All About that Bass! '

Hey guys,

So after a long eventful summer and Masters started two weeks ago I have finally had the time to sit down and write a  new piece. With the hope to be posting regularly again.

Summer is a happy-go-lucky time; festivals, holidays, nights out with friends and we always always have that summer anthem to take with us into winter. This year it was "All about that Bass" by Meghan Trainor. Shot to fame by its take home message of "loving your curves," "it doesn't matter what size you are," etc. etc.

Take a look yourself!

Here's the thing. I don't agree with the song at all! I can't! Which is annoying because it's seriously catchy (He says immediately questioning his masculinity)! But bear with me on this, I have taken much thought before writing this post as I am aware talking about women and weight/size is thin ice material.

And for me it's the tip of the iceberg when it comes to political correctness!

I honestly do get the attempt of the song writer when it's making these statements. I really do but their is a fine line when it comes to this kind of thing.

Before I go any further I want to make the following statements!

1. NO ONE SHOULD BE MADE TO FEEL INADEQUATE ABOUT THEIR SIZE/SHAPE!
2. NO ONE SHOULD BE BULLIED, MADE FUN OF OR ABUSED ABOUT THEIR SIZE/SHAPE!
3. JUST BECAUSE A PERSON IS OBESE DOESN'T MAKING THEM LESS OF A HUMAN!
4. IF SOMEONE IS OBESE IT DOESN'T MEAN YOU DONT INCLUDE THEM, INVITE THEM OR TALK TO THEM!
5. IF SOMEONE HAS EXTRA CURVES OR A BIG BUTT YOU DONT LAUGH AND POINT!

So over the past decade there has been a massive move toward political correctness, which I in part do agree with. But it has gotten to the stage were you literally do have to think before you speak or do, before you speak, or do! I think I can actually see society slowing down in front of me because people are stopping to think before they say anything!

"Hmm is it: 'I like your blonde hair, or, I like your fair hair,
or, I like you light hair, or, I like your hair....etc.

But what does this do with health & fitness?

Back to the song again.

The song is correct in principle but going about it's message entirely the wrong way. And we see it everywhere! We can't have generic mannequins now! We have plus sized mannequins. We don't have models anymore because they've been replaced by plus-sized models. We can't say someone is overweight or obese or fat or big or whatever the current PC term is.

It is an objective measure. If someone is has blonde hair, they are blonde. If someone is 6 foot 6 inches, they are tall (compared to the average.) If someone is 22 stone, they are very much obese. That is just how it is. 

In the latter stages of this decade of political correctness we have seen a massive push for the whole:

"love your curves"

"you go gurrrll"

or as the song says "go tell them skinny bitches that"

Hmm bit two faced there I think on that last one?

NOW LOOK BACK AT THE  STATEMENTS I MADE EARLIER! JUST REMIND YOURSELVES I SAID THAT AND I MEANT IT!

My annoyance is that these statements whilst giving out a positive message on one hand, is stabbing you in the back on the other!

These statements we see on shows like loose women and magazines and songs like "I love Bass" are standing up against fakeness and bully's which yes I am 100% behind!

BUT!!

They are advocating that it's ok, or, amazing, or even healthy to be a size 20 or size XXL. In fact they encourage you to embrace your curves, do nothing at all about them. Or as the song says again "don't worry about your size."

But we should worry!

In the EU 400,000 people have died in the last year because of the DIRECT link to obesity. This is not including the secondary link to obesity for diseases such as: diabetes, artherosclerosis, asthma. If we included all these, that 400, 000 would be in the millions, if not, 10's of millions. 

Is it ok now to be the size you are? 

The majority of us have gotten to the size we are through no fault but our own. We eat what we like, when we like. The fast paced, but equally lazy society we live is, is partly to blame for this, but the kebab shop doesn't physically rob you of your money then force feed you the food they have given you!

Instead what we should be doing is facing life with a real-world mentality. We need to address the problem. What we are doing now is asking the problem if it wants wallpaper or paint on the walls of its bedroom because its moving in permanently with you! 

We need to address the problem. That's what the professionals are for. Go and see a personal trainer or join a walking club. Don't have takeaways twice a week, read a nutritious recipe book and you'll find an abundance of healthy recipes.

We have to take responsibility for ourselves.

I finish this post by reinforcing the 5 statements above. Whether a person is a size 8 or a size 18 they are still a human being with feelings and a real life and they should be treated with the respect they deserve and no different from anyone else.

If you are obese don't hide behind statements made by songs like this. If you think there is a problem, talk to someone you can trust will give you an  honest answer, like a personal trainer or your doctor.

Address the problem now before its too late!

Thanks for reading!

Ethan

Monday Blues: Pet Peeves At The Gym

There are no words or actions strong enough to express my annoyance at how quickly our weekend has disappeared and the demands of our overseers (employers) and financial contracts come calling. Very quickly we our thrown back into the joy that is: phonecalls, paperwork, clients, manual labor, cleaning and selling. 

The result is a depressed, bitter, hypersensitive employee, ready to bite the head off the first person who is brave enough to talk to us. So as i gather my clothes, trainers, chalk and supplements to head off the gym I cant help but think of the awfully annoying situations we all face when we head to the gym. So here are my top 5:

1. A cluttered gym floor: full of un-racked weight plates, dumbbells, water bottles, towels, shakers, shoes, chalk, belts, phones, supplements, energy bar wrappers, cleaning tissues and spillages.

We all see those messy people who leave the gym looking like a crash site. People we must remember that when you go into a gym, it is NOT YOUR GYM. You are paying for the privilege to use someone elses gym. Could you imagine if someone came to your house to workout and left your home gym looking like the above picture? You would freak out! So as a guide i want you all to follow the list below, ensuring you respect each and every gym member and gym provider:

• Strip the bar of weights when you're done with it.
• Put the dumbbells back on the rack when your finished with them.
• When you've drank your water and finished your energy bar, put the rubbish in the bin. 
• If you're not finished your drink, place it neatly out of the way, NOT in the middle of the gym floor.
• If you spill anything or notice you've left a rather large sweat patch, clean it up! Use the tissue and cleaning liquid provided!
• The same goes for any spillages of supplements or chalk. If not cleaned up soon, these can stain and small!
• Then put the tissue you've used, into the bin! Do not just throw it anywhere.
• If training barefoot or in sock, leave your trainers neatly to the side, away from everyone else. 
• The same goes for belts, straps and chains.
• And keep your phone in your pocket (better yet, keep it in your locker). Too many phones get broken in the gym because they've been left in stupid places.

2. Groups/Lazyness/Phone users:

Guys, remember why we all go to the gym.......To work out! Exercise! Become healthy! There is nothing wrong with chatting for a minute or two with your friends or colleagues at the gym but please don't do it at the expense or other people's workout, or your own. Gyms can become very busy, very quickly and people often have to squeeze the gym into a very busy time schedule so please, when you're done with a machine, move quickly out of the way or move onto your next exercise. If you want to socialize, go to Starbucks. Again, the same goes to those who for example are bench pressing, finish a set of 12 reps then lay down on the bench for half an hour before they move onto the next one! Keep pushing yourself! Power lifters or those of disciplined strength building programs are the minority who should be resting for longer periods of time, so, when you are done with a set, time yourself until the next, or, get some help from a trainer to properly design a program. And if you're excessively using your phone instead of working out, leave it in the locker!

3. People who make fun of those who are fat/overweight/obese/heavy (whatever the current PC term is) who are clearly at the gym because they are trying to lose that weight!

Why! Why! Why! Why! Why! Anyone who I ever see doing this is promptly asked to leave! Bullying of any sort is wrong and I have no respect at all for those who I catch doing it. People who are fat (and yes i will use the word fat) are individuals are image and body conscious. They have been driven by society to feel that they have to look like a fitness model for people to pay attention to them. Often they are lonely, scared and quiet BUT more often than not they are more genuine and friendly than the ripped-to-shreds guy or sexy hourglass figure girl next to you. You who makes fun of fat people, do not know their story, you do not know how or why that person is overweight (you are maybe even the reason why) and you certainly are in no place to make fun of them for trying to live a healthier lifestyle. They have taken the all important step towards preventing the many chronic illnesses that they are at risk to: lowering their cholesterol, lowering their blood pressure, lowering their blood sugars and lowering their waistline measurements. In fact to put it plainly if you make fun of someone going to the gym because they are fat, your are effectively saying you do not want them to be healthy and you would rather they developed a chronic disease like diabetes, heart disease or cancer. Doesn't sound too nice at all when you put it like that. Anyone who has felt victimized because of bullying keep an eye out for a future blog on the topic. But for now, I have provided a couple of links below for organisations you can contact for help and support:

http://www.stopbullying.gov/
http://www.nationalbullyinghelpline.co.uk/
http://www.samaritans.org/

4. Posers

Now I can sympathize with pulling a few poses in the mirror once or twice a workout. It's nice to see that pump have an almighty effect on your muscle and its good to track your progress. But, please don't make a habit of it. We as gym users do not want to tred on eggshells walking in and around all your flamboyant poses in front of the dumbbell rack. We just want to lift our weights and get on with our workout, which is what you should be doing too! If you want to spend half an hour just posing, do it at home!

5. Bro-science guy/girl

These are the guys/girls that tell us "you have to drink your protein shake within 5 minutes after your workout or it doesn't have any effect" or, "lift light weights for 50 repetition sets for 5 sets and that will tone you up and help you lose weight". There are a multitude of these expressions collectively known as Bro-Science or simply just: "rubbish." In case anyone is wondering, those two statements above are FALSE. It is comments like these that drive fitness professionals like myself mad because we have to spend 15 minutes of every one hour slot explaining to clients, that what they have been told during the week by their gym buddies is wrong and then we explain why its wrong and then we explain the correct answer. This useless information usually comes from people who have heard or read something through the grapevine who spin it off as the gospel truth, which it then falls into a game of gym chinese whispers and finally rests on another poor soul who adapts it 100% to his lifestyle. If you hear something that doesn't quite sound right, then read around the topic first. Or ask a trainer or nutritionist. Don't immediately tell everyone its the new secret to fat loss or muscle building! That being said, below is a link to a very funny guy called Dom, who is obviously joking around in his videos, but the stuff he comes off with are the type of things people preach as Gods divine word. Have a watch to see what i mean:

As I finish this blog I've very quickly realized that there are many other pet peeves, so there may well be another similar blog in the future. But for now, comment your pet peeves below, let me know what you hate/dislike at the gym!

Ethan