FAQ's

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The Kickstart

Weeks 3 - 12

Womens Health

Fat Loss

Training & Performance

FAQ's

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FAQ's

How often should I exercise?

Primarily this will come down to your goals,lifestyle and current fitness level. For those who are new or returning toexercise, aiming for two workouts each week is a great place to start to buildyour fitness while giving your body time to recover.

Once that is feeling easier and you arerecovering well you can add another workout to your schedule. When yourstrength and fitness level increases, you would be looking to have some sort ofmovement in daily.

How often should I lift weights?

Beginner: 2-3 times per week

More experienced/fitter: 4-6times per week

Optimal lifting days to allow recovery and best results: 4-5

In addition to your weight training days, adding in active recovery like walking, cycling or yoga can help to build your fitness, ensure you’re moving as well as you can, recovering and staying active over the whole week and not just the lifting days.

Why should I lift weights?

Improved mood and energy levels
Decreased anxiety and depression
Gain strength
Reduced chance of injury, back pain, arthritis, etc
Increases bone density
Women are less likely to get osteoporosis
Reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes
Improved fat loss
Become leaner, faster, stronger fitter
Makes lifting shopping easier
Allows you to play with your kids

How often should I perform cardio?

2-3 times per week, see below question for benefits.

Should I do weights or cardio?

I recommend a mixture of both, but mostly weights. Alternating between the two is a good way to find balance and you’ll reap the benefits from both.

According to the American Cancer Society, two to three strength-based workouts each week can result in significant health benefits, such as increased muscle mass, stronger bones, boosted metabolism, better posture, balance and joint flexibility. Research shows it also can boost heart health and have a positive impact on your mental health.

Regularly increasing your heart rate and blood flow by adding cardio into your routine can also promote heart, brain, skin and lung health, as well as improve your sleep and energy levels.

What time of day is best to work-out?

The best time to work out is whenever you can fit it in! Have a look at your schedule and figure out what time of day is best for you.

If your routine is flexible, think about when you feel most energetic, or when you would prefer to exercise. Morning workouts can be an energising way to start the day for some, while others prefer working out in the afternoons or evenings.

Consistency is what matters more.

How long should my workouts be?

For adults, the World Health Organisation recommends at least 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity, or at least 75-150 minutes each week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.

Individual workouts of around 45 minutes are the most beneficial.

Do I need to warm-up before exercising?

Yes! Warming up before your workouts allows you to get more out of the session and it also reduces your chance of injury! Spend 6-8 mins mobilising joints, activating muscles and raising your pulse.

Will I get bulky if I drink a protein shake?

Absolutely not! This is a common myth.

Women simply do not have the testosterone to put on muscle mass very easily. In fact, it takes several months for most women to gain muscle, and this is while adhering to a strenuous strength training programme and a strict diet.

Protein alone cannot make women ‘bulky.’ If it could, untrained women who consumed a lot of meat, eggs, and/or dairy would all be walking around looking like bodybuilders! It just doesn’t happen.

A good quality protein shake is highly recommended.

I’m struggling to get through my workouts. What should I do?

If you’re a beginner, it’s absolutely normal to struggle to get through workouts. I would recommend cutting sets from 4 to 2 and/or cutting the reps too, for your first 6 weeks and taking longer breaks if required.

Although you want to challenge yourself, pushing yourself too hard can lead to burnout or injury, so know your limits and be patient as your strength and endurance increase. You’ll be smashing your workouts in no time!

If you have been training a while and are struggling, please speak to me.

I feel sore after my workouts, what should I do?

Firstly, just know that if you are new to exercise, changed your routine, increased your lifts or had a break this is normal.

Here are some tips to help DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness):

MOVE – believe it or not this will help. Sitting will make you worse
Take a salt bath
Stretch
Make time for recovery
Slowly enter a new programme

Why am I not sore after working out?

You should not be striving to be sore; this is not the goal of your workouts. However, if you're consistently not sore, that could indicate that you're not pushing yourself enough. When you exhaust your muscles, you will see better results. To increase the challenge, up the amount of weight you lift or the number of reps you perform. The last few reps should be challenging to do with correct form.

How often do I need a rest day?

It’s important to include rest days to allow your body to recover and adapt. An easy way to structure your week is to alternate between strength training and cardio, with a rest day once or twice a week depending on your fitness level.

Even as your strength and fitness builds, rest is still important as your body adapts and strengthens during the recovery time, not the workout time! Working out breaks your muscles down, resting builds them.

If you are sick or injured, speak to me to come up with a plan for safely returning to exercise. Remember, you are in this for the long game.

How do I stay motivated to work out?

You simply cannot rely on motivation. It comes and goes, that is normal and you are not alone. Your fitness journey will have highs and lows, and some days it will feel much harder to get moving.

You should focus on building discipline so that is part of your life.

Here are some tips to help you:

Regularly set goals for yourself to have something to work towards, challenge yourself.
Create good habits that align with your values.
Focus on establishing a strong routine. When working out has become a habit , it will be easier to block out excuses and show up even when you feel less motivated.
Remind yourself of the benefits of exercise and how you will feel afterwards, or make a list of reasons personal to you about why you exercise.
Do it for your future self and your family.
Book your sessions and schedule them into your diary.
Stay accountable by using the check-in system, Facebook and WhatsApp groups and documenting your journey on social media.

Why does the scale weight fluctuate?

Watch this video:

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What do I do when I miss a workout?

Simply pick back up where you left off and do not overthink it. Missing a few workouts is not a problem if you are consistent enough. Missing a few every other week is the problem.

I feel overwhelmed, what should I do?

Strip it right back to the basics, revisit the laying your foundation video in the kickstart week. Also make sure you let me know so I can help!

I have an injury; can I still train?

This depends on the injury itself but most of the time you can! I am a trained sports therapist and highly specialised in human movement, so I can adapt your workouts around an injury to ensure you’re still moving.

For the injury to recover and heal you do have to keep moving, limit the thing that is causing/bothering it and ensure you are getting it treated.

If you do nothing, it will most likely get worse.

Please do not leave something until it is really bad as this will only set you back further. As soon as something does not feel good, make an appointment to see me.