So for the last 9 weeks you have read and listened to me blab on about “my personal trainer this” and “my personal trainer that”. I thought that it would be good to interview Jennifer, and she was happy to do so.

Jennifer holds qualifications with both the ACSM-American College of Sports Medicine and YMCA and has over 3 years experience personal training.

ANDREW: I know that you are very busy Jennifer, so thank you for your time. Let’s start with why you decided to become a personal trainer?

JENNIFER: I loved exercise and nutrition and had achieved the physic that I had always wanted so decided to help others to achieve what I had.

ANDREW: That’s a great reason, one that I think I’ll be following! So what path did you take to become a qualified personal trainer?

JENNIFER: I looked at many courses and did voluntary gym work for experience and then chose the course that suited me best.

ANDREW: that’s cool. As you have been a personal trainer for a while now for someone just starting out to reach a weight loss goal, what do you think their first step should be?

JENNIFER: Set realistic goals and am to achieve them. Once you have done this set new goals and work towards those until you find what works for you.

ANDREW: Yeah goals are important, and I believe that when they are written down they become solid! Try using the SMARTER Principle to outline your fitness/weight loss goals for success.

So someone has written down their goals and they have been at it for a few months what would you suggest to help keep them motivated for their fitness journey?

JENNIFER: A personal trainer ! Train with a friend, partner and work together, helping and pushing each other.

ANDREW: I couldn’t agree more, having someone else with similar goals and better yet to be accountable to.  It’s so easy to slack off when you are going it alone. Maybe you can’t find someone to workout with you try joining a fitness club or YES (invest) in a personal trainer!

Ok one last thing Jennifer; do you have a motto, experience or person that has inspired you, that drives you in life?

JENNIFER: If you don’t step out on the track, then you will never get hit by the train! Have a goal and constantly thrive to achieve it!

ANDREW: The train scares me, but I like the having goals and constantly thriving one! Ok Jennifer thanks again for taking the time for this interview, I really appreciate it.

Jennifer also has a running club for beginners, located in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland that will be starting up this month, March 15^th 2010  from 7-8pm every Monday and Thursday, if you would like to meet up with her and others then you can contact Jennifer directly on: 075 454 661 21 (UK mobile number).

So far this year I have been having great success with my fat blasting, working out with my personal trainer Jennifer Almiento from AlanStrachanPersonalTraining.com.  This has not only been helping me trim down but it’s also educating me for things to come.

At the start of the year I was planning to get myself ready for a summer triathlon, you know something to aim for and help keep me motivated.  I shelved this idea as the amount of CV workouts that I would need to do to increase my stamina and endurance would have a negative impact on my muscle growth.

Right now I have a balanced workout load of weight training and CV training; building muscle, for a fat burning metabolism and the CV to burn the fat, increase my endurance and keep my ticker…… well healthy and ticking!

My regular readers will know by now that it’s my ambition to become a personal trainer, so I decided what better motivation than to sign up for a personal training diploma, so that’s what I did.

This has been pushing me and keeping me moving on, especially since I have already paid my 10% deposit yep I was so brave when I was setting this up and had it finally done then two days later I started to sweat, and frighten myself

Right now, I am clocking in at 256lbs, with my 1st goal at 220lbs and my ultimate goal at 195lbs (I am 5 feet 11 inches), so I am aiming to get down to a minimum of 210-200lbs by August 23rd 2010 as that’s when the diploma starts.

It’s now March 4th, so I have 25 weeks (counting this week) to reach this goal, if I can keep on losing 2lbs per week, I should be trucking in at 206lbs, it’s doable, right?

Now I am not expecting to be the fittest person on campus by this time, but I don’t want have a shadow similar to that of a tank, so the game is on!  I also hope that I can lose a good amount of weight while on this course as I have heard if we’re not studying then we’re sweating it off in the gym, also the school will be providing our breakfast and dinners to keep our nutrition sharp.

So that’s it folks, I have lots to live up to this year; your comments and support are greatly appreciated and also give me that push forward, thanks!

You can check out PREMIER TRAINING; they are one of the best fitness education providers in the UK and recognized for their high standards worldwide!

The air was hot and sticky, the street lights buzzed and cars zipped passed.  I was already full of anticipation living in this foreign country, land, city.  Yep the beautiful city of Singapore.  I have only been here about 2 weeks now and part of the mission training is that we need to run 4 miles every morning (apart from our Monday, day off) at 5am.  Getting up at 5am doesn’t bother me, but I have never been a runner, I wonder how I’ll do?

I tip the scales at 238lbs, and I am 24 years old, and I am thinking will my legs hold? How will my heavy body hold out pounding away on the streets of Singapore, and with all this humidity sucking my energy away.

This was from my diary back in 2002 when I ventured off to Singapore, where I would join a missions team that would later head to Kalimantan (Borneo), Indonesia.  I did start running, and from what I remember it wasn’t easy at the start but I did get better.

At this time I didn’t have the knowledge about exercise and nutrition that I have now, so running the same 4 miles for 4 months gave me very little results in regards to weight loss.

Now, 8 years later and clocking in at a current 256lbs with a dodgy hip, I wanted to have those laser eye beams that superman has when my personal trainer said to me that we’ll start going for a run twice a week LOL

I have been running a week now and I have shaved 4 min & 49 seconds off my time, I am feeling that my endurance has gone up (still along way to go) and I have now got this itch that I can’t shake off, the itch to run!

Now If you ever see me running in the streets you probably wouldn’t think that I am enjoying my self (cross between a cow and a whoopie cushion) but on the inside I am loving the challenge that running is giving me. To push harder, to get further, to dig deeper!

So I am enjoying running…… I just thought that I’d share that with you guys

Don’t forget to check out AlanStrachanPersonalTraining.com