Welcome to the first edition of our fitness blog, Beach Bootcamp! Summer is here, well on the horizon at least, and all your sun worshippers out there are thinking, "holy crap, I need to get in a swimsuit soon." Well luckily for you we are here to offer some handy guidance via our very own Joshington Post...
Before I go any further I have to say I am not putting myself out there as an expert, not even a novice, more of a lolz beginner whose approach to exercise can be described as patchy at best. Sometimes I will hit the gym 5 times a week and other times I would simply go once a week, sit on the exercise mat and subtly check out the talent guilty as charged. #soznotsoz
Don't even get me started on my diet, which on some days can be classed as a 5 year old child who has been left unsupervised at a fellow pupil's birthday party... So I thought it was time for a change, time to get a little structure into my life, which mostly revolves around long working hours and hardcore nights out (I am not one of those people who say they are hardcore but they actually mean they are cray after just one WKD, I REALLY mean it.)
So I said hello to Six3nine gym where I will be training two times a week for 4 weeks. Over the next four weeks I will give you exercise tips via my trainer Jack, my school boy errors, some gym kit inspo and more. It's literally the gym gift that keeps on giving. Here we go…
This week's goal:
Most of my friends hate that I live off a diet of burritos and burgers and still stay thin. I want to make it clear now I am not doing this to loose weight; I am doing this to become fitter and stronger. So my aim this week was to get my diet in check, and cutting out the alcohol. Fail of the week right there... I shouldn't have thrown a house party the same week I began this program BUT hello baby steps! My diet on the other hand has had a make over- gone are the Pret sarnies and hello high protein lunches and juices. You can't gain muscle without protein and appaz I need to be consuming 120G of protein in a day- FYI there is 20g of protein in one average chicken breast SO sister needed to step up his game. With the help of the MyFitnessPal app on my phone, which tracks what you are putting into your body every day, this was made a little easier.
**Jack's Tip Of The Week: **
"Invest in a trainer who will teach you how to move properly and you'll never forget it. In the long run it will save you physically and financially, as you will progress safely and at a faster rate. It's the same as learning to drive, hiring an instructor will help you learn how to drive quicker. Or you could liken it to learning a new sport, by employing a coach you will learn it a lot quicker.” But ladies that doesn't mean you pick the fittest one.
**Exercise of the week from Jack: **
"When training for body composition you want to select your bang for your buck exercises. These will be the multi joint exercises that involve the biggest movements. The bigger the movement the more muscles involved and therefore the more calories burnt. For example, complete 10 reps on deadlift and then 10 reps on Overhead press, rest for 60 seconds and complete 3-5 sets in total. (As seen in video)"
**Schoolboy error of the week: **
I have always been someone who tries to run before they can walk (I can do both FYI, the latter with some swagger) so why should I give up the habit of a lifetime now? After two pretty heavy sessions in the gym where I stretched and used muscles I probably never used in my life, I felt like my body had been ripped to shreds. But I thought, “hello, go hard or go home!” So I skipped off to my Fitness First Gym to do an Insanity class. OMFG after 5 minutes I knew this ranked amongst my worst decisions ever alongside the time I decided to have 3 shots of espresso in my coffee when I had never drunk coffee before. 40 minutes of literal insanity later I could barely move and I was the definition of hot mess without any level of hotness. My tip therefore is take it easy- let your body get used to it, walk first and then run.
Follow my four weeks to fitness every Thursday on Graziadaily.co.uk
Josh trains at Six3nine with personal trainer Jack Crehan and trains at FitnessFirst in between.
Follow Josh on Twitter @omy_josh and on Instagram @joshnewissmith