Earlier this year I was interviewed by CCS Outburst journalist Tamara Rendell. Here is a transcript of our conversation. Q: Tell me about the planning process that happens with yourself and the Fit Futures participants – how do you approach a personalised fitness plan? Each person completes a pre-screening needs analysis form to ensure we have the information needed to properly construct their programme. Here, such information as their diagnoses, medical issues, potential barriers to exercise (brittle bones, for example) and each client’s goals are provided. Once the client has been accepted as a Fit Futures gym member and all relevant information has been provided (we usually plan for an initial consultation where a client’s goals, diagnoses and any questions they may have about our service can be answered), sessions are scheduled (each member usually trains once per week on a day which best fits their schedule). As part of our service, we also provide each gym member with an optional training programme to be completed in their own time and in line with their existing capabilities and the resources they have access to. While weekly Fit Futures sessions will undoubtedly help provide each member the results they seek, a holistic approach encompassing good nutrition, positive thinking, a winning attitude and 2-3 additional training days per (in their own time) week is needed for optimal progress. Q: What are some of the benefits you are seeing for people as a result of their experience with Fit Futures? Though Fit Futures is still in its infancy, so far the benefits our members have received have been numerous. From greater mobility and flexibility, improved attitudes towards physical fitness (which are likely to encourage exercise adherence over the long term, a founding Fit Futures mission for all who use our service), more muscle mass and an aesthetically pleasing physique, greater confidence and enthusiasm (to continue training, and to engage in community activities), enhanced strength and stability (within muscles and joints), clearer thinking (regular exercise boosts blood and nutrient supply to the brain, helps to stabilise blood sugar levels, counters depression and promotes a goal-setting mentality, all of which clarify thinking and enhance mental acuity) and a positive self-concept (working constructively to improve one’s health and fitness can promote a sense of accomplishment and a healthy body image). Q: How has physical fitness positively impacted your own life? Since starting training at age 13 I have benefitted from a physical fitness lifestyle in so many ways. I have seldom needed to visit a doctor and have rarely been ill. Experiencing the more obvious health benefits associated with being physically fit has kept me in the gym for over 25 years. Being physically stronger and less prone to injury (through resistance training) is also a major incentive to continue. Though physical benefits such as muscular development, disease prevention, body fat reduction, and enhanced performance all resonate for me, and those who train with me, I like to inform my training clients that it is the mental benefits associated with fitness training that will, along with their physical progress, take them further in life. For example, to become successful in sport or in the gym we must believe we are capable of succeeding. The more we believe, the more likely we are to achieve our goals, which upon accomplishment boost self-confidence. The cause and effect awareness observed whenever we achieve an objective (even something as small as an additional 2 kg increase on the bench press) creates a belief that we can do anything if we put our mind to it. In frequently overcoming physical challenges and succeeding the face of adversity (in the gym) we come to believe that we are capable, despite what we may have been told throughout our lives (this often applies to people with physical disabilities). The constant experience of achieving small goals results in positive thinking patterns, which, over time, become automatic and natural. Given physical fitness training is something most of us can do, on some level, the gym, in my opinion, provides the perfect breeding ground for life success. The gym teaches confidence, resiliency, positive thinking and how to commit to our objectives, all of which are needed to ensure optimal progress, whatever our endeavor may be. Q: Is there anything about the experience of founding Fit Futures and seeing people through their plans and to their goals that has surprised you? No major surprises, but I can say that the people with physical disabilities I have been fortunate to train have relished the opportunity to set goals and have worked hard to achieve them. This is most inspiring to me. When given the chance, these people, as I have discovered, thrive in such a regimented environment as the gym. Most of my members are short on excuses and big on commitment, which is the essential component for gym, and life, success.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 18:16:34 +0000
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