Haydn Chen Personal Trainer/Running Coach | Businesses

Haydn Chen Personal Trainer/Running Coach

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24.01.2022 Pyramids. No, I'm not moving from the Greeks to the Egyptians! One of my favourite approaches to a workout is to do a pyramid workout. What this means is select a few exercises, do 10 reps of each, then 9 reps, then 8 etc until you do 1 rep of each. You will feel it - I guarantee it!... Push ups, crunches, squats - upper, core, lower. Simple. Or any combination that strikes your fancy. Change the squats to squat jumps even replace them with burpees for that little bit extra. If you really feel up to do repeat in the reverse order: go from 1 rep to 10 reps. Enjoy!

22.01.2022 Ever wondered how the ancient Greeks did it? Exercise, I mean! With gyms still closed and having to find more creative ways to workout with limited equipment or no equipment got me thinking. How did the ancient Greek athletes train? It all started with the Olympics, didn't it?... For the ancient Greeks training involved not just the body but the mind as well. They knew that mental health and physical wellbeing go hand in hand. And they knew how to eat, too. A healthy diet was just as important. So how can I apply this to how I train now? Stay tuned!

21.01.2022 Here's a nice little finisher you can do at the end of a workout: EMOM or Every Minute On The Minute Set your timer to go off every minute for 5 minutes.... Pick 4 different exercises e.g. burpee, squat jump, commando, dips. Do 1 rep each, then 2 reps of each, 3 reps etc etc. When your timer goes off start at 1 again and repeat this until you reach 5 minutes. Challenge is to try maintain the original score for the remaining 4 minutes. Guaranteed to get that last little bit out of the tank!

18.01.2022 Periodisation, which I mentioned yesterday will avoid the dreaded plateau and will enable you to work towards specific goals(building muscle mass, strength, running further etc). But if your aim is just keeping fit and not feeling like things are too easy and you’re doing the same thing over and over again - then don’t. Keep changing things up. Like the Ancient Greek tetrad system - workout differently each day.... I do that in my own training: some weeks I do a split weights program (chest, back, legs,arms), others it might be two upper body and legs session. Or two full body sessions with cardio (HIIT, circuits) in between. Even changing the order of exercises. For example one week I could do bench press, dips, incline chest press, push ups. Another start with dips then push ups then incline chest press etc. You get the idea. Alternatively do a variation on the exercise. I posted a video where I did forwards-reverse lunges. Here’s one with jumping lunges. Remember: variety is the key.

15.01.2022 Step ups: simple exercise you can do in a park or at home on any stable bench. Maintain good posture throughout; step close to the bench emphasises the quads; step a distance emphasises the glutes. Body weight only; hold a weight to increase the load; increase the pace for extra cardio. Question: there’s one thing I should be doing better. What is it?... Answer tomorrow.

15.01.2022 Last word on the Greeks. They did a cool-down called the apotherapeia, which consisted of breathing exercises, a cleansing of the body from oil, sand and sweat not to mention a post-workout massage. Baths, dips in natural springs and rivers, steam baths were used for soothing tired muscles. And remember to do those gentle stretches post-workout. Warm up appropriately pre-workout and cool-down afterwards.... And they had their rest days. Rest is equally as important as the workout itself. Time for the body to recover and this is when muscles rebuild themselves and become stronger. Recovery days can be days when you do nothing at all or only do low impact activity like walking or swimming. Or just generally being active in life. So now the weekend is nearly upon us time to relax and refresh. Even the Greek God Hermes had a rest from running all those messages. Happy Friday!

14.01.2022 As I'm also a running coach - training and online programs available - I'd like to share a few tips about running. What is the first thing you need to consider? You guessed it - shoes! Without proper shoes you'll never be a good runner and, as with all exercise, you need to stay safe and protect yourself from injuries.... My top tips are: 1. Shoes must fit: obvious for sure but they must be comfortable and not too tight. Make sure your toes have a little bit of wiggle room. 2. Buy shoes later in the day when your feet are slightly swollen. Your feet will swell a little after running for a long time. 3. Run in the shoes when in the shop. See how they feel for the actual purpose you're buying them for. Hope this helps!

14.01.2022 Tip #2 about yesterday's workout: Again time-based - do the workout as a circuit. Start with the traditional 45/15 - 45 secs work/15 secs rest; 3 -5 sets with 1 minute rest between sets. You'll do more reps for sure. Count how many you do in each set and try and beat the number in the next set.... Literally compete against yourself!

14.01.2022 Training in three dimensions? Of course, we should. What do I mean by "three dimensions?" It's often easy to fall into habits when training: chest/back (push/pull); squats (up/down) - which are good - but what about sideways?... Lateral movements are just as important. Working different muscles or some muscles a different way goes towards preventing getting stale or hitting a plateau. And also simulating the way you move in real life. So the power/strength/agility/stamina etc you build up through your workouts helps you go about your daily life. Food for thought? Side lunges, skaters, lateral box shuffle - what other exercises can you think of that involve lateral movement?

12.01.2022 It would be nice if we could like Milo keeping progressing every day until bang! we achieved our goals. In reality we are not designed to keep improving in a linear fashion forever. Bit of a defence against injury or worse. We can manage this progression, however. And that is where periodisation comes in. The ancient Greeks has a system called the tetrad system.... Philostratus, a Greek sophist from the Roman imperial period, described this in his work ‘Concerning Gymnastics’: By the tetrad system we mean a cycle of four days, each one of which is devoted to a different activity. The first day prepares the athlete; the second is an all-out trial; the third is relaxation; and the fourth is a medium-hard workout. Regarding exercise of the first day, it is made up of short, intense movements which stir up the athlete and prepare him for the hard workout to follow on the next day. This strenuous day is an all-out test of his potential. The third day employs his energy in a moderate way, while on the day of the medium workout or last day, the athlete himself practices breaking holds and preventing his opponent from breaking away. Periodisation means training in cycles or periods as the name suggests. Not just over days but weeks, even months. Giving the body time to adapt and changing elements of this training to make this occur. This way you can avoid what we all dread when training the plateau. So how do you avoid the plateau?

11.01.2022 Last variation to this week’s workout. Use the star jumps as a cardio round between the other exercises. Like this: 20 push ups... 30secs star jumps 20 crunches 30secs star jumps 20 squats 30secs star jumps 20 burpees 30secs star jumps One round as quickly as you can! Extreme Gladiator/Ninja Challenge version: switch star jumps for burpees!

11.01.2022 Just walk out of the door and start running. Is it as easy as that? Most people concern themselves about how far they run (or how fast), aerobic & anaerobic capacity and power etc but just as - if not more importantly - is HOW you run. Proper technique is the base that will help you run better. You will prevent injuries and tolerate greater training loads.... Every runner should aspire to smooth, co-ordinated movements. My training incorporates running drills that will help you achieve this. Training smarter not just harder - that's the key.

09.01.2022 Simple workout for this week: Push ups Crunches Squats Star Jumps... Burpees You: OK, fine but 3 sets of 10 reps sounds a bit boring Me: Sure, I get you. Want to know a few ways to jazz it up and challenge yourself? You: Sure would. What did you have in mind? Tip #1: Try and AMPRAP "As Many Rounds As Possible" Set a timer for 15-20 mins and do 20 reps of each as many times as possible. Guaranteed to give you a good workout! Tune in tomorrow for another variation.

09.01.2022 So what actual exercises did the Ancient Greek athletes do? Apart from sports-specific stuff like discus & wrestling. With no gym equipment like we have now a lot of exercises were body weight. Running, jumping, shadow boxing, swimming, climbing ropes. Simply picking up something heavy then walking with it, walking/running uphill, running back and forth reducing the distance each time - things that can be done today.... They also believed that daily physical activities (digging, horse riding, walking, hunting & fishing) enhanced conditioning. So even they knew generally keeping active in life was just as important as exercise. So be creative and resourceful. Use what you can. Hence the photo of my dining chairs. My improvised weights bench - good for pullovers, kneeling rows. Stable and effective. What can you use?

07.01.2022 Milo of Croton is a legendary ancient Greek athlete who won five successive wrestling events from 532 to 516 BC. Legends say he carried a bull on his shoulders every day from when it was a calf until it reached maturity. So as the bull grew in size, so did Milo’s strength. He even reportedly carried his own bronze statue to its place at Olympia!... Milo’s approach is called progressive overload. If you want to get stronger, run longer distances or just get plain fitter then you need to increase the load or training stimulus. Under the guidance of a trainer (hint, hint) a gradual and systematic increase of this stimulus (heavier weights, longer distances/hills/sprints etc) and time to allow your body to adapt will get you these results. In reality it’s not quite as simple and linear as Milo’s approach close but I’ll explain more in the days to come.

06.01.2022 So if you want a bit more motivation and like having goals to work towards then how about joining my 12 week challenge? You get everything in the monthly package plus: - nutrition advice... - weekly challenges - tracking of progress - weekly coaching call - free 30 min outdoor PT session Join at any time. Week 1 begins when you sign up. Challenge yourself!

02.01.2022 Another kind of pyramid workout - and a real personal favourite - is to choose 10 or 12 separate exercises. Do 1 rep of exercise #1 then 1 rep of exercise #1 followed by 2 reps of exercise #2 then 1 rep exercise #1, 2 reps exercise #2, 3 reps of exercise #3 etc. For example: 1 push up... 1 push up + 2 squats 1 push up + 2 squats + 3 star jumps 1 push up + 2 squats + 3 star jumps + 4 crunches etc until you've done all 10 or 12 exercises. Choose wisely - perhaps alternate upper, lower. core, cardio. You'll soon discover if you've chosen well! Bonus round is once you've completed the workout and rested for a couple of minutes is to repeat by doing all 10 or 12 exercises, then repeat again but drop off the last exercise and keep going dropping off the last exercise every round until you end up doing 1 rep of your first exercise. Enjoy!

01.01.2022 So what was wrong with the step ups? My foot placement. Make sure your whole foot is on the step before stepping up. Eliminate the risk of slipping or falling. Always exercise with good form. Here is a variation: the step down. Something different - a lateral movement.... We all live in three dimensions (well, four or more but that’s another story ) so should we exercise in three dimensions? Tune in tomorrow for more.

01.01.2022 So what did the ancient Greek athletes eat? If you said a Mediterranean diet, you’d not really be joking. Breads, vegetables (legumes, chickpeas, olives) and fruits (pomegranates, figs, grapes), fish and poultry, cheese and dried fruit. Athletes ate more meat (protein to build muscle). Supposedly Milo of Croton remember him? not only carried the bull for strength but later ate it!... What it really reinforces is much of current thinking when it comes to diet whether you’re an athlete or not is that lean meats, fresh fruit and vegtables, grains and drinking plenty of water is the way to go.

01.01.2022 Once you’ve made sure there’s no trip, no slip hazards - no uneven surfaces or obstacles - you could do some step ups: