The Training Academy

Zone two and The 80/20 rule wasn’t written for people who run 3 -5 hours a week.

It came from elites doing 12–20 hours in their prime. The “easy” 80% only exists because the other 20% is intense.

A beginner can’t even stay in Zone 2 without compromising their running stride.

Despite what social media tells you, burning fat during exercise does not mean losing fat. Zone two does not have a magical fat loss property nor does it have something special about it that will manage hormones and bring down stress.

Exercise in general can combat stress and make you feel good but there's nothing uniquely special about "Zone two" for stress and improving or balancing hormones. 

And VO2max (one thing that actually predicts longevity) responds better to hard work than obsession over a a heart-rate zone 

Conversational pace still matters. 

Swipe through. Then go run. And consider  leaving the watch at home! The run still counts! I dare you!!

Swipe along the slides for further explanations

If I had to pick one obvious gap in the fitness strength space in gyms and by coaches it is the continued use of resistance bands when doing pull ups and chin ups. You are not going to get great results using them. Nobody is.

Using them is often down to a lack of experience and one thing I definitely think can be improved on because a chin up is one of the most achievable satisfying things to be able to attain and is a reflection of potentially years of hard work , dedication and attention to lifestyle outside of the gym too. 💪 There are a few reasons why so few people can do them but not understanding or seeing a clear pathway of progress and believing you won't ever be able to do them is a big part of that.

In the last 2 years at The Training Academy, I have watched approximately 60 women from not being able to do a single rep to doing multiple reps. A lot of men too and there is now a growing number of both men and women moving towards weighted chin ups too.

That is not a fluke or accidental. It's a system and evidence of widespread results.

In the caption, I mention something called the strength gap. I understand it's not very clear what that is from just reading the slides and can maybe be confusing but basically, your muscles are stronger in the eccentric phase of movement than they are in the concentric phase. They are approximately 40% stronger. This means you can allocate a ratio or decimal to it. We will call it 1.4. The strength gap between eccentric and concentric for women is slightly higher. 1.47 approximate average. So women can lift more and do more weight on the eccentric phase of a lot of movements. Therefore this is where they should spend a decent amount of time training, especially with chin ups since the concentric part of a fixed weight and yoi can't alter it( your bodyweight)

Interestingly, the strength gap for older adults (+60) is even greater. 1.6. meaning they should stand to benefit even more so from eccentric focused efforts.

I hope this makes sense and helps. Ditch the resistance bands. they are not a worthwhile inclusion for chin up and pull ups. 💪

Back to it. James first day at St Ninian's

20 brilliant reviews we've had on Google recently. 🔥💪

Want to get involved? We start next week(17th August week beginning) 💪

Here is everything you need to know about our next training programme starting on 17th August! We have some spaces available for new starts. Have a read through the slides . If you want to get stronger and more athletic, no matter your starting point, feel free to get in touch!

The programme is suitable for all levels, including beginners to training as well as keen active gym users and runners who are looking to be pushed up to the next level, improve performance and reduce the likelihood of niggling injuries. We have limited spaces available. 💪🔥💪🔥