95% of the time when taking on a new client, I find that the biggest obstacle for me to train them effectively is that they are too tight/stiff in all the wrong places and too loose/weak in other places.

Time and time again, I find that clients come to me and sign up for sessions psyched up and full of enthusiasm to ‘blast’ their bodies into shape over night but soon realise that they have areas of tightness or weakness (or both) that they weren’t even aware of which become a hindrance to them getting to where they want to be.

My biggest dilemma as a trainer with regards to this problem is keeping my clients working hard in the sessions and finding challenging but safe exercises to keep them motivated and achieving whilst encouraging them to work on their weaknesses/’tightnesses’ at the same time in order to keep them progressing further without injuring them.

I cannot stress enough the importance of good old-fashioned stretching! If you want to get serious long-term results and be able to continue training effectively then it is an absolute MUST in my point of view! By this, I don’t just mean stretching for 5 mins before a workout and for 5 mins at the end just to go through the motions. I mean spending a few mins hear and there throughout the day or last thing at night for 5 0r 10 mins before you go to bed EVERY DAY! This may seem a big ask and you’re probably thinking ‘I don’t have the time or energy for that’ but it will save you a lot of hassle and potential trips to the osteopath or physiotherapist in the long run.

Most of the time when you’re having physio – the fundamental part of the treatment program for most injuries and problems with the body are gentle strengthening and some form of STRETCHING exercises!

Another point to be made on top of that, is that if muscles are too tight and are unable to lengthen and shorten properly – then how can they be used properly to get stronger and develop further?