JakeDentonPT

  Do you struggle to stay motivated?   Do you find that you hit one minor bump in your goals and struggle to carry on?   Here we look at some psychological theories of motivation - and how they may apply to you.  There are four important theories of motivation. These are: Achievement Goal Orientation - Are we focused on mastery or the outcome? Attribution Theory - Are the factors that determine our successes and failures what motivates us? Self-Determination Theory - Are Intrinsic or Extrinsic factors our motivators? Need Achievement Theory - Are we focusing on achieving success or on avoiding 'failure'.    The Achievement Goal Orientation suggests that we are either motivated to become better ourselves (mastery) or by beating others (outcome). It argues that by focusing on improving ourselves we have better control of success and are therefore more motivated. By focusing on beating others we can easily give up, and make excuses, rather than control our suc...

Don't want to go to the gym? Don't worry! Outdoor training has a whole host of additional benefits for you! As the colder months and darker evening are drawing in, its all too easy to stay inside.    Except, it's probably more important to get outside more!     All through the warmer months, we spent hours outside, soaking up the sun. Then, in the colder months, we hide inside and suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder.    Yes! Seasonal Affective Disorder is real! According to the NHS, it is believed to be caused by a lack of sunlight. The sunlight we enjoy during the summer reduces our melatonin (known as the sleep hormone), and increases our serotonin (improves our mood).  By absorbing less sun, our melatonin levels increase, making us feel sleepy more, and our serotonin levels decrease, which can lead to feelings of depression. (To clarify, depression is a completely separate condition, and it is recommended to visit your GP if you feel depressed)....

  In a recent Twitter post, King Henry VIII said 'Don't believe everything you read on the internet, else you may lose your head'. Of course, that is not true. It does act as a prime example of how easy it is for something untrue to be shared on the internet. Within our current technological world, information can be spread around the world in a matter of moments. Obviously, this has some major advantages, including the ability for intelligence services to share intelligence, the ability of scientists to share data, and for me to share information with you, wherever you are in the world.    And there are disadvantages as well. As easy as it is for true information to be shared, false information can also be shared. This false information can be outright lies (like the texts I get from 'delivery companies' asking me to pay for redelivery), misleading (like the absolute best workout ever), or just misinterpreted (like a  gym buddy saying that cardio is bad for muscle ...

  How can we improve our performance? Obviously, we can train harder or train more. But what if we focused on the little things? The 1%'s. All to often, it is easy to get caught up with the big, grand gestures towards improving ourselves. We put in the extra hours and the extra effort, but is this really the most efficient use of our time?    Sometimes, the extra hours are needed to improve ourselves, but before we put in the extra hours next time, lets check the little things are all done.    The little things will vary based on what you are aiming to achieve. But, lets say, you want to improve your squat strength (or strength on any lift). The hours you put in squatting will improve your strength, but, there is a number of little things to get right first.  Firstly, technique. Correcting your technique will not make you instantly stronger, but it will ensure a more efficient movement. And if a movement is more efficient, you will waste less energy on the ...

  This article covers the top 8 tips I have found in my research to improve your longer, open water swimming speeds. Some of these tips may also be beneficial for shorter, sprint speeds and pool speeds.  A basic understanding of how the water acts upon our bodies when we are swimming is crucial for improving swimming. Some of the concepts may seem complex, although I will attempt to describe them as simply as possible, however the solutions are much easier to implement.  First of all, we need to be familiar with Netwon's Second Law: Force = Mass x Acceleration   This means that for a body of mass (in this case, you) to accelerate (move) you must be acted upon by forces. In the instance of swimming, the main forces are thrust and drag.    1) Drag  Drag is the force working against you. Within swimming, there is three types of drag acting upon us. These are: Pressure Drag, Friction Drag and Wave Drag.  Pressure Drag is caused by turbulent waters cre...