12th April Instructor Newsletter 2012

Hi Everyone. I hope you all had a fantastic Easter weekend and hopefully you enjoyed a well earned break from classes with your friends and family.

As it was my birthday, Jayne and I had a few days away in Spain to recharge the batteries and relax ahead of another other monster weekend that we have coming up. It’s the Fitpro Spring Convention and I’m really excited to be teaching Fitness Pilates. This is the first time I’ve presented FP at Fitpro so I’ve been brainstorming and planning lots of new ideas, sequences and routines for the session.

As I’ve said in many past newsletters I don’t think you can beat a convention for giving you new ideas, a new perspective and a fresh approach to your teaching and a fresh business approach, but what I think is most valuable at these events is the networking, chatting and spending time with fellow Fitpros. I always find it mega exciting to have a good rattle with colleagues, meet new friends and hang out.

 

Loughborough is quite different for IFS at Blackpool. Firstly the event is much more spread out and you get many more Personal Trainers and Business Owners. Group X and freestyle is much smaller here and the sessions more intimate, which can be a bonus as you really get to connect with everyone in your sessions. The Business, PT and Nutrition streams are always hugely popular with the best presenters in the word speaking here. Unmissable sessions that I’m excited to attend include Robert Cappucio, Chuck Wolf, Adam Wolf, Bill Sonnemaker, the brilliant Geoff Bagshaw, Jay Blahnick, John Berradi, Michol Dalcourt. In fact there are some amazing presentations that you just can’t see anywhere else.

I’ll be bringing you a full update in next week’s newsletter.

If you see me, do come over and say Hi. I always love to meet C2Goers.

Thanks again for all the fantastic feedback on last week’s newsletter and PLEASE keep your feedback coming in. I read every email, tweet and Facebook. Even if I don’t get back to you I read them all and it helps me massively to formulate what you are interested in and what’s helpful and motivating.

My main objective with the C2GO newsletter is that when you read it you feel part of a group, that you’re not alone and the articles inspire and motivate you to grow your teaching and your business.

You can Tweet me using #C2go Im @Rachel Holmes or Facebook me on the Choreographytogo page or Rachel Holmes Profile page.

Quarter 2 Post Easter – What’s New?

As we head into the 2nd quarter of the year I would hope you have tweaked your timetables; you may be launching something new and have taken away a few classes. Maybe you have taken a leaf out of Katie Bulmer’s book and starting some small group PT or perhaps you are launching you own brand?

Are you now taking your groups outdoors or starting a walking/running group or even a training for a triathlon group?

What about launching a totally new concept?

Think carefully about what your consumers RELLY want.

When creating a new Concept take into consideration the following.

1. Do customers in your local area want to attend a drop in class that’s fun, dance based, that anyone can do and uses great music. A similar model to Zumba, or is that market saturated already?

2. Would something completely the opposite of what is popular now be a better long term option?

3.Consider small group, results driven, more targeted

sessions. Lots of people are finding huge groups a bit too impersonal so small groups will work with the right branding and PR.

4.Bring back the Old Skool – Why give yourself such a headache trying to formulate something new and constantly reinventing the wheel. Bring back Body Tone, Body Conditioning, LBT or similar if you removed this in the past. Lots of people just want to go to a toning class once a week and that it – it doesn’t have to complicated.

5.If your new concept revolves around music. This could, potentially make it more difficult as you will have to a deal with a music company or buy in music which could be expensive. It’s not impossible but it could make it harder if you want to licence a class, sell a DVD, create downloads and sell it on to other Instructors.

Whatever you decide to create make sure you research it thoroughly and road test it. Once you are positive you have the right formula and concept.

Be prepared to invest time, money and a helluva lot of effort into your marketing, PR and plan your launch meticulously.

Have you thought about Wellness Classes and Events by Rachel

The term “Wellness” has been bandied about for a while now but what is a Wellness course and is the Wellness and Lifestyle angle something you my want to explore?

Health, Fitness, Wellness and Lifestyle evening lectures is something YOU could potentially facilitate quite easily.

Topics could include – Healthy Cookery sessions. C2Go contributor Jill Gardner runs highly successful FatBurning cookery evenings with local cookery schools in Milton Keynes.

Make Up / Hair and Image – Could you team up with local Make Up artists or hairdressers and run an Image evening. You could talk about fitness, fatloss, posture, self confidence and exercise and mix it with an image make over and update.

Relaxation and De-stress session. Cori Withell, who I work with on coaching, has recently launched a new Stress – Less ™ class. Could you team up with local massage therapists and run a Relaxation evening, include a class, talk and massage.

There are so many components to Health, Fitness, Fatloss, Exercise and Diet that would benefit a multitude of people in the community. I think it’s important to look at new ways to deliver our messages. We have such an amazing skill set that I think with some careful planning, we can create a new breed of programmes, concepts, classes and courses.

Your new concept doesn’t have to be an exercise to music class as we know it today. It could be a weekly or monthly event; it could be online via webinars or a retreat at a local hotel. Think outside of the box and create a totally new experience for a new style of wellness customer.

KICK START FAT LOSS 2012

KSFL2012 has opened again today all ready to startn Monday 16th April. If you want to jump on the 14 day Fitprso Detox click here for all the information

New Downloads

Check out the new download page for more fresh choreography and class content ideas

Jayne Nicholls

Help me out with this, I have read the 4 -hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss and the jury is out for me. I have always believed that success comes from hard graft and that return comes from the time and energy that you put into your business. This kind of concept leaves me wondering whether I should be trying to work less, earn more or a mixture of both. I have little interest in out sourcing and am over run with people who can teach me to dance, I enjoy travel but love home more and I basically enjoy what I do. Should I be craving more and more free time? What would i do with it if I have it , and in all honesty I don’t just enjoy, I LOVE WHAT I DO. I was giving some advice to one of my students the other day who has 1000 brilliant ideas on how she wants to move her fitness business forward. Each idea is a winner, but when it comes down to implementing what she wants, this is where it all gets messy. The simple fact is that in order to make things work, the idea is the very smallest part of it. Tim claims in his marketing that both small and large businesses will benefit from his writing, is this right? Is our biggest problem right now that we are aiming to high or is it that we perform too low? i suspect that we have been seduced by current trends and tales of being a local success story. We are confusing notoriety with success. Could this come down to the number of man/leisure/work hours discussing what we do on Facebook, I am equally as guilty of this or does it add a percentage value to our business. i am currently confused – what do you think?

Guilt Free Easter by Katie Bulmer ?

Hi C2Goer’s,

Hope you all had a relaxing Easter to recharge your batteries ready for getting back to work!

I had a fab weekend, celebrating my brother in law’s wedding. My little Heidi was bridesmaid- I was proud as punch!

Anyway, my time off got me thinking…Why do I feel guilty for being off work?

I trained my client on Friday morning, then spent Friday playing with Heidi, getting my nails done, having lunch with my Dad then tea with friends, followed by the wedding on Saturday, a chill day on Sunday and a day out shopping for Simon’s holiday clothes yesterday.

But as Sunday night approached I started to feel guilty. I hadn’t turned on my laptop all weekend. I hadn’t checked my emails all day Saturday or Sunday. I turned my phone off. I cleared my diary…and it was starting to stress me out, when in fact I should have been feeling more relaxed.

I said this to my OH, and he said ‘it is OK to take holidays Katie, normal people do! I don’t ring the factory on my days off to find out how many cars they’ve built’. And he is so right… wise words from Mr Cooke!

I think as fitness professionals, we need to cut ourselves some slack. It is OK to have ‘me time’ and disconnect from work for a while. As much as we love it we need a break every now and again, to recharge our batteries. I’ve gone back to ‘work’ today buzzing…as if I’ve poured petrol on the fire in my belly.

As long as we have systems in place that allow our business to continue to run smoothly without us, then maybe we all need to learn to take a little more time for ourselves, it’s not selfish and we shouldn’t feel guilty…everyone else does! And after all if we aren’t well rested and refuelled how can we be at our best for our clients?

So here are my top 5 tips to allow your business to run smoothly without you:

1. Get a website: this way clients/potential clients can still access information on your products/services, book onto classes, and make payments without having to make contact with you directly.

2. Use your ‘out of office reply’ function on your email account, to tell inform people who contact you when you will reply to their email.

3. Use an automated email service such as Mail Chimp or Aweber, to schedule any emails you want to send out while you are off.

4. Get a PA to take the reins in your absence. They can answer any urgent emails, phone calls.

5. Record some short home workout videos for your clients to do while you are away to help them stay on track. You could even combine this with tip #3, and schedule and email containing the video, to hit their inbox while you take a break.

I hope these tips are helpful.

Rest, Relax and Recharge,

KBC xx

p.s. follow me on Twitter for more updates @katiebulmer1

Opportunities – don’t watch them go by…Sally Ghafoor

STOP – I know some people skim read, flip in and out of what might interest them, but are YOU missing an opportunity by not fully reading the articles?

Ah yeah, that Sally Ghafoor – find health bla bla bla – what is she bleating on about today …. Well today I am talking DAVID BECKHAM oooh got your attention! (well one paragraph on the gorgeous god).

Opportunities – well they wait for no man, or woman for that matter. Have you ever looked at someone and thought they are so lucky – me? Yes I have, mainly Victoria Beckham – how lucky is she? married to the gorgeous David Beckham. But what if Victoria hadn’t taken hold of her opportunities to be in the Spice Girls, what if she had given up when the going got tough in a girl group. There was no certainty they would become pop stars. When they got turned away again and again did she give up? No, had she have given up would she have ever met the gorgeous Mr Beckham – doubtful. She met him because of the opportunities she grabbed hold of and shook every ounce of success out of them.

So take a second to ask who you think is “lucky” . You can bet your bottom dollar, whatever you think they have is luck, really is not, they have taken opportunities that you haven’t. ooooh Mrs Ghafoor I hear you say… meeeooowww. Nope just the truth.

Opportunities are always disguised mainly as a problem or a challenge. A lot of the time the people who cant see opportunities live in a world of ignorance or in the whole, glass is half full world. If you’re busy thinking you know best or how bad your life is and how good everyone else’s is you’re going to miss those opportunities, in fact they probably won’t even come knocking on your door.

So back to those “lucky” people, these are the people who take on a challenge, regardless of how hard it may seem, they have the ability to see how big something can be from something so small. Look at a little acorn it grows into a huge tree, but if you didn’t know this and looked at the little acorn, how many of you would toss it to the side and not take the opportunity to nurture it and make it grow?

How many would have the insight to plant it and put effort into it to make it grow – well that would be those “lucky” people.

There is no instant gratification, it will take hard work, perseverance and focus, just because you aren’t where you want to be in 6 months doesn’t mean you won’t get there, but you won’t get there if you give up 6 months in because you aren’t where you wanted to be, so you feel the need to give up. Remember that acorn, nurture and grow it.

How many times have I heard (and yes I have done this myself) “I thought of doing that and now so and so is doing it, but I thought of it first” Well tick tock, tick tock, old “so and so” is doing what you were “thinking” of doing because they saw the opportunity and grabbed it and did it, you unfortunately watched it go by and are now feeling slightly aggrieved that so and so is doing it and you’re not.

Don’t want, just do…. that’s how you grab those opportunities; you have to do what others won’t do to reap the rewards,

As John Foster Dullan once said “The measure of success is not whether you have a tough problem to solve, but whether it’s the same problem as you had last year”

So whatever you’re dreaming of doing, grab that opportunity and DO IT, maybe you’re flagging lost your mojo? Someone will come and grab that opportunity that you’re about to let slip through those fingers of yours, maybe your acorn needs a bit of nurturing???

I am going to offer an opportunity to those that want to learn more about nutrition. My online workshop sold out in a couple of days last week so I have opened it to just 5 more places at the £97. We kick off on the 24th April, all online over 6 weeks; Watch the online workshop at your own convenience throughout the 6 weeks, for more info go here http://sallyghafoor.com/?page_id=24

I am about to start my online mums in fitbiz mentoring programme, so I can help other fitpro’s grab those opportunities and make them WORK for more info go here http://sallyghafoor.com/?page_id=45

Sally Ghafoor

www.sallyghafoor.com

Accidently On Purpose….By Andrew Crawford

Sinister workings of our Government are in place. Why do I say that?
I returned from Egypt blacker than I went…..I mean….with an ‘All Over Tan’….
Whilst sunning myself in 32 degrees of sunshine, in an all inclusive hotel, sipping ice cold alcoholic cocktails by the tepid flowing deep blue swimming pool, on my sun lounge with book in hand admiring the beauty of my surrounding female bathers, dark glasses hiding the gaze of my eyes and sun cap slightly tilted for that ‘holiday effect’ protecting my delicate skin from the harmful gamma rays of the suns warm caress  ……. apparently…there was a fuel strike in the UK and everybody was ‘panic buying’….!!

When I heard this in Egypt…I told someone that this was a load of b*ll**ks and not to spread disinformation on snippets of ‘news’ that they have heard……..there is NO fuel shortage (with the fuel reserves in tankers  moored off our shores)…. I said that it was probably all ‘propaganda’.
Was I right?
Almost simultaneously… a bill was passed …but…
..you may not have been  aware of it or was not given a democractic chance to vote on it but it will affect EVERYTHING you say and do, on and offline……(very frightening indeed)..
What was it?

Well..Behind Your Backs, ‘In Plain Sight’….whilst diverting your attention towards the supposed ‘petrol crisis’ a bill was passed giving the government cart blanch access to ALL your emails, telephone & mobile calls…!!!
They can ‘listen in’ and ‘Intercept’ with the blessings of our government.
This was debated and passed…I mean..’RUSHED THROUGH’ by a handful of individuals…..’acting on your behalf and for the benefit of public interest’…..who, incidently,  had not a scobby doo as to what date and time this bills was being discussed…….
This was no accident my friends……..this was on purpose……allegedly..!
There are many instances, especially over the last few years, when this ‘accidently on purpose ‘ has been happening….Your attention is sought over here…when something important has slipped by over there..!!  e.g The sale of Northern Rock at half the price.!! We didn’t even know it was being sold until it was sold. But we ‘own it’ don’t we??
Did you get any money from that sale?
What else…Andrew?
The ‘Hose Pipe Ban’…… what the …… is that all about?
My answer?….Price hikes….Use a ‘hose gun’ instead…!!!
We’ve seen this all before…. “….because of this we will need to increase this…”
With water…they will then be talking about the impact on ‘food’, ‘crops’., ‘livestock’ banana imports…etc…tactics used to control our essentials.
Is there really a water shortage?

My 2 questions for you are these;
Where does water (rain) come from?
How much of this planet is covered in water?
Let me say here and now…I am not anti government…I just happen to think for myself….I believe that once you relinquish what you think and talk about….you’re in trouble….!!
My next question is this…
Do you believe everything you read, see or hear in the Daily ‘Systematic Subliminal Brainwashing Media Manipulation Programme’ ……opps…sorry…. I mean the news?
My answer….
I don’t really buy the papers or pay attention to the disinformation spread by the media (who ‘censors’ everything you read, see or listen to). The headlines are designed for you to ‘buy’ the items…
So Andrew…..what has the supposed fuel crisis, the hose pipe ban and the systematic subliminal brainwashing media manipulation programme got to do with Accountancy & Finance?
Well my peeps…

While they are allowed to ‘secretly’ debate on issues affecting you and me, the powers of investigations of the small business man and woman, have widened and deepened over the last couple of years.
With the additional power gladly given to the HMRC, there has been a RISE in the amounts of investigation into your business affairs and they wish to expose all your business activities.
Believe you me…they have access to ALL records with your name on it., including any properties and bank accounts, CSA, Job seekers etc…all departments are now involved and helping to trawl the cash into the central coffers.
T

he HMRC are now taking a tough stance on tax errors that are ‘small’.
They will make a list of items they will wish to see. This will encompass EVERYTHING..
Their job is to ‘disallow’ as much as possible……………my job is to ‘allow’ as much as possible…..lol
What to do
Always be courteous
Acknowledge any letters in writing. Ensure that you ‘register post’ it or have it ‘signed for’. (There are many instances where online someone on behalf of the HMRC has signed for something and they said they haven’t received it…!!!)
Aside: I was once told…”..Just because you sent it by special delivery and it has been signed and received doesn’t mean the accounts were in there..!!!!” Holey moley…..
Answer all their questions, even if they are ‘outside the scope’ of investigation.
Provide them with all the documentation they request. Any penalties could be reduced if they think you are being cooperative.
Do not answer questions which will open you up for further questioning. Keep strictly to the facts. They will ask the same questions a few times from different angles.
Make them a pot of tea……..but keep vigil…you’re GUILTY until they say your innocent…!!!
Remember these things;
You can argue your case but if the HMRC doesn’t want to accept it and you feel you have a good case you can threaten to take it to a tax tribunal. This will test how strong the HMRC case is…remember the recent Rednapp case??
Provided your expenses were primarily wholly & exclusively for the purpose of your business, it doesn’t matter if you derived some personal benefit from it.
If you made a research and development trip abroad, make sure you can demonstrate how it helped your business and that it wasn’t just a jolly ole ‘knees up’ with the boyz….& galz..!!
Eg. Say you went to Lanzarote to visit a client in the summer, for a bona fide business purpose. You might as well enjoy yourself in your spare time! As this was just a fortuitous and pleasant side effect from the main business purpose and reason that you went there for….wasn’t it??
When you are ‘entertaining’ a business colleague out for a slap up meal, ensure you have an agenda, time, date, business discussed, finance, business development, who you were with etc. This info should accompany the receipt to ensure no further investigation necessary.

Keep your records neat and tidy….when these are presented to the HMRC this will reflect the amount of digging they will or will not do. Good record keeping = less digging and demonstrates that you are not hiding stuff.

Don’t try and claim for 100% of everything! Eg 100% of your mobile phone bill. Or 52 weeks of travel expenses…!! It is better, in my experience to claim 90% – 95% allowing for that odd personal call or 46 – 48 weeks of travel expenses allowing for holidays. Even I don’t claim 100%….95% is me…tee hee….!!

As I’ve said before…the tax law is a grey area…keep backups of all paperwork…and argue your case if you feel you are right.

In brief …the areas which have a high inspection rate are:
Travel
Meals
Entertainment
Business Mileage
Home as Office
Phone calls

Just make sure you have adequate backup for whatever you claim in these areas.

Lastly………..

As I was in my bubble bath this morning before travelling up to Leeds, in my unhosed car,  I was having a conversation with Kardy Laguda……What happened???
My mobile slipped through my fingers and dived straight to the bottom of the bubbles….needless to say….. those adverts which show people having long conversations in their baths is a lie…!!!   lol  …can you imagine the government tappers listening into that..bubble bubble glurp glurp???

See ya.. xx

Andrew Crawford
Ps I wonder if there’ll be a ban on baths?
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Andrew Crawford can be contacted on twitter @tax4fitness or info@fitnessindustryaccountants.com

Why none of my classes are pay as you go

By Claire Mockridge
Ante/Postnatal Fitness Expert

Hi there everyone,

I hope you’re enjoying this mixed weather we’ve been having and that you’ve had at least a day here and there off your busy life. I’ve had 2 lovely weeks off, myself. By Easter, I find I’m well and truly ready for a bit of a break, a wind-down and a good old chill out really.

I’ve been teaching pregnant and postnatal women for several years now, and almost exclusively run sessions for this population. Apart from the odd mainstream Pilates and/or workout class for my postnatal clients to feed into, once they’re no longer postnatal, pre/postnatal women are all I teach nowadays. Can you see yourself doing this too?

Essentially, I’ve wanted to own my own successful business for some time, but it wasn’t until I specialised in a particular population, that I realised how much control I had over the way my business operates. You can have this control too which your business.

Apart from the very first community class, I’ve never operated a pay as you go class like this since. I learnt a pretty hard lesson here, to be honest, and I expect some of you do too. And to be fair,

These are the main reasons why I don’t offer pay as you go classes:

Lack of commitment – When you work with a specific population, it’s important that you get commitment from your customers from the outset. Whatever the niche market is you’re attracting, whether it’s back care, pre/postnatal, kids fitness, older adults, fitness through the menopause etc, remember, at the end of the day, what you’re offering is a specialist service. More often than not, you can’t guarantee these clients their desired results, unless they attend your sessions on a regular basis and you educate them along the process. So, rule number one when working with a niche market: get them to pay upfront, before they attend their first class, and don’t accept any of this: “Oh, can I bring my cheque to the first class?” nonsense.

People take you seriously – I occasionally field phone calls from pregnant women who’ve never met me before who ask a million questions about my classes (even though all of the answers are on my website), yet when it comes to the awkward question about payment, they still insist on wanting a “trial session”. I have a standard response which goes something along the lines of “Unfortunately, I can’t guarantee your space on your chosen class, unless payment is received upfront, first.”. Very rarely do they hang up unsatisfied there and then, you’ll be pleased to know. The vast majority log onto the internet, go onto my website, fill in a form and pay, just like I asked them to. What happens to the small minority that don’t? Well, I don’t really know, and I don’t really care. If someone wants to come along to a specialist class for free, I don’t want them as a client. Harsh words I know, but I’m running a business at the end of the day, and I’d like to be taken seriously in my role as an Ante/Postnatal Fitness Expert, and a business owner too. And, at the end of the day, we know that the minority of clients who don’t sign up there and then, have commitment issues, don’t they?

Fear of them not coming back – How many times do you meet new clients who attend one of your pay as you go classes, and you make what you think is a great impression on them by asking them questions, offer to help, correct their technique throughout class, and you rush up to them at the end to get some feedback (which is always really positive with lots of smiles etc), they then pack up and say good bye promising to “see you next week”, and then never hear from them again? If you ran your classes on a pay upfront basis, you wouldn’t have this problem. There is NO reason why you can’t run ANY class on a monthly, school-term or “your own terms” basis, and don’t use “the community” as an excuse. Running your classes as pay as you go eliminates those sleepless nights too, doesn’t it? You know where what goes over constantly in your mind is: “Who’s going to come tomorrow night?” and “Will I have enough people to cover the hall hire?” etc. Break away from thinking your clients want flexibility. Most of them want to be told what to do, when.

Exercise is hard-work if you’re de-conditioned – I often accept new mums into my postnatal classes who I didn’t train during pregnancy. So, effectively, they’re new clients, which actually is great for my business. However, I do have to think long and hard about this, because occasionally, I have to accept postnatal clients who did: a) very little exercise during pregnancy, and b) little exercise during pregnancy and/or before. Essentially, they’re pretty de-conditioned by the time they come to me, and guess what? They sweat buckets throughout my class. Does this lack of energy and poor fitness level put them off? No, it doesn’t. Why? Because they’ve paid upfront for 10 postnatal-specific sessions to really make an impact on their life. If these clients paid each time they attended, chances are, they would find the class hard work, then not come back next week.

No excuses – When the only payment option you provide for clients is an upfront option, they then have no excuse not to attend your class. As long as you have strict terms and conditions in place in regards to refunds, then there shouldn’t be any quibbling involved, should this be needed. My refund policy states that “Refunds will be given on receipt of a Doctor’s Note which states you’ve been ill or injured for 3 consecutive weeks”. Want to know how many refunds I’ve handed out in the last few years? Well, I can probably count them on one hand.

If you’re sick, tired, rundown and really need some time off, my suggestion would be to start running your classes in “courses”. Reward yourself with the time off in between one course finishing, and the next one commencing, or better still, find your niche.

If working with pre/postnatal clients appeals to you, why not join my Private Facebook Group for FitPros who either: a) want to get qualified to teach pre/postnatal or, b) are already qualified, but want hints and tips on making their business more successful: https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/clairemockridge/

Tour date for my Pre/Postnatal Exercise and Marketing “Bridging the Gap” Workshop is 19-20 May 2012 at David Lloyd in Derby. It’s not just pre/postnatal exercise content you’ll learn here, it’s also the marketing and business acumen skills required to find, retain and build rapport with pre/postnatal clients. For more details of this Event, see: www.facebook.com/ClaireMockridgeBridgingTheGap

Or, connect with me here:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clairemockridge1
Twitter: www.twitter.com/clairemockridge
Blog: http://clairemockridge.wordpress.com/

Bye for now.

Claire Mockridge
Ante/Postnatal Fitness Expert

Confidence……..booster or destroyer? by Cori Withell

Why are we so afraid?

Having spoken to many, many fitpros over the last few months I have been blown away but the lack of self-confidence in the industry. Our fear of what our peers may think is physically holding us back.

But WHY???????

We decide we want to work in this industry, we go and study our course, we do our exams, are practical assessments, our case studies, we pass (maybe not the first time, but we pass or we decide a different career choice!)

SO

What stops us believing that our knowledge is any less than that of any of our peers or any other health care professional for that matter? Why are we SO worried what other people think anyway? Why is our self confidence and self esteem at an all time low? Why do we always think that other people know better, that their products will be better than our own?

Why do we LET this attitude hold us back? Cori Withell

I know of several of my fellow fitpros that are not launching their product through self confidence. For fear of what their peers may think to their product. Why does it matter? It is YOUR product – tailored to YOUR niche and created by YOU.

What does it matter is someone does not like your product. Their dislike of your product is not going to stop your product selling to your niche. You have done your research, you have done all the leg work, why wouldn’t it sell? If you really think it won’t sell then work out why, decide whether you want to launch it anyway and then tweak it at a later date if you need to.

I have only recently discovered what I really believe I am here to do and lots of people may think I am talking rubbish or think I am on so weird career tangent

BUT

It feels completely right for me, I am doing what I love and quite frankly I don’t care what other people think, fitpros or Joe public. I have spent the time studying and researching and continue to do so. I am lucky enough to be doing what I love and earning money and the best bit is having a really positive aspect on someone else’s life – that is the best feeling in the world as far as I am concerned.

So, have a little bit of self belief, go with your heart. If you create something that people criticise, let them. It isn’t worth your energy worrying about it. Your sales will tell you if you have got it right or not. Oh and by the way, if it doesn’t sell, it IS NOT a failure, you have just learned what doesn’t work so that next time your odds are getting it right are even better 🙂

Lack of self confidence can be so totally debilitating and people who don’t suffer with it probably find it a really difficult concept to grasp BUT it can completely stop you living you life the way you want to through FEAR. Even worse, the longer you leave it the worse this fear gets as it mentally ‘grows’ in your head. What started as a fairly small irrational fear of other opinion of failure ‘grows’ into this huge fear that you genuinely believe you cannot overcome.

So, remember that you are allowed to be you, utterly and completely. No one else, ever has the right to affect how you feel about you

BUT and this is crucial

What others think about you is up to you but how YOU respond to it is totally and utterly your decision.

This isn’t easy to change if for years you have let the opinion of others affect how you feel about you but it can make a huge change to how you feel.

Tell yourself every day how wonderful you are and how powerful you are in your own life. You can take your life and your business to any and every level that you want to.

Health and happiness x

Cori x

You can also follow me on Twitter www.twitter.com/CWFitness and you can follow my blog on www.cwfitness.co.uk/blog

Sugar Addiction by Tanith Lee

This is a subject close to my heart! I have a sweet tooth, yes I love cake

and chocolate. Research has shown that it acts on the brain the same way

class A drugs do. I can really relate to this because I am an addict in

recovery and the addictive cravings sometimes feel as powerful. I find once

I start on the sugar I find it very hard to stop. Sugar raises serotonin

levels which makes us feels good, when that starts to wear off we want more

right?

The answer I guess is not to eat it. It is more complicated than that. I

can be abstinent for about 2 weeks and then I get the calling. As soon as I

tell myself I cannot have something then my brain automatically wants it and

wants it NOW!

I have to trick myself from thinking “I can’t have it therefore I want it ”

to “I can have it but CHOOSE not to have it” . This has really helped me.

Once we have a choice it takes the power out if it.

Why else do we get sugar cravings? We use it as a pick me up, especially if

we are teaching lots of classes. Sugar and caffeine are a dangerous

combination as it over stimulates the body. This can be a vicious circle as

our body starts to depend on this quick fix for energy. Keeping a food diary

helps me to pin point where my nutrition is out of balance which can cause

cravings.

Reduce sugar cravings by

· Reduce or eliminate caffeine (yeah that includes those nasty

energy drinks)

· Reduce or eliminate diet drinks and processed fruit juices

· Keep the carbs low and eat plenty of protein and veggies

· Reduce or eliminate high GL foods

· Ensure you have enough B vitamins which is for energy production

· Chromium and magnesium can help reduce sugar cravings

· Get plenty of sleep which as well as giving your body the rest

helps balance hormones

· Looking after your adrenal glands (sleep, reduce stress, vitamin

C, B5, liquorice tea)

· Take a good quality fish oil – great for elevating mood amongst

other things

· Keep a food diary and note when you are getting the cravings

· Eat a small amount of dark chocolate (minimum 70%) if cravings are

really bad

· Try drinking raw cacao (mix with hot water and coconut milk) –

great for cravings

· Eat ½ a banana before bed and get plenty of sunshine and fresh air

to help raise serotonin levels

Sugar Cravings linked with Perimenopause and Menopause

During menopause the production of oestrogen and progesterone decline and the

delicate balance between the two hormones changes. Perimenopause and

Menopause can trigger fatigue and depression which many women try to fix by

eating sugar. Low oestrogen in menopause can also trigger tiredness,

achiness, headaches/migraines, lower libido and a foggy brain. The lowers

levels of progesterone can cause anxiety and insomnia.

Lower levels of oestrogen in PMS, Perimenopause and Menopause affect the

production of the ‘feel good’ hormones serotonin. Eating sugar raises

serotonin levels and makes you feel good J. This happens because sugar

raises insulin, the insulin drives amino acids into your muscles, tryptophan

is left free to go and make serotonin. As insulin resistance occurs (because

of the over consumption of carbs) the feel good feeling from sugar reduces.

We try and eat more sugar to get the ‘high’ and so the cycle continues.

Eating sugar becomes counterproductive because insulin resistance can cause

a drop in serotonin levels. Lower levels of serotonin can cause depression

and sugar cravings. It is also important for sleep and appetite control.

Research has shown that eating Edamame beans (soybean pods) can be helpful

in raises oestrogen levels. Traditionally Japanese women have eaten them to

ease symptoms. You can buy them podded in the frozen veggie section.

It has taken years of success and failure to get to a point where I don’t

beat myself up over it anymore (most of the time). Sometimes it’s not just

about will power. It about understanding how our hormones and brain

chemistry can affect our feelings and cravings. Listen to your body, take

the time to look after it. There isn’t a quick fix, take that first step and

you will start feeling better

Have a great week

Kind Regards

Tanith

“Believe to Achieve”

http://www.tanithlee.co.uk <http://www.tanithlee.co.uk/>

07941 093170

Description: Tanith-Lee-Fitness-299

Menopause group for Fitpro http://www.facebook.com/groups/193916640699162/

Check out my webinar on Menopause and fat loss

Say what you see
By Marvin Burton

Screening movements and exercise is always a topic that we may never agree on. How deep should you squat, what should your spine be doing and what is good technique? All good questions and all will never have the same answer for the same situation twice.
Lifting a bar over your head that has the combined weight of two small elephants has obvious safety concern. Balancing on one leg during a Pilates class has other considerations. Using these two examples though, (depending on the instructor) I know Pilates instructors that act like you are about to fall off a cliff if your spine moves two degrees and personal trainers more interested in their new IPad than watching the Olympic powerlifting dreamer in front of them reach the point that their stomach is about to prolapse

From my perspective what I do know is this. The human body was given 70 joints for a reason. The role is to allow for movement to occur in different directions. The joints have a loving relationship with their neighbours (the muscles) in order for them to receive force and pressure – then dissipate (spread) the force between all of them like a pack of wolves eating a buffet lunch. The hierarchy is that the closest to the Prey gets the first bite (for example during a chest press – the Pectorals and shoulder will get a big piece of the action) but then as we move down the hierarchy our triceps, deltoids, elbows and wrists want some of the action. The elder of the group (The lead dog) joins in the feast and ensures that this load is given to the everybody (remembering that this isn’t always an even share) we call this oracle, fascia! (connective tissue) Knowing that their is more fascia in the body than muscles, we don’t want to annoy the fascial system. If we do, the big boss will choose to pull at some other nearby muscles and joints (that are laying on the beach minding their own business) and make them work on their day off. Like the lower back! Often bullied by the body.
An example of this might be when somebody has tight hips. The chain reaction could be that the lack of flexion of a hip will not allow for the rotation of the pelvis (causing lower back pain) the pronation of the foot (causing knee pain) and you will first feel the pain somewhere else. Like in the IT band. So who’s fault is it? You can feel the pain in the IT band (fascia) but if the hip and the foot don’t get attention then the knee will be pulled out of alignment. Result – Knee operation/Torn ligaments.
So in summery. The joint feels the movement, the muscles respond and get tight to the joint. The big boss fascial system steps in to project manage the movement and if we don’t pull our weight (literally) other innocent bystanders will be called into action (synergist) our core muscles are like building site foreman. They oversee the moves and make sure that health and safety is being adhered to. If not they step in and “fixate”
If the system breaks down what will happen? Good question. Well, if its bank holiday, or Christmas Day, your body calls in the army to help out with the industrial strike that your body is having. Often the reply of the ministry of defense is to make a call to your Pelvis. Like Heathrow airport in mid-July there is a load of movements happening here. In your pelvis their are many muscles, nerves and bundles of connective tissue. That means that it can take on additional work, load and movement. The Pelvis is a 24 hour call centre for your body. Like the ghost busters if you don’t know who to call or what to do, you call upon the Pelvis (or the A-Team – depends how old you are)
understanding a little more about movement what we can do when somebody is exercising would be to watch them perform the exercise then look for anything we don’t like the look of (the general movement pattern). For example, when somebody reaches to deadlift a weigh from the ground, did you see their knees bend or back arch. when performing an over head press are they leaning backwards. when running in a treadmill how much movement in their feet can you see and does it look different from left to right. Your not looking for answers or a list of joints to get repaired from your local chiropractor. We are looking for smooth movement, structural balance of the body and upright posture.
When we don’t see it. Say something. Correct people. A coach/trainer/instructor is always assessing the quality of exercise. Reminding the clients or class how to pick up a weight or keep the spine upright is what we all a TEACHING POINT. These wonderful and helpful verbal commands should be ongoing and delivered to your ears more as the class goes on and gets harder. That’s the point where most people forget the basics.
Marvin’s top tips for assessing and screening clients are: look for the Thoracic spine, Hips and Feet. These give you the most feedback on joint movement. Possible reasons for poor movement could be:
The exercise is too difficult (complexity or weight)
Clothing is not appropriate – long shorts or trousers for squatting. Trainers are old and battered
Flexibility of the participant is shocking – due to their job, lifestyle or body fat being high

Obvious signs might be: off balance, leaning or favoring one side, swearing at you, knees buckling, feet pointing in different directions. The list goes on.
Your job is to see it, then say it. Don’t go any further than your knowledge lets you. Remember you can only recommend or suggest exercises and stretches. The Physiotherapist or Doctor do the prescribing part. Learning complex assessment methods won’t give you a quick return on your educational investment. Being consistent, safe and good at your job will get you more referrals and make you more employable. From here and with your own research you will have external people to refer to, a business partner or you may learn these methods.
The underlying message to this is that we should stick with whats most successful (the basics) and when we teach, we stay consistent and within out means of expertise.
Bon appetite
Marvin Burton
www.fitness-retreat.co.uk

Have a fantastic day

Love Rachel xxx