Tldr: If you train to maximize health and movement freedom, you will look good as a byproduct, therefore the focus should be on cardiovascular health, strength and mobility.

Most people start their fitness journey because they want to improve the way they look. For some, that means losing weight and for others, that means building muscle.

I’m no different. Before I became a personal trainer I spent about 8 years in the gym lifting weights just to build muscle. I ego lifted, I didn’t do any mobility training, and never even thought about cardio. I focused solely on the external muscle tissue people could see. This led to a dysfunctional, stiff body that had a bit of muscle, but also repeatedly tweaked its back, and had shoulder and knee pain.

Becoming a personal trainer forced me to learn more about health and fitness. I had already begun implementing some mobility work and training smarter myself, however working with clients revealed I needed to know much more if I wanted to help others avoid the same mistakes I made.

After years of research, seminars, and trial and error, I can confidently say I now use a much more complete system to train myself and others. This system does not focus on body composition, rather, it focuses on the anatomy of the human body and aims to maximize movement freedom in every way possible (yes, ultimately this leads to improved body composition).

You see, if you just focus on body composition, like standard training does, you are neglecting your joints and all of the deeper internal tissues of the body. Eventually the body accommodates to the patterned exercises you routinely do and your joints restrict themselves to become more efficient at the exercise. Unfortunately, real life is not lived through patterned exercises, which is why we want to shift the focus to the internal anatomy of the body instead. This way, we can create inputs to improve anything we want. Connective tissue, muscle tissue, slow twitch fibres, fast twitch fibres, speed of contractions, force absorption. These are things you can specifically train rather than hopping on a few machines 3-5 times a week and using limited tissues forever and ever. The kicker is, your body composition will head in the direction you want it to anyway.

This may make training sound more complicated, which is a good reason to start with a knowledgeable personal trainer, but the benefits are endless. You will set yourself up to make whatever adaptations you want, and your future old self will be sure to thank you.

Otherwise you can follow the herd down the path of standard training that ends in a dysfunctional, injury prone body that may look good, but surely doesn’t move well.

Let me be your guinea pig so you don’t have to make the same mistakes I did for almost a decade. If you’re interested in some life changing personal training or just have some questions about health and fitness, reach out to me here – Contact Tommy Kudoba Fitness – Personal Trainers Kitchener, ON