As we age, it is quite normal to experience some age related changes happening at our knee joint. These changes can often occur at different timescales for different people with some experiencing them earlier and later than others. In my experience as a physiotherapist - the conditions that are most commonly associated with age include osteoarthritis and in some cases tendinopathies. While many can experience these age related changes within their knee joints - these changes

Oftentimes the advice alongside pain and injury is rest. While in many cases this can be a safe and appropriate first response - it should not be misinterpreted as the treatment or management strategy. In the majority of cases there will be a more proactive approach to managing an injury or flare up of chronic conditions. So what can be considered a safe and effective management strategy when it comes to managing pain and injury? While the answer will often depend on the comp

This is something people often spend a little too long thinking about in my opinion. In a world where we strive for optimism and close the gap between perfection and reality. The secret formula to the perfect workout is something many individuals will waste their whole life chasing. The perfect program can mean lots of different things to different people! It will naturally be defined around your goals and core values. Understanding your overall objective here should be most

Something I often observe with clients, and in many instances - my own predicaments from time to time! Something we tend to do when we feel things aren’t going to plan early on in the week. We find ourselves moving down a more self destructive path for the rest of the week. Feeling that all is somehow lost - we abandon our plan and just tell ourselves we will start fresh next week, or worse again next month! This can happen so easily and can be hard to manage when you fail to

Health and fitness can seem like a far off destination for a lot of people. It can seem like a far off desire that you simply don’t have the resources to reach. This might seem like an odd take to many reading this - but I get it. In our lives today health and fitness is evolving and becoming a bigger and more dominant part of people’s lives. Marathons seem to be on every month and there seems to be a hyrox event taking place every other second day! Meanwhile our social media

Something I am confronted with rather frequently as a physiotherapist. “Whenever I do “x” exercise I hear or feel a crack, pop” or so on. This is something that can often leave people feeling anxious or apprehensive about continuing to exercise. In my experience, people begin to believe that their bodies are broken, fragile or that they are in fact doing more damage. The reality of the situation is a little different. This should offer the reader some reassurance should they

This week I had an interesting discussion about the relationship between discomfort and our health and fitness. This was a man who had lost the confidence to come back into the gym due to a recent health diagnosis and had built up some anxiety about getting back into the gym and was starting to lose hope in his ability, worried about what other people would think given certain limitations due to a disability he was also dealing with. This got me thinking of a quote I heard ma

When it comes to your health and fitness, there are a plethora of mistakes individuals can make and inherently…  will make. However, there is one mistake that I believe trumps all others and to a large degree- this breaks my heart. As you sit there on the edge of your seat anticipating the proposal I am making for the biggest mistake, it is likely you are thinking on a different wavelength to which you are thinking of mistakes people often make when it comes to the gym, their

As a physiotherapist working in the personal training and online coaching industry - I often come across clients experiencing pain in some shape or form! In fact this was what prompted me to continue educating myself over the years on all things pain and injury where I went on to complete my masters and eventually qualifying as a physiotherapist! In order to better understand what to do when it comes to managing pain, it can be rather helpful to have a basic understanding of

A common predicament affecting people in all walks of life, age doesn’t seem to discriminate when it comes to that pain in your knee! While there are a multitude of reasons why you might be experiencing knee pain, the approach for each will likely be quite similar. While it is often important to have things assessed by the appropriate health professional - there are quite a number of things we can start doing ourselves!  First things first we want to get a rough idea of the s

Something people often tend to underestimate when it comes to their fitness journey. Having a goal in mind that feels more suited to the category “what if” as opposed to “when”. The thing people often don’t realise is they are closer than they think to achieving their goals. People can often underestimate the effect even the smaller less conspicuous health and fitness orientated tasks we add to our routine can have on our overall health and wellbeing! I can often come across

Something we often see with people looking to turn their life around when it comes to health and fitness. A desire to throw the kitchen sink at your current lifestyle completely eliminating old habits, and removing each variable that isn’t in direct alignment with your goal. New habits and stricter protocols are then enforced with the view that this is the most optimal method of obtaining success.  Look, I get it. Speaking plainly - in an ideal world this will be the most opt

This one is a little different. In this week's article I aim to highlight my views when it comes to the importance personal trainers and health professionals play in improving the overall health of the general population! While there can often be a good mix of experiences and opinions when it comes to people’s perception on the health and fitness industry - I firmly believe the effects are greater than we give it credit for. This can only improve as more and more people start

Are you focusing a little bit too much on one singular goal? Is this the most viable way forward? Can this sometimes result in more disappointment? Is there a better way to go about goal setting? If you are asking yourself these questions, you have come to the right place! Setting yourself up for success where you are unsure where to start is more common than you think. It is easy to get focused in on one goal when looking to improve your health and fitness. This isn’t necess

As we are now getting into the swing of things as we embrace the new year, many of us are likely opting to set ourselves some new challenges to work towards! This is fantastic. It is great to have some exciting goals in mind when it comes to new years, but it is even better to have some structure in place to help you get there! Personally I would start looking at what you normally do day to day. These are tasks that are normally done day to day within your life. As you write

Not something you’ll hear often among health and fitness gurus. The chaos that often comes alongside the Christmas period can often be demonised for it’s often negative effect on your diet, habits and behaviours that would traditionally take you closer to your fitness goals! Yes. This makes a lot of sense. However, I prefer to zoom out and look at the bigger picture. I see Christmas as an opportunity and I’m going to tell you why. Christmas is a time where we will often be af

It is around this time of year that you will likely be looking towards the new year and quite possibly playing with the idea of hiring your own coach to help guide you along the path towards your health and fitness goals. It is often around this time of year that we let our hair down and enjoy the festivities that come with the Christmas period! Following this we often struggle with the January blues and finding a routine that works as we try to put our right foot forward in

Something I feel isn’t discussed enough when it comes to getting started on or looking to improve your health and fitness! What are you struggling with in your daily life? How do you think working on your health and fitness can help you better manage or even overcome this obstacle? How much does this mean to you? Are you doing it for yourself or to try impress others? These are important questions that can often add a lot more value and meaning to the goals you set and the da

Considering this my 200th time writing one of these articles, I thought it only fitting to discuss a topic I am deeply passionate about! The role that movement and exercise plays in our health, wellbeing and overcoming pain and injury!! It happens to most of us at some point. We feel something go. We find ourselves in fight or flight. Our natural instinct is to rest and protect what we now believe is fragile and weak. We stop moving as much. We stop training. We find ourselve

As I get older and (possibly) a little wiser! I find myself reflecting on previous beliefs and methods I applied along my own fitness journey and previous coaching philosophies that played a role in how I have helped clients in the past on the path towards their goals. Like many health professionals, it did not take much reflection to acknowledge some key turning points over the years! In this article I will highlight 3 important ones!   You can’t out-train a bad diet!   This