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Performance Personal Training

Simple Fitness Strategies

1RM – What’s the point?

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Do I need to know my 1RM – alternative view for recreational lifters. 

Testing your 1 rep MAX might for a fun session, is great Instagram and could be a possible way to gauge your progress, but should you be doing it?

To weigh in, first you need to consider your training goals. If you’re training for strength development and you compete in barbell sport (like powerlifting or weightlifting), we believe there’s merit in testing. But if your goal is fat loss, muscle gain or just training to stay fit and healthy, this isn’t going to be your best measurement tool. 

squat

Second to goals, you need to think about your training experience. What a lot of people don’t realize is that training at super high loads (like your 1 rep max) is an actual skill. It takes years of practice and experience to do it safely and correctly. So if you’re somebody who doesn’t have a ton of time in the weight room, again, this probably isn’t your best bet to assess long term progress. 

So what can you do? 

 If you’re a recreational lifter, one of our favourite ways to measure strength is through AMRAP sets. Basically, sub-maximal strength assessments where you take either a given percentage of a lift, or even a % of your bodyweight and rep it out! You can then directly compare your results against previous AMRAP sets and see where things are at. Here’s a quick breakdown on how to get it done. 

woman deadlifting

GUIDE TO AMRAPS

  1. Select the lift you’re looking to assess – compound lifts like squats, bench press, pull ups, etc work great here
  2. Choose your intensity measure of assessment. Either:
    1. Given % of body weight (like 1 x BW Squat), or
    1. Given % of 1RM (like 85% your current estimated 1RM)
  3. Rep that bitch out!
  4. Record your results and compare again, the same way in the future. 

Remember, whether you’re testing your 1RM or going through an AMRAP set, technique is king, so don’t sacrifice this for anything. Good technique keeps you SAFE!

If you want to find out more about how we can assist in getting you STRONGER, lift with great form and get the results you are after, get in touch with our team

What’s this TRF about?

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There’s lots of different ways to control, alter and reduce your calorie intake of which time restricted feeding (TRF) is one of them. We’ve had some clients try it out, and one who has had some success is Tiff. If you’re thinking about giving it a go, keep reading to hear some of her thoughts on why it worked for her

With TRF or 16/8 you have a set feeding window with a long period of fasting

Why did you try TRF?

I first tried TRF during a diet phase when I seemed to have hit a plateau. My trainer asked me if I’d heard about TRF, which I hadn’t and so he explained what it was and we decided to give it a go to try a different approach.

What do you like about it?

I like that it’s easy for me to stick to and I feel that it works for me and my weight starts to shift.

How do you organise your meals?

When I tell people I’m doing TRF and explain what it is, most people say, “oh, so you just skip breakfast?” That is not the case. I don’t skip any meals, I eat the same amount of food/calories I would regularly but it’s just condensed into an 8 hour period.

Lots of different diet strategies used along the way for Tiff, including TRF

I eat my lunch at 12pm then I eat what I might typically eat for breakfast at about 3pm. I have a snack about 5 and dinner about 7. These meals are flexible and I may change what I eat and the timing depending on when I’m training on a particular day so that I’m still finished eating by 8pm.

How does it fit in with your kids/work/family?

It fits in with my lifestyle quite easily. At breakfast time my family all have their own individual choices and we don’t eat together. I pack my meals that I need for work and we eat dinner together. It still works on weekends and special occasions as social events usually happen at lunch or dinner, so I never feel like I’m missing out.

Why do you think it works for you?

I think it works for me because it’s something I can be consistent with and succeed at. I don’t find waiting until 12pm a problem and when I do eat, because it’s more frequent, I feel full and satisfied and don’t feel the need to snack in the night after 8pm. I also think it works because I can stick to my calories much better. If I started eating when I wake up, then there’s a lot more opportunity for me to eat what I’m not supposed to and potentially blow my daily calories and because of this, I lose the weight I’m wanting to. 

What type of person would you recommend it to, or specifically NOT recommend it to?

I’d recommend this to anyone looking to change things up, maybe you’ve hit a plateau, or for someone who needs a bit more structure and less time to snack, who doesn’t mind waiting for their morning coffee.

I wouldn’t recommend this for people who are shift workers. I don’t think this would work if you couldn’t constantly stick to the eating window.

We’re going to help you lose it!

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We get lots of questions but two that never seem to go away are:

“How do I lose weight?”

“Do I need cardio to lose weight loss?”

Well stop wondering cause we have the answers in these two quick videos.

Got any questions for our team or want to discover more about what we do here at Performance Personal Training to help our clients with their health and fitness, click here!

What our community thinks

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We stopped wondering and started asking what our clients think about PPT. The answers they gave, well they surprised even us!

We try to make sure this is a welcoming environment, breaking down the usual stereotypes of gyms, so to hear that we are making progress on this and creating a community, a family, a support network…. we’re happy about that.

Hear for yourself what our clients say about our community.

To find out how you can become a part of this supportive community, get in touch with our team

Erin Williamson

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I LOVE PPT’s no BS policy! The trainers give it to you straight up! That really appeals to me — you want it, well this is what you have to do!

The in house PPT trainers are super awesome! They don’t just give instructions and walk off, they watch you, praise you and CORRECT you if your movement isn’t correct ….. they CARE if you aren’t doing it right, they want you to achieve your goals as much as you do. Other places leave you on your own, don’t check in with you, ask what more they can be doing to support you, to help you achieve your goals. PPT does that. 

During the PPT 8Challenge, I lost 6.5kg of FAT. I gained muscle. I got strong. I learnt how to fuel my body. I gained confidence in myself – going outside my comfort zone to see what my body could really do!

Fat loss
Amazing results from Erin!

I have learnt that consistency is key! An ‘arsehole’ meal will not derail me, I will get back up and get back on track because what I do most of the time is what matters. This is a realistic approach ….. no starving etc, just better food.

There were some challenges, I know what to eat but actually doing it was a challenge. PPT kept me accountable not only to them but to ME! Meal prep helped me to overcome this challenge. Support from the trainers to go over and over and over and over the nutrition side of things – I asked for help and they gave it 10 fold! Also the online community helped, everyone posting their meals, sharing recipes etc.  

Nutrition is the take home for me — consistency is key .

I would defiantly encourage ANYONE to get on board with PPT! PPT not only want you to smash your goals but they want to ensure that you do it in a way that is healthy and safe and that can be sustained long term!

Want to find out how PPT can help you achieve some amazing results like Erin, then get in touch here!