A Cambridge Personal Trainer Predictions Report by Callie Durbrow
Here we are again, another year and another long list of New Years Resolutions, changes and fresh starts. I’m not a huge fan of “resolutions” because I believe that you should be constantly reinventing yourself and developing a better you throughout the entire year. I do value the idea of clean slates, fresh starts and getting motivated to get better. That’s a different post for a different day though….
I wanted to give you some really cool and in depth predictions for 2011 when it comes to fitness, fat loss, training and nutrition. Along my journey from a personal trainer at a local gym to owning my own training business, I have seen lots of trends, lots of people come and go from certain types of exercise and I can see what works and what’s here to stay.
So check out what this Cambridge Personal Trainer says is coming up in 2011….
1. 1 on 1 Personal Training is Dead: I meet a lot of people who have gone to personal trainers in the past and I used to be one myself, and I know that it’s changed some lives in a serious way. I also know that small group style training is SO much more effective, fun and cost effective. Our groups are highly motivated by their peers and friends that they see at the training sessions. It’s so cool to see friendships evolve, people getting excited to train and genuinely enjoy their experience instead of just standing around, shooting the breeze with their trainer while he/she counts reps.
2. Machine Workouts are a thing of the past: A lot of local typical gyms still have the machine workouts and you see people going through the little circuit, barely breaking a sweat. Even though this is still happening, I think the general population is getting a little wiser and realizing that you actually have to MOVE your body in order to lose fat and look great. Kettlebells are everywhere now (this is not a NEW fad people) and people are buying into a more athletic based approach to make training fun and effective.
3. Core Training is no longer just sit-ups: Go into any gym and you’ll see tons of people doing crunch after crunch after crunch to no avail. With more research and testing, especially from greats like Stuart McGill and Alwyn Cosgrove, the general notion of core training as flexing your spine over and over is slowly dying. Research and experts are finally telling us that using your abdominals as stabilizers and not flexors IS what they were meant to do. In our training programs the only sit-up we ever do is the beginning of the Turkish Get Up 🙂 Soon people will see that dead lifts, kettlebell swings and push ups are in fact core exercises and they are a heck of a lot more effective than bicycle crunches and leg raises.
4. Shorter Intervals wins over Long Steady Cardio: How boring is it to plug away on the elliptical for 60 minutes? How good does that girl who does it actually look? I would guess that she’s kinda saggy, not really fit and definitely not very athletic looking. I don’t mean to be rude but why waste your time? Instead people who focus on intense short bursts of work such as sprints, swings, jumps or different types of circuits will quickly develop a toned, lean body that looks like it can do some serious work 🙂
5. Less is More: This can encompass a lot of aspects but basically people are realizing that you don’t need to be in the gym for 2 hours, you could be there for 30 minutes and get a workout that’s 100 times better. This also relates to equipment. No longer are gyms buying huge universal machines, cable racks and machine circuits. Instead you’ll see more kettlebells, balls and open warehouse space for kick-butt workouts.
As a personal trainer in Cambridge for 7 years, I’ve seen the changes and I think that finally there is enough research and enough experts pitching the right stuff to help people get fit in a safe and efficient way. Sure, there are infomercials, bad trainers and gyms that just want your money but intelligent people can sift through the B.S. and when they do, they’ll open up a new way of looking at training and working out. It’s a minimalist approach using the stuff that’s been around for hundreds of years. No fad diet, machine gadget or guru trainer can change the science of your body (maybe someday!) and just stick to the basics.
Here’s to a healthy, strong and confident 2011!
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