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24
Jan
7 tips to stick to your fitness resolutions from Harrogate Town’s strength and conditioning coach
Already found that your fitness resolutions are wavering?
Keep reading, and things might change this year.
Ben Rome, Harrogate Town AFC’s strength and conditioning coach, has been a fitness coach for 20 years.
Chiselled like one of its ancient busts, it may be no coincidence his second name is Rome.
His weekly schedule at Harrogate Town includes strength testing players, analysing athletic performance and giving nutrition advice.
He knows a thing or two about keeping fit.
The Stray Ferret spoke to Ben to find out the best tips to stick to your fitness regimes.
1. Keep it real
Ben said that setting unrealistic expectations is most people’s biggest mistake when starting.
People often train as though they’re still 18 when they get back into exercising, which can lead to burnout or injury.
Starting small and varying your exercise can prevent that.
Building fitness takes time, but many people assume they can get fit quick. If they don’t see a complete transformation within a few months, they start to lose motivation.
The fitness coach suggested an antidote:
Make small, achievable steps and build from there. Make sure you log everything – how heavy you’re lifting or how fast/far you’re running – so you can celebrate your achievements and look back at how far you’ve come.
There are lots of easy fitness tests you can test your progress with. How many press-ups can I do in 30 seconds? How long does it take me to run one kilometre? All you need is good footwear and a stopwatch.
2. Get expert advice
The prospect of stepping into a gym for the first time can be intimidating. But it doesn't have to be.
Ben said:
Get expert advice from personal trainers to start with. You only need a few sessions to get you on the right track, and then you’ll have plans and regimes to build on on your own. It might be expensive at first, but it's worth it in the long run.
Ben added that there are plenty of small local gyms around that are less intimidating than big ones.
He also emphasised that most gyms are actually very friendly environments.
"I've met some of my best friends at the gym," he added.
Ben Rome works with the Harrogate Town squad on a daily basis.
3. Go with others
Ben said one of the biggest reasons people lose motivation is because they exercise alone when starting:
I think the biggest factor is your support network. It's much harder to go alone when you're starting. Training with others keeps you motivated and wanting to go. Try to involve your family if you can.
The fitness coach added that research suggests doing something for 12 weeks makes it a habit. Go with friends or family for that long, and then you will be in a position to comfortably go without needing external motivation.
4. Try everything
Finding something you enjoy is key to sticking with it.
Ben shed light on how to enjoy your exercise:
Try different ways to exercise and find which one you enjoy. There are so many things that people of all ages and fitness levels can do. It’s all about enjoyment. If there’s no fun in it, there’s no future in it.
For so many years exercise has been seen as a punishment. If you enjoy your exercise, you start to see it as a reward.
Ben Rome with Mason Bennett (left).
5. Keep it short
Most of us have busy work and social lives we need to balance our fitness with.
Ben said that fitness doesn’t have to dominate your life.
Just 30 minutes a day can help you to see great progress.
Consistency is key. He added that it matters more than anything else when trying to get fitter.
He said:
It's about trying to set an amount of time away for yourself each week. Always make sure your gym bag is in your car so you can shoot down if you have time after work. It doesn't take a great deal to maintain fitness. You can see great progress from just three hours a week if you train to the right intensity.
6. Beauty sleep
Getting fit isn’t just about exercising. Your lifestyle makes a huge difference.
Sleep is probably the easiest thing for people to improve, but many people still don’t get their full eight hours.
Ben said:
Sports supplements are a multi-billion dollar industry, but none are as good as an extra 30 minutes of sleep. Sleep, nutrition and hydration are the biggest three things for staying fit.
Tom Cursons (right) told the Stray Ferret last year that his work with the fitness coaches has helped him improve as a footballer.
7. Nutrition/Hydration
Nutrition is probably the one lifestyle change people find trickiest to get right.
But it’s not as hard as many people think.
The fitness coach said:
Making sure you’re watching sugar intake is the most important thing. Many people think that you have to cut out fat, but your body needs fat and starts to crave it if it’s not getting enough. You don’t need to crash diet. You can lose weight and still eat properly.
Ben added that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and that you will sustain yourself for longer throughout the day if you can get a healthy breakfast with plenty of protein in.
By keeping things simple, staying consistent and enjoying the process, Ben believes anyone can turn a short-lived resolution into a long-term routine.
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