As personal trainers we help people who are wanting to improve something about themselves – their lifestyle, energy, body and function. Why people need our help varies – some want to optimise their time and results – others really need emotional and social support, some want to be kept accountable whilst others need to be re-educated about many aspects of their lifestyle. What is common in all of us is that we want to move away from what makes us unhappy and towards what makes us happy. Better health and fitness is a great place to start but let’s go deeper.Let’s face it – if you don’t value your own health and fitness – you don’t value your own life. It is only through great health and fitness that one can really make the most of their time, body, mind, energy and life. So it makes sense that people who have moved away from valuing their health and fitness (or any other value) develop an unhappiness around this issue. Unhappiness springs from misguided living or not living in alignment with what one truly values. So if you say you value your health but you are 20 kilograms overweight – you probably aren’t completely happy. The very sad thing is many people NEVER do anything to change their unhappy state. Sex, drugs and sausage rolls (including chocolate, alcohol and many forms of “entertainment”) are just momentary pleasures/distractions and once gone leave people with the same feelings they had before or worse. Allot of people will go around being unhappy and will go on forever being unhappy – living life as it is handed to them – accepting the things they aren’t happy with – and perhaps most importantly of all not deciding what it is that makes them happy!And here is the turning point! You cannot be happy – until you grab hold of some values that make you happy (like better health and fitness) and start acting in a manner that draws those values into your life! Decide what makes you happy! Find it! Then start living by what it is that you’ve decided is an important value in your life.Before you can be happy in your community, job and public life (work, friends etc), you need to develop happiness within your private life (family, partner etc) and before you can be happy in either of these you need to be happy within yourself – this takes knowing who are and what you stand for and living in alignment with those values. Some people find their values from friends, family and religion and as long as the values they have found make them happy that is great – but they still need to live in accordance with these values. However if you have not consciously chosen your values be very very aware that you have probably had some handed to you by friends, family, religion, media etc. and they may not be guiding you towards what YOU want in YOUR life. Before you can be best for others – be best for yourself! Love yourself then others then your community – in that order. Greater health and fitness is a great place to start!Decide on your values – plan your lifestyle around those values – establish rhythms of exercise, eating, thinking and rest that makes you feel happy about who you are and what you give and enjoy the happiness that will be found by living in alignment with your values and greater health and fitness.”An idle mind is the devil’s playground” RF

Anyone who has looked into the “Eco camp” industry at all is familiar with the incredibly luxurious photos of fabric walled, bamboo thatched private suites usually accessed by private boardwalks and well groomed trails fully staffed by often uniformed attendants, cool drinks and gourmet food and running water. No doubt these camp resembling attractions are a great place to vacation (if the price isn’t an issue) and the vast majority do their best to operate their businesses as ecologically as possible but where do the camps end and the well crafted cleverly disguised resorts begin?Maybe it has become accepted that any place you spend the night away from aside from a conventional hotel is labeled a camp or maybe we just assume that any remote activity where we spend the night is considered camping. Not that every single service advertising an eco camp is actually a luxury resort but at some point we lost the rough aspects of camping, the sleeping on the ground, the open campfires, and getting dirty, all the stuff that brings us closer to nature, maybe getting closer to nature isn’t always the point of camping in this day and age. All the extra comforts that we bring from the normal life really just serves as a distraction from the overall experience.Camping is a great time to get your stamina, health and clarity back (considering that routine life, these days, doesn’t allow that to be done). In my experience the later of the three is the most valuable benefit. Camping is the perfect way to experience it all, but it is not always easy. There is lots of different places and landscapes to enjoy camping. Camping at the beach in a wilderness setting can be a wonderful and exciting experience where you get to experience the fluctuation of the tides twice a day, the wild landscape that the sea creates and so many more eco systems supported by the sea. A safe and successful camping trips means everyone comes home happy and healthy but not necessarily bathed in comfort the whole time.I definitely would not include all guided camping adventures into the distractingly over indulgent category. Particularly for inexperienced campers I definitely recommend taking a guide the first few times on true wilderness trips or for experienced wilderness travelers going into very new experiences such as heavy bear country. Of course guides can be anyone from an experienced friend to a paid professional. I also don’t mean to discount the importance of high quality gear. Having high quality well planned camping and personal gear not only helps a lot during those stormy and rainy nights and days but depending on where you are adventuring it can save you on those bright sunny days as well. Basic and simple wilderness gear does not have to mean primitive. Camping gear has evolved with technology just as everything else has.Camping is among the most popular types of outdoor recreation from “roughing it in the wilderness” with merely a tent and limited cooking utensils to utilizing more contemporary accommodations like campers and mobile homes and modern eco camps. High quality outdoor tents in assorted sizes are also readily available that can accommodate single persons to as many as ten people and the type of tent needed really depends on the activity, location and time of year. But the rite tent is probably the most important piece of gear to consider. Camping beneath the stars or in a tent is wonderful, but gets chilly in the spring, fall and depending where you are the summer can be pretty chilly as well. The rite sleeping gear is another important gear consideration, basically go with the best you can (afford, carry, etc.). Camping is fun time and there’s no need to get into trouble while you’re out in the wilderness. While planning for a camping trip think about all the advantages and disadvantages of the camping area and ensure that you think of all the safety issues too and take the necessary precautions.

So simple and so often overlooked when creating a health and fitness training program. The Push Up works so many muscle groups, it can be done anywhere, it fits into any schedule, and when done regularly, will have dramatic effects on your body.Often times when we decide to make a new commitment to fitness we join a gym, or a running club, or try a new kind of diet. Some of the most basic and effective body weight exercises like squats, chin ups, crunches, and push ups can often be overlooked. But a workout designed primarily around these types of exercises is more than enough to get you in the best shape of your life.In fact, how often have you spent money on a gym membership, exercise equipment, or diet book and you don’t end up sticking with it? You spend all that money and you never reap the rewards. Sometimes it might be laziness that takes you off track and other times we have very legitimate reasons whether work has kept us too busy to make it to the gym or do a whole lot of cooking at home.So instead of investing another dime in your quest to finally get fit, resign yourself to start doing body weight exercises. Let’s even make it simpler, let’s start out for 1 month where all you have to do is 1 set of push ups to failure every day. This way you have no excuses not to do the work. Also, if you can make this one simple change a habit you can slowly add exercises over time to build a quick and effective fitness routine.Push ups by themselves work all your major pressing muscles (chest, shoulders, and triceps) as well as your abdominals and even your glutes. Think about it, one of the most popular abdominal exercises these days are planks. A plank is where you simply hold the top position of a push up for a duration of time (e.g. 30 seconds to a minute). To hold you core straight in this position requires your abdominals and glutes to engage to keep your body rigid. So while push ups do not work your entire body, they do work a good portion of your physique. From a time perspective you don’t have to waste time doing umpteen exercises to work all these different muscle groups when push ups will work them all at once.If you can stick with this for one month add lunges for month 2. Do one set of lunges for each leg along with your one set of push ups to failure each day. For month 3 add crunches. For month 4 add chin ups. Pretty soon you will surprise yourself with just how strong and lean you are becoming.If you can stick to this simple fitness routine you will be on your way towards a healthier, stronger, and leaner you. Health and fitness training doesn’t have to be an all or nothing choice. Start by making small changes in your life with small amounts of exercise and little dietary changes and over time you will develop the kind of habits that keep you looking and feeling great.