Footwear for Fitness

We should really have different footwear for different types of training and I'll go through what's best for different activities.

Weightlifting

For weightlifting we want to be as stable as possible. Stability comes through the ground, our feet, ankles and all the way up through our body. If the ground we're on is unstable we wobble, we fall and lifting weight is dangerous. So the next link up, our feet, also follows the same rules. If what we wear on our feet is unstable... we wobble, we fall and lifting weight is dangerous.

So bearing this in mind, what kind of shoes are the best to lift in?

Flat and firm soled shoes are best suited to weightlifting. We want to have an unbroken surface area, flat and firm soles, something to feel strong against the ground with.

I wear Lonsdale Leyton shoes. They're nothing special, cheap and cheerful. Comfortable? Yes. Flat and firm soles? Yes.

There's loads of great shoes out there, I'd get some awesome Nike ones but I'm a cheapskate. There are also some great specialized weightlifting shoes coming out, Romeleos and adipowers. These are specifically designed for weightlifting and even give a solid higher heel for those of us with poor ankle mobility. 

Some people like to lift barefooted which I also do enjoy sometimes, but you must put safety first in a gym environment, lots of heavy things being thrown about means please do protect yourself as much as you can.

Running

There are different thoughts on footwear for running. Some people believe a minimal shoe which basically gives the soles of your feet protection and that's it is the best. However, I personally believe that with the impact of running; your feet, ankle joints and knee joints all need a bit more protection. Always go with a proper running shoe, breathable material on top with a 'spongy' heel and sole. It's definitely worth spending a little more money on running shoes, you can't really put a price on healthy joints. 

The running shoes I have are Nike Pegasus 32's, they're really comfortable to run in and give me all the proper protection.

Most specialist running shops, or even some mainstream sport shops, now have treadmills in which measure various things about your gait and running style. They can match you up with the best shoe possible for you.

Thanks for reading! I hope this post has been helpful for you, if it has please do subscribe to the blog and follow me on all the social media stuff. Instagram @neverforgottenfitness & Twitter @NF_Fitness. 

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Nuclear Race: May Mayhem

I've been trying to find the time and the place for an obstacle course type race for ages now, ever since my buddy did a Tough Mudder like a couple of years ago. I work a lot and most weekends as well so it can be quite hard to find time for stuff like this, but mid-May we found the perfect one on a free Sunday.

Pre-Race (Clean)

There are quite a lot of these obstacle course races now, the most popular being:

• Tough Mudder (www.toughmudder.co.uk)
• Spartan Race (www.spartan.com)
• Nuclear Race (www.nuclear-races.co.uk)

Of course there are many others, but these three are the most heard of. Recently, through Reebok sponsorship etc the Spartan Races have got quite a lot more publicity, on the back of the publicity going up it also seems the prices have as well.

Being popular in Essex but not quite as well known as the other races, the Nuclear Race was so much more reasonable than other races I'd looked into. There were two options for the race, a 6km or a 12km. Being someone who seems to enjoy punishment (take that how you will) I opted for the 12km, which was around £60. One of the great things about this race in particular was that it was is Brentwood, Essex which is only like an hour away from me.

On the 12km race there's about 85 or so obstacles and these range from muddy ditches, to 10m high walls, to death slides! I'll pop in a few photos for you guys to see below.

Para-Plunge (SO MUCH FUN)

Ebenezer (The most sticky, stinky and disgusting pool of mud ever...)

A group shot with some people we adopted getting through the trenches and rope nets.

Action shot! (Yes... I did fall in)

Sizing up the drop before sliding down.

A happy grimace of muddy goodness.

A 'we're alive!' photo at the end

Pre-Race

So first of all parking; parking was free and there was plenty! A short walk from the car park was the entry way, racers would go through one bit, non-racers another bit. Racers get a tag to attach to their shoe for the race for timing etc. 

Facilities at the track were great, loads of loos, tons of food and drink places and a couple of shops to get race supplies you may not have thought of or forgotten about, or for #LoveMud memorabilia. There was an announcer who actually sounded like Bradley Walsh (but wasn't...) and even a fun warm-up area which had a small climbing wall and monkey-bar type obstacles. 

Before the race proper all the racers go into a giant pen and the organisers take you through a warm-up which is led by a local fitness instructor, air squats and dynamic stretching galore. 

The Race and Obstacles

The actually running part of the race wasn't that bad at all, with the amount of people going through the obstacles you had plenty of time to rest if you needed it. 

The obstacles ranged from easy as pie to pretty testing, especially as the race wore on the obstacles got muddier and muddier, and slippier and slippier. Things like rope climbing, or swinging got really tough, there's just no way with that much mud caked on you and the ropes etc that some were possible later on in the race. Some, like the rope swing pictured above were designed so you couldn't get to the other side so you had to fall in the mud, which was cool 'cos it was fun. 

Most fun obstacles were definitely the Para-plunge and the Deathslide, I could just do those over and over again. 

Overall Opinion?

#LOVEMUD

Really, really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it to anyone who fancies something a bit challenging, a bit fun and a bit messy. FIVE STARS. 

P.S. Bit obvious, but don't wear any clothes you're really fond of... 

Strength Training Anatomy by Delavier Review

This book is fantastic and I recommend it highly to everyone. It's drawings, of which there are over 600, are highly accurate and highlight muscle groups that will be targeted from each exercise that the book contains. Highlighted muscle groups are really useful to plan routines, especially if you're new to the gym and not sure which exercises work which muscles. The book is also broken down into different muscle groups, back, legs, chest etc, another useful tool for planning routines.  Not only does this book contain free weight exercises, it also contains resistance machine exercises, so no matter what gym you go to, or even if you workout at home you'll always find exercises in this book to do.  It gives tips on form and safety for each exercise, and this third edition of the book has extra pages on stretching and injury prevention. At the back there are two awesome drawings of Hercules, anterior and posterior, which details muscle names. Extremely useful for any budding fitness enthusiasts, instructors and trainers. I hope you find this review to be of use, I'm happy to answer any questions you may have, just comment below or tweet me @NF_Fitness.

Compound Movements?

So you've heard of compound movements, but what are they? And how do they benefit you?

What are Compound Movements?

A compound exercise or movement is an exercise that works several muscle groups at the same time, and involves movement around multiple joints. The squat, for example, involves pretty much all the muscles in your legs and glutes and involves the hip, knee and ankle joints.

How do Compounds benefit you?

Compounds are great in many ways and should be the base for any good workout program. Most compounds are based on everyday movements, and being strong in these movements will help in everyday situations.

For example, the deadlift exercise mimics picking items up from the floor. Be it a sofa, a box or even your child, being strong in this movement will help prevent getting injured and help in these everyday situations.

Compounds work more than one muscle group at a time, so combining just a few of these movements you can workout your entire body and save loads of time in the gym. A squat combined with a chin up and a press up will work: your legs, your bum, your back, your shoulders (to an extent), your biceps, your triceps, not to mention all the smaller stabiliser muscles! Only 3 exercises and you've worked nearly all your body!

CAUTION: Be sure to perform these exercises with proper form! Especially the squat and deadlift. You need to practice these movements with proper form to ingrain it into your mind and nervous system so you won't get injured, in or out of the gym. Look out for instructional posts on these movements coming soon.

A great book to look out for is Strength Training Anatomy by Delavier, it has pretty much every exercise in it with useful tips, and lists all the muscles each exercise works. A great tool for planning your own workout program.

So what are some Compound Movements?

Here's a list:

• The squat
• The deadlift
• The bench press (Or similar i.e. push up)
• The lunge
• Shoulder press
• Rowing movements (i.e. Bent over row, upright row)

This is just a small list, there are many compound movements. 

So get your compounds on and #getmoving today!

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