Here are a few blog posts that will give you an idea of what to expect from Limitless Fitness...
A low carb lifestyle takes a little time and focus to develop, but the results in terms of body composition and health can be remarkable. Table of Contents 1IntroductionMetabolic Syndrome2Would You Like a PDF Version of This ArticleDefinition of a Low Carb Diet3Why Do People Do Low Carb?Weight LossMetabolic HealthExercise BenefitsMental and Brain BenefitsThe Normal
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It’s long been my mission to be in better shape at 70 than the average 20-year-old and to help others do the same. Here’s how you can do it. Table of Contents 1Introduction2Would You Like a PDF Version of This Article3HealthSleepNutritionWalking4Healthy Human Course Launching Soon!5DO YOU WANT TO BE IN BETTER SHAPE AT 70 THAN
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In this article, I’m going to explore the concept of training to achieve and maintain a state of athletic readiness. For some, especially those who have tied their identity to their sport, this can be a little challenging. Table of Contents 1Introduction2Would You Like a PDF Version of This Article3Defining Athletic Readiness4The Scope of the
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My Story
I was the weedy kid at high school.
Perhaps that's not saying much when you consider I went to the school that produced England Rugby's Mike Catt (a year behind me at school) and the captain of South Africa's Rugby World Cup winning side, Siya Kolisi. It was a school filled with very physical young men and I was small and thin.
Perhaps that's why I've been so stubborn about getting in great shape and staying that way over more than 30 years.
We were all made to play rugby unless we had a reasonable excuse. I played for the under-14F team in my first year at school. I didn't lack handling skills or fitness, I was just smaller, weaker and slower than boys who made the higher teams. As I often point out to young athletes, we all mature at different rates; I was just unfortunate to be a late developer.
That same late-developer "disadvantage" taught me the value of consistent effort in terms of both skills practice and physical fitness.
I played any sport that involved a ball and was always far better than average skills-wise because I practised so much. To this day, I love the game of rugby and will pick up and throw about a rugby ball with huge enthusiasm.
It's a little instructive that whenever we were made to run laps as part of rugby practice, I would easily lap the rest of the team. Add to that, in the annual school cross country competition, I'd always finish in the top handful of runners without having done any training. Nobody ever suggested I take up running!
Triathlon - Good at Something Physical
Sometime in the late 1980's I joined some of my friends to watch our mate, Jonathan, take part in a local duathlon on our city's beachfront. He won by a long way and I was massively impressed.
At the time, I was working quite a lot, including a bunch of night shifts, and was becoming increasingly aware that I was not very fit, felt sluggish and slept a lot.
Triathlon seemed like it might keep my interest, and I asked Jonathan whether he thought I could do it.
I'll never forget his reply because it set me on the path I'm on today: "You know you can run," he said. "We all swam at school and you used to ride your bike everywhere. So I definitely think you could."
That's what I did. I bought a season ticket for the local pool and swam 50m. I thought I was going to die!
So, I did what any sane person would do. I went back the following day, swam 100m and thought I was going to die!
A few months later I did my first triathon, what would now be called a super-sprint event (Swim 400m, Bike 10km, Run 2.5km). After a tough surf swim, I rallied and finished well up the field thanks to my running.
I was hooked.
In years to follow, I won medals in regional competitions, raced Ironman numerous times and eventually ended up coaching other athletes.
Coaching - Meaning Beyond My Own Racing
In 1998, I'd just finished my fourth Ironman race, having got under nine-and-a-half hours for the first time.
In the weeks that followed, I did what we all did at that point and took some time away from any significant training volume.
During that time, a few athletes from the local club approached me and asked if I'd be willing to do some swim coaching for them. I decided to give it a go. We booked some pool time and got to work.
Over the first six weeks, that small group of swimmers went from being not far off non-swimmers to looking and swimming like real swimmers. Not only was the improvement vast, but the reward I felt was amazing. Seeing those beginner triathletes get so much better and the joy they expressed at doing so was all I needed.
Once again, I was hooked.
I'd found something I wanted to do that had meaning beyond myself and immediately made a plan to study personal training (there were no coaching qualifications then). Three years later, I resigned my job and set about training people full time.
While I remember every person I've worked with, some stand out more than others. And it's not the athletes who've won world championships, as proud as I am to have worked with them.
It's not the captain of the England Women's Cricket team. Or athletes on British Triathlon's talent programme, some of whom are now well-known. Or Elite World Championship medal-winning cyclists.
The clients who stand out in my mind are those who have overcome their doubts that they could do what they'd set out to do, chronic illnesses they thought were the end of their opportunity to do anything physical, injuries they thought would never heal and life-circumstances that most people would see as a legitimate excuse to park themselves on a sofa and never attempt anything challenging ever again.
As I've changed as a person, and adopted different goals, I've added significantly to what is included in my coaching.
Why?
Because as we get older, it's no longer enough to rely on our bodys' youthfulness to forgive our indiscretions. While in our twenties, an injury was just a nuisance which cleared up in a few days, past fifty injuries become like that annoying house-guest who simply will not leave!
Now, I'm as interested in your sleep, nutrition, strength and stress-management as I am about how far or fast you run.
Courses - More Knowledge to More People
A big part of my recent activities is the development of the fledgling Limitless Fitness University, a grand title for something small which I hope to expand dramatically.
It's long been clear to me that there are a lot of people who want the knowledge and input a coach would give, but are either unwilling or unable to hire one.
Part of my lifelong learning habit flows from not being in a position to hire a coach in my early days in triathlon. I read everything I could find and took every opportunity to learn more. I spoke to any top athlete I could find and was very grateful for their time. Simon Lessing, Spencer Smith, Thomas Hellriegel, Ain Alar Juhanson, Liz Yelling and Mark Foster stand out as people who shared insights even when they didn't know they were doing so. They were all friendly and approachable. In fact, I have never met a true elite athlete who was anything but a genuinely nice person.
The problem we have now is an internet filled with a combination of great information and junk information. If you have no background in this stuff, how do you filter one from the other?
The goal with my courses is to provide solid information, clearly-explained and well-reasoned.
What Next?
This will probably be the shortest paragraph I have ever written...
"I want to be in better shape at 70 than most people are in their twenties. And I want to help as many people as possible to do the same."