Fit for Purpose Coaching

A New Season

I said I was leaning into programming, with that is a fresh start and a new look for Fit for Purpose Coaching.

I want FFP Coaching to support those who know they need to get moving but don’t know how to start.

I want FFP Coaching to support Crossfitters, to help improve their overall fitness and fill in the gaps in their fitness.

I want FFP Coaching to support the person who wants to feel strong, move fast and look good naked.

I want FFP Coaching to support all the parents out their who want to train and find it tough to fit it into their schedule, I work in a gym and still find it tough to work around the busyness of life.

I will miss the OG brand and logo. But this is a shift that is necessary. And I couldn’t be more excited to see where it goes.

‘We fail at the margins of our experience.’ - Greg Glassman, founder of CrossFit

Imagine a box, everything inside that box are the things, (let’s say fitness related for the purpose of this) are the exercises, and movements you have ever done.

Now, everything outside that box are things you have not experienced. It might be more specialised sports or disciplines. You name it.

If you are training to be as generalised as possible, physically prepared for ANYTHING. You are limited by what you haven’t done.

If you’ve never ran long distance, guess what you aren’t going to be competent in that.

If you have never done Olympic lifting, you won’t reap the coordination, speed and power from it.

If you have never competed in a Hyrox event (🫢), guess what, you won’t be prepared for that style of fitness.

I would argue if you train using a properly varied approach, CrossFit as intended without a bias, and do extras to work weaknesses. You can be adequately prepared for these events.

But if you never actually do them, you’re limiting your bodies adaptation.

I’ve gone through quite an evolution in my training philosophy, bodybuilding only(who doesn’t want to look class) onto CrossFit ONLY.

But I go back to the above, what the founder of CrossFit himself says, you limit yourself by what you don’t do. So learn new things, try new sports, experiment with different training principles.

There is nothing wrong with Hyrox, Olympic lifting, strongman training, powerlifting, marathon running, hybrid training, bodybuilding etc. These things are actually a great way to get outside your comfort zone if you are a Crossfitter.

But remember, if you want the foundation, the ‘General Physical Preparedness’, nothing is going to cut it like CrossFit.

‘Live your life in couplets and triplets, go heavy at least once a week and go long every now and then.’ -

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CrossFit: Sport and Longevity

As CrossFit grows, so does the need the define the differences in the sport of CrossFit, and using it as a training method for longevity.

The 2 get blurred very easily.

For those who have never done CrossFit, they see mostly the sport stuff on social media. Because it looks cool. But the high skill, high speed workouts and movements although some find inspiring, others can find intimidating.

For those already competing, there’s a thought that more volume is always the answer, and recognition that intensity can be expressed in one workout for the day can get lost in 3 hour part A, B, C, D, and E sessions.

CrossFit for longevity is being able to provide maximum adaptation through a minimal but potent programme. With an emphasis on being able to train with intensity(relative to you) so that you can perform the tasks that everyday life demands.

CrossFit for sport is being able to maximise every aspect of your fitness potential, to dominate in a man made competition. Although varied, not entirely unpredictable. These high level competitions commonly have multiple workouts per day, over multiple days. Hence the longer sessions to prepare the body for this.

If your goal is longevity, improved quality of life, and higher capacity for life’s demands, one workout a day, expressed with a high effort level for you is enough.

If your goal is to progress in the sport of CrossFit, speak to someone who knows how to increase volume safely and with wisdom. And go for it, why not see what your body is capable of!

Getting the right method for your goal is key. The wrong method can equal unsatisfying results in the form of overloading the body too soon, injury and decreased motivation due to not seeing the progress or results you want.

Know your goal. Know your purpose.

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STRENGTH

The productive application of force.

All of your strength numbers will be directly affected by:

- the efficiency of your MECHANICS, in other words are you moving in a way that is putting as much power through the bar with as little effort as possible.

- the extent of your MOBILITY, your bodies ability to access full range of motion in all major joints required for that given movement, and also having STRENGTH in that range.

Here’s a reminder to stop worrying so much about the big lifetime personal bests and start thinking about the quality of your movement.

If you’re air squatting and your heels don’t stay down, do you think your front squat is going to be the best it can possibly be?

📸 .iamlukeebron
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This weekend I passed my Certified CrossFit Trainer Exam(CF-L3). For anyone who knows me, knows exams and academia were never a strong suit for me.

To pass this exam, is a massive accomplishment, and I’m proud of the work and prep I put in. With massive support from the coaches development group with and of course my lovely wife who has helped open time for me to complete that prep.

Scheduling my Level 1 in 2019 to attaining my Level 3 credential in less than 3 years is a reminder of my commitment to the profession of CrossFit Coaching.

But it doesn’t tell the whole story, and it’s naive to think that having a credential beside my name is the pinnacle, and that I’ve reached the peak of coaching. In fact far from it.

There are many coaches out there who haven’t taken the exam, but more than represent what it means to have passed it.

I guess this post is a form of self accountability to continue development, practice, learning, and eventually maybe one day, mastery of the craft.

Being content where I am, but not settling.

If you’re asking yourself things like, “should I sign up?” or “I can’t do all the movements” or “I don’t like to compete” or many more sentences fuelled by self doubt, here’s a few reasons for signing up to the CrossFit Open 👆🏼

Also, there divisions for all ages and abilities, so there won’t be a division you can’t complete all the movements in.

Or

If you push yourself out of your comfort zone, you mind end up getting your first of a movement!

Are you signing up? We are in 🔥🔥🔥

If you approached every workout like it’s a competition, say goodbye to gains and fun, say hello to injuries and burnout.

Competing is fun, the mental and physical toll it’s takes when done day in and day out is not.

Do you agree? What are your thoughts on this?

As a person and coach one of my biggest goals is to help people realise the capabilities they possess.

We all tell ourselves stories about why we can’t do that thing we think would be really cool to do.

With commitment, hard work and consistency, the list of things you can’t do is very short.

Life happens, and there’s days that just aren’t the days to push it, those are the times that it’s a smart decision to pull back.

But if you consistently limit yourself with excuses, then don’t expect anything to change.

I actually think we have a duty to pursue what we find meaningful. If we don’t, the others on this planet is deprived of what you can bring.

If you want something to change, then do it, you have much more to bring than you think.

Casting blame is bad leadership.

In any failure or mistake you make, or even have just a small part to play in. Take ownership of it. Own up, take responsibility.

Say, “I’m sorry, I could’ve done better there.” or “that was me, my bad“ then follow up with, “how can I make this better?” or “I can do (x) so that doesn’t happen again.”

This is the perfect opportunity for all parties to reflect, learn and move forward.

If you’re the one pointing the finger, you’re seen as the guy/gal who points the finger, not the one who is trying to find a solution.

Avoid the temptation to avoid a potentially awkward situation.

Stop blaming other people for your crap. Just be honest with yourself.

(Not easy, always a work in progress)

If you want to improve your craft, be willing to make mistakes, and be willing to hear about how not to make them again.

Like how my wife gave me feedback on the grammar of the first iteration of this post.

If you want to improve your craft, be willing to make a mistake, and be willing to hear about how not to make it again.

If you want to improve your craft, be willing to do it wrong, and be willing to hear from those better how you can do it right.


invites you to our Open Day at Belfast Sunday 16th January! 5-11 years 11:30-12:15 Over 12s 12:30-1:15! Get in touch with one of our Kids and Teens coaches or to book your space and get ready for some fun and fitness in 2022!!

Goals, resolutions, changes, aims, targets.

Whatever you call them, the end of a year and the start of a new one is always a good time to reflect and realign.

Exercise is a huge way to realign and can be used for many different outcomes, what is yours?

- blow off steam
- increase overall fitness
- get in shape for an event
- want to try something new

Whatever the intention, your mindset, expectations and outcome will be different for each. For example:

A mindset of blowing off steam will mean coming into the gym and hitting the workout as hard as possible to forget about the stuff outside the gym. But your bodies response to maximum intensity EVERY DAY generally isn’t conducive to maximising overall fitness.

Training for overall fitness will mean having a clear structure to your training, with each workout having a purpose for improvement. This can mean maximum intensity, but not EVEDY DAY.

Don’t expect the results of one while taking a completely different approach. There may be carry over but not much.

This year, avoid frustration and decide what you actually want from your training.

Give me a shout if you’re looking for some accountability.

SCROLL ➡️➡️

Your ‘perfect programmes’ are worth nothing if you don’t give a crap about your clients.

Caring without having the knowledge is more effective than having the knowledge without caring.

But

Caring combined with having the knowledge is the money shot.

Unpopular opinion Tuesday

For the majority of us aiming to be all round fitter humans, what we NEED vs WANT can be very different things.

I know hitting that muscle up, or sn**ch pb is just the best. (Guilty)

But ask yourself, when was the last time you ran some 200m repeats?

If your answer is, I don’t remember, it’s probably a good idea to revisit that.

Then ask yourself, do I want to be fit in all areas, or specialise?

Neither is wrong, but please stop telling yourself you’re goal is to be good at CrossFit when all you do is lift heavy.

The very essence of CrossFit is striving for competence in all areas of fitness (the 10 general physical skills).

Cherry picking = deficiency

More than happy to chat more with anyone about this.

Big thank you to and the lads over for having me over to their class space for a solid dose of fitness.

Just because you can do it ‘Rx’ doesn’t mean you should.

Sometimes scaling is the better decision.

It’s cool.

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CLICHE ALERT

Don’t ignore the basics

Pursuing the sexy movements; ring muscle ups, handstand push ups, handstand walking, bodyweight sn**ch etc are definitely great goals to have.

But when was the last time you worked on, sought advice or guidance on improving your burpee mechanics? Or even your efficiency on a rowing machine? What even is an L-sit?

Being able to handstand walk is a cool skill to have but if your midline (core) isn’t strong enough to sustain it under fatigue in a workout. You’re really just ticking boxes.

What basic or foundational movement of yours needs work?

I’ll go first, long duration(25min+) cardio efforts.

An incredible day spent with a phenomenal group of people raising money for a great cause. Hard to beat. Thank you to all who donated and came to support! Thank you .cancer for a superbly run event 👌🏼

Starting from August 30th. Get in touch if you’re interested 👌🏼

BE DECISIVE
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Ever notice how old people always seem to be so sure of exactly what they want to do?
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When faced with a decision that will result in taking time away from other things, the answer will be a very swift ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
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Rarely elderly people dither when making decisions.
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Why?
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Quite obvious really, they see the value of their time and very few things are worthy to take that time away from them.
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So why don’t we adopt a similar approach? Why do we spend forever making decisions?
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Generally the decision we make will not be life or death.
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But the time taken to make that decision, that is dead time.
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What I’m not suggesting is to RUSH into a decision. I’m saying, DON’T PUT OFF the decision making process.
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And when you arrive at your decision, saddle up and make the phone call, send the email, have the conversation. JUST GET IT DONE.
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Hopefully if you’re in a position now where you have to decide on something, this will help put the fire in your belly to take action.
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James

WHERE’S YOUR WORTH?

CrossFit Open leaderboard standings from 2017 to this year.

(In 2018 I forgot to submit a workout so that’s a bit skewed)

It’d be easy to look at this and think I’ve gotten less fit this year because my placing is lower.

My head would spiral:

less fit>no improvement>I’m rubbish>not good enough etc etc..

In reality there’s too many variables to really know if I’m less fit. I don’t feel less fit 🤷🏻‍♂️

This year, after over a year in lockdown I was able to:
▪️move a 90kg barbell after not touching one in a year
▪️complete 27 bar muscle ups
▪️improve my time in a 20 minute workout from 2017 by 5 minutes (25% improvement)

To me, that’s a win. I could never have even comprehended doing that 5 years ago.

Leaderboards and competitions don’t define you.

Your response and attitude to them will tell a bigger story.

DOWN TIME
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Whatever you do, 9-5, shifts, self employed. Even if it’s something you’re passionate about.
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There’s a likelihood you’ll get to a point when you just need to decompress.
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For me, I’m big into gaming. Great for relaxing and taking your mind off the day to day stresses!
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Before anyone jumps on the ‘gaming is a waste of time and only kids do it’ bandwagon.
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Stop 🛑
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What about the person who binges hours of Netflix, or sits on Instagram for hours at a time?
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Granted I used to literally play games (cod mostly) a MASSIVE amount. Into the early hours of most mornings.
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And if I’m honest it probably did affect my school performance 😅
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Now, I’ll maybe play a few hours a week in free time. And I love it just as much.
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Maybe, just MAYBE
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We can actually meet in the middle and agree that like everything, when done excessively will have adverse effects.
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When moderated can be very positive.
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I am living proof that you can be fit and healthy and also be a lover of something that has a reputation for being ‘unhealthy’.
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Moderation folks. (Easier said than done)
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James

🔥TRANSFORMATION🔥
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In just 1 MONTH you can have a transformation like this!! YES ONLY 30 DAYS!!
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Real talk 👇🏼(long but worth it)
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These photos are 10 YEARS apart.. that was me on my 18th birthday.
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No clue of what the next 10 years would look like.
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Tell me this, when you tell yourself you want to get healthier, happier, fitter stronger, even just more content in your own skin..
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Are you prepared to make LONG TERM changes?
▪️Healthy sleeping habits
▪️Clean up your nutrition
▪️Regular physical activity, including strength training
▪️Develop strategies to manage stress
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Or do you want the next best ‘HEALTH AND FITNESS HACK’ to lose 6 stone in 6 weeks?
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Neither is wrong, I’m not here to tell you what’s right or wrong.
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I just know what I would prefer.
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I went through the above change in 10 YEARS. Do you think I was consistent with my eating and working out the entire 10 years?
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OF COURSE NOT
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I had MANY hiccups along the way.
▪️unhealthy eating patterns
▪️unhealthy attitude to working out
▪️mental health issues
▪️sleeping habits up the left
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But I stayed RELATIVELY consistent over the years. And that’s what it takes..
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Its NEVER plain sailing. If you expect ingraining healthy habits to be easy, it’s not.
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BUT
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There are strategies you can take to avoid the pitfalls i fell into in my now 10+ years of focusing on my health and fitness.
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In the not too distant future I’ll be starting my own personal training venture.
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Where I want to start your journey to embedding those healthy habits.
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While AVOIDING to the best of our ability, those pitfalls I fell into. (There is no perfect plan)
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Those 4 pillars are what I will focus on. (Nutrition, stress, sleep and physical activity)
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If you want a quick fix, I’m not your guy.
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If you want long lasting, healthy lifestyle change to get healthier, happier, fitter and stronger. Then let’s talk.
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Watch this space
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James
Fit for Purpose Coaching

21.1
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Were you happy with how your double unders felt during this first open workout?
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If you want to make your double unders the 𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗧 in your workout, let me know.
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💥💥I’m offering a new one to one service. 💥💥
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▪️1 session - zoom or in person
(if restrictions allow)
▪️I take a look at your double under technique and diagnose the main issues
▪️Offer cues/drills and advice.
▪️provide you with a list of those takeaway points for you to work on so you don’t forget
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Get in touch if this is something you’d be interested in.
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James
Fit for Purpose Coaching

That time in the Florida Keys when I wore a tank top that said Florida Keys on it. Nearly 4 years ago now. Great trip.