Getting Started and
Ongoing Advice & Guidance
Your personal Workout Welcome awaits….
Now that you are saying hello to the gym, it’s our mission to make this work for you and to deliver the results you want to see.
First and foremost we want you to enjoy and use the gym safely. Check out the brief but brilliant safety video
Every person who signs up to exercise in our gyms is different. Different exercise history, different exercise goals, different health concerns, different diet, different weight, different demands on their schedule…
Which is why your introduction to the gym and support package in these early weeks is tailor-made to suit your needs and your lifestyle. It’s a structured, difference-making, goal-driven, judgment-free way of supporting you – motivating you and maximising the benefits (and the joy) of exercise you’ll feel while you’re here. It takes hardly any time but can make the biggest difference.
Welcome to 16 and overs
Visit 1: Welcome to the Gym session
There can be a lot to take in when you first visit the gym, but we won’t overwhelm you with information and advice. It’s all about starting small, starting slow and starting to build your gym training programme.
On your first visit, you will be introduced to some of the equipment (we’ll demonstrate and observe), so you can understand not only how it works but why it might work for you.
This visit isn’t about target setting; we will do that on future visits. We are interested in what’s important to you in terms of physical activity and why you have joined. You will be given the opportunity to have some health readings and measurements taken.
25 minutes
Visit 2: More Moves session
By your second visit, we’ll be adding to your workout, bringing in new pieces of equipment and new moves and signposting to other activities such as group exercise classes or swimming that might support your goals and add to the fun.
Don’t forget to pick up your FREE water bottle or gym towel.
25 minutes
Visit 3: Get Going session
We’ll build on these initial steps and get you going with your schedule. It’s during these first few visits we’ll help you set targets and look at health and fitness goals. We’ll even suggest some great apps that could help you track your progress.
We’ll have a look at the way you have been using the equipment so far and offer advice on technique etc to make sure you get the most out of every workout.
If there are any other pieces of kit you would like to be introduced to, just let us know and we can easily add that to your programme. As always, we will give you step-by-step guidance on how to use the new additions to your schedule.
Halo Fitness Measures
We have a number of Fitness Measures so you can benchmark your current ability and help you demonstrate progress made. This process is all about you so you have the option of completing none, some or all of the measures. A qualified exercise professional will take you through these if you want to give them a go.
25 minutes
Visit 4: Check In session
We will be checking in during these early weeks to chat about the benefits you’re feeling and discuss how your routine might be refined. If you’re happy to have us retake some measurements (weight, heart rate, BMI etc) it will help you be sure you’re going in the right direction.
20 minutes
Visit 5: Graduation session
Graduate from this introductory period and pick up some FREEbie treats (T-shirt, personal training session, guest pass so you can bring a friend or family).
Enjoy a short review of your initial experience and the progress made. We’ll help you shape your work out schedule to suit your longer-term goals and to max the gym and other activities you’re enjoying most.
By now you’ll be on your way, and we aren’t going anywhere. You can ask for our help or advice whenever you visit, and we’ll check in at your three month mark to see how you’re doing and what we can do next to help.
25 minutes
Visit 6: Catchup session
Hey, you’ll have been a Halo member for almost 3 months at this catch up – a really useful review and reset session. We’d love to know how it’s been going.
Again with your consent, we can redo the earlier measurements and highlight what you’ve achieved over the past 12 weeks since you first said hello to . We can then help you set new goals and rewrite the programme to reflect these.
This might be the end of the gym welcome journey but we are always here with well done’s, keep going’s, great effort’s, looking good’s and other pearls of wisdom to keep you motivated and on track.
30-45 minutes
Fast Track Alternative
We passionately believe that our gym welcome journey helps you get the most out of your time in the gym. For experienced gym goers who may not need this level of input or support, we have made it very easy to bypass the majority of this process and fast track you into the gym; but we do ask that you understand the basic safety and housekeeping arrangements. Let us know at your first visit if you prefer this option.
Not a new member? Not a problem… This support structure is also on offer to existing members too.
Interested?
Booking your gym welcome session is easy, simply call us on 01432 842075 or book at reception.
Welcome to 12-15 year olds
We are now welcoming more and more teenagers like you to the gym, and they’re feeling the benefits – feeling great, making new mates, more confidence as well as growing fitter, faster and stronger. Starting well is essential and takes care. No shortcuts here but the paybacks are huge.
Session 1: Getting Started
There can be a lot to take in when you first visit the gym but we won’t overwhelm you with information and advice. It’s all about starting small, starting slow and starting to build your gym training programme.
You will be doing these introductory sessions in a group with other young people – a great way to make a gym buddy.
In session one, we can chat about why you’ve come to the gym and what you want out of it. This is a zero-judgement zone. So, your starting point (weight, fitness levels, sporting ability) is not an issue. What we’re interested in is your motivation for signing up, and ways we can help you have some fun and achieve your goals!
This is your time, so this session is your grown up free space (unless they are also members and using the gym themselves!) But we do need them to fill in a consent form – please make sure you have this completed and bring with you to this first session.
During this first 45-minute welcome session there’ll be a fun exercise class in the gym or the exercise studio with some other young people. You don’t need to be able to do much at this stage – remember it’s the start of the process.
While you are catching your breath, the fitness instructor will explain the gym rules so you know the best ways to have a fun and safe workout.
We’ll be guided by you. You’ll get to know us and the equipment.
45 minutes
Session 2: Onto the Equipment Day
In your second session, we’ll spend an hour or so touring the CV, resistance and free weights equipment and we’ll demonstrate how it all works. You can have a go so we can see you in action and refine your technique to max the fun and the benefits.
This is where we start to match your workout to workout goals. You can start to build your own programme now – a mix you’ll enjoy each time you visit.
60 minutes
Session 3: Graduation Day
Session three – around 45 minutes or more – will be when things get moving (literally) and you can test the training programme you’ve developed. We’ll be with you all the way, revisiting safety instructions if you need them, observing technique or helping you retry different machines if you want to add anything on.
Halo Fitness Measures
You will be given the opportunity to have some health readings taken. Along with the other young people in this session, you can also take part in some Fitness Measures so you can record your current ability. This process is all about you so you have the option of completing none, some or all of the measures. A qualified exercise professional will take you through these if you want to give them a go.
And then you’re off, ready for your first workout – with us on hand to give you any support you need.
Don’t forget to pick up your Certificate of Completion. We’d love to see you back in the gym again so if you want to join – go to reception and we can sign you up straight away.
45 minutes
Not a new member? Not a problem… This support structure is also on offer to existing members aged 12-15 too.
Interested?
Booking your gym welcome session is easy, simply call us on 01432 842075 or book at reception.
Halo Fitness Measures
These are offered to new customers during their welcome to the gym and also available to existing members on request. This process is all about you so you have the option of completing none, some or all of the measures. A qualified exercise professional will take you through these if you want to give them a go or if you are confident enough you can do them on your own or with a gym buddy.
At Halo we use four Fitness Measures but our qualified exercise professionals are free to use their own preferred measures too.
Level 1: Entry Level Walk Fitness Measure
We will introduce you to the treadmill and to a comfortable walking pace. Speed is not important, we will support you to walk until you are tired out or it starts to feel uncomfortable. The fitness instructor will keep a record of your speed and time. This benchmark data is your personal best and can be compared in future visits.
We encourage you to self measure each week and either:
- Increase the walking speed by 0.1 miles per hour each week while walking for the same time.
- Increase the duration of the walk by one minute each week, while leaving the speed unchanged.
This is a good introductory measure that, with appropriate follow up exercise, you should see significant improvements quickly after the first measure.
Level 2: Standard Five Minute Fitness Measure
We will introduce you to the treadmill and set the speed to 3.3 miles per hour (5.3 km per hour) with an incline of 0%. After each minute we will increase the incline by 1% (after four minutes you will be at 4% incline). At five minutes we will stop the treadmill and make a note of your heart rate. After ten seconds we will record your heart rate again.
Five minutes is a maximum guideline, if this is too much of a challenge to begin with, we will do as many minutes as you can comfortably manage.
Your heart rate recovery (HRR – the difference between the two heart rates measured) is a benchmark indicator of general cardiovascular fitness. This figure is your personal best and can be compared in future visits. Your challenge is to increase the HRR next time you are measured.
Level 3: The Chester Treadmill Walk Fitness Measure (CTT)
This is a progressive treadmill test of aerobic capacity. The treadmill speed will be set at 3.9 miles per hour (6.2 km per hour) for the duration of the measuring. The incline starts at 0% for the first two minutes, then increases by 3% every two minutes until a maximum of 12 minutes has elapsed.
12 minutes is the target, but if that is too much of a challenge to begin with, we will do as many minutes as you can comfortably manage. Your readings based on: time on treadmill, gradient of incline and your equivalent VO2 (which shows how much oxygen uptake is used when you’re doing intense exercise) are used to assign you a level. Our fitness instructor will explain your score. This figure is your personal best and can be compared in future visits.
Level 4: The Speed, Endurance & Core Strength Measure
This measure gives a benchmark for improvement of all over fitness. There are 3 parts to this measure:
- You can choose to either walk/run 400m on a treadmill or row 400m as fast as you can. We will make a note of your preferred activity and the time taken.
- Immediately followed by an eight minute circuit of 10 squats, 10 lunges (forward or back) and 10 press ups (any style is fine). Your Halo fitness instructor will encourage you to do as many reps as possible within the eight minutes.
- Finishing with a timed plank hold. We will stop the clock when your form and technique starts to deteriorate.
Once recovered, your Halo instructor will discuss your results, give you tips on maintaining good technique and provide the written record of the three measures. These figures are your personal bests and can be compared in future visits.