Strong, well developed muscles burn calories. Simple, yeah? Well then it should come as no surprise that the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you will burn. And if you burn more calories… you will lose body fat. Am I starting to speak your language yet?

Spinning, or more importantly cycling is not an adequate foundation of fitness due to a number of important and often unacknowledged reasons, yet many people are unaware of this. I aim to outline these reasons and perhaps persuade you not to waste another 45minutes being shouted at by a trainer who must be snorting cocaine to feign that level of enthusiasm for a fitness class.

Unfortunately there are too many coaches out there that are wedded in holy matrimony to a certain approach to training or nutrition, and divorce just doesn’t seem to be an option! This is the case for a minority of coaches out there, I thankfully admit, but my issue with this approach to training is that it is ideologically driven, rather than scientifically driven. It is driven by a coach’s preferred way of training for themselves, rather that what you, the client, require.

Throughout this article I will be discussing a number of typical fitness classes that take place in most Irish gyms, such as Les mills, kettlebells, Bodypump and circuit classes and a number of issues that often arise with clients who only train gym classes and do not partake in any other form of individualised training.

‘Appropriate footwear’ is footwear that is appropriate to the actions you are performing in the gym. Squatting, hinging, jumping, propelling? Sound simple, right? Apparently not. The next time you are in the gym, have a look at your fellow gym go-ers chosen forms of footwear. You will see a strange mix of battered, off-white Converse, neon Asics that would blind a bat, rejected Reeboks discovered at the bottom of a TK Maxx sale and even the odd pair of punk Vans. You would be forgiven for feeling unsure of what actually is the most appropriate type of footwear for the gym and your physicality. Under the presumption that everyone that is reading this is not a sport specific trainer, high end athlete and is simply attempting to improve their general health and fitness, the most appropriate type of footwear for you is the most minimal.

It has always seemed strange to me that those advocating bodily acceptance or discussing the dangers of body dysmorphia, are also the first to whip off their t-shirts at the first sign of a photo opportunity and post it immediately to social media. For anyone who legitimately is suffering with body dysmorphia, I can’t help but feel sorry for the confusing relationship that must be developed with these social media influencers who preach one thing but do the total opposite.