What Is ‘Ask the Trainer’?
This is a brand new feature for the Bodies By Byrne site and is something I’ve come up with to try and add as much value as I possibly can for people looking to improve or make changes to their body.
By filling in the contact form below you can directly ask me any fitness or body composition relation question and I’ll get back to you with an answer/solution, completely free of charge!
Why Am I Offering This Service?
I spend countless hours producing content to help people improve their physique and body composition and always try to put out valuable information that people can easily relate to and also easily action.
The only problem with this is that I always cover more general topics because you can’t answer everyone’s individual queries.
Even my more specific/popular articles like lean bulking without counting calories and how long it takes to grow bigger traps are niched down topics but still pretty general in that they relate to a large percentage of people.
this is therefore why I’m offering this feature on my site, even if I don’t know the specific answer to a question I do know the best resources and places to look. If it’s something outside of my knowledge base then I can also advise on the best place for you to look into something further.
What Won’t I Be Offering?
This is not a way to get free personal training sessions or custom training and diet plans. I’ll answer a specific question for something that you are struggling with on your fitness or physique related journey.
This is the kind of thing where you type a question into Google but can’t find the answer you are looking for. There is so much information out there that it can become confusing and difficult to know what to trust.
I’ll therefore look to give a clear answer to your specific situation and hopefully you can grasp it and then action it.
This also won’t be an instant messaging service. I’ll try to answer all queries within 24-72 hours, however I can’t guarantee an instant response unfortunately.
Why Should You Use This Feature?
It’s completely free.
If you are struggling on your fitness journey and really need a solution to a specific pain point or issue then I’m here to help. You might be wondering what I can offer when you submit your question:
- 14 years training experience
- Certified Nutritionist (PN1) and Level 3 Fitness Instructor
- Health and Fitness writer for the supplement industry for the last 5 years (Myprotein, Bulk Powders and GoNutrition)
- I’ve written in excess of 150+ articles and 300,000+ words around health and fitness (you pick up some tips and knowledge when you research that many articles!)
- It’s not just writing though, I’ve read tens of thousands of articles, studies and blogs since I first started training and even got on to T-Nation at the age of 14. If you were an early adopter of T-Nation then you’ll know I was picking up knowledge bombs at a very early age!
- I practise what I preach, I’ve got a snapshot of my physique transformation over the years on my about page and I very much live the ‘fitness’ lifestyle
- I’m offering it for free, you’ve got nothing to lose and if you don’t find the information helpful then just ignore it and move on with your life.
Example question (vague):
“Hello Simon, how much protein should I eat each day?“
^^ This doesn’t give much information to base it on so It’s a very general topic but I’d give the following answer:
“Hi [insert name], as a very general guideline for anyone engaging in resistance resistance training you should look to consume roughly 1g protein per 1lb body weight. Therefore if you currently weigh 200lbs then you should look to consume 200g of protein each day.“
This isn’t specific to the individual because the question was very general and there was no additional information to go on but I’d still give an actionable tip that is easy to implement.
Example question (detailed):
“Hello Simon, I’m struggling to feel my biceps working during a dedicated arm session. I currently do dumbbell curls, barbell curls and single arm cable curls but struggle to get a good pump, do you have any recommendations?“
^^ I’ve simplified this a little but It’s to demonstrate a clearly actionable response:
“Hi [insert name], while you are doing three different bicep exercises they are all performing the same basic movement which means they are targeting the bicep in the same way (though slightly tweaked) and through the same resistance/strength curve.
A standard bicep curl is going to feel most difficult at the mid range of the movement when lifting the weight. at the top and bottom of a standard curl there is much less tension on the bicep. The bicep is also made up of two heads with differing functions.
To target the lengthened portion of the movement (bottom when arms are hanging by your sides) you should look to add an incline dumbbell curl. Here the exercise is most difficult at the bottom of the exercise and you will therefore work the lengthened position more whilst also targeting the long head of the bicep.
To target the shortened portion of the movement (top of the curl) you should add a preacher or spider curl into your routine. Here the exercises are more difficult at the top of the exercise and you will therefore work the shortened range of motion while also targeting the short head of the bicep.“
As you can see this person has provided me with a bit more detail and context and therefore I can give a more detailed response.
I could have written 3,000 words on this alone but without giving a biology lesson the take away was to add incline dumbbell curls and preacher/spider curls into their routine which will have a noticeable impact if they have never worked these end range of motions for the biceps before.
Disclaimer
I am not a medical professional and any information that I provide is not to be taken as prescriptive advice or recommendations. The purpose of my content is for information and opinion purposes only.
You should not rely on anything contained within the site, and you should consult a physician licensed in your state in all matters relating to your health.
For further clarification please find this medical disclaimer page.