🏋🏻‍♀️ Strength Training, Why? How? How Often?

Gallery of pics are real people in Flin's classes, courtesy of Payley Photography.

Hello 👋🏼

Following on from my Pilates newsletter last weekend, the other HUGE trend in fitness is of course, strength. This could be overall the most important workout to schedule into your week. Here's why:

Why Strength Train?

• Improves muscle strength and promotes the "toned" look.

• Boosts metabolism, increasing your metabolic rate, even at rest!

• Enhances bone density, strengthening bones and reducing the risk of osteoporosis.

• Improves mental health, releasing feel good endorphins.

• Increases functional & core strength, without spending time on specific abdominal exercises! Your core dramatically and naturally improves, bracing in multiple planes as you push and pull challenging weights.

How to Strength Train.

• Focus on compound movements like squats, deadlifts, bench presses, and rows, using multiple muscle groups.

• Reps, sets & overload! Depending on your goals, you would aim for 3 - 5 sets of low reps (6-8) with super challenging weight for building muscle, or multiple sets of higher reps (10-15) to improve muscle endurance. Reaching overload (the inability to keep pushing or pulling the weight) promotes muscle adaption, which will ACHE for a couple of days - no matter how much stretching you do afterwards! It's a GOOD sign that you have worked the muscles this hard! As a general rule, once a weight becomes light enough to NOT be causing that ache following the workout, it's time to increase it!

• Use proper form - good technique will prevent injuries and maximise effectivity.

• Include rest days! Yes, rest days allow muscles to recover and grow and reduce the risk of over training or injury.

How Often to Strength Train.

• Beginners & for overall health training: 2-3 times per week, focusing on full body workouts.

• Intermediate: 3-4 times per week, with a split routine targeting different muscle groups.

• Advanced: 4-6 times per week, often incorporating specialised training programs.

.... And now of course, I tell you what we offer in Strength Training classes at Flin's Fitness!

• SWEAT. , Cross Training, The Power Hour, Express Pump: These classes all offer a mix of cardio fitness & strength, giving a range of exercises for the mixed ability and intermediate crowd, Challenging sessions, different every time!

• Pump: A barbell and dumbbells, with more static exercises purely for strength. Weight selection is based on your personal level of strength. Enjoy seeing the progression!

• Body Conditioning: A more high reps based general full body workout, low impact but pacey. Many compound exercises crammed into this effective session, for an aching body the following day! This has always been one of our most popular workouts and still is to this day, now enhanced by applying modern strength training techniques in class.

• Total Body Lite: Another mixed style of class, as we do light cardio and finish with Pilates style core and stretch, however we also introduce the weights for a section of the class. A great way to get started if you've not used weights before.

• Online or On Demand: various types of class, Total Body, Body Conditioning, Power sessions. Classes at home are super convenient and get the box ticked, but it's wise to invest in some dumbbells to use - maybe even a selection as you will get stronger fairly quickly! Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday on the schedule, or pick one to suit On Demand.

The schedule is below - you can see an overview of the days / times HERE

CLASS NEWS!

• The Stretch & Sound event is back for this month, on Thursday 19th at 7.30pm, in the small hall upstairs at Tubbenden. Spaces are £12 for one event, discounts available if you buy multi-passes! These sessions are a wonderful way to unwind and settle a busy mind preparing for sleep, but also gently moving the body and releasing tension. Booking is HERE.

• Booking and cancellations cut-off times have changed! The cancellation cut off policy of one hour before the start of class has been in place primarily to enable people time to come off the waitlist and still make it to class. As there are generally only a few classes with waitlists, I have reduced the cancellation cut off time for many classes to just 30 minutes before start of class (5 minutes if online)! This will help many of you who are relying on public transport or have last minute family or work "curve balls" to be able to book off and still get an automatic refund.

  Half an hour prior to class still enables us instructors to plan properly for the number of participants expected. I hope you busy people will find this helpful.

  Please note that there will still be the hour before policy applied to the following classes: Body Conditioning, Barre Conditioning, Pilates, Yoga with Jules and Zumba Gold. This is due to regular waitlists in operation.

Have a good week everyone,

Fran x

Email: fran@flinsfitness.co.uk

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Schedule for the week commencing Feb 15th '26

🎥denotes Online classes

🏫denotes Group

MONDAY

🏫9.30am SWEAT. with Fran - WP

🏫10.30am Zumba Gold with Kelly - WP

🏫11.30am Pilates with Emma - WP

🎥6.00pm Barre Conditioning with Rosie

🏫6.15pm Box Fit with Fran  - Tubbenden

🏫6.30pm Dance Fit with Jules - Tubbs Small Hall

🏫7.10pm Total Body Lite with Fran - Tubbenden

🏫7.15pm Yoga with Jules - Tubbs Small Hall

TUESDAY

🏫9.30am Pump with Tracey - WP

🏫10.30am Power Pilates with Tracey - WP

🏫6.15pm Body Conditioning with Fran - Tubbenden

🏫7.10pm Zumba with Kelly - Tubbenden

🏫7.10pm Power Pilates with Fran - Tubbs Small Hall

WEDNESDAY

🎥9.00am Body Conditioning with Emma 

🏫9.30am Barre Conditioning with Rosie - WP

🏫10.30am Line Dancing with Emma - WP

🏫6.30pm Pilates with Jules - Tubbs Small Hall

🏫6.45pm Power Hour with Emma - Tubbenden

THURSDAY

🏫9.30am Barre Flow with Rosie - WP

🏫6.15pm SWEAT. with Fran - Tubbenden

🏫6.30pm Power Pilates with Rosie - Tubbs Small Hall

🏫7.10pm Zumba with Kelly - Tubbenden

🥣7.30pm Stretch & Sound EVENT with Tracey - Tubbenden

FRIDAY

🎥9.00am HIIT with Lauren

🏫9.00am Pump Express with Rosie - WP

🏫9.45am Body Conditioning with Emma - WP

🏫10.30am Total Body Lite with Emma - WP

SATURDAY

🎥8.30am Total Body Online with Emma

🎥9.20am Online Power Pilates with Emma

🏫9.30am Cross Training with Fran - Tubbenden