This month we were delighted to feature in the On Pako magazine as an example of how Gyms can continue to grow and be innovative in the health and fitness industry.  We thought we’d share the editorial with you, so you can see what we’re up to at the moment…

Tom Trezise in the early days of the Gym.

“When you’ve been around fitness for nearly half a century it can be easy to become complacent.  Not so for Geelong’s Gym, who continue to relish the opportunity to not only provide a great product with fantastic service, but also help the next generation do the same.

Geelong’s Gym has been the leader in providing exercise advice and innovative, creative programming, to the local Geelong community for 47 years.  Originally founded by Tom Trezise in 1964, it was the first Gym of its kind in Geelong.

Percy Cerutty with Tom Trezise

The £30,000 state-of-the-art facilities were described as “surely unique in Australia” by Percy Cerutty, the famous Australian athletics coach.

The Gym has been owned and operated by Gerard Spriet since 1995 and continues to pride itself on its unique approach to health and fitness.  With high levels of customer service, their core values and integrity stand out significantly as a key principle in the business’ method of operations.

So how do they ensure the on-going standard of what they deliver to the community and pass on their passion for the fitness industry?  How do they continue their heritage, whilst looking to the future?

Geelong "Cats" Footballer, John Scarlett, running with Tom Trezise

They educate the next generation of trainers, handing down the values, knowledge and enthusiasm which set Geelong’s Gym apart from other gyms.

That’s why Geelongs Gym was delighted to recently open its new training school, in conjunction with Training Sense.  This in-house school provides the exceptional opportunity to complete Certificate III and IV in Fitness in a fully functional, open to the public gym whose strength is in its personal training program.

So the iconic facility that is Geelong’s Gym is now the place for learning and thinking, as well as fun, friendly fitness.”

Resistance Bands are a great peice of equipment that can be used for many different purposes, such as rehab, toning and strength.  You have the ability to control the amount of tension on your muscles and keep that tension through the eccentric and concentric phase.

In this workout we are aiming at toning and strengthening your upper and lower body, whilst switching your core muscles on.  Make sure you check out the video below for a demonstration of all the exercises.

Lunge With Row (10-15 each side): Pulling the bands so there is tension, step back into a lunge followed by a row.  Keep your elbows high whilst performing the row and in line with your shoulders.  Alternate your legs coming into the row with each lunge.

Squat With Bicep Curl (10-15): Create tension on the bands and sit back into the squat, making sure all of your weight is towards your heels.  Come out of the squat (into a standing position) and break out into a bicep curl.

Trunk Rotation (10-15 each side): Have your feet shoulder width apart, keeping the arms as straight as possible and use your core strength/rotation to pull the bands towards your obliques.

Tricep Pullover (10-15): Come into a sturdy stance with the bands above head height.  Pull all the way over until your arms are straightened (in line with shoulders).

Ab Crossover Punch (10-15): Sitting in a sit-up position facing away from the bands - create tension with the bands, engage your core by slightly leaning back and bring the bands across, switching on your oblique muscles.

Remember to control the movement on the working and the releasing phase of the exercise and focus on technique - Don’t rush… feel the burn!

Winter and Taylor in conjunction with Geelong’s Gym and Claridge Naturopathics recently participated in an 8 week Biggest Improver challenge.

Winter and Taylor participants hard at work!

Participants were split into three teams of mixed ability and from different work areas at Winter and Taylor.  Interestingly, some of the participants had not even met some of their fellow work mates!  So it was a great opportunity to get to know each other and build closer relationship within the wider team.

Through weekly individual challenges, weekly group challenges, and improvements made over the eight weeks, participants were scored and given rankings.  We’re delighted to announce the winners are as follows;

THE BIGGEST IMPROVER – Graeme Ruby

Most Consistent Male – Anthony Hopkins

Most Consistent Female – Meagan Anderton

Highest Point Scoring Team – THE A-TEAM (Trainer – Annie)

All of these winners came from the same team.  All of the winners exercised closely together and their enthusiasm fueled their efforts.

So grab some friends, get excited, and get exercising.

He wasn’t sure whether he should take it as a compliment or not!  But either way he had a good chuckle.

You see the thing is, the relationship you have with your Personal Trainer is often a love/hate one.  You love the results you’re getting from being pushed harder than you’d push yourself, but sometimes you really hate your trainer for putting you through, what can fondly be called, a “Torture Session”.

Regardless of the times when you could swear they’re trying to kill you in the most excruciating manner possible, having a Personal Trainer is the best thing you can do for your health and fitness.  Not only will you get great results in the shortest time possible, you’re also far more likely to stay motivated and attend the Gym regularly when you have someone to be accountable to.

So if you have never tried a Personal Training session, why not give it a go today and see for yourself what a difference it can make.

Oh and I promise, they’re not really trying to kill you… it just sometimes feels that way!

Here’s a break down of what you’re going to be doing:

Burpees – Step (Beginners) or Ground (Advanced)

Push Ups – Step (Beginners) or Ground/Ground with clap (Advanced)

Pull Ups – Under at a 45 degree angle (Beginners) or Pull up/Chin up (Advanced)

Crunches – Fingertips to knees (Beginners) or Wrists to knees/with weight (Advanced)

Squats – Standard squat (Beginners) or Squat jumps (Advanced)

Complete 2-4 circuits of this workout starting at 30 seconds for each station and build up to 1 minute for the ultimate bodyweight circuit!  Check out the video for a demonstration of each station.

Today, our Personal Trainer, Tom Ovens, is going to show you not only a great workout for people who are looking to move away from weights machines and into free weights, but also what order to do your resistance exercises in.  This is a fantastic upper body workout for beginners.

Make sure you complete 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps.  Watch the video for instructions on the exercises, then read the tips below.

Dumbell Flys – you want to try and pre-fatigue the major muscle groups first.  Aim to bend your elbows slightly as you bring the weight down, then straighten as you push it up in front of your face.

Incline Dumbell Press – as we have already done our chest isolation exercise, we can now move onto a compound exercise (more than one muscle group).  Doing this on an incline will also slightly change what part of the muscles we are working.

Dumbell Reverse Flys – this is an isolation exercise for your back and shoulders.  Make sure you are leaning over far enough that your back is nearly parallel to the floor.

Dumbell Single Arm Row – moving on from the isolation back exercise, now we are doing a compound back exercise.  You will be able to lift a much heavier weight than reverse flys.  Keep your elbow tucked into your side and let your arm go totally straight at the bottom.

Dumbell Lateral Raise – throughout the other exercises in the program we have worked on the front and rear of our shoulders.  This exercise will work the centre of your deltoid (shoulder muscle).  Use a weight similar to what you used for the dumbell flys and reverse flys.

Functional training basically just means to work more than one part of the body in the same exercise. It will hit every muscle group while also getting your heart rate up for a bit of cardio workout at the same time!

This week we have decided to show you a few functional training exercises that you can complete in the gym or anywhere you have a couple of free weights! This workout is designed for anyone looking to mix up their training and who has had some experience with some free weights.  Check out the video at the bottom to see exactly how each exercise is done.

Complete this program as a circuit (one exercise after the other with as little rest as possible). Do 12-15 reps on each exercise and go around 2-3 times!

Dumbbell squat with front raise

Start by finding a weight that you can handle. Stand with your feet a bit wider than shoulder width apart, holding the dumbbell in one hand. Put your other hand out to balance and squat straight down until you have around a 90 degree bend in your knees or until the weight touches the ground. From there push straight up with your legs while at the same time doing a front shoulder raise until the weight is above your head and you are standing upright. As you fatigue use your legs to help your arm push the weight up by springing up as fast as you can.

Barbell squat and press

This exercise is done in the same way as the barbell front squat that we went through last week. Starting with the bar sitting up in front of your shoulders, push your hips back to get your weight over your heels, then squat down and back up. As you come up keep the bar moving all the time and press it up above your head to complete a shoulder press. Lower it back down and then move straight away into your next squat. This is a great exercise to incorporate into your regular workouts or to include in part of a functional training workout like this one!

Barbell lift and burpee

This is a tough exercise designed to get your muscles burning and your heart pumping! Find a barbell that is about the weight you would do for a squat.  Start by keeping a neutral spine and coming all the way down to the bar with your legs (do not round your back). Lift the bar up,  drive your hips forward and pull your shoulders back. Lower the bar back down in the same way that you came up then put your hands on the ground in front of the bar and kick your legs out behind you to complete a burpee.

The good news is, it doesn’t require much equipment but it will have your legs begging for mercy! It is suitable for any level of fitness experience, from beginner right through to the seasoned gym goer.  Check out the video at the bottom for demonstrations of all the exercises.

Make sure you go and do a five minute warm up on the treadmill or a short walk around the block, then you’re all set to go…

Barbell front Squat

It is important when performing any squat to try and push most of your weight through your heels rather than further forward over the balls of your feet. To do this, try to shift some of your weight back before you lower down. For this particular squat you need to hold the bar in front of your body, so start light and work your way up! Perform 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Dumbbell side lunge

Hold the two dumbbells in front of your chest and take a big step out to the side. You want to try and bend down on the outer leg, and leave the inner leg straight. Squat down on that outer leg then push back up to the middle and out to the other side. Keep your head up, looking forward while maintaining a neutral spine. This exercise works on the inner thighs more than a traditional squat.  Complete 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps on each side.

Fitball hamstring curls

This is a great stabilisation exercise that really gets the hammys burning. Lie flat on the ground face up with your feet on the  fitball and raise your hips up until you have a straight line from your ankles through your hips to your shoulders.  Curl your feet in towards you as far as you can and slowly return back to the start, keeping your hips up the whole time during the set! Complete 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps.

Side lunge over bosu

This exercise uses the same technique as the dumbbell side lunge. The main difference is that instead of using weights for extra resistance you are using  your own bodyweight on a decline to increase the difficulty. The bosu also creates some instability that adds an extra element! Complete 2-3 sets of 8-10 each side.

Tom Ovens - Personal Trainer at Geelong's Gym

Do you need to add a little bit of extra oomph to your workout?

Are you feeling bored with your current workout routine and want to try something new?

We have exactly what you need… over the next eight weeks Tom Ovens, one of our Personal Trainers, will be bringing you a different workout designed to shake up your usual routine and challenge your body!!

Are you ready for it?!  You better be, because we’re bringing it!

Today’s workout is a stabilisation based upper body/core workout suitable for people with a good fitness level who have been doing some regular resistance training for a period of time.  Check out the video for a demonstration of the exercises.

• Fitball Dumbell Flys - similar to a regular chest fly, but by being on the ball your body is forced to recruit more core muscles!!  Complete 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

• Fitball Push-up/Jack Knife – a challenging upper body/chest exercise that involves massive core activation. Complete 3 sets of 10-12 reps.  For an extra challenge try super-setting (back-to-back) the push-ups and fitball flys.

• Sitting Rope Leg Tuck – this exercise really targets the upper abs and is great for working on coordination.  Complete 3 sets of 20-30 reps (one rep is over and back with the rope).

• Lying Leg Raise – doing this exercise directly after the rope leg tuck will cover the entire core.  Make sure you control your leg speed on the way down and engage the core to maintain a neutral spine.  Complete 3 sets of 15-20 reps.  Super-set with rope tuck for an extra challenge!

• Fitball Barbell Pull-up - This is a great exercise to change up your regular back workout.  It also incorporates a lot of stabilisation for the core.  It’s important to do this exercise at a controlled pace and keep your hips up, making sure they don’t sag down.  Complete 3 sets of 10-12 reps.