Articles

Apple Versus Donut

By Paul Taylor

Most of us know what types of foods are healthy, and which ones are unhealthy, yet research shows that we still continue to consume unhealthy foods in ever-increasing quantities. Why is that? I believe that part of the reason is that we don’t totally understand why so-called unhealthy foods are bad for us, especially when viewed from the perspective that every piece of unhealthy food is taking the place of what could be a much healthier substitute. In this article, we’re going to look at two different foods – one healthy (a banana) and one unhealthy (a doughnut). We will follow these two foods through our bodies, looking at the processes of digestion and absorption, to see the different effects on our insides. ...Read more

Overtraining – Can You Spot It?

By Paul Taylor
The pervading paradigm amongst serious athletes, recreational athletes and the general population of fitness enthusiasts appears to be that the more they train, the better they will perform. However, performance and results depends not only on a high level of commitment; but it relies on a carefully designed program where training is complemented by appropriate recovery.

The US Olympic Committee defines Overtraining as ‘the syndrome that results when an excessive, usually physical, overload on an athlete occurs without adequate rest, resulting in a decrease in performance and the inability to train’. An alternative, but similar, definition (Fry et al, 1997) is that Overtraining ‘Refers to the point where the athlete starts to experience physiological maladaptations and chronic performance decrements.’ ...Read more

Isolation is Dead; Long Live Integration by PT Academy Director, Paul Taylor

Why do we do what we do?

This is a question that is the foundation much of what Anthony Robbins, the great motivational speaker, talks about. He reasons that when you find the why, the right answers come much more easily. This article is not about motivation, but about resistance training, but the question is very pertinent – Why do we train the way we train? If you look in any gym or health club today, you will see people using all sorts of machines to train with and doing a huge variety of isolation exercises in order to stimulate the muscles to become bigger, stronger and more functional.

Fitness Instructors and Personal Trainers the world over continue to write training programs for clients that break the body into various body parts and even individual muscles or muscle groups – they talk about chest, back, biceps, triceps, shoulders, glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves. My point is – do the advances in science support such programs? ...Read more

Customer Retention Management

As our industry continues to grow, so will the entrance of certified trainers, competence is no longer a point of differentiation, but merely the price of entry. Meaning, our client’s decision to retain us will not be based solely on the efficacy of our offering and the ability to produce results, but the outcome our offering provides - coupled with the experience it’s packaged in.

Case in point is IBM. If you purchased hardware from IBM in the 1960’s and 1970’s, they would provide your company with a full implementation plan, at no cost. In conjunction with the hardware purchase they provided a peerless service plan that encompassed the necessary service’s to maximize customers return on their investment. ...Read more