There are many reasons why people reach out to a personal trainer to help them achieve their health and exercise related goals and these are often different from person to person. In the following blog piece, I am going to discuss the benefits of committing to regular personal training sessions, how this can be life changing and show you why you should begin now!

Let’s start by discussing the importance of being physically active as well as the amazing benefits:

The health benefits of physical activity are well known and can have a hugely positive effect on our life. Without writing an essay on the benefits of physical activity in this blog I will give you some important knowledge that we believe you should be aware of.

First up are the current physical activity recommendations from The World Health Organisation (WHO):

• Children and Adolescents aged 5-17 should do at least 60 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise daily and activities that strengthen muscle and bone 3 times per week.
• Adults aged 18-64 should do at least 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity throughout the week or do at least 75-150 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity throughout the week. Muscle-strengthening activities should be done involving major muscle groups on 2 days per week.
• Adults aged 65+ should do the above with the addition of balance and fall prevention exercise as well.

The above recommendations are developed to ensure every individual is exposing themselves to the benefits of exercise and reducing their risk factors related to morbidity and mortality. The WHO note that people who are insufficiently active have a 20%-30% increased risk of early death compared to those who are sufficiently active[1].

The Australia Institute of Health and Welfare found that only 15% of adults met both the physical activity and muscle strengthening activity guidelines in 2017-2018[2].

It has also been noted that there is a risk reduction for several health co-morbidities seen when comparing active/fit individuals to inactive/unfit individuals and these are listed below:

• 45% reduction in all-cause mortality
• >60% reduction in Stroke
• >50% reduction in Cardiovascular Disease
• >50% reduction in Hypertension
• 50% reduction in Type II Diabetes
• 30% reduction in Colon cancer
• 20% reduction in Breast cancer[3]

There are some very significant reductions in risk for developing some very serious health conditions!

When looking at the burden caused by overweight and obesity the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found that 63% of the burden due to overweight and obesity was from fatal burden rather than non-fatal burden.

84% of the burden due to overweight and obesity was experienced later in life, between the ages of 45-84 years of age.[4]

These are some concerning statistics, however there is no better time to make a positive change than now!

1 on 1 Personal Training

Where does 1 on 1 Personal Training fit into the picture?

Now that we know how much exercise we should be achieving in our week ill give you a moment to calculate the amount that you complete every week. If you are already hitting the recommended amount, congratulations, you are ahead of 75% of adults!

If not, that’s okay too, there are a lot of ways to seek help. I am about to cover some of the key aspects of motivations and barriers to exercise that will assist you in lifting your amount of physical activity closer to the recommended levels!

What are these benefits I speak of?

Finding the time and motivation to exercise regularly week in-week out can be tough, especially if it needs to be at a moderate-high intensity. Engaging in regular Personal Training can be a helpful way to creating routine and structure to regular exercise.

Benefit 1 - Accountability and motivation:

Who doesn’t need to be held accountable to some degree? I know I certainly do.

There wouldn’t be too many people I know in my personal life who are able to meet the recommended amounts of exercise each week through their own will.

Most people will need some degree of external motivation and accountability to assist them. At The Biomechanics we focus on this a great deal as it is a crucial link between our clients achieving their goals and them not. Simply having a regular session booked in at a gym will give you some degree of accountability as this is something in the calendar that you have paid for and are expected to show up to. This is amplified when you have a trainer at the other end waiting for you and expecting you to show up. What may have been an easy session to skip when you were taking yourself along to the gym on the way home from work is now a lot harder to bail on! This alone can be critical in not only developing a regular routine and habit but will lead to consistency that is vital when it comes to seeing results.

Benefit 2 - Variety:

One of the great things about working one on one with a personal trainer is the variety that is available to your training. I prefer to work through a structured program over a period of 6-8 weeks that is written specific to my goals, however a large percentage of my clients much prefer to come in and have something new, different and fresh each time we train to help them to reach their goals. Training in a one on one environment allows for flexibility to do either of these. Some people will become bored of doing the same thing each session and prefer their trainer to have something new and fun for them each session!

Benefit 3- Results:

What keeps people working hard and training regularly aside from knowing that it is great for their physical and mental health? Results!

While a lot of us often tell ourselves that the numbers don’t matter and we don’t really care about them, deep down there is always something that we want to improve on. For some, this is focused around losing weight, becoming leaner or building muscle while for others this may be geared around increasing strength, hitting an exercise/sport related goal such as running a marathon or just being able to play with the kids without becoming breathless.

While there certainly are healthy parameters to be within for some measurements (body fat %, waist measurement etc), it is also important to have a focus on goals outside of this. We at The Biomechanics use our results sessions to ensure that we are on track and moving towards our short/medium/long term goals and to make sure that both our clients and our trainers are being kept accountable for this. Seeing progress towards your personal goals is an important and highly effective motivator.

What I hope that everyone who reads this blog identifies when they finish reading is that exercise is incredibly important for every single one of us. While there are common barriers that we experience, there are people out there who can help.

If you find it tough to commit the time and effort to regular exercise, then why not try 1 on 1 Personal Training. Not only will you feel better doing it, you will be giving yourself a good chance of living longer and will have the support you need to tick off those goals you have always wanted to accomplish.

After-all, your health is something very worthwhile investing in and in my opinion, being proactive rather than reactive towards your own health is the best way to do it!

Do you think you would be more suited to a group personal training session? See our previous blog on the benefits of group training here.

References:

[1] Warburton, D., & Bredin, S. (2016). Reflections on Physical Activity and Health: What Should We Recommend?. Canadian Journal Of Cardiology, 32(4), 495-504. doi:10.1016/j.cjca.2016.01.024

[2] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). Insufficient physical activity . Retrieved from https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/risk-factors/insufficient-physical-activity

[3] Physical activity. (2019). Retrieved 14 August 2019, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/physical-activity

[4] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2017). Impact of overweight and obesity as a risk factor for chronic conditions. Canberra: AIHW.

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