Fitness comes in many different forms whether it’s going to a budget gym, high end gym, attending classes, doing a sport, or getting a personal trainer. But it’s interesting how people value their time and money on fitness in different ways, and how people can often see fitness as an expense rather than seeing it as an investment in themselves. Your body is the most important asset you will ever own! It needs investing in, just like any other asset you invest in such as your pensions, stocks, property, or businesses, if not more important! (and lower risk) If we take the typical compounding interest of most assets such as a pension or property, most people are conscious that overtime, with regular and/or increasing investments, the value of your asset increases. When it comes to your body, if you don’t invest in your health and fitness the complete opposite happens and overtime your bodies performance, it’s abilities will deteriorate and degrade overtime and it WILL cost you even more in time and money later on! Remember medicine is not health care… Its sick care, a good exercise routine and a healthy balanced diet is health care! On occasions, as fitness professionals, we must be direct and say things for as they are.  We say this from a place of “tough love” because we care, so here it goes. It’s never too late to start doing something, doesn’t matter what your current situation is, you just need to prioritise yourself. It will cost you much more later in both time and money if you don’t invest properly in your fitness. Although walking, golf, gardening etc is good, it’s not going be enough. You need regular strength, mobility, stability, and flexibility training as well. Just like any investment in both time and money, the more you invest the more you get out of it. You will always benefit from fitness, guaranteed! If you don’t use it, you will lose it! The most simple and accurate statement that can be applied. Your strength, mobility, flexible, cardiovascular fitness make up your everyday life and the more you have of it, the better your life will be… I promise! Start INVESTING in fitness today!

Whilst we are all hoping for good news from the Government on 22nd February regarding the lifting of lockdown restrictions, the reality is it may take a little longer before in-studio fitness can resume. So what do you do until then? If you have been braving the cold and exercising outside then keep going! There is nothing better than a bracing outdoor workout! For many of us though it feels too cold to even get the milk off the doorstep each day, let alone exercise. Working from home With the majority of us working from home at the moment, many are saving on the daily commute to and from work. This can allow some time to workout – even at lunchtime or after work. So what are the options? Online fitness There are so many resources available online now, paid or unpaid. You can choose from no cost YouTube workouts, paid for subscriptions to online 121 PT sessions. Usually, no equipment is required to complete these workouts. Just ensure you have a clear space to work out and that you thoroughly warm up before you start. For those who need a bit of help with exercise techniques, we have compiled a series of videos for each exercise to help you work out safely. Click here to access. Homeschooling stress So many people are homeschooling these days, this can be a particularly challenging time! Combine this with your own day job and there are very few hours left in the day. We recommended to maybe still try to take even 30 minutes of the day for you and look for online yoga, meditation or pilates to help mind, body and soul. Healthy eating It is very tempting right now to order takeout and have the extra biscuit each day or two. We understand, its winter and there is nowhere to go! However, spring is just around the corner with the hope of less rigid restrictions. Combining healthy eating and exercise will help keep you on track and focused. For help, we have compiled a series of exclusive delicious, healthy recipes. Click here to access and visit our website for further online books. This lockdown will not last forever. Whatever you do, just keep moving in whatever way you can. Elysium Health and Fitness provide private 121 personal training sessions in their boutique fitness studios in Aldford, Chester and Tarporley, Cheshire. For more information visit their website, drop them an email info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk, drop them a DM on Social media or give them a call 01244 620202 (Chester studio) 01829 781685.

As we get further into our third lockdown many are finding this one the toughest yet. We have been hit with cold weather, snow and flooding. All of these elements have not exactly made for a particularly nice outdoor environment to workout in. With so many options now available online we look at if online PT can actually work. The online workout market big business. There are lots of free and paid-for options available to choose from. From uploaded Youtube workouts to online PT exerts, the internet has it all. Free content Perfect for those who don’t want to invest in paying for their fitness workouts. It helps you move and stay active. There are some drawbacks to this content. Firstly, it is likely that the content of workouts won’t change that much, meaning the user may quickly become bored with the repetition and also not getting a full-body workout. Secondly, and most importantly is technique. It is very hard to ensure that your exercise technique is correct with uploaded free content. You may actually be doing yourself more damage than good, potentially leading to injuries. Low cost paid-for content For those wishing to invest a little into their fitness, this option gives the user fresh content on a more regular basis and in some cases interaction with a coach. Workouts tend to be delivered as either a live stream or access to a library of archived workouts. As well as some of the drawbacks mentioned with free content, you may not be getting a truly interactive experience with the fitness coach/PT. It may be difficult to stay focused and motivated more long term. Expert 121 online PT There is more of a financial commitment with 121 online PT but there are many more advantages. Firstly your session is just for you, at a time that works with your schedule. Your trainer will have conducted a health and fitness assessment in advance and developed a fitness plan for you to follow. Each session will be tailor-made to your ability, ensuring you get a truly interactive and engaging workout. The trainer also explains and demonstrates each exercise were needed to reduce injury. Online plans aren’t just about the actual workout. They also include: Accountable expert PT Weekly check-ins Nutritional tracking Access to a library of every exercise Ongoing support via phone, text or email Access to nutritious recipes Expert online PT helps you stay on track, reach your goals and stay connected. It is the perfect solution to lockdown exercise restrictions. Elysium Health and Fitness have studios in Chester and Tarporley, Cheshire, delivering online PT and fitness plans as mentioned above. For more information call 01244 620202 (Chester studio) or 01892 781685 (Tarporley) or email info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk

Today the Government announced that the spread of Coronavirus is now out of control in the UK. In addition to this bleak news we also find half of the country now in tier 4. Christmas for many will not be a very merry one and new year doesn’t look much better. Not a lot to look forward to is there! You would be forgiven if you just wanted to pull the duvet over your head and hibernate for the rest of winter, but we must keep calm and carry on! The roll-out of the new vaccine has started, so there is some light at the end of a very long tunnel. Before we get there though, we really do have a very bleak winter ahead of us. How can we beat the bleak winter? Rule 1 – Don’t give up! If you have started a fitness journey you might be tempted to think ‘Christmas is only next week, I will start again in the new year’. Exercise not only keeps you fit, but it also helps with weight loss/maintenance, improves mental wellbeing and keeps you connected. Exercise can be adapted during the Christmas period and beyond to maybe a walk, run, bike ride, online PT or fitness session. You will be so glad you kept going! Rule 2 – Wrap up! Maybe your gym or fitness studio is closed for Christmas or is closed under Government regulations but that’s no excuse to not keep fit! We know its cold, dark, wet and windy outside but wrapping up and exercising will help keep you focused. Maybe train/walk with a friend to motivate each other and keep connected. Rule 3 – Start now! As with rule 1, you may be tempted to wait to start your fitness journey. There really is no time like the present to start. Gyms and fitness studios are offering online PT sessions and creating a bespoke program for you. Full support through remote tracking is also available. Rule 4 – Push yourself and others– Pushing yourself to keep on track will help you get the results you want and expert personal trainers can help educate you to maintain those results. Could you be helping others? Affordable corporate personal training packages can help keep remote working businesses fit and connected. These packages work with all age ranges and abilities from those who haven’t set foot in a gym to the more active. Rule 5 – Accept the situation and adapt – Coronavirus is showing no signs of leaving us right now. There is very little we can do to control this situation (other than following Government advice). We must commit to our health and fitness and adapt. One day very soon the lives we once knew will return. Until then don’t fight against it. Elysium Health and Fitness offer expert personal training from its boutique fitness studios in Alford, Chester and Tarporley, Cheshire. If you are new to Elysium they are offering your first session for free, or to get to know them a little better you can take advantage of 3 sessions for £60.

2020 has been the year of adapting to almost everything. We no longer work from the office but from home. We wear face masks, queue to enter the supermarkets and apply copious amounts of hand santitiser! None of us wanted to live like this but we have all learned to adapt. Adapting also applies to our exercise. When gyms closed in March we were forced to find new ways of exercising. The good weather allowed us to find a new love of the great outdoors, ride a bike or go for a walk or run. We missed our gyms because for many they weren’t just for exercising, but also for socialising. Then Lockdown 2.0 started in November 2020. This time it’s Autumn/Winter with dark, cold, rainy nights. It is harder to see people, but once again we must adapt. Our indoor gyms are closed once again, so how can we keep fit and connected? Firstly you need to be in the mindset to adapt. For those who are used to doing a lot of exercises in a gym or with a Personal Trainer then your routines will have changed dramatically. Now more than ever it is important to continue to stay connected with your personal trainer. For example, Elysium Health and Fitness are adapting by offering online classes and outdoor personal training sessions. This allows you to stay on on track and keep connected. For those missing your regular routines of swimming, HIIT classes or pilates, look for alternatives like online, live or archived classes and exercise apps. Whatever you do, just keep doing it! Just remember how great you feel after that workout. For those who aren’t so active, there is no better time to invest in your health and fitness. Start by setting some goals. These don’t have to be huge goals, but enough to keep you focused and motivated. Start by something that is achievable like a walk each day and reaching your optimum 10,000 steps. For those who want something more challenging maybe look at the couch to 5k. Whether further lockdowns happen in 2021 and beyond, now is the time to adapt your exercise routines. It will make it much easier in the long run. Elysium Health and Fitness provide private 121 personal training sessions in their boutique fitness studios in Aldford, Chester and Tarporley, Cheshire. For more information visit their website, drop them an email info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk, drop them a DM on Social media or give them a call 01244 620202 (Chester studio) 01829 781685.

Here we are again, the place where no-one wanted to be. Anxiety, fear, frustration and anger are some of the many things we are feeling right now. Lockdown version 2 will be tough. The nights are darker, the weather is colder and wetter. But there are several things you can do to keep focused to get through this. OK, some of these tips may appear to be common sense, but it does us no harm to remind ourselves of them. You never know, they may help you, a friend or loved one. Staying Healthy Sleep: Often sleep is disrupted due to significant changes and anxiety. Meditation apps like Headspace, Awakened Mind and Calm can help to relax the mind and may aid sleep. Bedtime routines: If you are furloughed with no work to get up for it is tempting to go to bed late and wake up late. Setting a regular bedtime and setting an alarm to wake up in the morning will help give you a routine each day to stick to. Get Dressed: Sitting around in your PJ’s all day is tempting. They are comfortable and you aren’t going to be seeing anyone. Getting dressed each day again gives you a routine and psychologically sets you up for the day (no matter how limited your daily activities may be at the moment) Personal hygiene: Skipping your daily shower and a hair wash will only make you feel sluggish and tired. A refreshing shower will help wake you up and focus on the day ahead. Same applies to your hair, regular hair washing and styling makes you feel like you again. Food! Another aspect that is tempting is to treat lockdown as the opportunity to eat more. However, those treat days become treat weeks and before you know it you are living in stretchy pants and PJ’s, feeling bloated and tired. Only shop for foods you need, there is no need to stockpile. There are plenty of delicious healthy fruits and vegetables to enjoy. Stuck for recipe ideas? Take a look at our Elysium Recipe Book for healthy inspiration. Visit our website and choose Our Services for a library of our recipe books. Exercise: So probably the biggest tip we can offer is to exercise! We cannot get into the gym at the moment, so our homes and the great outdoors become our gyms. Working out helps us keep physically fit but also mentally fit. Interaction with others may be limited but if possible get outdoors with a friend for a walk, a bike ride, dog walk or run. Even if you can’t go with a friend, just being outdoors can really help clear your mind and keep you focused. YouTube is full of home workouts, or maybe there is an old fitness DVD in the back of the cupboard you could do, just do it. Elysium is also offering a range of online PT sessions and affordable pay as you go classes are coming soon. Home Gym Equipment: OK so we know that these items are like gold dust right now. But if you can get hold of a kettlebell, skipping rope or weight or two it will make a big difference to your workout. Keep Connected: It is so important to keep connected to friends and family. As humans, we aren’t meant to be on our own. Look out for those you love, whether it be through Zoom, video chats or a good old fashioned phone call. It means more to people than you think. Be kind to yourself: Whatever your personal circumstances it is vitally important to be kind to yourself and take time out. It doesn’t have to be a big personal gesture, maybe a walk on your own, a long soak in the bath or a chat to a friend. The key thing to remember is that we are in this together. This will pass and will be a distant bad memory. Taking time to be kind to yourself is vitally important right now. Elysium Health and Fitness Studios offer private 121 personal training in the beautiful rural settings of Aldford, Chester and Tarporley, Cheshire. For further information visit their website www.elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk or call 01244 620202 (Elysium Aldford) or 01829 781685 (Elysium Tarporley).

Our core mission: “To be the place to work as a Personal Trainer, therefore be the place to go for personal training” Elysium Health & Fitness Studios is getting a lot of attention as we are creating a new style of personal training that is completely unique in the fitness industry. It starts with a vision to change the personal training industry. This vision comes with risks but we feel we will attract the best personal trainers for our clients. Now there are more Personal Trainers than ever, sadly the turnover and failure rate of personal trainers is huge! Approximately only 1 in 9 trainers will make it though their first year.  You maybe able to spot this if you monitor the Personal Trainer staff turnover in your commercial gym. The personal training industry is predominantly set up to fail and takes a very much chicken and the egg approach. Loyalty is one of the biggest values the fitness industry fundamentally lacks. Most gyms rarely invest in their PT’s, so therefore, why would PT’s be loyal to the gyms? Can you blame PT’s leaving and moving on if they’re not being invested in, looked after and encouraged to grow/progress? Many Gyms rent models or sales target models are to make money. They set impossibly high targets for new personal trainers, especially if they have had no previous sales or marketing experience. Elysium’s mission is to become the place to work as a personal trainer. This means that our trainers receive a great education package, competitive pay & the scope to progress in the business, ultimately to managing their own private studio. It is our commitment and investment in our PT’s that what makes our brand completely different. The only targets our PT’s get is results based – the way it should be! Best Client Personal Training Sessions: Our unique vision and training and development investment make our studios the best place to go for personal training. Our trainers gain experience straight away, even our new trainers will probably conduct more PT in their first 6 weeks than most do their first 6 months working in any other gym. It’s the reason why offer the most flexible PT services around. Creating offerings to suit your needs and budget. We attract the best PT’s and deliver the best client experience. Our service levels have also been recognised at national level because our trainers love working with us much. Get in touch: PT’s: Please get in touch if you would like to find out more information about Elysium Fitness Studios and how you could work with us.  Clients: If you are interested in finding out more about us please get in touch. Your first session is free or take advantage of our 3 sessions for £60 offer. Contact us: Aldford – 01244 620 202 Tarporley – 01829 781 685 Email:  info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk Visit our website at info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk

By Steve Chaney Make Monday and the rest of your week 100 times better with some planning and preparation! This post is about taking action and executing the following tasks, so as soon as you finish reading this post I want you to actually do them. If you want to achieve a particular goal, whether its fat loss/weight loss/body composition or the goal is performance-based you need to take action. If you are reading this and want to achieve the above but you’ve watched Netflix for the last 3 hours and intend on watching another 2 hours… How important is your goal to you? I’m not going to tell anything new, in fact it’s all everything you will know anyway. We all have common knowledge but some don’t have common practice and the aim of this post is for you to get up and action and execute the following tasks. Task 1 – Schedule Get your diary out whether you’re using a mobile calendar or even good old fashioned pen & paper but make sure you plan what times you are going to train just like its an appointment and if you want to go an extra step plan what time you are going to do your meal prep. Make sure you know what you are going to do when you do train. Task 2 – Gym/training prep Get your training gear sorted for whatever you are going to do… I know it sounds stupid but knowing it and doing it is completely different. If your going the gym a basic kit list for you is the following items: Gym bag, T-shirt/top, Shorts/joggers/leggings, headphones, padlock, big towel (shower), little towel (sweat), trainers, spare socks & underwear. I’ve done that to minimise forgetting anything as there is nothing worse than getting the gym and forgetting something. When you’ve packed it, go and put it in the boot of your car or in the place you will take it with you. Task 3 – Meal prep Use one hour today to get the food ready for tomorrow or even the next couple of days.I personally keep it simple and go with chicken, rice & veg and use some kind of sauce to spice it up which usually takes me around 40 mins to prepare. So if you haven’t got your food in the house, physically go after this post and go and get it, if you have let’s get in the kitchen and get started! If you complete those 3 tasks I guarantee you will have a much better Monday and if you repeat, you’ll have a great week! If you are looking for tips advice on fitness, drop us a line and we’ll be happy to answer them. If you are in the Chester/Cheshire area, remember everybody gets their first session FREE and the session is designed to help you with your fitness journey regardless of whether someone joins or not. For more information, you can email us on info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk or check out our website www.elsyiumhealthandfitness.co.uk. Phone: Aldford – 01244 620 202Tarporley – 01829 781 685

We know that for some people they may a bit worried about training in a new gym. You may be wondering about what to expect, will be it intimidating or maybe it is full of toned gods and goddesses! To help ease any worries you or someone you know may have about personal training, we have compiled the following guide which we hope answers any questions you may have. I’m worried everyone will be looking at me: Thanks to the private settings of our fitness studios you will be training one on one with one of our highly experienced personal trainers. Check out our locations I am worried the personal trainer will be judging me on my weight/lack of fitness: Our job is to make you feel at ease and to work to develop goals for you to reach. There is no judgment at our fitness studios, we will support you 100% to reach your goals. I don’t think I can afford to be a member and commit to my fitness plan: Firstly there are no joining fees with Elysium and you can cancel whenever you wish. We have 3 levels of packages available for all, Gold, Silver and Bronze and we also run special offers for discounted sessions per week. I eat a lot of the wrong foods and don’t know where to start with nutrition: As well as being experienced personal trainers we can also help with nutritional advice and meal planning. We even have our own recipe book to give you some ideas for mealtimes. I have tried PT’s before and found the session boring, why should it be different this time? Each session we carry out is planned in advance and is bespoke to each client’s needs. We guarantee that each session is fun and interactive. I think I am too old to work out at a fitness studio: You are never too old! We work with people on a daily basis of varying ages. We will ensure your bespoke fitness plan and sessions are right for you and your physical abilities. I have an injury, I am worried personal training might make it worse: Our team of personal trainers have weekly educational sessions with industry-related people and groups to keep us up to date with information relating to medical, anatomy and rehabilitation techniques. When you first join us we will carry out a full APM report (Assess, Program, Monitor) which includes any injuries and we will tailor a plan to suit your needs. Gym equipment looks complicated to use: We will demonstrate each piece of machinery before you use it and stay with you throughout to ensure you are carrying out the exercise safely and correctly. I only have time to train before work and need a shower after a workout: We have great shower facilities, towels, hairdryers etc! We hope we have helped with some of your common fears/questions about personal training in fitness studios. If you have any further questions then drop us an email at info@elysiumhealthandfitness.co.uk or drop us a DM. FIRST FREE SESSION: Why not try us for free or take advantage of 3 sessions for £60. It is time to make a change for life. Elysium Aldford 01244 620202 Elysium Tarporley 01829 781685