All of the experts have been hard at work putting together a new online health and fitness magazine which is free to read, share and download.

Our first and latest March issue is out now. click on the image below to view it.

What’s inside the March issue:

P6 – NEPA

P8- 10 reasons why you should train with kettlebells

P11- Staying safe

P12 – Introduction to Exercise

P14 – Beginners to bodybuilding

P18 – Hydration

P22 - PHA workout feature

P27 – Fat Loss Secrets

P29 – Paleo eating and Me

P32 - 10 reasons to drink water

P34 - Marathon March – The Final Push!

Read it now

Why is Fitnorama magazine different:

Have you noticed how cyclic the health and fitness industry is? One week you are being told that low fat diets are the best way to go and the next week the compass has swung 180 degrees and low carb diets are the new leader of the weight-loss pack. This constant change in stances, often lead by the media, can leave you wondering if you are doing the right thing or if you are causing more harm than good. Frustrating indeed!

That’s where the experts at Fitnorama Magazine come in. Between them, there is over 150 years of fitness industry experience. They’ve seen fads come, go and often come back again! Think kettlebells are new? In his article on this so-called new training device, expert Del Wilson reveals that kettlebells have been around for over a century! A wise man once said “methods are many but principles are few” and this is very true when it comes to health and fitness training. If you want to get fitter, you must raise your heart rate, if you want to lose weigh you need to expend more calories than you consume, if you want to get stronger, you must lift heavier weights. We are here to help you separate the fact from the fiction so that every workout you complete and every meal you eat takes you one step closer to your ultimate fitness and health goals.

We won’t be promoting the newest diet, exercise machine or workout unless it conforms to the principles that, as experts, we rely on to train our own clients every day. You won’t find any celebrity-endorsed all style but no substance nonsense in this magazine – it’s the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth from here on in!

• What has worked for you
• How do you stay on the wagon
• What keeps you motivated

It’s your chance to share you practised knowledge, what advice would you give?!

Metro fitness would firstly like to thank Caroline for taking the time to talk to us about her exciting fitness career to date.

MF: You started your sporting career at a young age, what first motivated you to become active, and were they times when you found it tough?

CP: I was a really active kid and into just about every sport going.  It got to the stage at age 12 where I was forced to choose a sport to focus on because my parents couldn’t keep up with driving me to 2 or more clubs a night!  I chose athletics because I topped the National rankings in 4 events at that age.  Then it was never tough, just fun.  It’s only as you get older and have to juggle more responsibility and commitments that the training can drain you.

MF: You’ve already have a full and still expanding career, what would you say is your proudest career achievement to date?

CP: Thank you.  I’d have to say the first time I competed for Great Britain in athletics.  Nothing beats pulling on an International vest.  However, I’ve just launched JustSlim, my very own online weight loss plan and I am proud to say that I now own my own business.

MF: I always ask everyone this question, and pretty much everybody’s answer is different, what is your favourite exercise and why?

CP: I’m a bit of an ab queen so my favourite exercise is ‘hanging pikes’ as I know not many people can do them

MF: taking into account your varied training background from Heptathlete, Bobsleigh team member and being Gladiator Ice. How does your training week entail now?

CP: Due to a knee injury in 2005 my training repertoire is unfortunately more limited than I’d been used to but I do try to keep it varied.  Typically I rotate the following 3 days taking 1 day of rest per week: 1. Interval/Sprint efforts on the treadmill or bike with swill ball abs; 2. Circuit training using either Power Plate vibration technology or kettle bell and dumbbell weights followed by steady state CV; 3. Cardio endurance (up to 60 minutes) either bike, cross trainer or treadmill walking with steep gradient followed by body part conditioning (glut circuits, stability exercises, medicine ball plyo circuits etc).

MF: What is your take on nutrition, I know you’re developing an exciting, custom made online nutrition plan. Can you share any details and who is your target audience?

CP: I can indeed.  I have just launched JustSlim www.justslim.net which is an online weight loss plan based on my diet and nutrition philosophy.  The plan is personalised for every user, based on their goals, activity levels and body measures.  A one plan fits all approach will not guarantee long lasting results.  With JustSlim you eat 6 times a day and calories are restricted at a level that ensures safe and gradual rate of weight loss that can be sustained.  You never feel hungry on JustSlim because you receive the perfect balance of macronutrients so no food is forbidden.  And for me it was important to incorporate a treat meal into the plan each week so prevent those cravings building up and causing a binge!  There is so much more I’d love to tell you about JustSlim so please check out the website.

MF: If you could give any advice to a beginner looking to enrich their life with a healthier lifestyle what would it be?

CP: To focus on how eating well and being active will make you feel, rather than focusing on the effort required to be that way.

MF: London’s 2012 Olympic Games fast approaching are you getting involved in anyway and does the Heptathlete in you wish to be taking part?

CP: Ha ha, yes I do still have that competitor inside me that wants to take part but I want to be involved in a different way at the Games.  I’ve been presenting fitness shows and doing sports interviews on TV (Eurosport, Bravo, The Active Channel etc) for the last couple of years and I’d love to present and interview at one of the Olympic events or present on shows documenting the lead up to the Games.  TV presenting gives me the same sense of excitement and performance that I felt as an athlete.

MF: Gladiators was some of my favourite TV shows as a kid and the wolf scared me a least once a week, what was the highlights of working on such an awesome show?

CP: It was my favourite show too so becoming one of the new Gladiators was a dream come true.  In fact the whole experience was quite surreal, playing a character everyday and facing new challenges.  The highlight really was the action.  I felt like a kid in a giant playground!  And my fellow Gladiators have become some of my best friends.

MF: You’re presenting the UK’s Strongest Man, what’s has been the highlights for you so far? And what can you deadlift?

CP: The Strongman competitions are great.  You can’t appreciate the weight of the objects they lift or drag until you try to move them yourself! The men are so dedicated and Strongman viewing is still a Christmas tradition for many families.  They showed 6 hours of it this past Christmas! I haven’t done a heavy deadlift for a few years but used to pull over 100Kg!

www.JustSlim.net
www.CarolinePearce.co.uk

The Workout:

1. Jumping lunges
2. Bodyweight squats
3. Double squat jumps

That’s it nothing else!

Options:

Beginner’s rep ranges 10-2
Round 1 – 10 reps
Round 2 – 8 reps
Round 3 – 6 reps
Round 4 – 4 reps
Round 5 – 2 reps

Advanced rep ranges 20-10
Round 1 – 20 reps
Round 2 – 18 reps
Round 3 – 16 reps
Round 4 – 14 reps
Round 5 – 12 reps
Round 6 – 10 reps

Ps Just in case you’re wondering Fitnorama was our main blog website which we have now intergrated into one website.

Here’s a taste:

I was! I shared my addiction with a lot of people and found that LSD  offers a relatively inexpensive way of getting fit and requires very  little know-how to get started. I found running an overly-addictive part  of my workout week and was often filled with guilt if I didn’t manage  to hit the road for most days of the week. The rush of freedom that  running allowed me to place falling books back on the shelf; the “The  fallen books” for me symbolising thoughts, ideas and other mental  clutter that was on my mind from that day, week etc. It gave me the time  to think about solutions and workarounds, but was my addiction a  healthy one or was the teenage me making the same mistakes many  exercisers are still make as they perform longer and longer workouts at  low intensity? In my attempts to lose that unwanted puppy fat was I  unwittingly adding to my fat stores by performing LSD type  cardiovascular training?

Warm-up and dynamic stretch before starting

The workout: Pyramid style

10 rounds of

• TRX Lunges
• TRX Body rows
• TRX Chest Press
• TRX running

Start with 10 reps for each exercise then take away 1 rep each round, until you get down to zero.

Still need more add a Tabata?!

The workout:

Complete 5-7 rounds for time of:

• Deadlifts x 10
• Bent over rows x 10
• Upright rows x 10
• Static lunges x 10
• Wide squats x 10
• Overhead press x 10
• Front squats x 10

Give it a go and let us know what you think.

The fitter and more health conscious the nation gets the more the gym establishments lines its pockets and they are getting pretty deep.  Below are some of the top money spinners gyms are using to cash in on your hard work.

Rents and Percentage Systems

Two different systems but which one is better. Rents commonly start on a sliding scale ascending from no rent at week one with small amounts added each week until you reach maximum rent at week 12. Amounts will vary from establishment and location; prime postcodes will come with a higher price tag. Be willing to part with anything from £600 – £1000 per month once you hit maximum rent.

Drawbacks with rent systems are firstly the high rates. Secondly they need someone to manage them; introducing the fitness manager, your aid and guide in business but you may end up being a small fish in a big pond with a lot of other fishes as the fitness manager tend to get a percentage of the personal trainers rents, so greed might take over and you’ll be quickly one of 20. Third are payment holidays, an allotted amount of days for which you can have payment free often 20days, which don’t include bank holidays that the gym is open.

Percentage systems are just that, with many of the smaller gyms opting for this easy to manage system. Commonly a 50/50 split on your personal training sessions half goes to you and the other half goes to the gym. I have seen and heard of 60/40 and 70/30 splits in favour of the gym but remember you’ll have to pay tax on what you earn. A session costing £45 at 70/30 you’ll only get £13.50 for a one hour training session.

Courses

If and when you first start you’ll normally get sent off to a gym run “this is how we do it” training course which is aimed at teaching you to sell your services to members often advising to put a simple personal training package together, definitely makes sense and a good move, but do you need to pay to hear that. These courses can range from £200-£300 over one or two days.

Personal Training Trial Packs

Upon joining some gyms will sell welcome packs to new members which may include a certain amount of short personal training sessions. These sales are handed out to the trainers as leads with the aim of converting into clients once all of the trail sessions have been used.  I’ve seen these packs being sold for about £75 of which the trainer won’t get anything, with an average for 100 trail pack sales per week. So you could end up filling your time with trail sessions, putting in long days and not converting any of these leads into paying clients.

Walking the Gym Floor

You thought you saw the last of the days of walking the gym floor. Believe it or not personal trainers could soon become free fitness instructors with gyms insisting on trainers walking the gym floor and given shifts for which you won’t get paid.

Teaching Classes

Great for getting to know potential clients and getting yourself out there but any classes you take will often be for free. Timetables can boast up to 100+ classes per week for which the gym gets away with paying for a large number of them.  So any class training courses you pay for can held no return unless the gym pays for them.

The general rule is that you’ll only get paid from the clients you have, all the little extras that you do are normally free.  I once went for an interview at a well known city gym and on rents alone they were making over £100,000 per year just from its trainers.  If the underground workers or fire-fighters were subject to these terms don’t you think they would strike more every week?! With no union or governing body gyms can do what they want. Isn’t it time that changed?

Andreas Michael

The workout:

warm up for a few minutes with cardio and dynamic stretches.

Gymboss timer set to 30 seconds work, 10 or 15 seconds rest.

I completed 3 rounds in total

• The swing (two handed)
• High pulls (also two handed)
• Thrusters (each side)
• Press ups (each side)
• One arm rows (each side)

Awesome all body workout,

Do let me know how you get on.
Andreas

Today’s workout is a bit of a treat, it was one of the those workouts I will never forget. We did a take on a 300 rep workout using kettlebells and all body type movements.

The workout:
25 x pull ups
25 x Kettlebell swings
25 x Elevated press ups
25 x Kettlebell high pulls
25 x Squat Jumps (not deep, want to land and jump off as quickly as possible)
25 x Kettlebell alt lunges
25 x Bicycle Kicks (each leg)
25 x Kettlebells rows
25 x Thrusters
25 x Dips

For time workout my time was 13.40 and I used 2 x 12KG kettlebells

Really enjoyed this workout and I hope you will too.

Andreas