Celebrating 30 years of Total Fitness

September 2023 marked 30 years of Total Fitness, and to celebrate our milestone we shared 30 health and wellness tips across the 30 days – not to give you 30 new things to add to your daily routine, but to share a range of tips, advice, and health habits so that even just one slot in nicely to your regular routine.  

Bringing you the spaces and equipment you need to make the most out of your workout - we’re a big believer in lifelong fitness, and that it has the power to strengthen and bring richness as we move through life. Finding enjoyment in exercise is all about variety, keeping us energised and providing opportunities to grow, explore, and do more, whatever that means to you.

So here they are, our 30 health and wellness tips:

1. Some healthy competition can help keep you motivated

Whether this is against yourself, or a friend or family, some light-hearted competition can be a great motivator. A Personal Trainer can help you track and compete against yourself, or you can work out with a friend or family member and set small goals and challenges.

2. Aim for 30 reps to help endurance, strength, and muscle building

How many reps is right? When you start lifting weights, a common question is how many times do I need to lift it? Discover the combination of sets and reps you need depending on your goal in our blog ‘ ’.

3. Set small and realistic goals that you can build into your everyday routine

It's not about running marathons or lifting heavy weights; it's about finding an activity you enjoy and making it a part of your routine. Start small, stay consistent, and reap the incredible benefits of exercise for your mind and body.

4. Get outside

Just 30 minutes of sunlight can have such an impact on our wellbeing and Vitamin D levels. Walking to school with the kids, taking the dog out, or just parking further away from the office. As we approach those darker months, this is so important for our wellbeing.

5. New to using free-weights? A gym class can be the perfect way to learn new exercises to try

Whether it’s Body Pump, Boot Camp, Synergy 360 – we have a range of classes that use equipment that can build up your confidence to use them on the gym floor and outside of the class.

6. Workout with a friend

Exercising with a friend can be a powerful tool that can motivate you both to unlock new goals and areas of the gym you’ve been avoiding. Making plans to work out together creates a sense accountability, but is also a great way to stay social and connected too.

7. Track your progress

Wearable technology is a great way to track your activity and see your improvements week by week. A Personal Trainer can also be a great way of tracking your progress, and they’ll be able to support you and keep you motivated.

8. Avoid looking at digital screens for 30 mins before bed for more restful sleep

The electronic devices we use before bed can have an impact on the quality of our sleep as the blue light from our screen time depletes our melatonin.  Try turning off your devises and having a tech free bedtime routine to get a better more restful sleep.

9. Put on your gym kit first thing in the morning - especially on weekends.

You’re much less likely to skip a workout if you’re already dressed and ready for it. If you were to put your jeans on first thing in the morning – getting back into your gym clothes is just another barrier.

10. Stay Hydrated

Start your day with a glass of water before anything else.  It can boost your mood; help energise you and support overall wellbeing.

11. Prioritise recovery - Build it into your regular routine

Our blog on finding the best recovery workouts for you introduces the importance of ‘Active Rest’ days as well as helping you feel confident in your recovery exercises.

12. Improve your swimming technique with these easy to learn drills

Swimming is a great exercise that works the whole body. It’s low impact so increases the heart rate without adding stress to the body, but also helps build strength and endurance. Learn how to improve your technique using isolated exercises in the pool and take your strokes to the next level.

13. Exercise anywhere

The gym, At home, On holiday, Outside... literally anywhere.

14. Fuel your body to give you energy and support recovery

It’s important to fuel our bodies correctly as it all helps to support our body in the recovery process. If we’re starved of fuel you aren't going to have enough energy to make the most of your workout, and you’ll be adding additional stress to your body.

15. Create your own circuit to bring variety to your workout

Circuit training can be great for complete beginners right up to those advanced level fitness enthusiasts, all scaled to challenge you according to your individual goals and fitness level. We break down how to build your own circuit, whether it’s using the equipment in the gym or something you can do at home.

16. Rate your: Sleep, Hydration, Physical, and Mental state

The Stress Bucket is a great way to find out which exercises are best for you and your wellbeing – taking into consideration those 4 important factors.

17. Try something new

It's about finding ways to exercise and move your body that you enjoy

18. Avoid drinking coffee after 3pm

We’ve mentioned the importance of sleep on our wellbeing. There can be a host of reasons why you haven’t slept deeply – this could be alcohol related, coffee related, or even down to the electronic devices we use before bed. The two aspects of how you go to sleep and how you wake up are crucial to motivation.

19. Use swimming and heat treatments as a form of recovery

Swimming is a great low intensity recovery exercise. It allows the muscles and joints to heal without adding further stress to the body. Why not add in a dip into the Hydrotherapy pool after a strength session or combine hot and cold-water therapy using a cold shower with a few minutes in the sauna.

20. National Fitness Day – Your Health is for Life

This year's theme for National Fitness Day was ‘Your Health is for Life’ looking at the importance of fitness, exercise, nutrition, and wellbeing for all ages.

21. Build positive attitudes towards fitness in young people

It’s so important to set children up with a positive attitude towards their health and fitness from a young age. A lifelong love of exercises can have so many benefits and help both their physical, emotional, and psychological development.

22. Prioritise sleep

Set a consistent sleep schedule and stick to it, even on weekends.

23. Add in 30 second of High Intensity Intervals to your cardio routine

Short bursts of high intensity intervals are a great way to upgrade your cardio and increase your heart rate. It helps to burn more calories and get your body moving.

24. Switch up your strokes in the pool to work different muscle groups

If swimming is your preferred way of exercising, be sure to mix up your workout using different strokes to work more of your muscles. Each of the 4 strokes works different muscle groups and can change up the pace of your workout too.

25. Take time to focus on breathwork and slow down your heart rate

We’ve talked a lot about increasing your heartrate, now it’s time to decrease it. It’s important to take time out of your day to be still and focus on breathing exercises to help with overall wellbeing.

26. Exercises can be stress Inducing or Stress Reducing

Stress reducing exercises include things like Pilates, Swimming, and Walking. Stress inducing exercises are your higher intensity HIIT and Weightlifting routines.

27. Allow yourself to be flexible

Don’t feel the need to overcompensate if you miss a session. It can be too tempting if you miss a session in the gym to try and do double the next time you visit. But be kind to yourself and give yourself the space to ease back in so you aren't injuring yourself and causing unnecessary strain.

28. Combine swim and gym workouts to build strength, flexibility and endurance

Using both the gym and the swimming pool can take your workout routine to the next level. Mixing up your routine keeps it full of variety and can ensure you’re working a range of muscles avoiding injury. Keep swimmers will often complement their poolside training with gym workouts to help target specific muscle groups, whilst regular gym goers utilise swimming as a form of recovery. It’s a great mix of the two.

29. The gym is a place where you can go to fail.

The beauty of exercise is that it’s something you can do until you fail. Try for that extra rep or extra mile on the treadmill – even if you don’t reach it this time, it’s about those small incremental steps to improving your overall health and wellbeing.

30. Reward yourself

It’s about celebrating every win