Here at We Are Models we believe modelling should be a lifestyle, not just a career. We\u2019ve been talking a lot recently about health and nutrition, so we wanted to add a piece on fitness into the mix.<\/p>\n
When you\u2019re leading a busy life (as we know you all do!) finding time to exercise can be a challenge. How do you know where to start if you\u2019re not as fit as you could be? What types of exercise should you be doing? What if you just don\u2019t enjoy it?<\/p>\n
We caught up with Jordan James, a freelance personal trainer with a decade of experience in the fitness industry.<\/p>\n
Jordan has a wealth of experience to share, and his particular specialism is conditioning, meaning weight loss, muscle mass building and flexibility. He teaches numerous classes including core stability, body pump and boxing as well as his work as a PT.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what he had to say.<\/p>\n
WAM: Hi Jordan! Thanks for making time to have a chat. I know our model community are going to love hearing from you.<\/p>\n
Jordan: Hey! You\u2019re welcome. I could talk about health and fitness all day every day if I\u2019m honest, so it\u2019s no burden.<\/p>\n
WAM: First things first, then. Imagine I\u2019m a complete exercise novice\u2026 what should I actually be spending time doing?<\/p>\n
Jordan: Well, that\u2019s not really the first thing. The first thing I want to say is that exercise should be fun. It shouldn\u2019t be a chore \u2013 just something you \u2018should be doing\u2019. It\u2019s a lifestyle choice. It\u2019s about looking after your body and mind in the best possible way, not just exercising for the sake of exercising.<\/p>\n
fitness<\/p>\n
Fitness shouldn\u2019t be a chore. It\u2019s a lifestyle choice. It\u2019s about looking after your body and mind in the best possible way, not just exercising for the sake of exercising<\/p>\n
WAM: That makes sense. Recently we were chatting to one of our community members, Ewa. She\u2019s a dancer, model and sports nutritionist and she says the same thing: looking after yourself should be holistic.<\/p>\n
Jordan: Exactly that. I always say to my clients, diet is more than 50% of your training. It\u2019s about recognising that you can\u2019t do one thing in isolation \u2013 if you\u2019re not eating well, or you\u2019re not mentally in a good place, or you\u2019re not exercising \u2013 that will have an impact on all the other areas of your life.<\/p>\n
Good health starts in your head first, you know? It\u2019s about a commitment to putting yourself first.<\/p>\n
fitness<\/p>\n
[Source]<\/p>\n
Good health starts in your head first. It\u2019s about a commitment to putting yourself first<\/p>\n
WAM: And once you have that attitude, what type of exercise should you be doing?<\/p>\n
Jordan: Well, there\u2019s not \u2018one thing\u2019 you should do. The first thing is to find ways to make exercise fun, so you can build it into your lifestyle.<\/p>\n
I choose to do boxing instead of other cardio, for example, because that\u2019s what I enjoy. But you have to focus on what you don\u2019t enjoy too, because those are generally the areas you have to work on. People enjoy what they\u2019re good at, so take some time to work on the things you\u2019re not good at. Just find fun ways to do it.<\/p>\n
There are three areas that you should focus on though. They\u2019re a triangle, you can\u2019t do one without the other if you\u2019re properly looking after your body.<\/p>\n
The triangle is Cardio, Resistance and Flexibility.<\/p>\n
WAM: So we should be getting a balance of those three things?<\/p>\n
Jordan: Yes, exactly. People tend to be better at one part, which is what I mean about not just doing what you\u2019re good at.<\/p>\n
fitness<\/p>\n
[Source]<\/p>\n
You need to find a balance between cardio, resistance and flexibility training. They\u2019re three sides of a triangle \u2013 you can\u2019t do one without the other if you\u2019re looking after your body<\/p>\n
WAM: What happens if you don\u2019t do all three?<\/p>\n
Jordan: If you do too much cardio and no resistance training, you\u2019ll be much more open to injury. It\u2019s the stereotypical runner who won\u2019t stop running \u2013 but they often have knee, hip or lower back injuries because they\u2019re not building strength in those areas.<\/p>\n
If you do too much resistance with no cardio or flexibility you can get really restricted and build up muscle tension. You\u2019ll be less able to move freely, which is obviously a bad thing. Then if you do pure flexibility work, just yoga or something like that, you can make your tendons and joints weak so you need to do some resistance there.<\/p>\n
And if you\u2019re not doing enough cardio work, that\u2019s not healthy for your heart. Cardio is important to support everything, it\u2019s the base. Back when we were in school, we used to run around constantly \u2013 play. That was cardio, all the time. Then as adults we tend not to do enough. Cardio strengthens the heart, which helps pump more oxygen to the brain which helps energise you and in turn improves your mood.<\/p>\n
Basically you need to find a balance of activities, because of three of those areas are really important to being healthy overall.<\/p>\n
WAM: So, resistance training. That\u2019s an area that men tend to be more drawn to than women. I guess a lot of women are concerned about \u2018bulking up\u2019 by doing weights. What would you say to that?<\/p>\n
Jordan: It\u2019s a complete myth! You won\u2019t bulk up by doing resistance training, unless that\u2019s what you\u2019re actively trying to do. People who get \u2018big\u2019 have worked really hard to get there \u2013 it\u2019s not just going to happen by accident just because you started lifting weights.<\/p>\n
Commercial Modelling<\/p>\n
You won\u2019t bulk up just because you started lifting weights. It\u2019s about conditioning your muscles so you\u2019re fitter, stronger and healthier<\/p>\n
Resistance training can have different objectives. You might be trying to bulk up, or you might want to build strength, or build muscle endurance. My point is this \u2013 everyone should be doing strength training, and you\u2019re not going to bulk up unless you\u2019re working really hard with that specific goal in mind.<\/p>\n
Resistance training is about conditioning your muscles, which makes it a lot easier to do everything throughout the day. Not conditioning your muscles can lead to joint pain or back pain.<\/p>\n
WAM: Which brings us on to flexibility. Why\u2019s it important to work on being more flexible?<\/p>\n
Jordan: It comes back to exercise being a holistic thing. If you have relaxed muscles then you\u2019re got a relaxed body, a relaxed mind. If you\u2019ve got a lot of tension in your body, which happens when you\u2019re inflexible, you\u2019re not going to be relaxed mentally.<\/p>\n
fitness<\/p>\n
Exercise is a holistic thing. If you have relaxed muscles, you\u2019ve got a relaxed mind and you can perform better<\/p>\n
Basically tension in your body translates into aches and pains, which translate into you not being your best self.<\/p>\n
WAM: Are there any areas in particular we should work on, in terms of flexibility?<\/p>\n
Jordan: A lot of people end up with very tight hip flexors and hamstrings, which comes from sitting down a lot. You can get a weak lower back too. It\u2019s little things, like sitting with your lower back straight and rolling your shoulders back while you\u2019re working, if you work at a desk.<\/p>\n
I always recommend people stretch every day, even just five minutes in the morning. You might just do a hip stretch when you get up, for example. The key is to do something. We talk ourselves out of exercise really easily, if we make it seem big and overwhelming. Just five minutes, even two minutes. Everything you do helps.<\/p>\n
WAM: OK. Cardio, Flexibility, Resistance. Got it. Do you have any parting words to share with our We Are Models community?<\/p>\n
Jordan: I guess I\u2019d re-emphasise the most important thing is to do it for you. That really can\u2019t be said enough. I see a lot of people who say, I\u2019m training for this event, or getting ready for this holiday, and as soon as they\u2019ve reached that goal, they stop. Fitness isn\u2019t a means to an end \u2013 it\u2019s an end in itself. You should want to be healthier, for yourself.<\/p>\n
fitness<\/p>\n
[Source]
\nThe most important thing is to do it for you. Fitness isn\u2019t a means to an end \u2013 it\u2019s an end in itself<\/p>\n
WAM: Jordan, thank you so much. And where can we find you if we want to book personal training sessions with you?<\/p>\n
Jordan: I\u2019m based in West London, and I train with clients anywhere from private gyms to parks. There are always places you can train \u2013 I believe in getting outside and getting creative as much as possible, making fitness something you love and are inspired by.<\/p>\n
You can check out Jordan\u2019s website HERE, email him HERE or check out his Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
\nAlso this May Jordan is holding PT session for all of We Are Models Members, to find out more about these sessions. If you want to sign up for the membership you can do so here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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