Hi, I’m Graham, a 44 year old husband and father of 3 with a lifelong passion for health and fitness.
Working out has always been more than a hobby to me but with a demanding career in investment banking as well as raising a young family, finding the time to fit in a daily session at the gym and maintain a healthy diet has required prioritisation, careful planning and more than a little sacrifice in order to try and maintain some element of balance in my life!
Impact of the Pandemic on my Training
Change in Outlook
I am a man of routine and the pandemic really disrupted my daily ritual of being on the train to London by 5.30am, heading straight to the gym to crank out some heavy lifting and at my desk just after 7.
When lockdown hit the UK I was following reaching my peak strength levels targeting –
- Deadlift 200kg
- Squat 150kg
- Bench Press 150kg
(note the lagging squat after years of neglecting leg training!!)
I was smashing 4000 calories a day and was my all time heaviest weight at just over 95kg which was huge for me as I find adding weight really difficult!
But then ….
- No structure
- No routine
- No gym
- Working from home
- Home schooling!
- 3 kids in the house all day!!
What shocked me was the speed at which lockdown impacted my physique, within 2-3 weeks my bodyweight had reverted to it’s natural level which seems to be 86kg.
I was still eating a decent amount but to lose all that progress in such a short time really highlighted how vulnerable the amateur fitness enthusiast can be to real life.
This led to me to re-calibrate my aims and objectives
My Training Objectives Set in 2022
Mission –
A structured approach to training that is both sustainable and practical for someone leading a demanding lifestyle. The aim is to achieve holistic fitness that provides longevity and ongoing wellbeing and compliments an active and enriched lifestyle!
Key Objectives
- Being in shape all year round
- Eating well and intuitively
- Balanced and Structured Training to include:
- Strength
- Endurance
- Mobility (another long since neglected area!)
- Wellbeing
- Fits alongside my broader lifestyle (family, friends, work, travel, holidays)
Some fun Training Milestones to achieve in 2022
- 20 Pull ups unbroken (about 40% of the way there)
- 1 Pistol Squat (not even close at the moment)
- Run a half marathon (never ran more than 5km) – ACHIEVED
- Get in the best shape of my life (not biggest !) ACHIEVED
Goals for this Blog
- To help other people like me to maintain a healthy lifestyle and to achieve their fitness goals
- Share my experiences and real life challenges, struggles and realities of juggling work / family / relationships and social pressures
- Provide resources to help people achieve their goals both in and out of they gym
- Design training routines and meal plans that I myself have been able to work around other competing factors
- Help other people by sharing my experience and lessons learnt over 2 decades of training
