Okey dokey, Gym Ninja will now blog about the second day at FitPro, the fitness industry spring convention...get your cuppa & get comfy...
After a second night of baaaaaad sleep due to the concrete pillow at the Premier Inn, Gym Ninja got up early and checked out.
"I'd like to take advantage of the Good Night's Sleep Guarantee please" Said Gym Ninja, explaining about the concrete pillow and pointing to her panda eyes as evidence.
The receptionist nodded and brought up Gym Ninjas details on screen
"Oh...oh you took advantage of the early bird £29 a night booking?" She said.
Gym Ninja nodded.
"I'm sorry, you can't get the refund if you booked that. There are LOADS of loopholes in the terms & conditions"
WHAT?
Just because you get a room at a reduced rate, does that cancel out the expectation you can sleep ok?
So, all grumpy through lack of sleep, Gym Ninja drove to Loughborough Uni and headed for her first lecture which started at 8am. It was entitled..
Maximum Metabolism by an American (now living in New Zealand) called Matt O'Neill.
Now after the previous day of business lectures, and Gym Ninja's slight disappointment, it was an absolute breath of fresh air. This guy is incredibly likeable and his info can be found at www.MetabolicJumpstart.com
His whole down to earth theory about different body types working better with different protein/carb mixes, all built around a programme that takes into account your age/weight/goals etc makes a lot of sense. He maximises the metabolism, telling you when to eat and what to eat for maximum effect. He even gives each client cheat sheets so you can see what a glass of wine takes to burn off if you sit/walk/run etc. He even had the whole lecture theatre full of fitness professionals on their feet, making the shape of their favourite vegetable (Gym Ninja was a mushroom) and then recreating that vegetable in a blender. Hysterical! No gimmicks with this healthy eating plan, Just sound, personalised advice and something you can subscribe to online. Worth checking out....Matt is a great believer in the everyday movement you do adding up to revving up the metabolism. So walk those stairs...stand instead of sit...it all adds up!
As he concluded his talk, Matt told us all to go home & tell someone 'I'm a raging inferno' (referring of course to ones metabolism).
"Are you going home telling someone you're a raging inferno?" Said a guy with glasses (aka Goggles) sitting near Gym Ninja. Gym Ninja recognised him from a few of the lectures the day before. Turns out Gym Ninja & Goggles would be attending a few of the same lectures again today, including the next one...which was...*drum roll*
The great Charles Poliquin!
If you've not heard about this guy then immediately go to this link www.charlespoliquin.com
His lecture?
Modified Strongman training for athletic development or body composition changes.
WHAT a legend. Not exactly 'chatty', and a mean dry sense of humour that confused a lot of people. In fact he offended a lot of people, especially the Scottish ad Irish people who asked questions and then Charles just stared at them and said in a deadpan voice.."All I got was...blaaahhh. Someone translate for me!"
Basically he uses Strongman techniques to train people. Think sled pulls, Farmers Walks, smashing tyres with sledhammers...2 big heavy lifts in a session twice a week maximum. He doesn't suffer fools either!
"What do you think of kettlebells?" Asked one student.
"Write this down..." Said Poliquin.
"Kettlebells are sh*t!. They were around ages ago, and the reason we invented dumbbells is because kettlebells are sh*t. They pull the ligaments and joints."
Cue lots of gasps around the lecture room. He also pointed out that the new VipR training that's being launched has also been around in Strongman techniques for years so was no big deal.(where you lift the log up above your head).
"Write this down" He barked.
"You need to LIFT heavier to get stronger!"
See? Genius! However when a guy asked him about rep lengths/rest periods etc after he'd specifically described how these weren't applicable, Poliquin gave a long hard stare at the guy, sighed and then said...
"Get the height of your grandmother on your fathers side, multiply it by the boold group of your sister..."
That'd be a NO then lol.
Next stop was a motivational talk.....
But now Gym Ninja has run out of time, so tune in tomorrow...it's worth it!
Gym Ninja x
