in females only- so yes. I am pre an postnatal trained and am currently specialising further.

@purplesequins

interesting ama thanks

out of interest, does your training include female anatomy?

What does this mean?

OP - I am also v. overweight and wound like to exercise more, but have dodgy knees. I have started swimming, but would like to do more toning exercises, but if I do anything like squats, weights etc, I can't walk for days afterwards, which makes it really hard to do it regularly.

Any tips for making saggy tits look better? Any specific exercises? Sorry to be blunt, no point beating around the bush

@pastypirate- I can’t quote you- sorry!

Best way to lose weight- stick to a consistent calorie deficit and ensure that you eat adequate protein. Calorie deficit shouldn’t be too low- a good guide to use is the James Smith calorie calculator on his website- MyFitnessPal takes calories too low. If your calorie deficit is too aggressive your body adapts and you’ll need to cut calories lower and lower to continue losing fat- which is bloody miserable if you start too low.

Aim for 8-10k steps per day. 7-8hrs sleep a night, Resistance training 2-3x per week. Consistency will pay off.

What ab exercises should you avoid during pregnancy?

@HashtagSexy

- What's the quickest way to burn body fat and tone up? What are your favourite fast results exercises?

I’m one of those boring PT’s who’s mantra is small changes over time leads to big results.

Burning body fat= consistent calorie deficit and adequate protein. 7-8hrs of sleep a night. Lots of water.

Favourite is exercises are big compound moves- squats, deadlifts, lunges, Bulgarian split squats, bench press, Push ups, lat pull downs, seated rows and then I add in isolation exercises to target specific areas.

All that repeated consistently, over time with progressive overload. If you’re a beginner you will see and feel changes pretty quickly.

I seem to have an imbalance somewhere. When I do lunges I can go down to the floor one side and not the other. If I do burpees then one leg is just harder to jump back.

I haven't ever had an injury so I don't know what I can do? I do a fair bit of training - hiking, cardio, weights and HIIT. I train 5-6 days a week and it just slows me down a bit. Thank you!