I think I’ve already told you that I have been inactive for most of my life and have certainly undertaken little or no exercise since the age of 11. Well, all that changed when I walked into the Sports Centre in March 2014, clamouring to become a member, with a view to getting myself fitter, more active and healthier; the fact I was actually in the Sport Centre (and not just there to run an exam) was a huge step for me. I’ve also told you how I was fazed by the crazy looking machines and how I didn’t know in what manner I should use them or, even if I did, didn’t want to make myself look stupid by not remembering how to set them up. I remember walking out after my first session, legs shaking and not knowing how I was going to get in the car and drive home. However, when I had recovered, I actually felt good and very proud of myself. My journey to find the new me had begun.

For the next couple of months I religiously turned up 3 or 4 mornings a week (did you know there are two 7 o’clocks in a day?), jumped on the cross trainer, bike or rower and pushed my way through approximately 30 minutes of cardio exercise. I also went on the treadmill but only to walk as I couldn’t manage longer than 1 minute of running. I was in the gym and I was moving so surely this would make a huge difference to my fitness, my health and my weight? Sadly this was not the case and I started to feel very despondent that I was not seeing the results I so badly craved. But, let’s face it, as a gym novice I had absolutely no idea if what I was doing would actually make any difference; was I going at the right pace? at the right intensity? for the right amount of time? I then saw an advert at the Sport Centre promoting Personal Training. I had invested in membership, I had invested in dragging myself out of bed at the crack of ridiculous o’clock, I had invested the time to actually make a difference to my health and wellbeing, so a further investment for some concrete guidance was just another step in my journey.

Drum roll for Andy, my new PT.

We spent a considerable amount of time on my initial consultation where Andy asked me lots of questions about my lifestyle, my diet, my goals. He then weighed me (oops!) and took my measurements (was the tape measure long enough?) before taking me in the gym and seeing what I could do without passing out or giving up. Little did he know that he was in for a pretty rough ride with me!

‘I can’t’ was my stock response to everything he asked me to do. ‘Yes, you can’ was his stock response to me. And do you know what? He was right (well, eventually he was right once my head had stopped convincing my body that I couldn’t). He showed me how to set up all those machines. He told me how fast I should be going. He set up the correct resistance for me. He told me I could cry (that happened quite a lot and not because of what he was asking me to do but because I was feeling so rubbish about myself when I really should’ve been proud of how far I had come) but that I was still going to do the exercises. He always asked me if there was a specific area I wanted to work on (usually, for me, everything from my neck down…..) so that we could target that area. And then he asked me if I would consider exercising with someone else as he thought that we would be mutually supportive and encouraging. This turned into a 60 minute circuit session every Friday (still ongoing) with my new gym buddy.

Oh, we’ve tried the delaying tactics (if we strike up a conversation during recovery, then the 15 seconds we are given can be stretched out into minutes; not getting up off the floor quickly enough also means a much longer break) but we’re no longer ‘allowed’ to get away with that. If we want results, then we have to put in the time and effort; after all, Andy has made that commitment to us so we should reciprocate by giving him 100% back. For the most part, we do but should one of us start flagging, then the other one will offer some encouragement. And through all this, Andy is there geeing us up and cheering us on to work to our full potential. We both know that, the next day, walking, bending down and sitting will be an issue but, strangely, this is quite satisfying as it means we are working muscles that have long been forgotten and it’s helping both of us become leaner, fitter and stronger.

Andy has also set us both personal challenges in order to keep us motivated during our time ‘alone’ in the gym. If, for some reason, I haven’t been in for a few days, Andy always contacts me to make sure I am OK (I think he’s worried I may relapse and throw away all the hard work).

So, 15 months after I first stepped into the Sport Centre, how are things for me? Well, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I am in the best shape of my life. It has taken a long time for my head to stop sabotaging my efforts in the gym but I finally feel positive and proud of just how far I have come. I can now run for 30 minutes (and a distance of 4km) a feat that I never thought was in me. I can do whatever challenges Andy sets me (pretty much). I can use all those machines in the gym. And ‘I can’t’ is a phrase that rarely passes my lips nowadays (the odd one does slip in – along with a scowl from Andy that I dared utter it).

And what about my experience of engaging the services of a personal trainer? I would never have got this far without one. I didn’t know what exercises I should be doing and I would never have had the courage to get on all of those machines without Andy’s support and guidance. He’s seen me at my worst (a hot, sweaty, overweight, middle-aged woman – in tears – is not attractive, believe me!), always pushes me that little bit further even when I think I can’t do it and always has a smile on his face when I’m sure all he wants to do is tell me to get on with it. My advice to you, especially if you are an exercise novice like I was, would be to get yourself a PT, even if only for a few sessions, so that you can learn the best – and safest – ways to move in order to reach your goals. Believe me, it will be money well spent!

Ceri Spain
Statutory Returns Officer
Planning Office