011197f2

taking nutrition advice from Piers Morgan 😱

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 07:43:22 GMT

uffff

rustled a few feathers on the weekend with my email.

And subsequent IG video

��

(the whole ‘don’t get fat in the first place’ thing)

People didn’t like it ..

Because bad habits are difficult to undo.

Right?

By their very nature/definition..

‘habit’

It’s part of your lifestyle.

You’re better off not adopting them in the first place.

Best tip to stop smoking?
Don’t start in the first place.

Want to NOT be hooked on drugs?
Don’t take them initially.

Best way to be in shape?
Don’t get fat in the first place.

See what I mean?

But our relationship with food is a complicated one ..

It’s far from straightforward.

We eat when we’re happy (celebrating)

We eat when we’re sad (comfort food)

When we’re stressed (stress eating)

When we’re bored (mindlessly going through a big pack of milk chocolate digestives)

��

It’s complicated.

>> but the solution is straightforward <<

And that’s where a lot of us go wrong.

Nutrition is so simple & straightforward.

Sometimes ..

I honestly don’t even know how nutritionists are even a thing.

As Piers Morgan famously said:

(the best way to lose weight is ..)

“Eat less food & do more exercise”

Happy Tuesday ��✌️

Harry

this one hits hard .. 🤯

Sun, 25 Feb 2024 09:08:12 GMT

You know what THE best tip for being in shape is?

The number one thing.

That will guarantee you stay in tip-top physical condition.

Mostly forever

Which actually ..

Maybe gives you one of the biggest bang for your buck returns on life quality.

When you actually think about it.

Maybe more than more money.

After you’ve had your basic needs met.

Going to be pretty honest here ..

The tip ..

is not getting out of shape in the first place

Yup.

Brutal isn’t it ��

If you’re reading this & you’re out of shape.

Then you can’t do Plan A.

It’ll have to be Plan B.

Exactly the conversation I had with someone this week.

If you never allow yourself to get out of shape ..

You’ll never have to experience the difficult journey to get back to fitness.

Which is tough.

And it’s such a difficult pill to swallow.

We can’t turn back time ��

How often do you see young fat kids out & about?

Quite a few times no?

Especially now.

20 or so years ago.

Probably not as much.

But if my local KFC is anything to go by ..

uffffff.

And damn ..

Those kids will have it tough.

If they ever want to be in great physical shape.

They’ll have to work pretty damn hard later on in life to get back to it.

(not very PG of me of course..)

But it’s the parents’ fault, not the kids.

And look.

It’s not easy staying in shape either.

It requires effort, willpower, determination ..

You name it.

But it’s a HELL of a lot easier staying in shape.

Then trying to get back into shape.

Happy Sunday ✌️

Harry

"only got time for a quickie today" 😏

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 06:34:38 GMT

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Need your thoughts on this one .. 🤠

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 06:23:53 GMT

So there’s a guy that comes to the gym atm.

And from what I can see ..

(I could be wrong here btw)

It looks like he literally comes in for 5 minutes.

Does 1 or 2 sets of pull-ups

2 sets of pec dec

Something like that.

Then leaves.

No exaggeration.

He doesn’t put his bag in the changing room.

So I literally see him coming in & out of the gym in 5 or so mins.

And it’s an interesting one

Which I want your opinion on.

(reply to this and let me know)

Are we team

“Something is better than nothing .. even doing a 2-minute workout is better than nothing at all”

in which case this guy’s ‘workout’ is sensible, justified, on the right lines etc

Are we team

“C’mon .. if you can only spare 5 minutes each day for your training .. you need to reassess your priorities a bit”

because what can you honestly get done in 5 minutes ..?

I spend more time picking the playlist I want to listen to ��

It’s a tricky one for me.

I’m tempted to go with the latter.

Although I do agree with the former too.

.. there is a relatively high FIXED cost in coming to the gym anyway ..

Right?

You get a lot of the faffing involved whether you’re doing a 5-minute workout.

Or a 2-hour workout.

So you MAY as well make it an efficient use of time.

And train for at least .. what ..

30 minutes as a minimum?

Hell .. it takes me 5 minutes to just warm up / get my head in the zone for training.

I know it does for my clients too.

Instead of leaving the gym straight after you’ve got ready for training.

Hit me up with your thoughts pls ��

Have a great Monday too.

Harry

My posts never get much likes anymore .. 😩

Sat, 17 Feb 2024 06:19:37 GMT

People do crazy things for attention these days.

Especially online.

We’re in the middle of the whole “do anything to get views” era.

And it makes it difficult to figure out what is actually real.

And what is just staged/set up for the video.

Like those “I surprised my husband/wife/friend” type videos.

We’ve all seen.

Which, most of the time.

Are hilarious.

But then you realise.

There are multiple cameras in the same room rolling ��

With the perfect lighting & setup.

And you realise it’s just staged.

But it’s been liked by 3m+ people.

So they’re winning.

You know what else falls into this category?

Workouts

The ones you see on Instagram / YouTube.

The more different

Out there

Funky

The exercises are ..

The more attention it gets.

You know what doesn’t get anywhere near as much attention?

The bread & butter basics ..

Consistency doing the same exercises week in week out

Progressive overload

Rotating through the same 2-4 movements for each body part

That sh*t doesn’t look sexy on Instagram.

It doesn’t get the cray attention.

Unlike some of the other stuff you see on there.

And you know what the funny thing is ..

Fate loves irony.

And the mega fit / in-shape people doing these stupid workouts.

For views.

Actually got their physique in the first place by doing the boring stuff they would never post about because it doesn’t get any traction

(read that again)

��

Mad when you think about it like that.

Anyhow - off to the gym.

Cya ✌️

Harry

well well well .. yup I get these DMs .. 😏

Fri, 16 Feb 2024 06:15:47 GMT

What seems completely unattainable for some ..

Is easily attainable for others.

In many facets of life.

Not always.

But often the time.

Let me give you an example.

Body composition related of course ..

So whenever I post some sort of half-naked ‘physique update’ on my Instagram.

I always get the same comments.

(from ONLY guys obviously .. those memes are 100% true��)

Things like:

“how do you stay that lean all the time”

“was this an old photo or recently?!”

“that’s too lean, you need to eat something”

no capping here btw.

I do genuinely get comments like this on almost all of them.

And yeah sure ..

Some of it comes down to good lighting

Me knowing my best angles

Some flexing

But you know what?

Given my lifestyle

My job

Where I am all-day

The habits I have ingrained into my daily routine

.. it’s actually not too difficult to maintain a lean-ish physique (with abs) year-round.

Right?

I mean ..

If I didn’t maintain a decent level of body fat condition.

Then I’m in the wrong industry.

Whereas if I had an office-based job ..

Wasn’t in the gym all-day

Had 2 young kids

Wasn’t able to go to bed at 9 pm most nights

Had to eat & drink out to ‘entertain clients’ etc

Then I’d probably find it impossible to maintain this level of condition.

Maybe only getting there for a week or so after a prolonged period of dieting.

Who knows.

Maybe that’ll happen to me in the future ��

So moral of the story.

Don’t let others drag you down to their level ✌️✌️

Harry

If your PT does this .. get a new one 😱

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 06:27:17 GMT

Had to get this one off my chest this morning.

Because I see it so often.

Almost every day.

Some PTs stiiiiiil putting their clients on the treadmill.

For the first 5-10 minutes of a paid session.

Client parts ways with hard-earned net cash ..

.. Just for the trainer to spend a good chunk of session time %

Walking on a treadmill.

And get this ..

Those same clients.

Probably took longer to walk to the gym from the office

And probably at a faster pace too.

Everyone walks fast in London.

Especially when you have places to be.

So technically ..

The 5-minute moderate walk on the treadmill is most likely.

A cool-down rather than a warm-up ��

I mean c’mon.

The fitness industry has moved on from 2011 ..

Hasn’t it?

I get all my clients to do a warm-up.

Sure.

Everyone needs to do one.

Myself included.

But it’s not on the treadmill.

They’re exercise-specific isometric contractions

Which hugely IMPROVE how your body/muscles work before training.

More range of movement

More stability

Better contractions

etc

You don’t get any of that from walking on a treadmill.

Especially if you walked 5 minutes to get to the gym in the first place.

Rant over ��

Harry

Had this idea in the shower last night .. 😈

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 08:30:44 GMT

So this is just a thought.

Something to throw out there.

While we’re about to attack Wednesday.

I think one of the reasons IF seems to work ‘well’ for fat loss.

Thinking about it from a logical/practical perspective.

Is that going for relatively long periods without eating at all is a good thing.

Snacking/grazing is the calorie deficit destroyer

For a number of reasons

It’s usually uncontrolled

It’s usually done unintentionally / almost subconsciously

The food choices are energy-dense

You can’t even remember what you’ve eaten half the time

Even I’ve done it before.

Demolished a whole pack of ‘something’ whilst watching a movie at 10 pm.

Without even thinking about it.

Just mindlessly grazing.

So eliminating that to a large extent.

Is going to make it a lot EASIER for you to stick to a deficit.

Difficult to eat in a big surplus consistently.

If you’re only having 2x clean-ish meals a day.

With no snacking in between.

As opposed to 2x main meals.

With about 9 snacks in between them.

See what I mean?

>>

I don’t personally do IF.

But if you look at the timing of my meals each day.

I spend a large portion of the day/night.. not eating

4.30 am breakfast

7.5h gap

12ish lunch

6h gap

6ish dinner

10.5h gap

So I’m doing 3x meals.

But they’re pretty spread out.

It’s sort of like doing a semi-IF.

Because I just don’t snack that much.

Food for thought ✌️

Harry

What goes down at 5.52am at the gym .. 👀

Tue, 13 Feb 2024 09:19:20 GMT

So have an interesting story for you this morning.

Happened last week.

There’s this ’new guy’ at the gym.

Who trains either on his own.

Or with one of his mates.

Sort of in shape

Not super lean

You know those tradesmen / manual labourers who clearly have a lot of muscle.

And are pretty strong.

But don’t have the shape of like a Mens Physique Bodybuilder.

You know the kinda person I’m talking about?

He trains pretty hard

Makes a LOT of noise

Attracts attention to himself

Sweats a ton

etc

Does his WHOLE workout on the Smith machine basically.

Or in and around it.

Again .. nothing unusual about any of this tbh.

This isn’t the main bit of the story ..

The funny thing.

He had other members coming up to him afterwards ��

In the changing room.

Asking for his workout routine

How long he’s been training for
How great it looks

How difficult it was etc

I was walking past like ��

And for me ..

It’s such an interesting thing to observe.

/ establish why people were so intrigued.

I rarely / ever get people coming up to me and asking for my routine.

But I probably train the opposite to this guy.

My conclusion is:

Us humans are attracted to new, shiny, fancy objects.

That potentially offer us something better than what we’re used to.

And this guy’s training style ..

Represented that.

Rightly or wrongly.

What are your thoughts?

Would you have asked him for his training routine?! ��

Let me know.

Harry

Not the wake up call I was expecting .. 👀

Sun, 11 Feb 2024 13:01:19 GMT

I wasn’t feeling 100% up for training hard yesterday.

Something just didn’t feel right ..

You know when you get that feeling?

Had a cr*p night's sleep

Ate lots of ‘bad’ food the day before

Just didn’t feel like I usually do

But I was going into the gym anyway for clients ..

Had an hour to spare.

So I thought I might as well do something.

(seems such a waste not to train if you go to the gym IMHO)

.. and I usually hate this expression.

It’s overused & doesn’t make much sense.

BUT

I’d probably call what I did a ‘recovery’ session.

Nothing taxing at all

No big compounds

Only small muscle groups

I actually used it as an opportunity to do some of these exercises ..

That are usually difficult to fit into a regular training program.

Things like

Lateral flexion

A side bend on the cable machine, basically

Works the obliques

External/internal rotation

With a cable again

Both ways (in & out)

Spine extension

I sometimes tag this at the end of my pull sessions when I have time

Basically inverse crunch on the back extension machine

And you know what?

A - it felt really good doing these ..

Wasn’t that difficult overall

But was able to train these smaller muscles well

These smaller muscle groups play a big role in how your body functions

Injury prevention etc

And B - woke up this morning all good ..

Much better than yesterday

.. Until I had to start clearing up the dog’s ‘accident’ at 6 am ��

Which involved plenty of scrubbing ..

Good job I did those internal/external rotations yesterday at the gym ..

��

Hope you’re having a great Sunday

Harry

Stories from Tuesday's pub quiz ..

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 08:37:27 GMT

So as you would expect ..

I end up having some interesting conversations with my clients.

(some are not email-appropriate ��)

In rest periods.

Especially at the start of the session

Where you’re doing your bigger compound lifts
And resting for longer

Today’s interesting topic was ->

Processed VS unprocessed food

It actually started off as a sugar debate.

Should you avoid it or no.

Is it even bad ..?

etc

And we successfully debunked that one.

Coming to the conclusion that sugar isn’t really the devil.

It’s probably just over-consumed by largely inactive people

It is your body's primary energy source though ..

And seeing as all carbohydrates you digest are converted into it (glucose).

It shouldn’t carry a danger warning sign ..

But on the whole you should avoid processed food.

And have MOST of your daily food intake coming from whole sources.

A pretty sensible approach/conclusion.

But here’s the kicker.

Food choices are CONTEXT dependent.

You need to look at the bigger picture to see what food options are best.

A couple of examples.

->> Tracy from Manchester

Who’s 5ft 4, weighs 90kg and does 2,000 steps a day on average ..

Needs to opt for more salads in her diet.

Rather than junk food

Right?

On the other hand ..

->> When Mountain Rescue in Tignes come to the aid of Steve

Who’s been stuck on the side of the mountain overnight in sub-zero temperatures.

Having not eaten or drunk anything in 24 hours ..

(intermittent fasting)

They’ll give him a mega high-calorie meal ASAP.

Probably containing junk food & a whole other load of supposed ‘crap’ ..

Which will save him.

In that case .. a salad is not a good option for poor Steve ��

See what I mean?

Processed food/junk food ..

Whatever you want to label it as.

Still has its place.

Just not advisable to consume in large quantities on a regular basis.

Unless you’re someone who has insanely high-calorie requirements ..

(think endurance athletes, manual labourers, personal trainers etc)

Have a good one ��

Harry

Waking up having already done 9,723 steps 🤩

Sun, 04 Feb 2024 15:35:00 GMT

So I inadvertently reversed my internal body clock last night.

/ this morning.

Completely.

Left my flat at about 9 pm last night.

(my usual bedtime)

Heading into Central for a friends bday party.

Felt so odd going out that late.

Won’t lie.

And then got back in at around 4.30 am ��

(just after I usually wake up)

lol.

Birds singing
Roads deserted

So I got about 3 hours sleep.

Then dragged myself out of bed at 8 am.

My Oura ring didn’t even register my ‘sleep’ I don’t think.

It just asked me if I had a 90-minute nap ��

Before telling me that I haven’t recovered ..

From anything.

I’m hoping that when the bedtime comes around tonight.

I’ll be knackered.

So I can try and fix the utter mess that I created for myself.

Won’t lie.

The funniest thing.

Was my doggie giving me THE biggest bombastic side eye when I got in this morning.

“errrrr where the **** have you been?!”

Before I told her we’re actually going to bed now ��

At least I can laugh about it.

Because as you probably know.

This kind of thing never usually happens.

And on another side note.

I actually bumped into an email subscriber on the dance floor last night.

Small world ��

Happy Sunday.

Harry

A Quiet Night Inn .. 🤠😈

Wed, 31 Jan 2024 08:26:33 GMT

Did a pub quiz last night.

First time in forever.

v good fun.

It’s every Tuesday at 7.30 pm.

Might make it a regular thing.

Because it’s going out.

But not out out ..

Some of the questions tho ��

The riddle-style ones ..

Were crazy difficult.

We came 2nd last (lol)

But I reckon some of the other teams were using Google.

Bcos there is no wayyyyy they got some of those hard-to-get questions right.

Impossible I think.

I told myself I wouldn’t drink either ..

(oh dear)

Tuesday night

Have a busy week

Want to prioritise my sleep atm

Rather than boozing it up.

Just not the right call I don’t think ..

And to my surprise.

When me & doggie turn up.

My friends weren’t drinking either ��

So we just had a few diet cokes whilst trying to work out some of these questions.

Very easy.

Rock & roll.

“Tell me you’re in your 30s, without telling me you’re in your 30s”

Something like that ��

So I got a couple of hours less sleep last night than usual.

But things could have been a lot worse.

If I had a couple of pints as well.

So I think overall.

A win.

For the whole fitness/life balance thing.

-> That’s what it’s all about <-

You manage trade-offs depending on where you are in your journey.

Your priorities

Your habits

Your schedule

And do the best you can with the tools you have.

Now I’m off to train legs - wish me luck ��‍��

Harry

What goes on holiday .. 😮‍💨

Sat, 27 Jan 2024 10:20:03 GMT

Bit of a break from tradition this morning.

Going to talk about numbers.

One of my clients just sent me a screenshot of her ‘stats’ from a big walk she did.

On holiday.

Snowshoeing.

Right - here they are

———

14.12km walked

725m elevation gain

6h 44min elapsed time

Average outside temp 22º

(and get this next one..)

Calories burned 1,980kcal

Lol.

—

So 7 hours of snowshoeing.

Hard work.

Uphill.

For basically a whole working day (8 hours)

To burn off a main course Sunday pub lunch roast.

Or a starter and a dessert.

Moral of the story.

The ‘using exercise to burn calories’ game is impossible to win.

i m p o s s i b l e.

It’s such a stupid game to play honestly.

That if you try doing it.

You’re completely wasting your time.

“But my friend does a lot of exercise and can eat whatever they like & they don’t put on weight”

-> Bullsh*t

They DO put on weight if they overeat.

Like everyone.

The laws of energy balance govern every human on this planet.

Your friend isn’t an exception.

They A) just don’t tell you about it every time the scale moves

(who does that btw..? If the scale goes up 500g, they instantly tell their closest friends they’ve put on weight? I don’t think so)

or B) you can’t really tell if someone puts on 2-3kg.

How could you?

Unless it’s your other half and you see them naked a lot.

It’s impossible to tell when someone’s wearing clothes.

Only when it gets to 5, 10kg etc it might be noticeable.

—

“I just did a 40-minute spin class & burnt 500kcal”

-> No you didn’t

More like 50kcal on top of what you would have already burned.

If 7 hours of uphill walking in the snow = 2,000kcal

45 minutes of spinning is not even 10% of that.

Have a great weekend ��

Harry

I might have to kick her out of bed if this carries on .. 😱

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 07:54:14 GMT

So recently my sleep has been completely cr*p.

Not sure why.

I fall asleep pretty easily.

But I’m tossing & turning like crazyyy in the night.

No idea why.

Super annoying tbh.

—

Sleep is a tricky one.

Because so much of it is OUT of our control.

i.e, you don’t purposely wake up in the middle of the night

So for a large portion of sleep quality/quantity..

You can’t do much.

Bummer eh?

But there are some things you CAN do.

Variables you do control.

So here’s what I do / I’m going to do.

To try and make my sleep better:

-> Massively reduce my caffeine intake

I’m pretty conscious about this anyway.

Not having coffees after midday.

And limiting my intake to usually 2.

But right now .. I’m going down to 1x coffee a day in the morning.

That’s it.

It’ll be painful to start ..

but you gotta do what you gotta do.

-> Tire myself out in the day

You sleep better after a day of high physical exertion.

Simple.

So I’m going to train extra hard.

And do extra steps.

(not quite cardio .. I’m not there yet ��)

So hopefully.

When 9pm swings by.

I’ll be even more zonked than usual.

-> Not use my phone in bed

I’m in bad habits with this atm.

Like a lot of us.

Replying to texts

Emails I’ve missed

Watching funny reels people have sent me

Doing a few more Duolingo lessons

I’m going to stop all that.

And read my book in bed instead.

(boring I know)

-> Physically get into bed earlier

Ohhh this is a good one.

As early as I can.

I’m going to bed.

So I’ll have to park the Netflix series I’m watching at the moment.

Until the weekend at least

(this one I’m watching atm in Spanish is sooo good ��)

My sleep/health is more important.

-> Don’t eat too much for my last meal

So after you eat a lot (mainly carbs) your body releases serotonin.

Which makes you feel sleepy afterwards.

But if the meal is too big.

Then your digestion is all messed up overnight.

So there is a sweet spot.

I’m going to have a medium-sized dinner.

And not have my usual dessert ‘treat’ afterwards ��

—

With any luck - these things should all help.

✌️✌️

Harry

The dark art of losing body fat 🤑😈

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 06:39:39 GMT

I come up with my best lessons/quotes when I’m not even trying.

Randomly having a conversation with someone.

Sometimes (mostly actually) not even fitness related.

Then boom.

I accidentally & inadvertently come out with a golden nugget.

Which solves the alcohol vs getting in shape conundrum once and for all.

��

My clients do exactly the same.

While we’re talking in our rest periods.

Here’s one from yesterday.

Talking about fat loss with one of my new clients

“At least I now know it’s not a dark art/luck - it’s about accountability and detail”

Wow.

I love this.

It’s so bang on the money.

Unless you have 1 in 50,000,000 body composition genetics.

Like those people, you see aged 15 who have the muscle mass of a highly trained 30-year-old.

Getting in shape requires accountability, detail & consistency.

Those are the main ingredients.

Not:

-> Taking a fat burner before your training sessions

-> Deciding to ‘try’ Intermittent Fasting for 3 days during the week before bingeing on the weekend

-> Skipping / shadowboxing boxing in-between your sets of barbell deadlifts

You get the idea.

There will, however.

Be people who do all those things (skipping, fat burners etc)

Who are in INCREDIBLE shape.

But they are IN SPITE of doing all that rubbish.

Rather than BECAUSE of it.

It’s a bit like money.

Sure.

There are some people out there who get lucky & make a lot of money.

Quickly with little / no effort.

-> Lottery winners

-> People who inherit a big estate

-> Boomers who bought houses in London in the early 90s

But these are the outliers.

Most of us will have to work hard for our money.

And it’s exactly the same with body composition.

Peace out ✌️✌️

Harry

Would you believe these too ..?! 🤭

Sun, 21 Jan 2024 18:38:28 GMT

What a Sunday so far.

A morning of relaxed chores.

/ life admin jobs.

2h walk around the RBKC.

(thankfully no rain)

Roast lunch at the pub.

Followed by tea & a nap at home afterwards.

Living the dream ��

Now about to tuck into some Spanish homework after writing this.

The calories on some Sunday roasts still blow me away.

My friend said there was no way they were accurate ..

He couldn’t believe it.

How can such a small dish be so many calories ��

He was manually putting the ingredients into Myfitnesspal ..

Rather than trusting the menu.

I’ll give you an idea ->

650kcal starter (scallops)

1,800kcal for roast chicken

900kcal for the chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream (lol)

That’s 3,350kcal in total.

And that’s with Diet Coke's.

Rather than proper drinks.

Pretty insane.

—

And you know what ..

I reckon those numbers are accurate.

Scarily.

Because most of the calories in something like a Sunday roast are completely hidden.

You can’t see them or ‘feel’ them.

Butter & oil.

Everything is cooked in it.

And while you don’t consume absolutely every single drop of food on your plate.

(you’ll always leave something unless you’re literally licking it off ..

which no one does)

The numbers are pretty shocking.

So safe to say.

No dinner for me tonight.

And I’ll probably be able to do some Intermittent Fasting tomorrow morning too ��

Have a good one.

Harry

.. yeah you might need to change your training 😩

Fri, 19 Jan 2024 11:51:26 GMT

So as you would expect.

Some of my clients have injuries.

Major & minor.

Long-term ones.

And short-term ones.

Like everyone does.

Nothing new there.

No one has a completely 100% clean bill of health.

A bit like me.

I have my niggles.

So you adapt what you do to work around your ‘injuries’.

That’s part of training.

Now ..

Another part of training boils down to RISK v REWARD.

Some exercises carry a higher risk of injury than others.

They’re not all created equal.

I’ll give you an example.

It’s unlikely you’ll injure yourself doing a Seated DB Bicep Curl.

There is a chance.

But it’s probably a 1/10.

You’re sat down

Super stable

1 joint moving

Small muscle group

Nothing bad is going to happen ..

Compare that to a Standing BB Overhead Shoulder Press ..

Which probably carries a risk rating of maybe 7+/10.

You’re stood up

Barbell above your head

Super unstable

Lots of joints & muscles involved in the movement

Things could go badly wrong ..

Doesn’t mean you should never do the latter.

But you should know what you’re doing beforehand.

And really have your technique down.

For regular gym goers ..

(i.e, not professional athletes that have $10m p/a contract with Nike)

There is literally no point in doing high-risk exercises

None - whatsoever.

The reward just isn’t high enough.

No exercise carries that much reward.

It’s just a movement.

Even if there was an exercise out there which GUARANTEED you to build an extra +1 kilo of muscle each month.

And an extra £5k in your pocket every month.

But had a 10/10 risk profile.

Even more than the standing bb shoulder press.

.. not worth it.

You’re in the gym to train your muscles.

Get stronger.

Improve how your body operates.

And you want to be able to do that forever ..

So choose low-risk exercises when you train.

Happy Friday ��

Harry

read this if you've ever been in a sauna before .. 🤭

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 08:23:57 GMT

Thought I’d debunk a common myth for you this morning.

The whole hot/cold thing.

Because I overheard someone talking about it yesterday ..

But first for a story.

Semi-related..

So I saw a bloke walking out of a coffee shop yesterday morning.

With an iced americano ��

I wonder what kind of reaction he got from the Barista when he ordered that.

I reckon he had to repeat himself at least twice.

I mean c’mon.

-4º outside.

You’re paying almost £4 for a normal coffee

(still can’t get my head around that btw .. seeing as it’s all margin anyway)

You’d get one to warm you up.

Surely?

Or maybe ..

This guy was onto something.

Going against the crowd.

The coffee version of doing an ice bath.

Who knows.

All I know is that his coffee would have stayed chilly for a while ��

Back to the cold thing ..

You burn MORE energy when it’s colder outside.

Rather than hotter

So when people get in the steam room/sauna.

Claiming that it helps to burn more calories ..

Nahhhhhh

Doesn’t work like that.

Head out in the cold instead.

You burn more calories that way.

My doggie is more hungry in the winter months when it’s cold outside.

Then she is in summer when it’s hot.

Adios ��

Harry

not a paid add 🤑

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 07:27:11 GMT

A client yesterday asked me whether those fancy scales are worth using.

You know ..

The ones that track not only your body weight.

But also your muscle mass, fluid levels etc.

I’m not a scientist.

A technician.

I’m not even a body weight expert ..

But I don’t understand the mechanism those scales have.

That can give you a muscle mass & fluid level reading.

Just by standing on it.

(if anyone does btw, reply to this & let me know)

So chances are, it’s going to be pretty inaccurate.

And not a reliable source of information.

The batteries also drain about 100x quicker than regular scales.

No joke.

You’ll be needing new batteries every few months.

Compared to the OG Salter bathroom scales.

That need a change every decade.

I’ve also heard stories of those scales giving very funky readings.

Some days the readings are all off.

Old school is sometimes better than new tech

Definitely the case when it comes to bathroom scales.

BUT ..

(always a but)

Let’s say for instance.

That I did actually give you totally accurate muscle mass readings.

And also able to tell you exactly your body's water % level.

Every time.

Day in day out.

Armed with that information ..

Would it change anything you do with your training, diet & lifestyle..?

Genuinely.

Take the muscle-building part.

-> We’re all trying to build as much muscle anyway.

.. aren’t we?

(If you’re not, you should)

Trying to hit the gym as much as realistically possible

Doing the correct exercises

Pushing hard in our sets

We’re already doing that.

You don’t need a scale to tell you.

-> We’re also drinking enough water each day ..

aren’t we?

Water intake is the lowest-hanging fruit there is in fitness.

If you need an app or scale to tell you to consume more regularly ..

You get my point (hopefully).

Stick with the basic scales ��

Harry

ngl some sun would be nice right now .. 🤩

Mon, 15 Jan 2024 17:07:15 GMT

So you know when influencers go on holiday.

��

Or a “work trip” as they like to call them.

/ categorised on their personal tax return.

Seemingly every week some of them.

With captions like:

“This is living”

“My best life”

Or something along those lines.

It got me thinking ..

The day-to-day is also living.

The mundane things we all do each day ..

Chores

Tidying up

Running around after kids

Walking dogs

Work (lol)

It doesn’t make sense to not enjoy 300 days of the year.

Just to enjoy the remaining 65 you spend on holiday.

And honestly?

That’s probably what the influencers do.

Don’t be like them ��

But ..

This is sooooooo like getting in shape.

Your best fitness moments are when you’re travelling along the journey.

You’re making progress.

Not there at your final destination yet.

But you’re on a roll.

Small wins here & there.

Maybe you hit a small 1.25kg PB on an exercise

Maybe you lose that 100g that tips the scales past a certain point

Maybe it’s a total stranger telling you you look in good shape

It’s never arriving at the ‘final destination’.

.. The fitness equivalent of a 10-day winter break in Dubai.

While it’s -2º back in the UK.

(it does sound tempting ��)

But you get what I’m trying to say here.

Enjoy the now.

The process.

Don’t get too fixated on that end goal.

Whatever it may be for you.

Because it’s probably not all it’s cracked up to be when you get there anyway.

��

Harry

Settling this debate once & for all .. 😏

Sun, 14 Jan 2024 16:30:55 GMT

Ever find that you’re super sore after some of your workouts?

But sometimes not in others?

Hear this.

I trained at a different gym yesterday.

The north London bodybuilding one.

For my weekly leg session.

(well, actually I do 1.5 leg sessions a week)

But not the point.

Completely new machines to what I’m used to

(the workout was mostly machines, rather than Dumbbells / Barbells)

My body is used to the PureGym machines

Not the machines this different gym had

..and right now

My quads are sore AF.

Honestly ..

They feel tender.

To the touch.

But get this.

-> The workout wasn’t particularly harder than usual ��

-> I didn’t actually do different exercises to what I usually do

-> The overall total volume would be similar to my usual

The difference being the machines I used

Yesterday’s workout wasn’t ’better’ than my usual.

Even though I’m much more sore today.

And I know I’ve said this recently before.

But soreness isn’t an indicator of a better workout.

-> If you’re recovering well (diet & sleep)

and

-> Doing similar exercises week in week out

You probably won’t get that sore from your training.

Even though you’ll be smashing it.

Have a great rest of the weekend ��

Harry

You'll hate me for saying this .. 👀

Fri, 12 Jan 2024 07:54:24 GMT

So I’m just going to take the plunge and say this.

good morning btw ��

-> Unless you’re in decent-ish shape ..

(muscle mass & low body fat)

AND

-> Train regularly in the gym ..

(not just exercise at home .. I’m being careful with my wording here)

-> If you’re a professional / highly highly experienced ..

Then you shouldn’t ski / snowboard

��

Especially if you’re 40+.

(unless you want to get seriously injured .. in which case you can do whatever ��)

I know I’ll get a lot of stick for saying that.

Because people love skiing.

But I’ll stand by it.

Look at it like this.

It’s a high impact

High risk

… sport.

Done in an extremely unpredictable.

Unforgiving environment.

And usually done whilst intoxicated on alcohol

(this is the craziest part about the skiing culture ..

having several drinks then ‘doing’ the sport)

It’s a cocktail for complete disaster.

I hear about it every year.

And it’s not worth it.

->> You wouldn’t randomly take up competitive MMA when you hit your 50th birthday ..

Have 3 glasses of wine before your first fight ..

After zero training/preparation..

Then jump into the ring with an experienced 25-year-old.

Who is in much better shape than you.

You’d be dead .. almost literally.

When you actually think about it like that.

It makes sense.

And you can’t justify it.

Because you only get 1x of every joint in your body.

You don’t have backup elbows, knees, shoulders, spines, ankles ..

You have one of each of them.

And when you’re bombing down the slopes as a beginner at 25 mph ..

Weighing 95kg.

With your body not used to high forces running through it.

You can have zero complaints when something bad happens.

Sorry.

Happy Friday ��✌️

Harry

So .. I'm going to do my first cycle 😱

Thu, 11 Jan 2024 16:43:23 GMT

Someone asked me this morning if I’d ever jump on steroids.

(Standard chat in the PT staff room at ANY gym btw)

��

For me now?

Nope.

Not even tempted.

Honestly ..

I don’t see why so many guys do it.

(You’d be shocked at how many actually take ‘something’ ..

It’s less for women, but some still do)

Who aren’t professional IFBB bodybuilders

(I can see the justification for those guys ..

.. but 24 y/o Joe Schmo training 3x at PureGym in Sheffield ..

naaahhhh)

Fast forward 20 years.

I’m 50 years old & have low testosterone ..

Negatively affecting my quality of life.

I’d probably jump on TRT to bring those levels back to normal.

Legally of course

Doctor supervised etc

Sure.

Why now.

But right now?

No way.

The main reason why?

I honestly don’t think having 5kg - 10kg more muscle on me would make my life that much better

I’d be able to bench press a lot more

Have a more impressive physique

Recover faster

But I’m actually OK with where I am now.

Believe it or not.

I’m actually not thaaaat vain to care about my physical appearance past the point it is now.

It wouldn’t be a good trade.

Because there’s a lot of downside.

With not too much upside.

Past a certain stage, you get diminishing returns on being in better shape.

25% -> 15% body fat

You see a big lifestyle benefit

15% -> 5% body fat

Not so much. Probably goes the other way actually

Which is why after you’ve got yourself in great shape.

You need to start loving training as a lifestyle

Enjoy going

Setting strength/performance goals

And enjoying the ride.

Rather than seeing it as a means to an end.

✌️✌️

Harry

I made a +24.2% return on my money last year 😏

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 06:44:33 GMT

Think about it like this.

To be a great investor.

Make big returns on either your money.

Or someone else’s ..

You need to be picky about what you invest in.

Right?

You can’t be saying ‘yes’ to every opportunity pitched to you.

Of course not.

You need to do your due diligence on potential companies.

Carefully analysing them.

Making sure everything looks good before you commit.

Basically, you need to be pretty cautious about where you put the money

You don’t invest in every single one of your mates’ business ideas.

You have a finite amount to invest.

And everything rides on how well that money does.

>> This is similar to the diet / calorie-counting game

Veryyyyy similar in fact.

In order to get in shape.

Let’s say build muscle & lose fat.

You need to be picky about your food intake

Just like how the successful investor is picky with his money.

Yes, you probably need to say no to a few meals out.

Yes, you need to say no to alcohol more than you would like.

Yes, you need to be pedantic about squeezing your training sessions into your schedule.

Yes, you probably need to track your calories & plan them ahead of time.

It’s a part of the process.

Fine if you can’t do those things.

or don’t want to.

But then you won’t become a great investor.

You’ll be a bang-average one.

Which, if that’s your thing, is totally cool.

Don’t be put off by the hard work required on the diet side of things.

You won’t need to do it forever.

Just until you get yourself in good condition.

/ have built a solid foundation of habits.

Happy Wednesday ��

Harry

I got told off for eating too healthily today 😂

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 19:40:35 GMT

First snow of the year in London this afternoon.

As some would call it

“a flurry”

Nice to look at (and to be outside in) for about 20 minutes.

Was out with the doggie in it actually.

She was still rocking her Christmas jumper.

Obviously.

Getting lots of attention around Notting Hill Gate.

All of it in fact.

I don’t get any ��

Before it turns everything into that wet, grey vibe.

Peak January.

If you ask me ..

>>

The title is 100% true btw.

Got reprimanded for eating too well / healthy earlier today.

Love it.

I’ll take that as a win.

Even though it was said to me as a negative.

Don’t get me wrong.

I’m not one of those clean-eating disciples.

Who hasn’t eaten a piece of junk in 12 years.

Who wouldn’t be able to tell you their favourite flavour of Haribo.

And is terrified of anything processed.

But I would say overall.

My diet is on the healthy side of the spectrum.

As it should be.

>> one person's insult is another person’s compliment

Funny how these things work out.

It’s a bit like being told you’re too muscly.

Which .. said to anyone who goes to the gym.

Is a huge win.

(most of the time)

Have a good one ��

Harry

Ibiza, Monaco, Cannes, St Tropez, Mykonos & Portifino 🤭

Sun, 07 Jan 2024 16:35:01 GMT

You know that summer holiday you’ve got planned for July / August?

Maybe you’ve got a few planned.

A couple of trips in the diary.

The usual European hotspots.

Lovely.

A bit of sun

Relaxation

Some low key Instagram flexing

Yeah ..

Start getting ready for them now ��

Lol

Your July / August body …

… is a byproduct of what you’re doing with your training / general lifestyle in January, February & March

You can’t be leaving it until April to start taking things seriously.

Or a couple of weeks before.

Because you’ll need longer than 12 weeks.

Definitely longer than 6.

Everyone does.

Unless you’re in great shape already and only need to lose a few KG.

(someone like me)

And by ‘taking things seriously’ now.

I don’t mean a drastic 40% calorie deficit mega diet.

I mean something nice & gradual.

Relatively sustainable.

That leaves you losing 1% of your average body weight each week.

Which is perfect.

that’s fast enough progress to keep things interesting & leave you with a decent chuck of KG off after 12,15,20 weeks

but

not so aggressive that you can only manage 3 weeks at a time before you go off the rails and partake in a 25,000kcal cheat day

(btw someone actually did that recently lol)

You actually get a ‘better’ result from not doing a last-minute diet too.

Fuller muscles

Less tired

More energised

More ’nourished’

You’ll look better off the back of a slow & steady approach.

And also less likelihood of a body fat blowout when you’re actually on the holiday.

✌️✌️

Harry

This week has felt looooong 🥵

Sat, 06 Jan 2024 09:39:06 GMT

About to wrap up my own training for the week.

Just after I wrap up this email.

I use my 6th & final session to basically ‘tidy up’ loose ends from the week.

Muscle groups that haven’t seen much love in the previous sessions.

It’s usually things like:

Abs

Obliques

Calves

Legs (don’t laugh ��)

And maybe some arms at the end if I have time

It’s probably not needed.

This 6th session of the week.

But if I’m in the gym anyway to train clients.

I may as well train myself again, no?

Then it gives me a buffer in case I ever need to skip a session

(never happens, but that’s the point of an insurance policy)

So when I zoom out over the year.

I can more or less hit #300 sessions.

Which will yield me better results than 200, 250 etc.

It’s something I’ve changed my stance on over the years.

I used to hit 4x sessions a week with 3x rest days.

And being honest ..

I could have easily done another +2 in the week.

Which, over time.

Would have inched the needle further forwards.

What’s the point I’m getting at here?

Mend the roof when the sun is shining

If you can do it ..

(in this case, more training sessions)

Go for it.

Don’t be taking more rest days than you need/want.

Because there may come a time in the future ..

When you might not have the luxury to squeeze in more sessions.

Adios & have a great weekend ��

Harry

I dislike these 2 exercises intensely 🤬

Thu, 04 Jan 2024 08:40:59 GMT

I’m all for everyone going to the gym for different reasons.

Of course.

Not everyone has the sole intention to attempt to build as much muscle as possible.

(Although, I would argue that for MOST people, this should be the top, if not one of the top aims)

Some people come to the gym to exercise a bit, get a sweat on.

Leave the house.

Socialise.

Whatever.

I have to say it though ..

There are some exercises ..

That are just not that good ..

Sorry.

You may as well not do them.

Honestly.

Because there are similar exercises which are far ‘better’.

By better, I mean ..

You’ll be able to work harder on.

Take this mega-popular exercise.

The cable face pull with rope

I’d give this a solid 2/10.

Mechanically it’s terrible.

When you compare it to a regular cable rear delt fly.

>> “Oh but I really feel my rear delts working on this exercise, compared to others”

Really? Ok fine. But you’d probably feel them even more on a better movement.

Or how about this one

Another super popular exercise

The standing DB / BB shoulder press

2/10.

A seated version on a bench, a few notches back from 90º ..

8/10

It’s just sooooo much better

With a relatively small adjustment.

>> “Oh but I really doing this exercise, that’s why I have it in my routine”

Doing the same exercise on a bench takes the ‘enjoyment’ out of it ..?

It’s that much more ‘fun’ doing it standing?

Per lease.

Doing the right exercises in the gym is a cheat code to getting better workouts in.

While keeping you injury-free.

Win-win.

Happy Thursday ��

Harry

I probably know what you're searching on Google 🤯

Wed, 03 Jan 2024 08:55:52 GMT

My love-hate affair with the Hack Squat continues today.

At 11ish.

After I’ve waded through a few emails.

It’s been 6 years now.

February 2018 when it started.

But we haven’t seen each other for 2-3 weeks.

I can already tell that I’ll be feeling it tomorrow.

She does tend to have that effect ��

So I ..

Like almost everyone who trains ..

This week.

Will probably end up being sore as hell from the gym.

Because ..

Soreness happens when you do something new

Basically.

You train regularly ..

Doing similar exercises week on week

With a similar amount of volume/intensity

= you WON’T get that sore

Because you’re giving your muscles a different stimulus each time.

You don’t train for a week or two ..

Then get back into it

Albeit at a lower volume/intensity

= you WILL be sore

Because it’s something different to the norm.

If soreness was a sign of a good workout ..

The first workout you do after some time off would be a good one.

Your first EVER workout you ever did back in 1997 would be even better.

Logically .. no?

But as we know ..

That’s not the case.

I’ll get sore today from doing a workout containing LESS volume than usual.

So don’t worry or overthink it.

We’ll all be sore this week.

Big deal.

Next week?

Not so much.

(Unless you change what you’re doing in the gym)

Happy Tues ..

Wednesday ��✌️

Harry

The training equivalent of FRESH bedsheets 🤩

Tue, 02 Jan 2024 08:44:43 GMT

First sessions back at the Piccadilly gym this morning.

Post refurb.

In the pouring rain.

Of course. Happy NY ��

It’s almost all complete.

But already a nice improvement from before.

Mainly cosmetic ..

New machines ..

And a reshuffle of layout ..

But just that feeling of ‘new stuff’ is nice .. isn’t it?

It’s all similar stuff though.

Barbells

Dumbells

Machines

Cables

Mirrors ��

Because you don’t need anything different or fancy to train hard.

In fact.

The opposite is true.

Don’t feel like you need to change your routine massively in January.

To try and ‘burn some of the holiday fat’ ..

It doesn’t work like that.

I’ve already seen some ‘funky’ routines/exercises in the gym this morning ..

You don’t need it.

You’re in the gym to train your muscles, hard & efficiently

And you create your energy deficit by not stuffing your face with crap.

/ drinking alcohol

��

Sounds mega simple.

Because it actually is.

Good luck to you if you’re back in the gym today.

Ease back into it.

Don’t try to do too much in this first week.

Zoom out and look at the next 3, 6, 9 months.

Rather than a few days at a time.

✌️✌️

Harry

So I spoke to my accountant this morning .. 😰

Fri, 29 Dec 2023 08:53:51 GMT

Have spent the last couple of days visiting my accountant.

In the west country.

Thought it’d be a nice thing to do this time of year.

Spreading the Christmas cheer & that.

Even bought him quite an expensive present.

Which he was super grateful for.

Discussing future plans

Tax arrangements

Cash flow forecasts

Amongst other things.

It’s been quite productive actually.

He also happens to be my Dad.

So we did some family stuff too ��

All joking aside.

On the train back to London as I type this.

Pretty quiet.

And literally just before I opened my laptop ..

Mindlessly scrolling through Instagram as you do.

Have the annual online PT advertising festival:

“Oh can’t wait to reveal this to you guys”

“I’ve got something special that I can’t talk about yet .. but trust me it’s going to be huge”

“Have big plans for next year and will unveil all soon”

And either turns out to be their 9-week fat loss program.

Completely different to their 12 week one they offered 6 months ago.

Of course ..

They’ve got a new discount code for a supplement company they are “working with”

per leaseeee

I’m not doing any of that of course.

My diary is actually pretty full for January anyway.

So I think if I ‘unveiled’ a new 9.5-week program my DMs would explode ��

Happy Friday ✌️

Harry

I guess I'm relying on my Plan B now .. 😱

Thu, 28 Dec 2023 07:26:43 GMT

So one of my planned gym locations didn’t pan out.

The tennis club one.

They weren’t open on Boxing Day ��

Damn.

So my hopes are riding on the other one today.

The bodybuilding one.

Which I definitely know is open.

And do day passes.

Result.

So I’m going later on.

��

If I remember back to when I first started going to the gym.

Aged 17-18 or so.

Skinny as hell.

Taking it semi-seriously.

I always disliked how I couldn’t train over Christmas

I wanted to go to the gym.

But basically wasn’t allowed to ��

Thanks society.

I was on either on holidays from school.

Or from University.

Had plenty of time on my hands at home..

And naturally wanted to fill that time up with training.

Some of that feeling is still there

Not entirely.

But some of it.

A few days off the gym are cool.

You can rest

Don’t worry about training

Enjoy eating & drinking cr*p

But after 4 or so rest days.

I start to get restless ��

Similar to the whole food thing ..

Yeah it’s fun to eat like a pig for a few days.

Treat your stomach like a garbage disposal unit ��

But after a bit ..

You start craving your usual healthy routine.

For me.

Around about today is when I start getting itchy feet.

The day after the day after Boxing Day

I won’t go full-on ‘normal routine’ mode.

Course not.

But a few things ..

Doing more exercise

Not eating as much junk

Drinking more water (omg this one)

More vegetables

Less alcohol (probably no need to booze allll the time atm)

Ciao ✌️

Harry

We got some funny looks doing this 👀

Tue, 26 Dec 2023 10:21:39 GMT

Yesterday got roped into starting Christmas Day with a 2-minute ‘swim’ in the sea.

You know ..

Burn a few extra calories before lunch.

A bit of character-building.

And good content for Instagram thanks to mums filming.

Apparently, the water was 9º.

Which doesn’t sound like much.

But when you’re fully submerged in it ..

Trying to breath in & out

.. Different gravy ��‍��

But don’t worry.

I haven’t turned into ‘those’ people who make having a cold water ice bath in the morning.

Their entire personality trait.

I just felt compelled to tell you this one time ��

I guess the plus side was that everything else that happened after felt better.

Because when you’re in that freezing cold water.

You’d literally rather be doing anything else

A bit like your first few workouts in late December / early January / mid-January.

Which have you leaving the gym like it’s your first ever time working out.

Happy Boxing Day ��

Off for a walk ✌️✌️

Harry

Pass me the Marmite cashews 🤩🥵

Sat, 23 Dec 2023 19:15:10 GMT

So I juuuust managed to squeeze in my last session before Christmas.

This morning.

Before driving down south for a few days.

ngl ..

I did about 32 minutes of legs then had to rush back from the gym.

As I had a tight morning schedule.

And wanted to beat the Saturday morning ‘escape from London’ traffic.

(I think that’s just part & parcel of training this time of year. You cram it in whenever you can)

Was it a world-beating session?

Did I hit any PBs?

Did I do any big compound lifts?

… nope

Did I train muscle groups that were already sore?
Yup

Was it overall worth it?

I think so

Glad I did

There’s that saying isn’t there:

“You never regret doing a workout”

Which is actually BS ��

I can think of plentyyyy of workouts I’ve regretted in the past.

Mostly done when I wasn’t feeling 100%.

With the workout making my condition worse.

So.

They should replace never with “rarely” tbh.

“Unless you’re seriously unwell .. or missing the birth of your child ..you’ll rarely regret doing a workout”

Today wasn’t one of those exceptions, though.

Luckily��

Glad I did it.

Even if ..

(if I’m being totally honest here)

It was a bit cr*p.

So now I’m in full Christmas mode.

Afternoon naps

Twiglets

Nibbles before Dinner

And I’m taking a few days off from the gym.

And will just be doing some walks instead.

Have a good one ��

Harry

You'll never guess what I've got planned 🤭

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 07:33:21 GMT

So here’s a little tip I’ve been dishing out to my clients recently.

When we’ve discussing our ‘plan of action’ for the next couple of weeks.

Because unless you’re relatively careful ..

You can pile on the lbs easily over Christmas.

Easilyyyy ��

Meaning you’re still trying to get rid of it come Q2 the following year ..

(This happens a lot btw .. a lot of people don’t just lose their Xmas weight in gain in January)

Delay having junk/alcohol for as long as possible in the day

Evening time, ideally after dinner.

Is what you want to be roughly aiming for.

The ‘junk/alcohol’ window is shorter.

So you’re only eating cr*p for 2 hours.

And not 16 hours.

We’ve all been there.

The sooner you start, the worse it is.

As cliche as this might sound.

And I don’t want to sound like a LinkedIn-famous blogger here ..

But what you eat/drink at the start of the day GENERALLY sets the tone for the rest of the day.

-> Chocolate at breakfast?

high chance you’ll keep going through lunch & dinner

-> Biscuits/pastries with mid-morning coffee?

you’ll probably have another ‘treat’ for lunch/afternoon snack

DEFINITELY the case with drinking ��

Ohhh boy.

-> Have a few drinks at lunch on a regular workday?

Zero chance of a productive afternoon/evening

-> Early afternoon beers on holiday?
You won’t be feeling great later on.

Of course.

The couple of days of actual Christmas can be an exception ..

If you like.

(I know we’ve almost gone full circle on this over the years .. but you don’t actually HAVE to eat & drink a lot this Christmas if you don’t want to)

But the days & weeks surrounding that.

Don’t get carried away.

For me ..

I’ll be consuming my fair share of junk food for 2-3 days over Christmas, but I’ll keep it to late afternoon & evening.

I’ll resist the urge to open the Roses at 9 am ��

Have a good one.

Harry

I'll get my first tattoo after this experience .. 😏👀

Wed, 20 Dec 2023 07:40:46 GMT

Wow ..

We’re in the 20s already for December.

Where did this month go?

And tbh all the other 11 months with it.

Although ..

Not sure about you.

But for SOME reason.

This week feels like it’s dragging on.

And on ..

Anyone else get that atm?

Feels like it should be at least Friday by now.

Maybe even Saturday.

Probably that pre-Christmas deep breath in.

“And so it begins”

I’m going to be away for next week.

Dw - I’ll still do some emails if I can.

And I’ve sorted out a couple of gyms I can go to.

Perfect.

Honestly ..

Not because I’m scared of losing muscle if I don’t train for a week.

(probably wouldn’t happen anyway)

Or that getting back into it in January will be so much harder if I completely take time off.

But because:

-> I genuinely enjoy training

-> Exercise makes you feel good. No one can argue with that.

And I want to feel good(ish) next week

-> Trying out different gyms/environments is fun. New machines, different people, a change in the training vibe - it’s all positive

-> Gives me a break from my family for a couple of hours at least ��

-> Anything to get you out of the house next week is an overall win, I think

One of the gyms is in a Tennis club, down in Hampshire.

Which I’ve been to before.

Pretty good.

They’ve renovated it recently.

Super small but OK equipment.

Dumbbells go up to 30kg or so, and some decent leg machines.

That’s all you need tbh.

I’m 99% sure I’ll be the only one in there.

Just have to find a way to get around the whole ‘we don’t do day passes’ thing.

Eurgh - how annoying is that btw?

>>

The other gym is one I haven’t been to before.

Looks like a hardcore, warehouse-style bodybuilding gym on an industrial estate in Gloucestershire.

From their Google photos.

So I’m going to check it out.

I won’t blend in, but pretty sure I’ll be able to train hard there.

The 2 gyms could not be any more polar opposites ��

But I’m going to be all for it.

Have a great .. Wednesday ✌️

Harry

Chances are ... your PT HATES training you 😱

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 17:35:00 GMT

Because they probably don’t even enjoy training themselves.

Anymore.

I’ve seen it before.

Many many times.

PTs fall out of love with their own training.

And once that happens ..

It’s game over for them.

& most importantly, their clients.

Here’s how it usually maps out.

Take your typical Personal Trainer.

Let’s call this person Josh.

Josh is in his early 20s.

He enjoys going to the gym.

And wants to follow a career path he genuinely enjoys.

Fair enough.

So he becomes a PT.

(up until now, this is an almost carbon copy of what I did)

Starts his career at a gym.

“Start at the bottom & work your way up”

Kinda thing.

Long hours (clients usually want to train before & after work)

Early starts (first client at 6 am, fairly standard)

Late finishes (last client is at 6 or 7 pm, fairly standard. Leaving the gym at 8 pm)

Initial pay isn’t great (as with most starting salaries when you’re in your early 20s)

Working weekends (people want to train on Saturday & Sunday, so you gotta do it)

>>It’s a cocktail for fast burnout

And because of how much/hard Josh is working.

His own training suffers.

Before he was used to training 4-5 times a week.

1.5 hours for each session.

Taking his time, enjoying it etc

Now he’s lucky if he has time to squeeze in 2-3 sessions a week

At 45 minutes a pop.

Fast forward 6, 9, 12 months.

And he’s lost the ‘love’ for the gym that propelled him to start a career as a PT in the first place.

This scenario btw.

Is sooooo common.

Which is why most PTs aren’t in the game for very long.

Or if they are.

They’re not interested in it anymore.

And eventually, drop off to do something else.

I guess that’s where I’m different ��

Have a great evening.

Harry

'Celebrity Trainers' - the WORST kind of PT you can have ??

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 07:28:44 GMT

So story time.

Back a few years ago now.

I think it was 2017.

When I was working at Ultimate Performance in Mayfair.

Occasionally we’d get celebrities coming in to train with their trainers.

For a one-off session kinda thing.

While they’re on the road in London.

And needed a private facility to train at.

Naturally.

They’d get interrupted for a million selfies if they went to PureGym.

Here’s the ticker though ..

I kid you not ..

In every instance of this happening.

The trainers of these celebrities were not only just terrible ..

In terms of exercise selection

Exercise execution

Giving their client a positive training experience

They also did not care at all.

At all.

They put in absolutely ZERO effort into their session.

Looking around

On their phone

Not engaged

It was honestly quite shocking for us Trainers working at UP.

Because we were the opposite.

The worst example?

Calvin Harris and his trainer.

I don’t think the trainer even paid ANY attention during any of Calvin’s sets in his sessions

(maybe his DJ sets were more his thing ��)

He just stood around looking around the gym.

Gazing up at the ceiling

Getting his phone out

You name it

.. While Calvin was doing some step-ups (badly).

I personally wouldn’t pay £5 for that type of service.

Let alone how much he actually was charging.

These ‘celebrity trainers’ as they call themselves.

Definitely aren’t there on merit for the most part.

They can’t be.

Unless they started off well ..

And then massively dropped off a cliff & stopped caring after a while.

It’s usually a friend-of-a-friend type of deal.

We’ve all seen the video of the Kardashians ‘working out’ with their trainer ..

Enough said ��

Now look ..

They’re probably not ALL bad.

There will be some good ones out there.

Who train high-profile people .. properly

But for the most part.

The ‘Celebrity trainer’ tag is a red flag if you want results.

Believe it or not ..

It’s actually harder training non-celebs ..

Rather than the stars who have millions of £££ which is somewhat dependent on how they look/perform.

Chris Hemsworth was paid $20 million for his latest film ..

Training him to be in shape for that movie would be pretty easy.

His incentive is already there ��

Whereas your regular office worker with 2 kids & a full-time job.

Who can only just about squeeze in 3 sessions a week on top of everything else.

Who’s training/physique comes last behind everything else.

Requires a more skilled approach.

Anyway - rant over.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

5 things I learnt from my trip to North London 😏

Sun, 17 Dec 2023 15:11:30 GMT

So yesterday I made the trip up to Wood Green.

Zone 3.

(Mordor feels closer tbh)

Training with a friend at this top bodybuilding gym.

Zone Gym.

That I’ve been to a few times before.

And I made some quick notes on my phone to share with you.

5, to be precise ��

Environment is key

The bodybuilding gyms are usually the best for this.

Everyone is there to work

Most people are friendly

You’ll neverrrr be the best in-shape person there

The atmosphere makes you want to level up

But.

It also doesn’t just come down to WHERE you train.

It’s WHO you train with.

(the bodybuilding gyms aren’t in central London
so naturally it’s difficult to regularly train there)

My clients are lucky enough to train with me.

So I create the environment for my clients to train hard & effectively in the gym.

The hardcore bodybuilding gym approach, but in a commercial setting.

Sexy, good-looking people train hard

Men & women

And it’s (now) deemed as cool to train hard.

It didn’t used to be.

Back in the day, I think it was frowned upon -

(correct me if I’m wrong here btw)

“Oh I just jump out of bed & look like this - I don’t do weights”

That kind of thing.

In Miami.

All the big-time female fitness ‘influencers’ / fitness models ..

Train in gyms more similar to a hardcore bodybuilding gym.

Rather than a fancy ‘fluffy towel’ Equinox-type gym.

They’re busy hip-thrusting 170g ��

Not playing around with 2kg pink dumbbells

Strong, fit, athletic, aesthetic, hot bodies are built on:

(good genetics)

hard training

sensible dieting

consistency

It’s cool to train hard now.

Try and enjoy your training

It’s one of the keys to long-term success.

You gotta enjoy it.

Sure ..

You’re not going to jump out of bed each morning at 5 am to train.

Especially if it’s cold & rainy outside.

But when you zoom out.

And speaking to someone at a dinner/drinks party about your fitness regime ..

(not sure about you, but whenever I go out .. the topic of conversation invariably heads towards fitness .. if I’m in the room ��)

You want to be able to say you actually ENJOY going to the gym.

Overall.

Programming is overrated

I’ve written about this before recently.

And sure.

It has its place.

But you can’t be getting too technical/militant with your regime.

Otherwise, you’ll spend most of your 55-minute training session ..

Writing your numbers down on your phone.

Rather than actually focusing on shifting some serious weight around ��

Have your 2-3 movements for each body part.

And rotate through them as you see fit.

8-12 reps on everything.

Christmas separates the full timers & the part timers

Full time fitness people don’t take the whole of December off.

Part-timers do exactly that.

Gyms are quiet in December.

So if you’re serious.

(and you probably are if you’re reading this ..)

Then take advantage of that & get your workouts in.

Of course, we all take some time off around actual Christmas.

But don’t go full Christmas mode on 17th Dec ��

And on that note ..

I usually have Sundays’ as my rest day from the gym.

But seeing as we have THAT Christmas week coming up.

And I’ll probably only manage 2-3 sessions that week.

I’m building up a bit of a buffer.

Ciao ��

Harry

She didn't appreciate this DM from me .. 😏

Thu, 14 Dec 2023 19:17:19 GMT

Back a few weeks ago.

Mindlessly scrolling through Instagram.

As you do.

(Everyone does this.. right ..?)

Not just me .. ��

Nothing out of the ordinary.

The usual stuff.

That we’ve all become accustomed to.

But one thing stood out for me this time round.

One of my friends had actually posted a recipe for some protein pancakes they made.

All the normal ingredients you’d expect.

Successfully passing the Harry scrutiny test ��

Then it came to the toppings ..

Which is where it went all wrong.

Blueberries - good

Chopped-up strawberries - also good

Small amount of honey - unless you’re trying to be mega strict, fine

Greek STYLE yogurt - errrrrrrrrrr no

No no no.

wtf ��

They went for the yoghurt that has 1.9g protein per 100g of yoghurt..

Rather than the 10g protein per 100g of yoghurt.

On further inspection.

Having received a polite but firm DM from me.

They explained that it was a mistake.

And they thought they were using the normal Greek yoghurt.

The high protein one.

Easy mistake to make - yes.

Completely.

But it goes to show you.

Read your food labels

Even if you weren’t dieting.

99% of the time you want to be going for that low-fat, high-protein yogurt.

Total 0%, 2% etc

Skyr

Arla protein yoghurts

Rather than other types which basically offer little to no nutritional value.

Except calories.

And don’t go playing the taste card either.

Some of the protein yoghurts out there taste just like Petit Filous.

Which is the undisputed OG / goat of yoghurts.

Have a great evening ��

Harry

My pet is better at learning than I am .. 😰 🐶

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 16:19:21 GMT

Dogs are masters at the body language game.

I guess when you can’t speak human ..

And the only things you’ve got going are smelling, seeing & hearing.

It’s no surprise they’re good.

Sometimes they pick up on your own habits.

Routines etc

That you yourself don’t even know about.

Mine stares deep into my eyes.

Trying to figure out what’s going on.

What we’re going to do next.

When breakfast / dinner is ��

But also ..

After 4 months of me doing Spanish lessons at home 3x a week.

With her listening passively.

(fast asleep on the sofa ofc)

She’s picking up some words too.

For example.

I’m pretty sure she knows what ‘adios’ means when I’m finishing the lesson.

She pricks her ears up & is suddenly wide awake.

Because it usually means we’re going for a w-a-l-k after that.

Who knows.

It could be that.

Or maybe I just change the tone of my voice when I’m saying goodbye.

Maybe she’ll know more Spanish words than English at some stage ��

Won’t be too difficult tbh.

If only we as humans were just as excited to go out for an afternoon walk.

As dogs are.

We’d all probably be happier.

Healthier

Leaner

Better rested

Fitter

Even on a cold rainy day in December.

Bea is raring to go .. at any time ��

That’s tip number 2 for December.

Don’t let your step count drop to 5k.

Otherwise you can’t claim to ‘do about 10k steps a day’

IYKYK ��

Have a good one

Harry

I messed up last night

Thu, 02 Feb 2023 16:14:01 GMT

Okay, my bad.

Totally forgot to send yesterday’s email.

Sorry

I know you missed me appearing in your junk inbox ��

>

So, ironically …

This email is about consistency.

And obvs how I lack it atm ��

But seriously.

Body composition wise.

Think about it like this.

You get proper results when you’re “in the ZONE”.

Correct?

You’ve got momentum built up

You’re stringing several good months together

You can lose a significant amount of body fat

And you can build some muscle & get stronger

All good.

Now …

You can’t get “in the zone” if your consistency isn’t there.

It’d be like alternating between Monday and Sunday all the time.

Imagine how bad that’d be?!

You’d never get those 5x working days in a row, where each day gets easier & easier.

(in some ways)

1 day on the program

1 day off the program

x repeat forever

You’d never be able to get into a good streak, would you?

It’d be hell.

You’d dread the days you’re “on plan”

And feel bad during the “off-plan” days.

Not getting anywhere at the end of it.

So that’s why consistency is paramount to results.

Have a good one ��

Harry

My day so far

Sun, 29 Jan 2023 16:46:43 GMT

Ended up going to the gym this morning.

First thing.

Which btw.

I NEVER do on a Sunday.

So I could finish my 6/6 training week.

And tick that box off.

First week back after my time off & all that.

Wasn’t even a full 20 set sesh.

Just 12 sets of lower body machines.

Nothing spectacular.

Didn’t push to failure.

But worked hard.

Better than nothing though - correct?

Now I’ve got my slow cooker on so I’m set for the first half of the week.

Written a couple of new training programs.

Taken the doggies out for a monster walk (with the tennis ball) in Hyde Park.

Even managed to squeeze in an hour nap on the sofa.

RIP sleep quality tonight.

But oh well ��

>

Posted the Vitamin N video on my Instagram earlier too.

Go give that a watch - it’s brilliant.

Until tomorrow ✌️

Harry

I didn't know this was a thing ...

Sat, 28 Jan 2023 21:00:28 GMT

Client was telling me that this video popped up on his Instagram.

Of some Trainer talking about Vitamin N.

How it’s mega important for fat loss.

One of the undervalued supplements for results.

Etc.

And yup.

When my clients telling me this.

I’m thinking “wtf”

What a load of rubbish.

I’m not a supplement/mineral expert.

I really don’t go down that rabbit hole to be honest.

But I’m pretty sure there is no such thing as Vitamin N.

99% sure.

Unless I’ve been living under a rock all this time.

And you know what it is?

“Vitamin No”

Saying no more often.

And I love that.

The good things we all like aren’t going anywhere.

They’ll all still be here tomorrow.

And the week after.

You can probably do without some of the fun things for at least a few weeks.

And see how you get on.

When increasing your intake of Vitamin N ��

Harry

Does this apply to you?

Fri, 27 Jan 2023 16:20:31 GMT

When your working starts to feel ‘good’.

Enjoyable.

Then you’re onto something.

I’m talking like.

You finish your set

And think:

“Wow, that feels so good on X muscle group”

Until you get to that stage.

You’ll probably have to suck it up.

And push through the phase.

(Literally)

Because when your working sets feel nice.

You’ll start to enjoy your training more.

Because you enjoy your training more.

You then don’t miss an activity you enjoy.

So you train more.

You don’t skip sessions.

You start to really nail the consistency.

And because you’re training more.

And more consistent.

You get even better at it.

Making results easier to come by.

It all snowballs … basically.

But you have to put in the hard work first.

>

My pressing movements didn’t start to feel good until I had a few years of training under my belt.

Years.

Hundreds of training sessions.

Thousands of sets.

Tens of thousands of reps.

Then I started enjoying my pressing exercises.

Until then, they felt kinda awkward for me.

And my sets weren’t enjoyable.

Fast forward to now - I sometimes look forward to hitting chest ��

Have a good weekend.

Harry

I did how many ...?!

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 21:25:39 GMT

Somehow I’ve ended up doing 25,055 steps today.

Literally just checked my phone.

And that’s what it's telling me.

I guess I’ve spent a lot of my day doing non-work admin.

Walking everywhere.

So it explains the large number.

But still surprising nonetheless.

Keeping busy is a godsend for fat loss

You know when you have those days when you don’t have a lot on?

You get kinda bored …

Start thinking about food …

If you’re at home, you check the fridge.

Scour the cupboards for snacks.

Basically, not what you want to be doing.

If you’re aiming to be in a deficit.

>

Then on the flip side.

You have those days when you’re rushing around.

Thing after thing.

Doing this that & everything in between.

It gets to 7 pm.

And you realise you haven’t eaten since mid-morning.

(Also doing 25k steps ��)

These days are GOOD for fat loss.

And deficit living.

Stay busy ✌️

Harry

Max out or Min out? 🥶

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 05:09:16 GMT

Haven’t been this excited to train myself for a long time.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

And maybe I needed the break?

I didn’t think I did.

Last week was pretty painful to do nothing.

But who knows.

All I do know is that I’ll avoid the temptation to rush back into it.

And warm myself back into it.

At least for the first half of the week.

Then we’ll see about the second.

> Train to stimulate, not annihilate <

>

There is quite a large school of thought in the fitness/bodybuilding world.

Which says you should train at the lowest possible volume you can get away with.

Whilst still making progress.

Because if that (process) is the goal.

And you want to be hitting that regularly in the long term.

Then why would you unnecessarily burn yourself out?

Better for your joints not to be pounding them into the ground all the time.

And as long as you’re taking small steps forwards.

There shouldn’t be a problem.

I don’t subscribe to this all the time.

I think there is a “time & a place” for everything.

But I think it has some merit/application.

In any case.

Off to the gym.

Cya ��

Harry

Have I swapped gym for the pub ...?

Sat, 21 Jan 2023 08:26:02 GMT

I’m itching to get back into my own training on Monday.

Cannot wait.

Don’t know how other people do it.

(not train)

Because this is definitely the longest time (in several years) I haven’t trained at all.

Usually, I do the whole “deload” thing.

Reduce the sets/volume etc.

But not doing anything at all has been strange.

And I’m finding …

That when I don’t train.

My dietary choices aren’t as good.

They’re 80% of what they usually are.

Don’t get me wrong.

I’m not smashing doughnuts for breakfast.

Having KFC for dinner.

And spending Thursday lunchtimes drawing my sorrows at the pub.

(Not last week anyway ��)

But I'm just not as conscious of my choices.

Probably do a bit less protein than usual

Not as much fruit

Definitely not as much veg

Regular training & good dietary habits go hand in hand.

Might sound obvious.

But there are people out there who wonder why they struggle to nail their nutrition.

(I know because I speak to them a lot)

Thinking they need to do IF / Keto / Paleo.

/ some out-of-the-box dietary intervention.

Who have never done any proper resistance training.

Don’t even know how to lift weights.

And their last spell of consistent exercise (running) was in 2015.

So if you’re able-bodied.

And can train.

Do it - and your diet will likely follow.

Have a good weekend ��

Harry

I was shocked when I found this out 🤯

Fri, 20 Jan 2023 16:18:07 GMT

Have you seen those cooking videos on Instagram?

Where they do a “behind the scenes” type thing.

On how they cook certain dishes.

How they prepare it.

How much extra stuff they put in it.

Butter

Oil

Sauces

Sugar

More butter

More Calories

Some of them are nuts.

Take toast for example.

I thought they just whacked some bread in a toaster like you do at home.

Then serve.

No no no ��

It gets toasted in a PAN.

With a fat knob of butter in.

So it gets that golden crisp.

On both sides obvs.

��

No wonder it tastes so good.

It has 100s of extra calories in.

Compared to if you were just to do the same thing at home.

And the conclusion you come to.

Is when you’re trying to be really ON your diet.

And overall fitness regime …

Home-cooked food hits different.

Wayyyyyy different.

Your digestion feels better

You subsequently have more energy

Your sleep is better

You can keep the calories a lot lower

You take the guesswork out

But it’s difficult to do.

Nowhere near as convenient.

And if you’re busy.

Rushing around.

Then sometimes it feels like it’s your only option.

>

If that’s the case - use the weekend to get ahead.

Even just doing lunches on Monday & Tuesday can make an impact over time.

Have a good weekend ��

Harry

Apple won't like to hear this ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 04:51:10 GMT

One of THE biggest wastes of time.

And effort.

When training.

Is monitoring how many calories you’ve burned in a workout.

Yup.

A totally pointless exercise.

And I’d go out on a limb and say MOST people that do that.

Are just guilty of how many calories they consumed the day/night before.

It’s the worst gauge of how “effective” your workouts are.

Look at it this way for example.

Let’s say you train for 55 minutes.

More or less what I do with my clients in their hour slot.

And you fit around 20 sets into that.

Each set lasts around what … 25 seconds?

(Depending on how slow you’re doing each rep

Plus how many reps you’re doing)

But if you’re doing 8-12 reps.

With a controlled-ish tempo.

Then 25 seconds is about right.

It comes out to 500 seconds of actual “training” time during your session.

8.5 minutes.

You spend the vast majority of a (good) weight training session resting.

The calories burned are going to be comparatively low.

But the volume you put through your muscles will be pretty high.

If you’re interested in calories burned.

Swap that ratio around …

Work : Rest

And you’ll soon find out that you’re doing cardio, not resistance training.

Happy Thursday ��

Harry

I'm quitting training ... for now 🤦‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 04:50:52 GMT

So I’m totally off my own training this week.

Not even doing my usual morning pushups.

Trying to do nothing.

Zero / minimal physical stress.

Taking a complete rest until next Monday.

(On some antibiotics & don’t want to sabotage their good work)

The only silver lining.

Being that I’ve found an extra 1h in my day.

That I never normally have.

But I really do miss it.

I’m finding those workout videos popping up on my Instagram.

That I usually never pay any attention to.

Suddenly seem WAY more inviting than usual.

“Man … he’s so lucky he gets to do bench press”

>

But sometimes, and definitely in my case right now.

You have to take 1 or 2 steps back in the short term.

So you can take more steps forward in the long term.

I’m sure you can relate.

>

It also feels like a MASSIVE waste of an opportunity going to the gym.

Training my clients.

And NOT training myself …

Surely that’s one of the perks of being a PT.

Is that it's mega easy to get your own training in regularly.

But alas.

I’m going to carry on being ‘sensible’ and take it easy.

See you tomorrow ��

Harry

Something I saw on IG yesterday

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 05:51:17 GMT

I heard that apparently.

It’s around this time in January.

Coming up to 3 weeks in.

We’ve already done over 2.

That people start to give up on their New Year / Jan goals.

And start “reverting” back to normal.

The spark dies down.

Motivation starts to fall off a cliff.

Everyone gets ill.

So I can totally see why.

On the flip side?

We haven’t got THAT much longer left.

By the 2nd half of February.

Things have usually started to turn around.

Spring around the corner.

Weather improves.

So basically we just need to push through this “sticky” patch here.

>

You keep turning up to work, even when you don’t feel like it.

So apply that same dedication to your gym sessions.

If you’re a business owner, you still pay HMRC what they ask for, even when you’d rather not.

So just apply that same logic to tracking your food & preparing it yourself.

The gym isn’t even that busy at the moment

So if you’re using that as an excuse not to go … don’t ��

(Don’t know why I’m saying that last one tbh … now the gym could get rammed)

>

You see what I’m saying here.

Getting through rough patches is a requirement for success.

You can’t achieve great things without wading through cr*p.

Have a great Tuesday ��

Harry

Where I REALLY get my email ideas from

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 16 Jan 2023 20:03:18 GMT

I really need to start keeping some type of notepad in my pocket.

To write down all the email ideas I get during the day.

Because I swear I think of about 10 good ones I could type out to you.

Each day.

And I never write them down.

Therefore missing the VAST majority of them.

I reckon the breakdown goes like this.

90% of them come from client sessions

Talking in rest periods

Figuring out why things are/aren’t working

Coming up with useful analogies

Troubleshooting, problem-solving, and the occasional funny story.

Things like that

5% looking around the gym floor

My lord

Just being in a commercial gym environment is MORE than enough for some good email content

Some bloke the other day told me “has about 20 sets left” on the cable row when I asked him ��

I mean … what program says that?

Not sure what my face did after he told me that …

But probably funny in itself.

And the remaining 5% when I’m in the shower

Because we get all our best ideas in the shower don’t we

Just never get an opportunity to write that stuff down annoying

And tbh … I’m not going to start anytime soon

So there

I’m going to put that into practice if I can.

To come up with some more fire email content.

Until tomorrow morning ✌️

Harry

Don't have any clients called Josh atm ... so I'm safe with this one 😂

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 05:37:25 GMT

Sometimes I look at people training at PureGym.

And think

“Man … you should really read my emails …”

Or women for that matter.

Because sometimes small tweaks.

Or different ways of thinking about training.

Can make all the difference.

Without getting too philosophical.

I’ve had experiences where hearing just 1 phrase.

Has changed everything.

When it comes to my training.

And how I approach sessions/exercises.

One of them off the top of my head

“Instead of counting each rep … make each rep count”

One of the OGs.

1000% true.

Your muscles don’t just reward you when you hit the magical 10 reps.

They don’t work that way.

You have to squeeze them under load in order for them to develop.

Another related one:

“Muscles are mechanical, not emotional. You can’t ‘confuse’ them into growth”

You shouldn’t be aiming to ‘shock’ your muscles into growth in training sessions.

It doesn’t work that way.

Therefore you don’t need to program hop …

Changing workouts every week either.

I sometimes run the same movements for 3-6 months on end before rotating them.

And I’ve made some of my best progress that way.

Because mastering movements is one of the keys to progression.

How could ever lift big weights if you first haven’t learnt a movement inside out?

>

Last one

“World record-holding Olympic weightlifters still warm up with an empty bar … but Josh from finance goes straight from a meeting into an 80kg bench press”

Warm-ups are important.

Even if you only have 20 minutes to train in your lunch break.

And are “super busy”.

Getting injured is the opposite of making progress.

So look to avoid at all costs.

Friday ��

Harry

The George Foreman 2.0

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 04:44:38 GMT

Did some more slow cooker cooking yesterday.

Playing around with the new toy.

Feel like I’ve been hiding under a rock all these years.

Because it’s just so easy.

I’m not tracking at the moment.

Or even trying to lose body fat.

Just getting back into the swing of a routine post-Christmas.

But if & when I do.

Start a little diet to lose a few KGs.

It’s going to make logging & planning meals out idiot-proof.

And more straightforward than cooking every meal (usually only dinner for me).

And I’ve got one of the smallish ones.

3.5 litres I think.

And you can get much bigger ones.

So in theory …

If you had a big one.

you could do all your Mon - Fri meal prep on a Sunday.

It’d take probably 5 minutes to chop up all the veg.

Put it all down on Myfitnesspal.

Then put half the meals in the fridge for the first half of the week.

With the remains going in the freezer for the second half.

No brainer if you’re time-strapped during the week.

>

I’m eyeing up on 1st April to start a mini cut.

For a month or so (4-6 weeks).

Typing that so everyone can hold me accountable to it ��

Because I remember saying exactly the same thing last year.

And it didn’t really happen.

New Year new me and that.

Wednesday ✌️✌️

Harry

What does the S&P and losing fat have in common ...?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 07:04:25 GMT

There’s that well-known saying.

“People overestimate what they can do in a year … but underestimate what they can do in 10”

It’s bang on.

Even more so when talking about body composition.

And EVEN more so when applying it to January.

What can you realistically achieve ….

In 1 month of training & dieting?

-> Lose 2-5kgs

With a large portion of that NOT being actual body fat

-> Establish a good training routine

I’d even go as far to say that for most people, it’s not long enough to learn how to train effectively from scratch

-> Build a tiny bit of muscle

Maybe not even 500g. Probably less than that of actual new tissue

-> Slightly improve some health markers

Sleep quality, digestion, well-being, energy levels

That’s about it.

So a good start.

But you need to be thinking much longer term if you want to see big changes.

Think April, July, September, and December this year.

1x month of good training & dietary habits (January) isn’t going to undo the previous 9 months (sometimes 9 years…) of cr*p.

It just doesn’t.

If the S&P surges 10% this month.

Everyone's portfolios are still way down compared to January ’22.

It needs a far bigger rally in order to undo last year.

So.

Just like the S&P.

You need to be realistic & in it for the long haul.

Have a good one ��

Harry

I realised this this morning 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 21:05:16 GMT

So I won’t keep you long this evening.

But leave you with a thought.

Lots of guys (mainly) in the gym this morning.

Looking like they’re “training for fat loss”.

Supersets

Circuits

Rushing around the gym floor

Fast movements.

Basically just moving around like they’re trying to burn energy.

Instead of controlled squeezing to build muscle.

Which won’t get you far.

We spend the majority of our training sessions resting in-between sets.

You can’t be burning THAT much energy during a 50-minute workout anyway.

Calorie burn during a workout shouldn’t be your priority.

Or even a consideration.

Build muscle

Get stronger

Learn to enjoy training

Then do it 3-4 times a week forever

✌️✌️

Harry

Maybe I should be a football manager instead ...?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 08 Jan 2023 08:52:21 GMT

Talking to a client yesterday about his diet.

Our plan of action for this year.

What we need to focus on.

Etc.

The usual stuff.

And basically.

It came down to 2 areas.

Firstly, things we’re going to do.

Secondly, things we’re NOT going to do.

Pretty simple.

And in his case.

It’s the 2nd point that I told him we need to focus on.

A bit like a football game.

Instead of worrying about how you need to score 3+ goals in every game in order to win.

Just focus on not conceding.

Then you only need 1 goal to win.

Make sense?

For MOST people wanting to drop 5-10kg going into this year …

-> Stop drinking alcohol so much

-> Stop eating out at restaurants all the time

-> Stop ordering Deliveroo on weekends

-> Stop staying up till 1 am watching TV on school nights

-> Stop getting Ubers everywhere when you could walk

And that’s all without even mentioning the long list of things you should be doing.

If you put all these into action,

You’re onto something.

And the weight - at least at the start …

Will fly off.

Happy Sunday ��

Harry

Rainy weekends aren't that bad

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 07 Jan 2023 14:43:45 GMT

A bit slow to this.

(Pun intended)

But I got given a slow cooker for Christmas.

And I think it’ll be a game changer for meal prep.

In theory - it totally should be.

-> Get all the ingredients. Protein, veg etc

-> Log it all into Myfitnesspal

-> Chuck it all in

-> Press 1 button

-> Leave for however many hours you want

And voila - you’ve got 4x or so meals that you know exactly what’s in.

Can go in the fridge or freezer.

I’m going to play around with it next week.

So I’ll let you know my thoughts.

Low key excited ��

Even though I’m not dieting at the moment.

>

And I’m actually writing this quickly before I have a Saturday afternoon nap.

That kinda day isn’t it ��

Sleep being good for recovery & all that.

The guy who wrote the book “Why we sleep” always pops up on my TikTok.

And some of what he says is pretty eye-opening.

When you realise you don’t get anywhere near enough sleep.

Something to work on.

First week of January almost done.

Have a great weekend ��

Harry

Win the _________

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 06 Jan 2023 04:49:13 GMT

Almost all success with any diet.

Boils down to the weekend.

And whether or not you can avoid temptation from Friday - Monday.

Not to overconsume calories.

It’s tough.

Especially when everything social is geared towards either eating or drinking.

I mean.

Whether you’re staying in.

Or going out.

Calories are involved.

Sucks ��

You can stress out over going over your calorie target by 50kcal on a Tuesday.

Because you had 1x square of dark chocolate too many after dinner.

Only to go and throw that all away.

By going over by 1,000kcal on a Saturday night.

Just by having a few drinks and some crisps.

It’s a tricky one.

But this is what separates those who are consistently in shape.

Versus those who aren’t.

See it as a “barrier to entry”.

And without that.

Being in shape WOULDN’T be so desirable.

That whole “nothing worth having comes easy” phrase.

Springs to mind.

My advice?

The pubs, clubs, restaurants, drinks, foods -

All the fun things in life.

Aren’t going anywhere.

You can give them up for a few weeks.

And then enjoy them afterwards.

Have a good one ��

Harry

Revealed: The best time to consume your protein shake 💥

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 07:21:26 GMT

Just finished up one of my clients’ first sessions of the year.

While we were talking about diet strategies during rest periods.

Usual stuff.

What calories we’ll be aiming for.

How we’ll managing weekends.

Etc.

And meal timing popped up.

When is the best time for X?

When should I have Y?

And … honestly?

It does not matter the slightest bit.

It’s your overall intake that counts.

>

The overcomplicated crew will tell you otherwise.

They’ll say that nutrient timing is essential to OPTIMISE.

(They love that word)

Your body.

And you want to be eating this during the morning.

That during the afternoon.

And this type of protein: carbohydrate combination 35 minutes after you finish your last set on the gym floor.

And …

By the way.

That might actually all be true.

When we’re talking about optimising.

It might yield you a +0.005% benefit.

But you need to ask yourself.

Is the effort worth it?

Stressing out over food timing to get a TINY benefit?

Nope ��

You’re far better off consuming your food whenever suits you best.

Personal preference.

>

Because adherence is the number #1 aspect you want to deliver on.

And what helps with that?

Making your diet as EASY for you to follow as possible.

So you can actually follow it.

Rather than stressing out about when you’ll have your 100kcal banana ��

Have a good one.

Harry

"What's it like in there ...?"

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 18:32:57 GMT

Surprisingly …

Gym has still been relatively quiet so far this week.

Was talking to the manager about this morning.

And we agreed that every year.

January never really picks up until halfway through.

People are busy with work.

Take the first week of Jan off, as schools don’t go back immediately.

Etc.

So hold that thought ...

Someone else told me earlier this week.

Won’t be naming any names … as I know she reads my emails ��

“I’m not going to sign up to a gym just yet … because it’ll just be far too busy with new people … so I’ll wait”

Given gyms are still reasonably quiet

(Central London gyms btw … out in the suburbs might be a different story)

That excuse doesn’t fly.

Don’t use that excuse.

>

And hey.

Even when the gym is busy.

You can still guarantee that the leg curl, hack squat, incline back extension, pull down, abduction, adduction, calf raise and leg extension will be free ��

Have a good one.

Harry

January ... the Monday of months 😂

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 03 Jan 2023 14:41:21 GMT

Sorry for the late email today.

Didn’t have a lay in, unfortunately.

…

A useful thing to remember for January.

Apart from paying your tax bill.

Is that you can still lose body fat …

Whilst not having a great diet.

It just needs to be “good enough”.

Most of the time.

And actually …

You can still lose the Christmas pounds.

Even if your diet sucks.

Think about it like this.

-> Still consuming a fair amount of junk food?

As long as you’re in a weekly deficit, you’ll lose fat

-> Not consuming enough protein?
As long as it’s over 100g if you’re a guy and 50g if you’re a woman (huge generalisation here, but thought I’d pluck some numbers up), you’ll be fine

-> Steps low because it rains non-stop?
Fine as long as you’re in a deficit. You can lose fat doing 5k steps a day

-> Not consuming enough fruit & veg, so your fibre intake is low?
You won’t die. You can still lose fat.

OBVIOUSLY

(disclaimer*)

You can speed things up by doing all the right things.

Nailing XYZ all the time.

But we all have bad days.

Weeks.

Just remember that your efforts just need to tip you over the finish line.

Have a good one ��

Harry

White Lotus is fab isn't it

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 02 Jan 2023 08:34:06 GMT

Right.

First Monday of the year.

Let’s talk diet.

Here are a few pointers.

To bear in mind:

-> First off, you don’t need to do anything crazy / super aggressive.

Reducing alcohol consumption, junk food and drinking more water will probably do the trick for the first week.

Think about it like this.

You want to have a good Q1 (3 months).

Not just a good Week 1.

It’s a marathon, not a sprint.

-> Second, tracking might sound like a bore/lots of effort.

But it actually makes your life EASIER.

Setting up your Sat Nav in your car before a long journey is a bit of a faff.

You input the postcode.

It takes a few seconds to load that up.

Works out a couple of routes for you to choose from.

You pick one.

Etc.

Yes, it’s slightly faffy.

But the alternative is to just wing it.

And you probably won’t arrive at your destination.

(Assuming it’s somewhere you haven’t been before)

So download Myfitnesspal & use it.

-> Lastly, go for meals. Not snacks.

You know what?

It’s a WHOLE lot easier if you just don’t snack.

Yup.

Get snacking out of your vocabulary.

Don’t have them.

And have larger, proper, protein & vegetable-rich meals instead.

3x meals is a good number.

Remember when I said you don’t need to reinvent the wheel?

“But I can’t find good snack options which have a lot of protein, that aren’t dairy-based”

That’s because there are none ��

“But what shall I have when I’m on the go and can’t eat a meal?”
Don’t eat for a few hours then

“But I don’t have time to cook full meals”

But you had time to watch 4x episodes of White Lotus last night, Susan. How about that?

Happy Monday ��

Harry

Happy New Year ... just not today 😅

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 01 Jan 2023 15:18:42 GMT

Hi 2023 ��

Question.

Does anyone actually start the whole “clean slate” thing on the 1st Jan …?

Sod's law that it falls on a Sunday this year.

With everyone (most anyway) having some type of hangover from last night.

And …

Given that tomorrow is Bank Holiday as well …

I think we can all agree that we’ll properly start the whole “New Year New Me” thing on Tuesday 3rd?

Perfect.

Or actually …

Maybe even the week after that …?

��

In all seriousness.

Better to start doing a bit now.

So you make a start.

Rather than leaving it till that one day when you feel like getting your sh*t together.

Because that has overwhelm written all over it.

>

Me?

I’m leaving my tree up for 1 more day and then binning it.

A symbolic moment that Christmas / NY is over.

And spending next week finishing up the remains of the Christmas food.

Stocking chocolates - that kind of thing.

Before tidying things back up again after that.

Happy New Year ��

Harry

Last one before '23 💥

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 09:23:04 GMT

Happy NYE.

Not a long one today.

I’m about to head to the gym for my final workout of the year.

And I’m not in the mood for a tips & tricks email.

(I’ll save those for next week ��)

But here’s to doing everything possible to make next year better than this one.

-> Small steps forward

-> Following through on what you say you’ll do

-> Realising that you only have one body, so treating it well pays off

-> Enjoying the journey along the way

… And not skipping workouts ��

Obv.

See you on the other side✌️

Harry

7 useful pointers (keep reading)

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 30 Dec 2022 08:56:41 GMT

Alexa has classic FM pumping out the bangers this morning.

I’ve just done a bit of furniture rearranging.

And now settling down for this email.

>

I’m 2x training sessions into the post-Christmas comeback …

Never an easy time to get back into it.

But I think the sooner you do the better.

By this time next week.

When all the “start in January” punters are clogging up the gym.

I’ll be well & truly on my way.

So here are a few thoughts:

-> January probably isn’t PB time. The aim of your first few sessions back is to ease into training. Not smash records.

-> Warm up for longer than normal. You haven’t moved much the last week or two, so don’t rush into it.

-> Another aim is to get back on it WITHOUT getting injured. You want to avoid this at all costs.

-> Remember. You train to build muscle & get stronger. Not to burn energy.

-> The wheel doesn’t need to be reinvented. Ferrari doesn’t do it when they release a new car which sells out on pre-order to their existing customers … so neither do you need to find “new” exercises to do.

-> Showing up isn’t 90% of the battle … but you can’t train if you don’t go to the gym. You NEED to go 3x a week at least.

-> You don’t need to follow a program for the first week or two back … but you will do after that.

Happy Training ��

Harry

The least Thursday ... Thursday 😅

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 29 Dec 2022 09:55:59 GMT

Right ��

Thought I’d start these up again now I’ve got a bit more time on my hands.

Merry Twixmas ��

Fired the laptop up.

For what feels like months ago since it was last turned on.

And will tell you what I’m up to before we resume real life again on 3rd Jan.

So, as I’m typing this.

I’m already on my 2nd coffee of the day.

And also about my 2nd litre of water.

I feel totally dehydrated.

Not sure about you.

But when I’m sat around watching films over Christmas.

Drinking alcohol.

Eating delicious (but not diet-friendly) food.

Chatting away to family.

My water consumption hits the deck.

Because where do you find room or time for it …? ��

Seriously.

Usually, I have zero problems with drinking 3-4 litres a day.

But this time of the year …

You’ve only got 2 hands, right?

1 is holding a glass of champagne.

Almost constantly.

So that’s taken.

The other was

A) either stroking one of the dogs.

Who was luckily enough to be sat nearby

B) flicking through what to watch on telly.

C) munching away on a marzipan-filled Medjool date … dipped in chocolate.

Or something similar.

You get the idea.

No free hands for water I’m afraid.

I managed a couple of glasses at either end of the day.

But other than that …

Slim pickings.

So the next few days I’m trying to go for it.

>

The second thing on my mind.

Now that it’s finally stopped raining …

(Only boxing day could pass as a ‘good’ weather day)

I’m trying to walk more.

-> Of course I’m also back in the gym

-> Trying to consume more fruit/veg

-> Slowly phasing the alcohol out. Or at the very least delaying when I start drinking it till later on in the day

-> And consuming a bit more protein than I have been doing

But you’ve got to take it 1 step at a time.

Will elaborate more tomorrow.

Have a good one ✌️

Harry

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 11 Dec 2022 09:29:03 GMT

Well, that was disappointing ��

Professional sport at its most brutal.

You can play well.

Do most of the things right.

And still lose.

Because the other team just did better on the day.

Pack your bags the following day.

And you’re off home.

…

Segway incoming …

(You know to expect those now ��)

It’s similar to dieting.

You can spend 95% of your week doing all the right things …

Making the right food choices

Exercising self-control

Swerving alcohol

Getting up early to hit the gym

Tracking on MFP

And if that remaining 5% is ‘bad’ enough …

On a Friday or Saturday night.

Takeaway followed by ice cream.

Or just a big night out.

You finish the week in a small surplus.

Big enough to UNDO all your hard work you did.

It can be brutal.

And can totally mess up your mood.

>

But right now.

Mid-December.

Probably isn’t the time to be zoning in on your fat loss efforts.

(Unless you REALLY want to of course)

But something to bear in mind for Jan.

When invariably.

Fat loss conditions are more favourable.

Have a great Sunday��

Harry

Interesting point below 👀

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 09 Dec 2022 08:55:00 GMT

Someone yesterday asked me what I do when my training’s not going great.

When I’m not feeling it

When I’m not motivated to workout

Etc

And it’s a fairly common one.

I actually responded by saying something like this.

“I’d say the vast majority of my own sessions aren’t great.

I don’t feel like doing it before I do them

I’d usually rather be doing something else

And say I’m training 6x a week …

Over a year …

It’s about 300x training sessions.

Give or take.

10% are probably going to be fantastic.

And the other 90% are just good enough”

>

Because when do something consistently for long enough.

Like me with my own training

(btw this isn’t a flex or impressive… it’s ridiculously easy/convenient for me to train being in the gym all day)

It becomes a NUMBERS game.

You don’t hit home runs all the time when you’re hitting 100 balls a day

It just doesn’t work like that.

Your success rate goes down.

The larger the business, the lower the profit margin %

1 man band businesses might have a big 50% margin.

And make £50k a year.

Big public companies maybe only have a 2% margin.

But make £1.9b a year.

If you train once a week on a Saturday morning.

Assuming you’re not hungover each time.

You’d probably have a 100% good session success rate, wouldn’t you?

But you’d only manage 50 good sessions a year.

Verses me doing 300 average ones a year.

Who’s going to win?

Me obviously ��

Even though most of my training sessions suck.

And on that note.

I’m closing my laptop and off to train.

Have a good one.

Harry

🥶

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 05:51:32 GMT

Hear me out on this one.

It’s -2º outside at the time of typing this …

Tomorrow set to be -4º ��

Cold.

Genuinely a bit scared to go outside.

But we’ll manage, won’t we?

Mad to think the same mornings in July were occasionally hitting 25º+.

In that crazy hot week.

Maybe even more.

And here’s my point

Body composition is a seasonal game

Yes - you want to be in DECENT shape year round.

And not have your body fat levels fluctuate TOO much.

But by and large.

When it’s COLD like it is now.

Ideally …

You want to be in your higher body fat state.

-> You’re warmer. Body fat is a good insulator

-> Wearing more layers, so no need to be super lean all the time

-> Less sunny holidays in hot destinations

It just makes sense to be fatter here

(Not very liberal of me sorry)

Personally - I’m probably 5-6kg heavier in the winter months.

>

And on the flip side.

When it’s BOILING outside.

You want to be in your leaner state.

-> Less insulation on your body. You’ll stay cooler.

-> You’ll wear far fewer layers than in winter. Your physique is on show much more.

-> A lot of people I know spend the whole of July & August away in the Med ��

So it makes sense to be LEAN here.

>

Obviously, there are exceptions.

You need to get to your lean state FIRST before you can tackle the whole seasonal thing.

And if that means you start your fat loss journey in November.

Then all the more power to you.

But once you’ve got over that first hurdle.

Keep it seasonal ��

Harry

Go with the flow ... srsly 😎

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 06 Dec 2022 05:53:38 GMT

So chatting with a client yesterday before our session.

And we came to the conclusion that around this time of year.

It’s difficult / sometimes impossible to get your usual consistency in.

It just doesn’t happen.

“Silly season”

As some like to call it.

You might have something on every day which throws you out of whack with your diet.

Or something every other day.

Or maybe not much during the week.

But then weekends are jam-packed.

>

So what do you do?

You still want to keep 1 hand on the steering wheel.

And not completely go off the rails.

But you also don’t want to be a total killjoy and cancel all your plans.

Plus - this time of year is good fun.

So here’s what you do:

Accept the fact you’ll just have good days & bad days.

And the pendulum might swing quite a fair bit.

The days you’ve got something on …

-> You might not find time to train

-> You’ll consume far more calories than normal

-> You’ll drink far more than normal

-> You’ll sleep less (and worse) than normal

-> You’ll probably do less steps too

So all in all, not a typical day.

But if you don’t have anything planned for the next.

Just try and do the opposite of all that …

-> Get to the gym

-> Consume a low amount of calories (should be easy after yesterday)

-> Don’t drink

-> Go to bed early

-> Hit some more steps at lunch

Basically, just roll with it.

Because what’s the alternative …? ��

Have a good one.

Harry

I'll be honest ... it hasn't been my best week 🤦‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 03 Dec 2022 15:13:19 GMT

I don’t usually get too sore from workouts anymore.

The times I do …

Are either A)

When I change my training program & rotate exercises in / out

A different stimulus from the norm is usually a recipe for a bit of DOMS.

You swap your cable row for a dumbbell row - etc.

When my sleep has suffered.

It’s the biggest recovery tool we have available.

So naturally.

When it heads south.

You don’t head to bed on time.

Or you just don’t get the quality you usually get (usually alcohol related)

You don’t recover as well.

And then C)

When my food hasn’t been 100%.

And mainly …

When I’ve gone UNDER on my protein level.

For whatever reason.

Missed meals.

Meals out etc.

>

My legs are still sore from Wednesday ��

And it’s been a combination of B & C.

It must be.

Because I haven’t done any program tweaking whatsoever.

And yet I’ve still got DOMS.

Take home:

If you’re always getting sore from your workouts.

And you’re not really changing your program too much.

Then you’re under recovering.

For the amount of volume (work), you’re doing with your training.

Have a great weekend ��

Harry

I probably had 6,000kcal yesterday

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 20:02:28 GMT

Have a funny observation for you this evening.

Made a mental note to include this in today’s email.

And luckily I remembered.

So here we are …

So whenever a client is telling me about a meal out they had.

From me asking the usual questions.

Type of cuisine, sensible or not, boozy - etc.

I usually get something like this.

When it comes to desert …

“I just had a bit … like not a whole one … just a tiny bit … like this size”

*Whilst showing me a tiny cut-out portion with their hands ��

But you know what the funny thing is?

And I’ll be honest here.

I don’t think I’ve EVER seen anyone do this at a restaurant.

Everyone demolishes the whole thing.

Myself included.

No one leaves half a cheesecake just sat there.

Or three-quarters of tiramisu on the plate.

It just doesn’t happen.

And boy …

Some of those desserts aren’t small calorie wise��

But hey.

If there’s any time of the year to indulge on desserts it’s now.

Just make sure you put it to good use in the gym the next day ��

Harry

Happy Birthday to me 🎂

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 30 Nov 2022 09:36:22 GMT

Pretty proud of myself this morning.

Avoided all the excuses I was coming up with in my head.

And managed to do my leg session …

The toughest session of the week.

On my BIRTHDAY ��

The internal dialogue just before was:

“Just do it later in the week”

“Too early for this session. Legs is an afternoon thing”

“Who does legs on their birthday anyway?! Just have today off”

“Freezing outside. I need more time to warm up”

“I forgot to wear my shorts so I can’t do it in trousers. Will do it tomorrow instead”

(That last one was 100% real btw)��

But I just finished it.

Phew.

Managed to sneak in a tiny PB in there as well.

I guess yesterday’s email rubbed off on me too.

So feeling pretty happy with myself.

See you tomorrow ✌️

Harry

Christmas party you'd rather miss 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 28 Nov 2022 04:50:22 GMT

If your inbox has been looking anything like mine recently.

It’s constantly bombarded with cr*p.

All day long.

Looks like my email address has taken the role of a box in a game of pass the parcel …

At a party with 50 “expert” social media marketers ��

Who all (passively) run 6 figure businesses.

Sounds like a gathering to avoid tbh …

Anyway …

I’ll keep this one short today.

So not to clog up your inbox more.

>

The more I’ve learnt about training & nutrition over the years.

From

A) people who are a lot smarter than I am

And

B) tens of thousands of hours of experience on the gym floor.

“Doing it”

The more basic I go with my approaches

Yup.

The better I get at this

The better the results I get

The more I learn

The more experienced I get

The simpler I go with what I do.

Less complicated exercises

Less complicated nutritional setups

Less worried about the tiny 0.1% details

Less bothered about peripheral stuff

And more concerned with:

-> Executing basic exercises well

-> Nailing a basic (and flexible) diet consistently

-> Look at the big 30% factors that make up most of the difference

-> Zooming out and looking at the program as a whole

Funny that isn’t it?

Now go & have a good start to the week ✌️

Harry

I'm a part time Deliveroo driver now 👀

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 26 Nov 2022 18:18:18 GMT

Drove a scooter for the first time this morning.

Fed up with relying on TFL��

And even though it was an automatic.

(So in theory easy to ride …or easier than a manual)

It was totally alien to me.

And properly outside my comfort zone.

Reminded me of what it’s like training for the first time.

Soooo many things to think about.

It’s like you KNOW what you need to do.

But doing it in practice is totally different.

-> Your proprioception is completely off.

-> You don’t have any muscle memory yet - it’s all new.

-> Your concentration levels are completely maxed out.

It’s exhausting ��

And it takes time.

Time practising.

Learning the movements.

Making mistakes

(… I didn’t fall off don’t worry)

And generally becoming more comfortable with it.

>

Same goes for dieting too.

Remember your first week properly “doing” a fat loss diet …

It’s hard work at the start, right?

Tracking on Myfitnesspal

Doing a bit of meal prep

NOT having Deliveroo when you usually do

Going a bit hungry

It’s tough.

But then it gets easier over time.

As you adjust to it.

And practice it more.

My 2 cents

Have a great evening ��

Harry

This one holds everyone back ... except me 😂🤷‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 04:49:54 GMT

So now that my “training deload” is done.

(Body is feeling MUCH better btw, thanks for asking ��)

I’m eyeing up the next few days where I’ll probably not train.

And give the body another rest

Christmas Day

Boxing Day

… maybe the day after that, who knows.

(Definitely train on Christmas Eve - working day & all that)

So in my head, I’m thinking that I’ve got another full month left.

Of the year.

To try and hit some PBs.

Make some 0.0001% gains

And generally not give in to the year-end slob.

>

And I’m promising myself I won’t fall into the BIGGEST trap in achieving that.

Which ISN’T:

How many reps you do

What exercises you do

What order you do them in

What your tempo is

It’s skipping sessions.

Not training.

Even if you train perfectly.

Every set to failure

Optimal exercises for your body structure

Always keeping tension on the muscle, the whole time

If you don’t go to the gym you can’t do any of that ��

So it’s the number 1 thing to avoid.

>

If you can leap over that hurdle.

You give yourself a chance of getting stuff done.

Happy FRIDAY.

Harry

My schedule is all over the place ... 🙄

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 24 Nov 2022 04:46:35 GMT

When it comes to your own training sessions.

The LESS you have to rely on.

The better …

Take a look at this.

Scenario 1.

To have a good training session you need:

-> A pre-workout drink

-> Training at the ideal time

-> Access to every single piece of equipment you want

-> At least a 2-hour slot, so you’re not rushed

—>> Basically, all the stars need to be aligned to train

For you to train.

That’s scenario 1.

Let’s look at the opposite of that:

-> You don’t need a pre-workout to train. You can go anytime

-> You’re totally flexible on WHEN you train. You prefer it to be early morning, but sometimes you train late. You just roll with it

-> You don’t mind if you have to chop & change your program if equipment isn’t available. You don’t sweat it and do an alternative

-> You only need a 1-hour slot. Sometimes less, if you’re busy. You keep an eye on the big picture.

—>> You’re flexible with your approach but regimented with your goals

That’s scenario 2.

Which one is the best in the long term?

Probably the latter.

Ideally, we’d all be doing scenario 1.

And basing our entire day around training.

But that’s not reality.

And sometimes you need to be ultra-flexible with where, when & what you do with your training.

Now - off to the gym.

Have a good one ✌️

Harry

My guide to using THE app ... 👀

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 23 Nov 2022 05:08:32 GMT

Whether you choose to or not.

Your body will be tracking your calories.

And macros.

Because everything you consume has an energy value (kcal).

And it’s A)

either used up as fuel.

Through staying alive, keeping your organs working & activity.

Or B)

it’s stored as excess energy.

Mainly body fat, and some muscle.

Straightforward.

>

Now you probably don’t need to track your intake ALL the time.

12 months a year.

(Unless you really want to)

But when you want to REDUCE your excess stored energy.

… Body fat.

Get leaner.

For a holiday.

Or a general tidy-up.

Then it makes sense to.

Because it’s the easiest option available to you.

>

But on the flip side.

You can still lose it WITHOUT tracking.

…

People were in good shape pre-MFP.

Long before.

But in my opinion.

It makes things MUCH harder not to.

In today’s world.

Because you don’t have that Sat Nav that I keep talking about …

To help you on your way.

Guiding you along the journey.

>

It’s almost like using Myfitnesspal is a LEGIT easier way to do it.

It gamifies losing body fat.

Turns it into a simple equation:

-> Set a protein & calorie target

-> Log your food

-> Do that consistently 7 days a week (or 6, depending on what you’re up to on that other day ��)

->> And voila

Super simple.

As nutrition should be.

Instead of worrying about meal timing.

Whether you should be fasting or not.

Whether to go high carb or high fat.

You just do what works for you.

And as long as you’re hitting your targets.

Regularly.

And not undoing it all in 15 minutes of madness on Saturday afternoon ��

You’ll arrive at your destination.

Have a good one ��

Harry

The perfect body doesn't exi ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 16 Nov 2022 07:51:04 GMT

I got asked yesterday by a client:

“How do people who completely rely on their looks/physique stay in that shape year round? Models, bodybuilders etc”

And it’s a really good question.

Because from an outside perspective.

It seems like these people are in their BEST shape 365 days a year.

They’re always lean.

Never seemingly have an off-season.

Or go through a fat/fluffy spell.

We all know the type.

We probably follow most of them on Instagram.

Along with millions of others who do.

So here’s the deal.

So, HOW do they do it?!

…

They don’t.

Well … I don’t think they do.

And here’s why.

Or at least 99% don’t.

There will be the 1 in 100 million that do actually stay in their best shape year round.

Genetics/lifestyle/motivation/drive

(probably in that exact order)

Being the contributing factor.

But there are probably 50-100 people like that on the planet.

Out of 8 billion people.

I’ve seen videos of female fitness models having bum pads placed under their leggings whilst on a shoot.

��

No joke.

Here’s the vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbq0xGAczTQ

To literally give them a bum.

(They didn’t have one before)

So she ended up having THE perfect balance of being lean, toned & also muscular in the right places.

>>

Guys peak for photoshoots.

I know because I’ve done it many times.

They’re in THAT shape for probably 30-45 mins.

Either side of that.

They don’t look nearly as muscular, lean, vascular - you name it.

But the videos/photos from that shoot last forever.

And they can RECYCLE them endlessly on social media.

Giving the illusion that they’re always in that shape.

So …

That’s my take on it.

You’re doing great.

If you’re showing up to the gym

Watching what you eat

Making progress (no matter how seemingly slow)

You’re better than most.

Have a good one ��

Harry

What's the best time of year to train?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:36:12 GMT

Hear me out on this one.

Because it probably goes against the grain.

And not the normal advice.

But of all the times in the year to enjoy weight training.

The two stand-out times are these.

1 - when you’re on summer holidays.

Something about training when you’re not at work.

Tanned

Relaxed

Well rested

Training at a different gym than usual

Usually a better one.

You do honestly get some of your best workouts then.

Pumps are great

You’re already in a good mood … and training just puts you in an even better one

Just brilliant.

And the second one …

In and around Christmas / New Year.

And seeing as we’re in November, not mid-August.

We’ll have to settle for this one.

Nothing feels better than beating the January rush.

Gym is quiet

You’re more relaxed than normal

More rested than normal

More fuelled up with calories than normal

All the ingredients for some 10/10 training sessions.

It feels great.

But most people miss out on this.

Of course.

And avoid the gym completely until the 2nd week of Jan.

“Too much on”

“Don’t feel like going”

“I’ll just start next week”

Because technically.

Christmas & New Year is holiday time.

So why on earth would you want to still carry on training …?

��

(See reasons above)

>

So even if you plan on going wildly off-piste with your diet & alcohol consumption

(I will be too btw)

You can still log some top training sessions in that time.

And hit January running.

Instead of starting miles behind the starting line.

Have a good Tuesday ��

Harry

Let me know if this is a good time for a 6.5k ...?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 12 Nov 2022 06:48:04 GMT

Right.

So bit of a storytime email this morning.

I’ve got a bit more time than usual being a Saturday.

>

So the tube opened back up yesterday at 8 am.

So naturally …

Up until that point, roads were crazy busy.

Basically gridlocked.

You can tell, can’t you …

When you walk out the house.

And roads that are normally pretty quiet, not too much traffic.

Are just bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Lights everywhere.

>

The bus I normally get into the gym wouldn’t stop.

Too full up.

3 went past.

1 of the 3 stopped - zero room to get on.

And the other 2 didn’t even bother stopping.

The driver just waved & drove past.

Didn’t help that there were several Spanish tourist students with huge suitcases at the stop waiting with me ��

(Tbh I think they put off the driver from stopping … if it had been just me I reckon they would have let me on)

ANYWAY.

So I’ve got a client booked in at 8 am at Picadilly Circus.

It’s currently 7.31 am and I’m at Norland Square.

Having just been pied off by the 94.

So I’ve only got 1 choice.

Can’t get an uber

Can’t get the tube

Can’t walk

So I have to start running.

I know it’s an hour PLUS walk.

So not really sure if I could make it in time if I ran - but I really didn’t have a choice.

It was either cancel my session.

Or run for it.

And for any of you that have trained with me before.

Unless I’m bed bound - I don’t cancel sessions��

It never happens.

And I wasn’t going to start yesterday.

…

Managed to get there at 8.01 am.

Hot sweaty knackered mess.

Took me exactly 30 mins.

6.4 kilometres

4 or so miles

8,500 steps

Can someone who knows about running let me know if that’s a good time or not…?

>

My client, later on, asked sarcastically if I “wanted a medal” for it.

And ngl yes I actually felt like I deserved one ��

But if it hadn’t been for the adrenaline rush of missing the session.

I don’t think I would have made it.

Having that concrete deadline gave me no other choice.

And there’s that.

Have a great weekend ��

Harry

NOT a philosophy lecture ... I promise 😇

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 11 Nov 2022 06:37:56 GMT

As with most things in life.

Timing is everything.

“Right place, right time”

But …

Even if you’re in the WRONG place.

As long as it’s the RIGHT time.

You’ll probably get lucky in the end.

We’ve all had first-hand experience with that.

Whether it’s hitting 4 green traffic lights in a row on the way to work.
Even if you were running late in the first place.

Getting back indoors.
Just as it starts pouring with rain outside.

Through to forgetting your usual Lotto numbers.

And ending up winning the £185m jackpot

… ��

>

So that begs the question.

“Is today (Nov 11th) the best time to start a diet?”

Friday, middle of November.

Well …

Most of the Instagram PTs will tell you that there’s never a good time to start.

And the best time to start is now.

No excuses.

You’ll wish you had started sooner.

Etc.

Which is sort of true.

But also sort of not.

Start your diet now, and unless you have absolutely zero plans for December (highly unlikely).

You’ll only have 2-3 weeks of having a crack at it.

Basically not long enough.

You’re almost setting yourself up to fail.

Unless you only ever plan on dieting for 2-3 weeks anyway.

(Which tbh a lot of people probably do ��)

Start that same diet in January?

And you’ve probably got at LEAST 2 months of good dieting conditions.

-> January is usually quiet on the social front. Dry Jan, cleaning up after a boozy Christmas, funds for most people are low.

-> February is probably similar. It picks up a bit in March when the weather starts turning, but for the most part, February is a good dieting month.

So just by changing your start date.

You INCREASE your chance of success.

Don’t completely write off the year just yet.

You can still train hard

Make sensible(ish) food choices

Improve your fitness with steps/training

So that when January comes, you’re in a stronger position to crack on.

Just my 2 cents.

Happy Friday ��

Harry

From Vauxhall to Notting Hill Gate

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 10 Nov 2022 04:51:35 GMT

So I went for my 2nd rock climbing session last night.

I’m de-loading this week from training.

(As you know)

But wanted to get some practice in & try out the new shoes ��

Bit of a weird one to be honest with you.

Felt like everything seemed harder.

Much harder actually.

More challenging.

-> Holds felt smaller

-> Grip didn’t feel as secure

-> Hands seemed to get tired quicker

-> Almost overthinking every attempt

That’s how it FELT whilst I was doing it.

So I mentioned this to my friend afterwards

Who’s a fairly experienced climber.

(Has a chalk bag & everything, which is a MUST have btw)

And he told me it looks like the EXACT opposite.

I looked more confident on the wall.

Doing more challenging climbs & succeeding with them.

And just generally better than a couple of weeks ago.

Which I was obviously buzzing about.

Love me a bit of progression.

>

Funny that isn’t it?

So I took that as a major W.

That I’m making progress with it.

And when I was heading back on the tube afterwards.

In-between stations with no wifi …

It’s soooo similar to when you first start training in the gym.

Because it doesn’t actually feel like it’s getting any easier.

Just more difficult every time you go.

-> Because you’re using MORE weight.

-> Squeezing your muscles HARDER each time.

-> Probably doing everything with a SLOWER tempo.

And seeing as you know what to expect, there’s less novelty.

Novelty -> the excitement of doing something new masks how challenging it can be.

I certainly felt like this last night when I was on the wall.

But I’m going to show up again next week & deposit more practice pennies ��

Have a good one.

Harry

This is an easy one to forget ... 🙈

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 04:47:32 GMT

Once you have all your ducks in a row for fat loss.

You’ll need +1 more ingredient.

A pretty important one.

Say you’ve got your training (1) in check.

Working out regularly (3-5 times a week).

You’re following a structured program.

You’re learning the movements.

How to contract your muscles.

All the good stuff.

You’ve also started tracking your food (2).

Everything is getting logged.

You weigh what you can, and you estimate what you can’t.

But it’s all going into Myfitnesspal.

And you’re working towards a calorie & protein target.

Happy days.

Your overall activity (3) has also gone up.

Because you’ve got a step count you’re trying to hit.

More of your commute is walking (hopping off / on the tube a stop or two earlier etc).

You’re always taking the stairs and not standing on the escalator.

You’re getting out & about on weekends and hitting 15k steps.

>>

You’ve got the 3 MAIN ingredients for success here.

But you need another one.

Time (4)

Time for it to work.

And this is the hard part.

Because it requires patience from your side.

As it NEVER takes the time you’d like it to.

“I’ll need a few weeks to get back in shape”

> Try a few months

> Maybe even more

You don’t put on 1-2kg a week.

And knowing how difficult it is to lose.

You certainly shouldn’t expect to lose it in that time.

Have a great Wednesday ✌️

Harry

I bet you didn't see this coming ... 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 03 Nov 2022 07:30:46 GMT

Trying to contain my stereotypically British desire to talk about the weather here.

I lasted about 3 minutes.

Typed out about 50 words on another topic …

Was tempted to carry on.

But …

I just couldn’t ��

Saved that email for another (rainy) day.

And doing an email on what’s on everyone's mind.

☔️��

The monsoon engulfing London this morning.

And surprise surprise.

Gym pretty quiet.

The OG regulars showed up.

The people that come in regardless.

Literally.

And obviously me & my client.

>

And here’s the thing.

Shoot me if I’m being a bit harsh and blunt here …

But I think if you use the weather as an excuse not to go to the gym …

E.g.

When it rains, you don’t go.

When it’s too hot, you don’t go.

When it’s a bit depressing at 4 pm on a Thursday and you don’t fancy training after work. Head home instead.

Then you don’t DESERVE to be in shape.

Yup.

You don’t deserve that reward.

Because why should you …?

I wouldn’t expect to earn money without showing up to work.

So you shouldn’t expect to have that fit, athletic, lean, muscular, sexy body if you don’t hit the gym regularly.

Because being in shape is a reward.

> A reward for hard work.

> A reward for consistency day in, day out.

> A reward for showing up, even when you don’t feel like it.

So naturally …

If you don’t do any of those things.

And throw the towel in at your earliest convenience.

Then you deserve to be OUT of shape.

See you tomorrow ��

Harry

What's the most popular fitness class in London?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 08:14:58 GMT

There isn’t really a ‘superior’ form of cardio.

That is better than all the others.

Your friend who lost 5kg after starting Barrys will say otherwise.

But generally speaking.

They mostly all do the same thing.

Burn energy, improve your fitness & make you feel good afterwards.

Comparing one activity to another.

(Assuming you’re using cardio as a general fitness/energy burning too)

As it should be more or less.

> Yoga versus Pilates

> Boxing versus Stair Master

> Barrys versus Soul Cycle

It boils down to which one you PREFER doing.

Someone asked me what I thought about skipping yesterday.

(The skipping crowd obviously LOVE it & thinks it’s the all, end all for fat loss)

“Great if you like skipping .. but it doesn’t have any magical fat loss properties”

What DOES have magical fat loss properties?

Controlling your food intake on a regular basis for several weeks & months.

Boring I know.

But that’s what you need to focus on.

And what’s the best form of cardio?

If you really must do it?

(Which you don’t btw)

The one you can do consistently for several weeks & months.

That could be whatever you fancy doing.

For 99% of us?

An easy, straightforward option is walking.

As you can fit that into a normal lifestyle.

You don’t need to formally schedule them.

Running errands

Commuting

Walking around the house whilst on the phone

Taking the dog out

Etc.

Without having to do a class or session.

“Get your steps in”

Have a good one ��

Harry

Did I get this right?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 08:50:36 GMT

Now the clocks have gone back.

It properly feels like we’re in the “run up” till Christmas.

Lighter mornings which feel incredible.

Puts you in a good mood.

Especially when the sun comes out to play.

Lunchtimes which still feel pretty normal.

As long as it’s not pouring.

Thennnn the 4 pm blackout …

/ that ready to start winding down for the night feeling.

Not ideal.

Especially if you’re someone that likes to get their steps in after work.

It means we’ve got 1 month of normal routine left.

No Christmas parties.

No Winterwonderland madness.

Not too much burnout.

Then that’s basically it until January.

(Talking fat loss, clean living, training regularly etc)

I personally don’t end up taking December off training or anything.

But I’m also not going to multiple office parties/dinners 3-4 times a week in the lead-up to Christmas.

It seems bizarre that some PTs do fall off the wagon.

Especially if they’re at the gym the whole time ��

>

So basically you’ve got to make each of these next few weeks count.

Knuckle down.

Get some good momentum built up so you can hit December in a GOOD place.

With your training at least.

Then come month 12.

You can at least put the extra calories to good use and hit some PBs.

Before bringing in the New Year.

Have a good Monday��

Harry

I'm trying something new ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 29 Oct 2022 17:04:34 GMT

So I tried out rock climbing this week.

Or bouldering, as some call it.

Thursday night.

Loved it.

Felt great doing something TOTALLY different.

Physically - because 90% of it is forearm & finger strength.

Which you obviously don’t train directly in everyday workouts.

Some of the holds only allow you to hang on with a couple of fingers.

And mentally - because I’m scared of heights ��

And although it doesn’t look it.

When you’re almost at the top of the climbing wall.

Then look down.

It feels like a loooooong way down to the floor.

With only 4 of your fingers and 1 foot holding your entire body up.

Then it feels like you have to take a leap of faith.

Totally unnerving.

But it was great.

And I’m going to try to make it part of a weekly / at least monthly routine.

>

Have already ordered some climbing shoes.

Skin in the game & that.

Forced accountability.

So have to go at least 20x times to get my money back on those.

>

I got my buddy to take a video of my last climb of the night.

Which I had struggled with.

Think I did 3-4 failed attempts before finally getting it.

Climbing to the top, basically.

So …

It FELT like a 9/10 difficulty. Pretty hard.

I was panting, sweating - basically just really struggling with it.

But it looked like a 2/10 difficulty.

Honestly.

Looked so unimpressive & straightforward.

Like I had much more in the tank.

>

A bit like how MOST of our working sets look like in the gym.

It FEELS totally different to how it looks.

Meaning we can all probably push a little harder when we’re training.

Even me …

Something I’ll work on.

Have a good one ��

Harry

The warm up sweet spot

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 26 Oct 2022 15:23:58 GMT

So while I’m waiting for my client to join me on the gym floor.

I had a few spare minutes.

So naturally, I’m looking around.

Observing.

Seeing what the general public is doing with their gym time.

And (obviously) saw something I thought I’d share:

A guy warming up for barbell squats.

Nothing out of the ordinary to start with.

Shotgunned the rack & started his routine.

Fairly standard:

A few lower-body stretches

Swinging the arms out a bit

“Loosening” up the joints

NOT the warm-up I recommend doing …

But hey - a lot of people this kind of thing and it’s not a deal breaker.

Anyway.

A few minutes of this go by.

And I thought he would THEN start the exercise. Barbell Squats.

No no no.

He does ANOTHER 5-10 minutes of “core activations”

(I’m not 100% sure because I didn’t actually ask him what he was doing … But 99% confident he was ‘warming up’ his core before squats, you can just tell)

Ab rollouts

Plank twist things

Leg Raises

Man was doing a FULL on 5-minute ab workout before his first exercise ��

He wasn’t activating. He was fatiguing.

His abs / a lot of other muscles will have been pretty tired after that.

And then going into Squats?

Asking for trouble in my view.

And certainly not setting yourself up to perform at your best.

>

What should he have done?

If he wanted to activate his core before some heavy lifts.

A few ISOMETRICS (held contractions) would have done the trick.

5-10 second squeezes in a few different positions and viola��

There’s no need to do 10-minute warm-ups.

A better use of that time is to do more actual training.

Have a great evening.

Harry

I just Googled this but not sure if it's right

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 23 Oct 2022 10:42:24 GMT

So to get really good at something.

To properly master a skill.

You:

A) Need to do it a lot.

There’s that 10,000-hour rule we’ve all heard about.

Which, when applied to the gym.

I’m not 100% convinced.

Because I’m not even halfway there ��

(Around 2,000 by my estimates)

If you’re training on AVERAGE twice a week.

Or even three times a week.

Over a long time (10 years)

(You might train 4-5 times a week, but taking into account seasonability, missed sessions, missed weeks with holidays etc)

You’d still be a million miles away from that ‘mastering a skill’ number.

That should be humbling.

Because I’m still a beginner when it comes to weight training.

And B)

You probably need to ENJOY doing it.

Or at least enjoy some aspects of doing it.

You might not actually enjoy doing Split Squats.

They burn like mad and it’s an unpleasant feeling.

But you probably enjoy the feeling you get afterwards.

The quad pump.

Endorphins going.

So it’s a relatively sensible trade-off.

If you didn’t enjoy ANY aspect of training.

You’d struggle to get the 10k hours in.

Unless you’re the 0.0001% that can crack on without deriving enjoyment from your activity.

Andre Agassi famously said that he hated playing tennis.

Despite becoming hugely successful.

He just did it for money.

BUT by and large.

You’ll need to enjoy your training bit at the start.

To do it for long enough.

That you start progressing along the mastery path.

Meaning you enjoy it even more.

AND see significant results from it.

Which takes more time than you think / hope for.

I.e, 12 months not 12 weeks.

Have an awesome Sunday ��

Harry

The C word 🙈

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 11:54:58 GMT

As some of you might have noticed.

I didn’t do an email yesterday.

My laptop was in a bag that was buried behind a huge dust sheet.

And with workman cracking on in that area.

Drilling, sawing etc.

I just left them to it & promised that I’d do a lengthy one today.

So double dose of content now.

For a Saturday afternoon read.

My client yesterday suggested I do an email on this.

So here are a few thoughts on a supplement I pretty much recommend everyone take.

Creatine.

Overheard a couple of guys in the changing room talking about it.

“Last time I took it made me all watery & bloated … so not taking it again when I’m cutting”

“But the strength gains are mad though bro .. you can lift so much more when you’re on it”

A lot of us have probably heard a similar convo.

Or even been IN the convo.

If someone didn’t hear what they were talking about.

And only caught the end of the convo.

They’d have thought they were talking about steroids ��

It doesn’t make you watery & bloated.

It just doesn’t.

If you do experience that.

While you’re ‘taking it’.

Then it’s probably your diet/lifestyle that’s causing that.

Not the 3-5g of creatine.

It allows your MUSCLES to hold more water - which doesn’t give you the bloated/watery look.

That comes from more water in between the muscle & skin.

The guy in the changing room probably paired his creatine intake with poor food choices.

And potentially not enough water intake (needed).

Most guys in particular see creatine as a ‘bulking / muscle gain’ supplement.

And end up eating as such.

Making them bloated/watery.

>

It helps with performance - but it won’t add significant amounts to your lifts.

It’s not magic.

It’s one of THE most researched supplements.

Behind caffeine.

And the studies do show that it DOES increase performance.

But by small amounts.

They’ll barely be noticeable.

Especially over the short term.

Unless you’re tracking your workouts really tightly.

And/or are consistent with your training over several years.

You won’t start feeling invincible after taking 3g in the morning.

Just as you wouldn’t feel that after eating a huge steak with the same amount of creatine in it.

(It’s found in red meat, just in low ish quantities)

I’d even suggest females take it.

Because they want more muscle too.

Just like guys in the gym do.

Better gym performance.

And more hydrated muscles.

Giving the illusion of a leaner physique.

So don’t shy away from it.

>

You also don’t need to cycle off it.

Again, it’s not gear.

You can take it year round no problems.

Like your other supplements.

Vit D, omega 3s, zinc etc.

Have a good weekend ✌️

Harry

I'm off 🥳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 12:00:49 GMT

Escaping London for an afternoon.

Typing this on a packed-out train from Victoria.

Spending a good few minutes staring out at the rooftops of Clapham.

Trying to find an idea for an email.

Whilst everyone around me smashes their sandwiches & full-fat cokes.

(Tiny bit jealous of them if I’m honest)

And the likelihood of any of this getting tracked on MFP is probably low ��

So here’s a thought.

We all bury our heads in the sand when it comes to how many calories we consume.

It always ends up being more than we think.

Or would like.

And we wishfully think that we burn more calories than we do.

12k steps burns a good bit of energy.

(Depending on how much you weigh etc)

But it’s not going to be as much as a calorie-loaded meal deal.

Nowhere near.

We purposefully eat more than we need to - survive.

At the same time.

Also deliberately conserve energy by not moving as much as we could - survival.

Losing fat goes against our natural instincts.

That’s why it is so difficult.

(Even I find it so)

And why MOST people are out of shape.

Because it’s too easy to be.

>

Have a good one ��

Harry

How long to cook an egg ..?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 19 Oct 2022 08:30:22 GMT

So it took me about an hour to cook my dinner last night.

A 3-egg omelette, a load of vegetables & rice.

Weird combo I know, but was using up what was left.

Should no way near take an hour.

But it did.

I have workmen in atm.

So my place is a complete tip/building site.

I can usually get all the vegetables & meat chopped up in about 10 minutes.

But seeing as nothing was where it should be.

Mess everywhere.

Couldn’t find things.

It ended up taking WAY longer.

And I’ve thought of 2 lessons to take from this:

1. Make eating fibrous vegetables as much a part of your routine as brushing your teeth.

My client this morning asked me why I didn’t just order something from Deliveroo instead.

And even though I was tempted.

I hadn’t eaten much veg & needed a ‘clean-ish meal.

99% of people brush their teeth twice a day.

At least.

Regardless of circumstance.

Drunk, tired, hungover, p*ssed off, hot, cold - whatever you’re feeling.

You brush your teeth.

Don’t you?

See eating vegetables in the same way.

Always get a good amount in EVERY day.

2. You don’t get a medal for doing difficult/inconvenient things.

So you may as well make it EASY for yourself.

Or aim to make things easier.

If my kitchen wasn’t such a mess …

Everything in the right place.

So I could go into autopilot mode.

Cooking dinner last night would have been a lot easier than it was.

But it wasn’t, so I had to make do.

Sometimes it’s avoidable.

Sometimes not.

So if you can …

Make your fitness routine/habits straightforward.

Even if it ends up looking different to everyone else’s.

If it works, it works.

>

Have a good one ✌️

Harry

What lasts longer: Liz Truss' press conference or your fat loss efforts?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 05:24:12 GMT

There are a select few times a year when you WON’T have anything on.

Life blind spots, if you want to call them that.

No holidays coming up.

No Christmas or Easter.

No Bank Holidays.

No major distractions, basically.

And obviously …

(You know what I’m going to say here)

These are the periods you want to capitalise on, fat loss/body composition-wise.

Makes total sense too.

Usually, these periods last a matter of weeks.

A month or two at most.

No more than that, as something usually pops up in the calendar.

And just off the top of my head.

Second half of January / early February is one.

And *October* is another.

>

And now I mention it …

I realise I’ve been saying this a lot to clients recently.

Or something similar ��

“Knuckle down and put the work in now … Because come November / December, when Christmas party season starts … our fat loss priority will disappear faster than Liz Truss at a press conference”

Here’s what you do:

>> Take advantage of the lighter evenings to hit more steps.

>> Aim to make it to the gym an extra +1 session than your usual.

>> Don’t do what everyone else does and skip their AM gym session when it’s raining outside.

>> Tidy up your tracking on Myfitnesspal. Making sure you’re *actually* hitting your target, rather than ‘sort of’ doing it.

>> Stay in more on the weekends. (An absolute KEY). You can make up for it in December. Nights out aren’t going anywhere and prohibition isn’t coming back.

>> Train to build muscle. Use diet control to lose fat.

You’ll be glad you did ��

Have a good one

Harry

👋

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 04:23:49 GMT

Morning,

6 months ago (almost to this very day) I stopped doing these daily emails.

Which I did pretty much non-stop for 2 years.

Just ended up running out of content, unfortunately …

And anything interesting to say …

But now I’m starting again.

Armed with 6 months worth of life experience.

(Might do an email on why I REALLY stopped doing these at some point)

So …

Either they’ll pop into your inbox at 5.23 am.

Or on the weekends.

A tiny bit later.

The main reason I’ve fired these up again??

A) I actually enjoy doing them.

It’s a hassle for the first 30 seconds.

But once I get going.

Typing a load of rubbish before I edit it.

There’s something therapeutic about doing this.

Talking to you directly with (almost) no filter.

B) Spending so much time in a commercial gym.

A lot of people train badly. Really badly.

Sort of fed up watching without doing anything about it.

So I thought if they signed up for these, and I dished out some free advice, then the likelihood of someone “snapping their sh*t up” on the gym floor goes down.

In theory …

In practice who knows?

C) I think 1 person told me they missed my emails.

Maybe 2, but not too sure.

And obviously not wanting to let them down … I’m here.

>

So please hit a reply with what you want me to ramble on about.

I’ve got my black book of topics, of course.

But if there’s ANYTHING specific you want my thoughts/words on.

Let me know.

>

Monday let’s go ��

Harry

What makes a good gym?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 04:49:46 GMT

So I’ve got a theory.

Thought of it the other day.

It’s been based on multiple conversations with people over the years.

But the penny really dropped for me recently.

“The nicer the gym, the worse you train”

Can anyone genuinely disagree with that?

Let me know ��‍♂️

>

I think it all comes down to the environment.

Fluffy towels

Beautiful surroundings

Pristine, almost unused equipment

Health club/spa vibe

Countless ‘add ons’ (sauna, steam room, pool, laundry service etc)

All of which are nice to have.

Don’t get me wrong.

But none of which help you train hard.

Do they?

If anything …

The environment is TOO nice.

TOO comfortable.

TOO relaxing.

TOO luxurious.

So it takes away from the primary aim of going to the gym.

And if you’re serious about your training …

You don’t really want that.

Therefore … the opposite is true.

Training in an environment you don’t want to be in for very long.

Maybe 60 minutes max.

Will probably yield better training results.

Other members will be there to train hard, and that rubs off on you

And not just going there for the sauna/steam room/cafe / general chit chat

Because it’s not a luxurious environment, you won’t want to be there for long

Get in, train hard, no messing around, then leave

You won’t get penalised for training hard

You’ll be able to grunt a bit, show some controlled aggression & throw your weights around sensibly, without getting told off for ‘disturbing the other members’

There’s usually more & better equipment

Because they’re not spending money on much else. Dumbbells & barbells are largely the same wherever you go, and those are what you’re using mostly anyway.

Saves you a ton of ££ (£500 p/m v £35 p/m)

Which you can then invest into good quality, results-driven PT. The ROI comes down to fluffy towels versus body composition results

PureGym > Equinox

There, I said it ��

Have a good one.

Harry

It's been a while 👋

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 16 May 2022 04:45:43 GMT

So it’s been just over a FULL month since I last did an email like this.

Won’t bore you with why I haven’t been popping up in your inbox lately.

But honestly …

I’ve missed doing them.

So I’m starting them back up again.

They probably won’t be daily.

(Under promising deliberately here)

But whenever I’ve got a few spare minutes.

And want to get something off my chest.

I’ll type one.

Speaking of getting something off my chest …

Current pet peeve I’m seeing in the gym at the moment?

High rep (50+ … lol)

High speed

High momentum

Tiny range of motion

… Ab crunches ��‍♂️

>>

Why & how did this become a thing …?

Totally normalised.

It’s the only exercise/muscle group where doing this is commonplace.

In pretty much every non-hardcore bodybuilding gym.

It makes no sense.

You’d NEVER see it on a pulldown…

Leg curl …

Bench press …

Any other movement.

You just wouldn’t.

People KNOW that it’s not a great idea to stimulate / overload muscle.

But for abdominals … all logic goes out the window.

Chasing the 6 pack.

>>

A) If you do these currently.

Grab a dumbbell and do 10x slow reps instead.

Make it challenging

B) If you don’t do these currently, but after reading this, you’re tempted to …

(no idea how BTW)

Don’t ��

Have a great Monday.

Harry

I flaked out on this one

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 05:04:36 GMT

I told myself a few weeks back that I’d do a mini diet on April 1st.

A 4-week thing to lose some body fat.

Pre summer shred.

That kinda thing.

… yup it didn’t happen.

I 50% forgot.

50% didn’t really feel like doing it.

I’m going to blame the non-spring like weather we’ve had the last couple of weeks.

>>

And usually, I’m more of a “do it, even if you don’t feel like doing it” person.

But on this occasion.

I just didn’t feel the need to put that pressure on.

Do I really NEED to do a mini diet?
Not really. I wouldn’t say my body fat accumulation has spiralled out of control & it’s affecting me.

Should you zoom out and look at CONTEXT when deciding whether to start a diet?

A bit, yeah. There never is THE perfect time to do anything. But there are plenty of BAD times. I just didn’t feel like the timing was right.

Is my decision set in stone?

Nope. Could decide to start tracking on Myfitnesspal the moment I hit send on this email ��

People change their minds all the time & it’s SOMETIMES okay to do that too.

Am I putting off doing this because it’s DIFFICULT??
Probably. It’s nice eating 4,000kcal a day & not tracking on Myfitnesspal. Going down to 2,500kcal & tracking takes ‘some’ of the joy out of the day-to-day grind.

>>

My 2 cents.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Why I LIKE old school bodybuilding

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 08 Apr 2022 05:00:25 GMT

As you can probably tell.

I’m not a huge fan of SOME of the old school bodybuilding myths.

(Will get onto the others shortly)

-> No carbs in the evening if you want fat loss

-> Fasted cardio is essential for losing fat

-> Brown rice over white rice

-> 1 muscle group a day type training

Etc

You get the idea.

None of these are optimal.

Nor essential if you’re looking to get in shape.

And look …

A lot of these myths, that’ve been around for DECADES.

Are not applicable for everyday individuals.

BUT.

I do start to see some relevance to them.

I’ll give you some examples:

PRE competition

In the weeks/days leading up to the show.

You see competitors eating bland food.

Boring, chicken & rice type meals.

>> Not essential for people to do that if they want to get in shape

But when you’re about to step on stage, and you want to MINIMISE all unpredictability.

Keep your fibre intake super low

Opt for easily digestible foods

Not cause any bloating etc

Then bland chicken & rice (cakes) may just be the PERFECT meal for them.

If they went for a ‘normal person’ type meal of a chicken salad from a shop.

A few drizzles of olive oil

Random assortments of vegetables

Maybe a bit of sauce on the side too

Teriyaki chicken

Well … they just wouldn’t.

Another example.

FASTED cardio

Isn’t essential for losing body fat.

Or even just getting in shape.

We know this now.

But has anyone (apart from The Rock) EVER done cardio at 11 pm at night …?

Just before they hop into bed?

>> Is it easier to do it FIRST thing, before you’ve had your breakfast, so you ACTUALLY end up doing it?

Probably. Definitely.

It comes down to doing it versus not doing it.

And THAT is the game-changer.

See what I’m getting at?

I used to hate on the old school bodybuilding myths a lot.

But now I’m sort of understanding how they came about in the first place.

Now off to do my fasted cardio before Meal 1 of 7 of chicken & rice.

��

This p*sses me off

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 06 Apr 2022 03:58:07 GMT

You know that popular saying in the fitness industry.

That always gets put in memes in front of people in phenomenal shape.

That goes something like:

“An hour's workout is only 4% of your day … what’s your excuse?”

Etc

Basically saying that your workout represents a SMALL percentage of your day.

4% = tiny

And you should always find time to fit it in.

If you don’t, then it’s on you.

Because if you can’t afford a 4% investment … you need your priorities checking.

You get the idea.

But hang on a minute.

It’s not 4% is it?

You can’t click your fingers after you finish a Zoom meeting at home.

Teleport to the gym (which is 30 mins away).

Miraculously change into your workout kit.

And start your set of Squats instantaneously.

What about:

Getting to the gym …?

That takes time. Unless you’re a PT and literally work at the gym.

You’ll have to travel to get there.

So that’s more time

Getting changed, showered, ready for work after …?

Don’t tell me people finish their last set on the Hack Squat …

And then IMMEDIATELY jump into their quarterly sales meeting.

With no time in-between.

No shower, no change of clothes, no cooling down.

What about travelling from the gym back to home / the office.

C’mon ��

Teleporting isn’t a thing.

What about your warm-up, getting the equipment ready etc …?

If you train in a commercial gym (like 99% of people do, including me).

Your workout doesn’t start the moment you leave the changing room.

You’ve got to grab the first piece of kit

Get it set up

Do a warm up set

Do your core isometrics (game changer BTW)

That all takes TIME.

>>

Scheduling 3-5 training sessions a week if you’re a busy adult is a BIG achievement.

It’s tough to do.

Especially when you have multiple pulls on your time, energy & effort.

It’s not 4% of your day.

It’s probably more like 50% of all your ‘free’ time on any given day.

So don’t pay any attention to those bullsh*t memes ��

Have a good one ✌️

Harry

Thinking rationally here

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 05 Apr 2022 04:32:32 GMT

If you could ONLY pick 1 exercise to do.

For each muscle group.

For every month.

To make sure you get the most out of your training.

What would you pick & why …?

>>

One for chest

For back

Quads

Etc

>>

Correct me if I’m wrong.

But the choices will likely be the bread & butter exercises.

Basic ones.

That have been around for decades.

Your training program should 90-90% be comprised of these exercises & variations of.

Not the other, non-basic ones.

Certainly not combo exercises using 2kg dumbbells.

There’s no need to reinvent the wheel.

>>

And yes, it is all about HOW you do these exercises.

But you can at least nail the easy part.

Which is picking them in the first place.

Over the non-basic, fancy, “For Instagram” ones.

And …

If you KNOW that these exercises are good.

Then rinse them as much as you can.

After all … we all want to get the most out of our training …

Don’t we?

We’re time-poor

Have other things to think about

Other priorities to manage

Don’t live in the gym

We want to be in & out in an hour.

Having put our muscles through the most amount of work possible in that time.

Done ��

Harry

Have wanted to get this off my chest for years

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 30 Mar 2022 06:29:36 GMT

Have never quite understood why some muscle groups get more love than others.

Not as in people preferring to train arms rather than legs.

I totally get that.

People want to train the muscles they WANT to develop.

Of course.

For the beach, club, golf course.

Whatever.

But mainly from the injury/physio/rehab community.

I’ll give a couple of common examples:

“You’ve got tight hamstrings”

You hear this a lot.

All the time in fact.

But you never hear “you’ve got tight Triceps”.

I actually don’t think I’ve EVER heard that one before …?

But I’m sure there are people out there with tight Triceps.

There has to be.

“Do these exercises to bulletproof your shoulders”

Again.

See this ALL time in online articles/videos.

It’s one of the most clickbaity youtube titles.

“Bulletproof your calves with these 3 exercises”

Never ��

See what I mean?

Poor shoulder mobility is probably just as common as poor hip mobility.

But you rarely see tricep stretches prescribed …

Hamstring stretches though …

>

Knee pain is just as common as shoulder pain.

Isn’t it?

Muscles in the lower leg (shin) have just as much influence on that as the shoulder muscles do for the shoulder joint.

But for some reason, calves have no need to become bulletproof …

They’re fine just as they are.

Unlike the delts.

Which seem to need endless bulletproofing from attack.

Anyway - just an observation.

Don’t believe everything you see or read online.

Especially my emails ��

Have a good one.

Harry

Hello ... it's me

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 28 Mar 2022 04:26:39 GMT

First email in a few days.

And it feels good to be back.

I was about to start writing one coming up on the train last night.

But had to divert my attention to stop the dog hoovering up the crumbs of god-knows what.

On the floor of the train. Under the seats.

Etc.

So here we are.

No email in 4 days and I’ve lost my momentum.

That ‘flow’ you get when you’re in the zone on something.

Could be training sessions
Writing emails

Prepping food

Going out & getting more steps in

Whichever.

It all gets easier when it’s PART of what you do daily.

Emphasis on ‘daily’.

Difficult to build a LIFELONG habit if you’re only doing it a couple of times each week.

Because repetition is key.

More reps = more embedded.

Fewer reps = harder to get into the flow.

>

So I plan on doing an email EVERY day this week … again.

And by this time next week.

I’ll have some of that good old momentum back on my side.

Have a great Monday ��

Harry

Mark got back in touch

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 21 Mar 2022 04:58:19 GMT

Got a message overnight from one of my clients in Aus.

Who was actually the very FIRST online client that I signed up for my business.

Back in 2018.

We don’t train anymore, but we keep in touch on IG.

He was saying that he’s still using the Training program I gave him back then.

He’s told me that before.

But each year he does.

It sounds more impressive.

He just recycles his way through them, maybe changing a couple of the exercises each time.

That’s it.

Same split.

Same technique cues I gave him.

Similar reps

Similar movement patterns (push, pull etc)

Talk about a good ROI.

12 weeks worth of Training with me.

Setting you up for the next 12 years of workouts.

��

Have a great start to the week.

Harry

I'm a life coach now

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 20 Mar 2022 09:50:25 GMT

Given that I’ve spent most of the week underground in the gym.

Not being able to enjoy the first proper sunshine of the year.

I felt duty-bound to go for an extra walk in the sun yesterday afternoon.

Didn’t need the steps

Was actually pretty knackered & could have done with a PM nap

But went anyway

Just to avoid the FOMO of sitting inside.

Thinking that everyone else is out & about having a great time.

Anyone else get that…?!

So off I went.

Down the King’s Road.

Walking INTO the sun (beautiful)

And ended up popping into Waterstones.

(Don’t ask me why … just felt like it)

That bookshop smell.

That first hits you when you walk in … wow.

It instantaneously makes you feel more relaxed.

Brings you down a notch.

As do the people in there.

And the general vibe in there.

A bit like a mini time machine.

Slow-paced

The fresh paper smell

Music

Forgot how good that is

>

Anyway.

Picked up this local book filled with old photos from the 1800s, 1900s.

And it’s funny.

Some of these places haven’t changed in almost 200 years.

The buildings

Street layouts

The popular areas

Types of shops

A lot of it is the same in 2022.

The streets seemed a lot wider (no cars)

Everything is grey (no colour photos)

Places looked a bit dirtier

But overall, v similar.

And gives you a real sense of insignificance.

We really don’t matter ��

Not in the grand scheme of things.

“We’re just a fraction of a spec of sand on the beach of life”

>

Didn’t intend this email to be a life lesson BTW.

But there we are.

Happy Sunday ✌️

Harry

Didn't proof read this

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 16 Mar 2022 21:12:58 GMT

This is the kind of weather ….

Where the “how wet you get” factor.

(No pun intended)

Doesn’t correlate to how long you’ve been outside for.

Doesn’t even get close.

2 minutes WITH an umbrella outside = soaked head to toe.

Would hate to think what you’d be like after 10 minutes.

I was reading that it’s meant to start feeling like Spring soon though…?

Heatwave is on its way

20º+ temperatures

Sunshine

Longer days

Well …

It’s been the total opposite of that today.

So yet again, looks like the Daily Mail isn’t the best source of information,

Coupled with that weird red haze we had a few years ago too?

If anyone else noticed that.

Which at first made me think I had something wrong with my eyesight.

Anyway.

Having an early one as my Oura ring is telling me I don’t get enough zzzzz.

Until tomorrow ✌️

Harry

This may surprise you ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 20:13:19 GMT

I haven’t logged any of my food on Myfitnesspal in well over 6 months.

I actually think I’ve forgotten my password …

So wouldn’t be able to log in anyway.

Haven’t weighed anything either.

(Despite buying brand new, shiny Salter scales recently)

They’ve sat in my kitchen drawer collecting dust.

There have probably been days in those 6 months where I haven’t hit my protein target.

-> Days where I’ve not eaten enough.
-> Some, where I’ve eaten too much.

-> Days where I’ve probably not hit my fibre target (not enough fruit/veg)

-> Some, where I’ve gone way over (too much fruit/veg)

Because when you’re doing this long term.

You have to accept these things.

You can’t be perfect long term.

Short term - it’s possible.

You COULD nail a 7-day plan with ZERO hiccups if you really wanted to.

-> Lock yourself away

-> Meal prep your whole week

-> It’s only 168 hours, so you can focus

Can’t say the same for a 7-month plan.

-> Over 4,500 hours to manage

-> Meals out, events, parties

-> You name it. It’ll probably happen in that time frame.

Zooming out even more.

Looking at a 365-day view.

Being on track 80% of the time.

(A good result, by anyone’s standards)

Still results in almost 75 “off” days.

That’s 2 solid months of NOT being on it.

… See what I mean?

You don’t NEED to be 100% on it the whole time to see change.

Just ‘enough’.

✌️

Harry

iykyk

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 13 Mar 2022 09:03:55 GMT

I’ve changed my mind about a few things over the years.

Training setups & techniques

Diet protocols (do’s & don’ts)

Tracking ideas

Supplement advice

I haven’t gone full 360º on any of them I might add.

But maybe a few 20º turns here & there.

Tweaking things along as I go.

And a lot of it probably comes from what I’m doing myself.

My OWN training

My OWN diet

My OWN headspace with the whole short/long term fitness journey

Because I tend to “try” things out before I offload them to clients.

Experiment with myself first.

I’ll give you a few examples:

When I’m loosely tracking food in my build phase, and having success with it …

I’ll probably suggest that my ‘building’ clients do the same.

When I’m mega on it. Weighing every stem of broccoli & gram of protein powder to get lean …

I’ll get my fat loss clients to try the same (if they can)

When I’m loving walking lunges and doing them heavy, twice a week …

Yep … they’ll be in their programs too.

>

It probably enhances the “team” aspect of a Transformation too.

Because it feels like we’re BOTH doing it.

Which helps a ton.

Especially when things get tough.

And your mind starts to play tricks on you.

>

Anyway, just something to think about.

Have a great Sunday ☕️

Harry

1 step back, 2 steps forward

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 04 Mar 2022 05:34:10 GMT

Have been taking a spontaneous deload week from training this week.

Just felt like it tbh …

Because when you’ve been training properly for several years.

Consistently week in week out.

Not taking weeks, months off etc.

Like I’ve been doing (as I should do!).

Then you become quite good at being able to “read” your own body.

You begin to know when to push the envelope.

And when to back off.

For me … this week?

Time to back off.

>

But when you’re just starting out with your training?

And you don’t have thousands of training sessions under your belt.

You can’t “read” your body as well.

You might not know where your limits are.

How hard you can push yourself.

When you need to back off.

You learn these kinds of things in the trenches.

>

If you occasionally miss a session or two (or several) each month.

For whatever reason.

As a lot of people do.

Then you’re inadvertently de-loading on those weeks.

And probably don’t need to plan one in.

But for the hardcore consistent “never miss a session” type people.

You’ll need to factor them in every now & again.

Taking 1 step back to move 2 steps forward kind of thing.

>

You’ll probably be reluctant to take one.

And feel like your training sessions aren’t hard enough.

But towards the end of the week.

You’ll be glad you did. Recharged, niggles disappearing etc.

>

Happy Friday.

Harry

Hello again

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 19:20:55 GMT

So my first email in a few days.

Sorry if you’ve missed them.

But with everything going on …

Just didn’t feel like putting fingers on the keyboard and ranting away like I usually do.

But having had 2 brand new Transformation starters today.

And in the process of getting them both set up.

I thought I’d share this:

“The best plans are the easiest ones to stick to”

Plan adherence is THE biggest challenge you need to overcome in order to get in shape.

The biggest one.

How do you make plan adherence easier? You make the program easier.

-> More simple

-> More straightforward

-> Less hassle

-> Less complications

My approach has gotten DRASTICALLY more simplistic as the years have gone by.

I used to write up programs that looked EXCITING on paper.

Different this

Changing that

Etc

But in reality, people probably found them difficult to follow.

As my knowledge & experience has improved …

My plans have become more basic.

>> And the results get better

Something to think about.

Have a great evening ✌️

Harry

Mid week Muscle

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 06:37:18 GMT

A Training quote that’s been doing the rounds for years.

And always causes quite the debate:

“Stimulate don’t annihilate”

Now hear me out.

It’s not a cop-out for training hard.

And there are probably instances where you SHOULD do the latter.

19-20-year-olds when they first start training, for example.

Fresh, excited to start hitting the gym, sleep 10 hours a night & are pretty active …

Can probably handle a lot more volume, intensity and fatigue after a training session than a highly stressed CEO in their 50s.

Who has a list of injuries, gets 5-6 sleep a night & doesn’t have the same appetite for training as a teen does.

But even ad hoc.

It sometimes benefits you from doing a more challenging than a normal training session.

Probably both physical and mentally.

Even for this hypothetical 50-year-old than I’m talking about …

But if you zoom out.

And look at the big picture.

Over a 5, 10, 20+ year period.

Looking to stimulate rather than annihilate is probably a wise idea.

Because when you do zoom out.

It’s longevity & time that are the MVPs.

Training at 60% for 10 years consistently.

Will trump training at 90% for 2 years inconsistently.

See what I mean?

It’s always a time game over the long term.

>

Have a good one.

(Don’t train too hard … ��)

Harry

Don't read the news today

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 22 Feb 2022 06:26:53 GMT

I think around this time last year.

I was writing emails about negative Covid news.

How you should try to avoid it, read about something else.

Basically, try not to absorb yourself in it.

Because that doom & gloom rubs off on you.

Consciously and subconsciously.

Leaving you not feeling great.

Not wanting to eat well.

Not wanting to exercise.

Not wanting to be productive, tick things off your lists etc.

This year? Today?

Has anything changed…?!

Probably wise to give out the same advice.

One problem replaced with another.

I’ve just spent 10 mins having a good read through BBC re the Ukraine situation.

And yea … more doom & gloom.

Next month it’ll be something else.

The following month yet another crisis.

>

The nature of it is never-ending.

And in a funny sort of way.

We can take comfort in that.

Because it should, in theory, carry less weight if we know it’s the norm.

It takes the sting out of it.

And gives you confidence in knowing that there is usually no “best time” to start.

Or a completely uninterrupted 12-week block for you to get your act together.

There’s always something that pops up.

( … the best time to start is probably today ��)

Have a good one.

Harry

Let's go for a walk in Hyde Park

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 08:59:23 GMT

The only time I’ve ever used a paid PT session.

To do cardio with a client.

Was back in 2016 when I trained Sadek twice a day.

He came over from Saudi to London for a month.

And wanted to lose as much body fat as physically possible.

(He had a lot to lose…)

6 days a week.

Sunday was the rest day.

12 sessions a week.

50 over the month.

One in the AM and one PM.

The AM session was weights in the gym.

He’d never trained before, and being over 150kg, we didn’t have a huge number of exercises to pick from.

But we managed with a select few.

Leg extensions

Pulldowns

Incline DB presses

Bicep curls

Lateral raises

Etc

Pretty basic stuff.

>

Now for the interesting part …

The PM session was a 60-minute power walk around Hyde Park.

Take a guess, which of the 2 sessions he found most difficult?

So we could gauge how his fitness was improving on the walks.

(Key in my opinion)

I made sure we were holding a conversation for the walk.

Obviously delving through a range of topics which I won’t go into detail in this email. ��

But to start, it was a struggle.

Barely being able to hold one.

Breathless, light-headed - generally pretty tough.

But as the days went on.

And we ticked the walks off.

The weight came down & the fitness went up.

It got easier & easier.

Until we got to the end of the 4 weeks, and he was happily chatting away whilst walking at a fast pace through the park.

Pretty cool and a simple way to gauge progress.

>

Not your typical Transformation story, but a good one.

And I guess the take-home is to pick progress variables that work for you.

They might be unorthodox, but if they work.

They work.

Have a good one ��

Harry

Story time

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 15 Feb 2022 06:31:44 GMT

So way back in 2016.

I started training early morning.

BEFORE my early morning clients.

I’d wake up at 3.40 am.

Get the 36 bus from Porchester Road in Bayswater to the gym in Mayfair.

There was one every 20 minutes.

So if I missed it, I wouldn’t have been able to get my full training hour in.

I never did miss, thankfully.

Tim Ferriss’ podcast blasting away in my headphones.

Open the gym up. Turn all the lights on.

Train myself for an hour from 4.30 - 5.30 am.

Then be showered, breakfasted & ready for my 6 am client.

Which was the start of a 13 session day.

And I did that for 2 solid years. 5-6 days a week.

And you know what?

I got SO much pushback from people about my new regime.

When I very first made the switch from regular PT afternoon training.

To before the crack of dawn training.

Some of the best ones:

“That’s not sustainable. I’d rather have the extra hours of sleep”

(kinda agree with that one, but at the time I didn’t have the luxury)

“How do you train fasted? I need at least 2 meals in me before I train”

(still strongly disagree with this one)

Or the very best one:

“Isn’t training that early in the morning bad for your heart…? Won’t you have a heart attack??”

(that genuinely was the first one I got)

I heard it all.

The last one being the most surprising one to hear.

Does anyone else believe that?!

Luckily I didn’t listen and went about my own business getting it all done.

And looking back on it.

Pretty glad I did.

But image if I had listened?

And taken on all that advice?

I was so busy at the time, training clients back to back all day.

That I wouldn’t have had any other time to train myself.

Apart from that 4.30 - 5.30 am slot.

So I wouldn’t have trained much myself in those 2 years.

>

A good example of not letting the excuses get to you, even when there are plenty there to choose from

Have a great Tuesday ��

Harry

Some sore heads this morning

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 14 Feb 2022 06:48:29 GMT

The gym is ALWAYS quiet the morning after the Super Bowl night.

Guaranteed to get yourself a Squat rack if you head in this morning.

And in actual fact, the same goes for most Monday mornings.

When it comes to Squat Rack availability.

Because here’s the TYPICAL routine that most commercial gym-goers will do.

This is based on what I’ve seen in commercial gyms over the years.

And is probably pretty accurate.

>

Monday - Chest mainly. Otherwise upper body

Tuesday - Back. Sometimes legs, but still mostly upper body

Wednesday - Legs mainly here. If they’ve already done them on Tuesday, it’ll be shoulders or arms

Thursday - If they’ve made it this far, and haven’t stopped for the week, it’ll be something upper body. Probably a mix of chest & back.

Friday - 95% chance of upper body, if they make it in. Most people will be working from home here though, so will use the gym closer to home.

Saturday - Olympic lifting / barbell / plyometrics / random Youtube exercises. Basically, all the exercises people should NOT be doing - they do them on Saturday

Sunday - dead, no-one in.

>

If you’re being smart, which you are if you’re reading my emails.

Then to MAXIMISE your gym time.

You pretty much want to do the complete opposite of what everyone else does here.

Legs on Monday & Friday.

Machines on Saturday.

Etc.

As these exercises/areas will be pretty free on those days.

Unlike trying to bench press on a Monday lunchtime (good luck finding one btw).

Little tip for you.

Happy Monday ��

Harry

It happened again ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 13 Feb 2022 15:52:50 GMT

I’ve unintentionally started a weekly habit of not sending an email on Saturday.

I deliberately talk myself out of writing one first thing like I usually do.

Thinking that I’ll do it later on when I’ve got a bit more time.

And every time.

I forget.

/ It doesn’t happen.

And I start my Sunday email saying exactly that.

Will try harder next week … I promise.

In other news.

I’m planning on doing a 4 week “mini cut” starting on April 1st.

Call it a spring clean.

Just for the month of April.

The aim is to lose a good few KGs of body fat that I’ve accumulated over the last 6 months during my gaining period.

So that I’m in a better place body composition wise heading into May.

Warmer months.

Longer days.

Etc.

Because, unless you’re BRAND NEW to training.

Which I am not.

(10+ years of consistent 4-6x per week training)

You can’t gain muscle without gaining fat.

But, I’ll talk about the rationale behind it closer to the time.

And until then, I’m going to carry on gaining.

Knowing that a “tidy up” is just around the corner.

i.e, not stressing about extra body fat accumulation ��

Have a great rest of your Sunday.

Harry

You've probably seen this too ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 11 Feb 2022 06:14:11 GMT

You’ve probably heard things like this said:

“There’s no such thing as a bad workout”

“You’ll never regret doing a workout”

Etc

Now off the face of it.

I can see the truth to it.

As an advocate of working out hard & regularly.

But honestly…?

Judging what I’ve seen recently happening on the gym floor.

The people that say this.

Never been to a commercial gym before ��

Or seen real people training.

>

Bad workouts exist.

I see them every day.

There are plenty of people out there who regret that workout they got seriously injured.

I was watching a bloke on the 45º leg press earlier this week.

Using lots of weight

Minimal range of motion

No control

And locking his knees out pretty damn hard on every rep.

If he carries on like that.

He Will likely injure himself pretty seriously.

If he hasn’t done so already ��

I think Covid / Lockdowns / Home workouts

The whole “Just Move” mentality.

Paying little to no attention to technique.

Has shot training quality to bits.

And people, unfortunately, will pay the price for that.

Though injuries.

Pain.

Discomfort.

If not now … then in the future.

>

Treat your workouts with respect.

You can have bad workouts.

You can regret workouts.

So be careful ��

Harry

I'm telling you, so you don't make the same mistake

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 05:24:56 GMT

One of my biggest regrets recently.

When it’s come to my own training, nutrition etc.

Was that I tried to stay too lean the whole time.

Even in a ‘build’ phase …

I’d still aim to maintain a level of condition that …

In hindsight, negatively affected my muscle-building efforts.

Because here’s the thing.

When you’ve been doing the whole training thing for a while.

You realise that losing fat is the EASY part.

And building muscle is the TOUGH part.

>

It’s almost like losing fat is the instant gratification of body composition.

You can make progress in a matter of weeks.

You see the numbers on the scale moving fast.

You notice differences in the mirror quickly.

It’s easy mode.

Building muscle is that delayed gratification.

i.e, you’ll get rewarded next year for the work you do this month.

The progress is painstakingly slow.

Most of the time, you QUESTION whether you actually are making progress.

Because it’s almost IMPOSSIBLE to tell.

Genuinely.

>

If I hadn’t been so cautious with gaining body fat in those muscle-building periods.

I’d probably have a LOT more grams of muscle on my frame right now.

And instead, I just have a few nice photos on my camera roll of me looking pretty lean walking around London.

See what I mean here?

Don’t unnecessarily put on body fat for the sake of it, though.

(A lot of people get this wrong too)

But if you’re experienced enough.

And are already lean’ish enough.

Then don’t be afraid to put on a few KGs of fat.

In the pursuit of gaining muscle.

(Which is v hard to do)

Adios ��

Harry

Don't combine this 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 08 Feb 2022 05:24:54 GMT

Whenever I go to a different gym.

And inevitably pay more attention to my surroundings.

Glancing at other people training.

Seeing how it’s run.

Etc.

I get a good refresher of what’s actually going down.

Because whenever I’m in my home gym.

I’m just immersed in my clients’ training.

Not really bothering what’s happening around me too much.

Recently though, I’ve noticed a LOT more people doing

combination exercises.

2 exercises in 1.

Squat + Row

Lunge + Bicep Curl

Squat + Press

Etc

And I’ve got to get this off my chest.

So buckle yourself in ��

I’m going to generalise a lot here to make a point.

(Of course, there are exceptions to every … most rules. But you get the idea here. I doubt I have any professional combination exercise specialists who read my emails)

And assume that the below points are true:

-> Most of us are time-poor. At best we have 2-4 hours to train each week

-> Most of us want more muscle. We don’t have enough

-> We want to get stronger, as again, we can never be ‘too strong’

-> We want to progress our training. Whether that be with load used, volume done, aesthetic changes etc

If these are true.

Which I think they probably are for 99% of us.

Then stay clear of combination exercises.

They won’t improve the efficiency of your workouts. You won’t be hitting 2 birds with 1 stone when you combine muscle groups that have different strength capabilities. Quads are bigger & stronger than biceps, for example.

They won’t allow you to build muscle. How can you focus on squeezing your biceps during a curl, if you’re doing a lunge at the same time??

They won’t allow you to progressively overload and go heavier over time. How can you go heavier on your squats, if you’re limited by the load you can do for your overhead press?

See what I mean?

Avoid avoid avoid ��

Separate them up.

Old school style.

And your training will be just fine.

Have a great Tuesday

Harry

I skipped Saturday

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 06 Feb 2022 11:05:18 GMT

Funny story.

Had every intention to write yesterday’s email.

Even started typing something.

50 words or so.

But it wasn’t any good.

So it got sacked off.

VERY unlike me to do that.

In one of those moods

But there we go ��

And I regret that decision now.

“Something is always better than nothing”

My writing would have gotten better the more I typed.

I would have built momentum.

And probably ended up with a reasonable email.

Which could have a positive impact.

Rather than the option I chose.

Which didn’t help anyone.

Except for it gave the doggies time for an extra half a dozen sniffs outside��

>

Apply that same principle to everything fitness related.

Your diet might not be perfect today.

Nor might your step count.

But don’t write it off completely.

Otherwise, you’ll get nowhere.

Like I did yesterday morning.

✌️

Harry

I SUCKED when I first started doing these 🙈

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 03 Feb 2022 05:49:41 GMT

Some of you OG subscribers will know this.

But these emails didn’t start off as a daily thing.

No-no-no.

I did them WEEKLY.

Back in 2019.

Sunday evening, I’d sit down.

The final bit of the weekend.

It’d take me about 90 minutes.

And I’d have written up a fairly compressive, overly formal, educational article.

I think some of them are still up on Visfit.com if you scroll back enough.

Some Thursday website stalking for you if you want to.

But the important thing to note here was that it WASN’T daily.

It was weekly.

And even that felt like a struggle.

It felt like a lot.

(Would you believe)

Coming up with 1 brand new article each week to write was tough

I was struggling with ideas

I had no motivation to do it

Sometimes I’d forget (lol)

But I persevered with it.

And then it turned into a daily one during Lockdown 1.

And I’ve stuck with that.

The rest is history of course.

The key point here.

If I had started out doing it daily …

I would have GIVEN UP pretty quickly.

After a few days.

100%.

It’d have been far far too much for me at the time.

I didn’t have the writing experience

I wasn’t confident enough with the style

I didn’t feel like I had enough to talk about

Basically, I needed to learn how to walk first, before I tried to run.

And that was the key.

Fast forward almost 2 years now of doing them DAILY.

And as you know, I don’t miss a beat.

Enjoying the whole thing.

Don’t bite off more than you can chew.

Build some momentum first.

Have a good one ��

Harry

Time to delete that app for a bit?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 02 Feb 2022 05:19:41 GMT

A little tip that I’ve been practising for a while.

But don’t think I’ve mentioned it before in these emails.

(If I have, pls feel free to point out …)

And it came up in a conversation with a client on Monday.

As a general rule of thumb.

(Many exceptions to this BTW)

When you’re trying to lose body fat.

Or transition out of a fat loss phase, into a muscle-building phase.

Basically looking to control & limit your energy intake.

= track your food accurately & consistently on Myfitnesspal.

I won’t list the many reasons why.

As you probably already know by now.

But it just makes perfect sense to do that.

>

When you’re in a building muscle phase.

And have been for a while.

i.e, not transitioning out of a fat loss phase.

And also not actively looking to control energy intake that much.

= I’d recommend taking a break from the app and trying to eat more intuitively.

Loosely tracking protein/calories in your head.

Having a general idea of where you’re at, but having a lot more of a flexible approach.

>

Because doing it this way.

When the time comes for you to transition back to a fat loss phase after your ‘bulk’.

You won’t have tracking / MFP fatigue.

And you’ll be ready to hit the ground running.

You’re welcome ��

Harry

Here's a trick I'm doing with my new guys

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 31 Jan 2022 06:05:11 GMT

Something I’ve found myself reiterating to one of my new 1 on 1 clients lately.

Seeing as he’s only a couple of weeks into this program with me.

Is adopting an overly precise mindset.

On and off the gym floor.

Especially at the start.

Because the details matter.

What this might look like:

Diet / tracking wise

-> Weighing items to the gram

-> Double checking food entries on Myfitnesspal. Making sure that they ‘make sense’

-> Staying as close to protein & calorie targets as possible. 5g & 50kcal respectively

-> Tracking everything consumed. Not leaving anything off

Training

-> Paying attention to how each set feels. What to look out for

-> Obsessing over technique, at the expense of load. This can be reversed at a certain level of skill

-> Thinking quality over quantity. Far better doing 1x 9/10 set, rather than 3x 4/10 sets

-> Being aware of which body parts are working, and which are not. Joints or muscles. Edge of muscle or middle of the muscle. Etc

>

These things ALL matter.

And there’s no better way to go all-in on them, than right at the start of your journey.

Have a great Monday ��

Harry

Brb while the sun is out

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 30 Jan 2022 09:59:59 GMT

Stunner of a morning today.

So quickly typing this before I head out for a stroll with the ��

Because apparently, it’s clouding over later on.

So want to maximise some Vitamin D exposure.

Which is obviously a rarity this time of year.

Had to double-check the date before starting.

30th already.

February is on Tuesday.

No idea where the time has gone.

But I’m personally glad I haven’t skipped any sessions in 2022 yet.

(Subtle brag … cancel me ��)

6/6 every week so far.

Probably would have done 2/6 if I only trained when I wanted to.

/ felt like I had the time and energy to do.

But pressed on with all of them.

>

Were all of them world-beating sessions?

Did I smash PRs every time I went onto the gym floor?
Nope

Did I finish every session giving absolutely everything I had?
Probably not. Who knows. I didn’t have a gun to my head on any of the final sets.

Did each one take me a tiny step towards my ultimate goal of having lats so big that I struggle to fit through doorways?
I like to think so. Even a +0.000001% gain is good enough for me

Am I going to rinse & repeat this for many months, years to come?

Yes. How else am I going to build muscle…?!

You get the idea.

Have a great Sunday ��

Harry

Not your everyday result

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 28 Jan 2022 06:38:54 GMT

Posted the first before & after result on IG earlier this week.

From my man Nic.

Who’s done brilliantly over the last 20 weeks.

One of those where every week.

He gets better & better.

So naturally, difficult to know when to ‘pull the trigger’ and publish some photos.

But we agreed the 20 week ones were right.

As we’re now shifting our focus to building.

After the initial cutting phase.

So there’ll be a bit of body fat gain with that.

>

The most interesting thing about his Transformation so far though?

How he makes the best of what’s available to him.

Because the thing is.

He eats out a lot.

Pretty much every day.

If not twice a day.

And doesn’t get a whole lot of sleep.

Yet still managed to do all the things necessary to lose fat & build muscle.

Not really using the eating / drinking out card as a reason not to.

-> Rarely misses training sessions

-> 9/10 hits his protein intake

-> Always makes sensible choices when out

-> Generally commits himself to the process

And voila ��

He sees significant results.

Even I’ve learnt a thing or two from how he’s done it.

So, looking forward to what the next 20 weeks brings.

Have a good one.

Harry

"First time ...?"

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 27 Jan 2022 05:24:22 GMT

Accidentally left the kitchen light on all of last night.

First time ever.

Thought to myself this morning when I realised.

“HOW?!”

How could I have missed that?!

Never done that before.

Seems so blindingly obvious that I’d have realised at the time.

But didn’t.

Anyway.

Apart from about £1.62 down the drain.

And some added heat to the floor above.

It’s all good.

A lot of the advice I give my clients is blindingly obvious.

They’ve usually heard most of it before.

And I just make sure I deliver that information well.

Just like making sure all the lights are off before you head off to bed.

Results are built on the basics.

From making sure you’re not drinking most of your calories.

Right through to just not skipping training sessions.

They all sound so obvious.

But there are plenty of people out there who are drinking 500kcal smoothies.

Hitting the gym on average 1.7x times a week, over the year.

And still complaining to their friends that they’re not “making the progress they want”.

��

Have a good one

Harry

Goblin Squats

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 05:24:40 GMT

So I’ve been training one of my online clients for just under 2 years now.

Pretty much since the start of the Pandemic.

On FaceTime.

3x times a week.

And quite rightly he’s smashing it.

Dropping a ton of body fat.

And building a good amount of muscle on the way.

Until we realised only yesterday …

That we had been doing “Goblin Squats” all this time.

Instead of Goblet Squats.

��

But as he rightly pointed out.

When you go heavy enough.

You end up looking like a bit of a Goblin when doing Goblet Squats anyway.

So it’s quite an accurate description.

>

Your muscles don’t know what exercises you’re doing.

They don’t know what exercise you have written on your program.

They don’t know you’re doing a Barbell Deadlift or a Dumbbell Deadlift.

They can’t tell whether you’re doing Goblet Squats.

Goblin Squats.

Or Split Squats.

They only know mechanical tension.

Which YOU have to ensure you’re putting on them.

Something to think about in your sessions this week.

Have an awesome Tuesday.

Harry

Nasdaq in correction territory 🔥

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 22 Jan 2022 07:05:32 GMT

If you want some advice on how to have a good start to your Saturday morning.

Feeling motivated & refreshed.

Ready to hit Saturday productively.

Rather than being downbeat & depressed.

Feeling like you want to go back today.

Don’t check your stock/investment portfolio.

(Or tomorrow … probably Monday etc)

A true bloodbath.

Take my word for it ��

Aaaand …

The same can be said when you’ve had a bad run on your training/diet.

Haven’t been following your usual routines.

Skipped a few too many sessions here & there.

Too many Deliveroo’s.

Couple of glasses a night.

We all know the drill.

And can relate fully.

But there’s no point in dwelling on that.

It’s done … finished … written down in ink.

In YOUR life book.

So you just have to focus forwards.

And worry about the things you can control.

Have a great weekend.

��

Harry

Why I don't sell on email anymore

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 06:42:02 GMT

As you’ve probably noticed.

I ‘sell’ a lot less on these emails these days.

Compared to when I used to write them in ’20 & ’21.

(Whenever I look back at my June 2020 ones … it's hard selling to the max ��)

Of course, there’s the occasional one in there.

But for the most part.

I don’t.

Because I just don’t need to.

(Not a brag or anything BTW)

Nor do I really want to either tbh.

And I actually write them now because I genuinely ENJOY writing them.

Sounds ridiculous.

But there is something therapeutic about sitting down at your laptop before everyone else has woken up.

Dark outside.

No noise.

Typing whatever you feel like doing.

Hitting send.

Then interacting with people along the way who reply to them.

It’s nice.

And I guess you can draw parallels to weight training.

>

You usually don’t start hitting the gym because you enjoy it.

Let’s be honest.

How could you enjoy something you haven’t done for months, years …

Or even something you haven’t built up enough skill in.

(The musical instrument analogy comes to mind … you can’t enjoy it when you start, because you haven’t learnt the skill yet)

You start because there’s an outcome you want to get to.

And training is a part of that journey.

And with any luck, you fast forward a few years.

And you’re no longer motivated by the end result as much.

But more than that you just ENJOY training.

>

See what I mean?

I hope so ��

Have a good one.

Harry

Had a wild one yesterday

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 16 Jan 2022 11:05:42 GMT

One of the worst nights’ sleep EVER last night.

A weird shoulder/arm injury that has been bubbling along for the last few weeks at about a 1/10.

Suddenly decided to ramp itself up to a 9/10.

At 9 pm.

And keep me up all night.

Being a front/side sleeper.

I must have tossed & turned about 800 times in the night.

On the plus side …

Probably burnt a few extra calories doing that ��

And it's given me a good reminder.

Not to ignore niggles when they surface.

Because even when you think it’s nothing to worry about.

Fast forward a few weeks, months …

Sometimes even years.

They can get worse.

Then forcing you to take some time off.

Better to tackle the problem early on when it’s small.

Rather than leave it till later on when it’s grown.

>

I could have easily tweaked my training program a few months ago.

Avoiding movements that gave me a small amount of discomfort.

Then I would have avoided last night.

But I didn’t.

And I’m now paying the price.

Anyhow.

First world problems.

Be careful out there.

✌️

Harry

Why is it never as busy on a Friday??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 06:42:00 GMT

Second half of the second week into 2022.

How’s everyone getting on??

Gym has been noticeably busier so far this week.

Compared to last week.

Which is good to see.

But I’m suspecting it’ll tail off from today until Monday.

The usual weekend slump.

And that reminds me of some advice I gave a client a few years back.

If you don’t fancy training in a busy gym.

Go during the end of the week.

Thurs, Fri, Sun etc.

Far quieter compared to the start of the week.

-> You won’t have to jostle for equipment

-> No-one asking you “how many sets you got left??

-> or “Can I work in with you?”

-> You could maybe even superset some exercises without the fear of someone stealing your pull-down

It can be a much better experience.

Especially when you’re starting out.

Happy Training ��

Harry

Yup ... I found this difficult this morning

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:02:42 GMT

If you’ve ever done walking lunges properly.

Good technique

Relatively heavy

16-20 steps per set

3-4 sets

You’ll know what I’m talking about here.

The DOMS you get on these …

Like NOTHING else.

Honestly.

It’s a deeeeep muscle ache. Not just on the surface. Deep down.

Feels like almost your bones are sore.

Right through to the core.

And if you haven’t done them in your program for a while …

Rotating them back in.

And THEN do them.

Wow.

The soreness is even worse.

I struggled to tie my shoelaces this morning ��

It was that bad.

>

You just don’t get it on other exercises in the same way.

Squats, legs presses, leg extensions.

Just not the same.

Maybe it’s the higher reps that does it.

Not too sure.

But that’s where I’m at at the moment.

First full week of training for 2022 done & dusted.

And gearing up for the 2nd.

Making it 52/52* this year.

As you should be aiming to do too

*Probably the biggest key for making muscle-building progress. Not skipping weeks.

Hope you’re having a good one ✌️

Harry

The easiest it'll ever be 🤩

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 08 Jan 2022 06:30:40 GMT

Sooooo …

First proper weekend of the year.

First major hurdle if you’re on a fat loss mission.

My advice for you?

Weekends get progressively harder to stay on track with.

As you go along your fat loss journey.

If you think weekend 1 is tough.

After only being ‘on plan’ for 4-5 days.

Then try weekend 11.

That sh*t is a totally different ball game.

-> You’re probably not that tired right now

-> It’s January, so not much going on socially

-> Hunger isn’t too bad. It’s manageable as you’ve only been dieting for a few days

-> You’re not ‘bored of it’ yet. It’s still relatively fresh & interesting

-> You’ve got support. Most people are cleaning up their diet at the moment. It’s not like you’re the only one

And so on …

Come weekend 11.

Saturday, March 5th.

None of those things will still stand.

Tired

FOMO
Hungry

Bored of dieting

No one else dieting either

It’ll make this weekend seem like a doddle.

Have a good one ��

Harry

Are there 70 days in Jan?!

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 07 Jan 2022 07:20:10 GMT

Keeping this one short this morning.

Because a lot of people have been telling me they feel like this week has DRAGGED on.

And it’s only Friday ��

I’ll leave you with this.

>

Even the best fat loss plan.

Executed at the highest level.

Consistently day in day out.

Needs ENOUGH time to work.

To do its job.

It’s January 7th.

The 4th working day of the year so far.

We’ve finished 3 already.

Although it probably feels like 30.

>

Remember that Fat loss takes weeks.

Several weeks.

Months.

You have to stick at this LONGER than the initial early January spurt.

First hurdle coming up (the weekend).

So stay hungry ��✌️

Have a good one.

Harry

The only fat loss info you'll need

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 06 Jan 2022 06:21:44 GMT

The best thing you can do for fat loss.

Is to control and limit your food intake.

It’s not burning more calories.

Hear me out.

It’s pretty tough to burn 100kcal on top of what you already burn.

Being alone, breathing, organs working etc.

That takes up MOST of the energy you burn on any given day.

It would likely be 30-45 minutes of moderately intense exercise.

-> Going for a 45-minute jog.

-> Moderately difficult weight training session.

-> An hours’ long walk.

You get the idea.

It’s not a practical nor easy way to create a bigger energy deficit.

= what you’re looking to do to lose fat.

You can’t be going for 4x 45-minute jogs each day to create your 500 calorie deficit ��

For 12+ weeks etc.

>

FAR easier to just not consume 100kcal.

Much much easier.

Heck, you could go even further and not eat 200 … 300 … 500.

You could have 2 biscuits instead of 3.

Skimmed milk instead of full fat.

Diet coke instead of regular coke.

The list goes on.

>

There’s no need to make things harder than they already are.

Because losing fat is tough anyway.

So why would you make it even harder?

You’ll be tired.

You’ll get demotivated.

You’ll plateau.

Life will get in the way.

It’ll all happen.

So make life EASIER for yourself.

And get on top of your diet.

✌️

Harry

How to lose the MOST amount of fat

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 04 Jan 2022 06:12:27 GMT

Ok so from what I’ve gathered from Instagram over the last few days.

A lot of people’s Day 1, is today.

Who starts a diet on a Bank Holiday Monday anyway?!

And I’ve even been personally asked by close friends & family members.

"How to lose X weight in Y weeks"

X = a pretty HIGH number. 5-10kg usually.

Y = a pretty LOW number. 2-4 weeks usually.

And get this?

While, in a perfect world, we’d all LIKE to reach our goals tomorrow.

We don’t actually need to.

Why do you have lost 5kg by February 4th …?

It’ll probably be snowing by then.

Freezing temperatures and we’ll all be wearing several layers.

Chiselled abs won’t see the light of day I’m afraid.

No need to take a long term view on things either.

There’s little point in giving yourself TOO much time.

As there won’t be the incentive, drive, motivation etc to get there.

So go somewhere in the middle.

Aim to lose a MODERATE amount of weight, in a MODERATE amount of time.

That’s usually the fastest way to see results in the medium term.

Make sense?

I hope so ��

Have a good one.

Harry

How long does THIS take you??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 03 Jan 2022 06:34:05 GMT

It felt good doing some meal prep again last night.

Really good.

Did a super simple meat, potato & vegetable oven pot.

6 ingredients.

10 minutes to prep it all up.

And it cooked while I was in the bath ��

So easy.

Which has my dinners until Thursday this week sorted.

And it felt like FOREVER since I last did that.

When in reality, it was only 2 weeks ago.

>

I used to think that you had to go BIG on meal prep.

Back when I first started all those years ago.

Because you see those photos of people’s meals on social media, don’t you?

10 glass Tupperware lined up.

A different protein source in each one.

Looks perfect. Each one like a work of art.

Literally.

Different vegetables.

Some raw. Some baked. Some steamed.

Quinoa, lentils, eggs, seeds.

Etc.

Basically EVERY single possible food group.

It must have taken them hours on hours to prepare.

5 different cooking pans/pots.

A huge fridge FULL of fresh fruit & vegetables.

Unrealistic to say the least.

And I fell into the trap of thinking that that was the ONLY way to do it.

Until I wised up a bit and realised that you DON’T need to overcomplicate it.

Eating the same meal for a few days in a row won’t kill you.

You don’t need to rotate your food choices every 5 hours.

You can do it weekly. In line with your weekly food shop.

Convenience should usually be your number 1 priority.

Rather than aiming for ‘optimal’.

Or whatever that even is.

>

So my Monday tip for you this January …

Keep it convenient.

��

Harry

Finishing as I mean to start

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 17:13:18 GMT

I tried the whole ‘do nothing’ thing a few days ago over Christmas.

And I just really couldn’t carry it on for much longer.

I don’t know how people do this for days on end … weeks.

I get itchy feet.

Bored easily ��

Made me realise that I really enjoy some of the ‘work’ I do daily.

You could even call some of them ‘chores’.

Training clients in the gym.

Writing these emails.

Weight training.

Being organised.

I just like it.

And I’m going to spend this weekend doing just that.

Sorting everyone’s January out.

Training programs. Targets. Diet tweaks.

General plans of action.

And I have space for a few more people to join me.

So, reply with ‘YES’ and I’ll get you the details.

Ciao ��

Harry

God bless the internet

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 21 Dec 2021 06:34:30 GMT

Someone on Twitter pointed out that when you say 2022 out loud.

It’s really just 2020 … with a 2 afterwards.

Scary thought.

Let’s hope it’s not a repeat of last year by any stretch.

Where the mind goes, energy flows and all that.

And on that point.

Is it just me.

Or are people more intelligent, amusing and entertaining on social media than in real life?

The memes, one-liners, interesting observations.

Some of them are brilliant.

Actually, have you laughing out loud looking at your phone.

Some of it isn’t even meant to be funny (government leaks etc) but still is.

You never … rarely hear that kind of stuff in the real world.

Maybe the metaverse will be a blend of the 2.

Who knows.

Anyway, off to train.

Have a good one ��

Harry

I'm glad that's over

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 20 Dec 2021 06:28:45 GMT

One of the dogs has been poorly the last couple of weeks.

Up in the night.

No regular toilet movements.

Generally not 100%.

But weirdly, the other one has been completely fine.

No problems at all with that one.

And yet their lifestyle is almost exactly the same.

Same food

Same activity

Same amounts of sleep

She obviously has a more delicate system than the other one.

And because it lasted longer than the usual 24-48 hours.

We were starting to get slightly worried.

Until … we noticed (thanks to someone else for mentioning it) that they’d changed the formula of the food they get.

The company had changed hands.

And added in some different ingredients.

Used to be 95% meat and 5% bone / minerals etc.

Now it’s 80% and 20%.

And voila.

THAT was the issue.

Because she’s fine now.

Having swapped it out for chicken & rice.

And that was just before we started going down the whole pet scan rabbit hole.

Phew.

So here’s the lesson.

Small changes can make a big difference.

Not all the time.

But they can do.

Have an awesome Monday ��

Harry

What trait Bill Gates values the most

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 05:30:38 GMT

I’ve started to get into a bad habit lately.

Of staying up unnecessarily late at night.

Only to regret it immensely when the AM alarm goes off.

First thing.

Feels like you’d do anything … pay any amount of money … to have gotten more sleep.

It’s not even doing anything exciting.

Checking this

Faffing around with that

Going down a rabbit hole on TikTok

Anyone else doing this a lot more atm?

Or is it just me ��‍♂️

And it’s not by much.

30-45 minutes I would estimate.

But when it happens consistently.

That lack of 30 mins good sleep makes a HUGE difference.

You know how alert & rejuvenated you feel after even just a 20-minute nap in the afternoon?

After the initial grogginess of course.

Your afternoon/evening feels like the morning again.

And you can just keep going.

So add that same 20 minutes into your nights’ sleep.

And you’d be winning.

I’m sure.

>

So my task is to try and cut that down.

It’s an easy win.

And that’s probably a good lesson to take from this email.

Look for the easy wins that make a big difference.

Bill Gates famously says that he prefers to hire lazy people.

Because they’ll look for the shortcuts.

The easy wins.

Without having to do too much work.

>

Have a good one ��

Harry

🌲 -> 🎄

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 20:43:18 GMT

The tree went up this afternoon.

And it all feels a lot more Christmassy now.

And to be honest.

This morning, I was undecided whether I was going for one this year.

Edging on not.

Too much effort.

Finding it, picking it, decorating it etc.

At a busy time of year.

But glad it’s all done now.

Goes to show you that the best things usually require more input.

More input than you’d like to do on a Sunday afternoon.

But there we go.

That classic tree carry from the shop to back home though …

Wow.

I don’t remember my front delts being that on fire.

I mean … seriously.

I only got a small one too.

And it felt like a 20-minute constant tension front shoulder DB raise set …

Whilst navigating over Chelsea Bridge, trying not to bump into anyone …

In what felt like, 50 mph headwind.

I needed a good 20-minute rest & refeed when I got it ��

>

2 more weeks to go before the big day.

Getting an early night before a full week.

Night ✌️

Harry

This makes total sense

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 06:29:05 GMT

I think this time of year more than normal.

You HAVE to get your training done as early in the day as you can.

Otherwise, it won’t happen.

I speak from experience.

(Happened to me yesterday …)

Even just hearing a Christmas song on the radio during the day.

Totally zones you out from wanting to hit the gym.

Even if you felt like doing it before.

The days also just seem to run away from you more in December.

It comes to 9 am.

You think you’ve got plenty more opportunities to go and train.

You could quickly squeeze it in your 90-minute slot …

But you’d rather take your time with it.

Be a bit less rushed.

Enjoy it more etc …

So you put it off till later in the day.

But when 1 pm, 2 pm, 3 pm rolls around.

There’s no way in hell you want to train.

More or less getting dark already.

So it gets packed for the day.

And you just push it to tomorrow.

Has that happened to you before?

I know I’ll definitely be training in the gym on Christmas Eve this year.

But it’ll be an early morning session.

(There’ll be plenty of other people doing the same I’m sure. Making room for more turkey etc)

No way could it be an afternoon one.

(Who trains at 4 pm on Christmas Eve?! That’s psychopath behaviour)

Now brb, off to the gym ��

Have a good one

Harry

Instead of waiting for January ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 09 Dec 2021 06:27:16 GMT

I’ve heard it all a million times before.

Usually early / mid-November it starts.

With a crescendo throughout December.

Every year.

“I’m getting back on it in January”

“No point in starting now so will wait till January”

“Want everything to be in place, so I can give it 100%”

The funny part?

These people don’t even start their regimes on January the 1st ��

(In no fit state to after NYE, obviously)

It’s going to be January 3rd this year.

Monday.

The first working day of 2022.

Because you can’t start a fitness regime on a Saturday or Sunday.

That’s still part of the holiday.

Don’t be silly.

>

And you know what?

January is also a busy time of year with work.

New year. New goals. Everyone’s raring to go after the holidays.

People finishing up deals that dragged on over Christmas.

Money to get in to pay off the December credit card.

So in my experience.

A lot of these same people.

End up putting it off until April / May anyway.

And blame it on waiting for better weather ��

>

Don’t be one of these people.

There are never perfect conditions for anything.

We know this.

There’s nothing stopping you from going to the gym in December.

Getting into the habit of exercising regularly.

Hitting your 10,000 steps a day.

Preparing your own food.

And so on.

>

I’m going to still be doing these daily emails.

Even though sign ups are low in December.

(And I don’t have space anyway)

Have a good one ��

Harry

I've officially gone off track 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 08 Dec 2021 06:37:18 GMT

My bodyweight is fluctuating all over the place at the moment.

78.4kg yesterday

80.5 today

A 2.1kg change.

And yesterday wasn’t even a crazy day food-wise.

And it’s been like this for the last week or so.

Anyone else getting the same thing?

I can explain.

(I think)

This time of year.

Typically.

It’s difficult/impossible to get ACCURATE bodyweight readings.

Why?

Because food, sleep, activity, drinking habits - all change.

Some days you might be on your usual routine.

Normal food

Normal bedtime

Normal activity habits

With the next day being totally different

Work Xmas party

Barely any sleep (late night)

Food totally different to normal

And that’s why.

Some of my clients are going out every night at the moment.

Christmas parties, drinks, catch-ups, dinners - you name it.

And even then.

They still won’t get accurate morning weigh-ins.

And while I’m not going out NEARLY as much as that.

I’m still eating different things than I normally would.

And so I’m getting +/- 1kg jumps all over the place.

So the take-home:

Keep tracking your AM weight, but really only look at the weekly average.

That smooths out the ups & downs.

Have a good one ��

Harry

What should I do??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 05 Dec 2021 10:57:50 GMT

I’ve been umming and erring about my own training over December.

Shall I write a new program?

Stick to that religiously until the 24th then have a break?

Or sort of wing it until then.

Still training hard of course.

But more freestyling.

Then write up a structured program for the start of January.

And properly go at it 100%.

I’m a bit undecided.

And I’ll probably decide later on today.

>

And if you’re reading this.

Thinking exactly the same.

Remember that there’s nothing wrong with winging it a bit.

As long as you’re still keeping the fundamentals in there.

-> Training hard. Putting the effort in during your sets

-> Training often every week. 2x sessions don’t cut it. You need 3-5

-> Doing the basic, simple, bread & butter exercises. That’s what 80% of your movements should be

-> Doing everything with control. No one that reads my emails is a professional powerlifter by trade.

-> Working in sensible rep ranges. Broadly speaking 6-12. No real need to stray outside that.

Keep all of those 5 points in mind.

And then you can do whatever you like ��

>

Have a great Sunday.

Harry

5.29 > 5.30

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 02 Dec 2021 05:29:01 GMT

I told a client last night that he should add X amount of push-ups into his morning routine.

As it’s A) a good way to get blood pumping around the body first thing.

And B) over a long time, you’ll build more muscle.

It’s something that I started doing in 2018.

And have kept up EVERY day since.

Just over 3 years now.

And I’m so glad I started.

So I wanted him to get on it too.

And it said:

“I’d like to, but I like my sleep, Harry. Everything first thing is already down to a T, and I really don’t have time to add the push-ups in”

Which I do totally get.

We’re all rushed in the morning.

I’d love to meditate for 30 mins instead of 6.

Write a page or 2 in my journal, rather than 10 bullet points.

Have 2x big coffees, rather than 1 small one.

But sometimes.

A TINY time investment gives you a disproportionately high return.

And the 30 push-ups every morning.

(Or however many you can comfortably do in 1 go)

Is a good example.

… It probably takes no more than 30-40 seconds …

I sometimes take longer than that to swipe up on my phone to turn the alarm off ��

Time flies so start doing your push-ups early.

Even if you have to set your alarm 1 minute earlier.

Have a good one ��

Harry

Easy reading

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 28 Nov 2021 08:28:47 GMT

Writing down a few Sunday thoughts.

I’ve got 5 minutes.

While the coffee is brewing:

The busiest trainer in your gym is also usually the most expensive.

Tracking on Myfitnesspal is great, but hitting your goals without needing to is better. You need to learn how to first though.

If I could only pick 1 lower body exercise to do for a whole year … it’d be walking lunges. Hits everything.

Trainers who offer huge Black Friday deals on their services. Avoid.

Don’t get caught up in fancy training protocols. Dumbbells, barbells, basic rep ranges. All you need.

Gyms at Christmas time are usually far less busy than usual. It’s a good time to train.

Staying as injury-free as possible should be the top of your priority list. Approach your workouts with that in mind.

If you want to get a jump start on tomorrow morning's weigh-in … eat your dinner a few hours earlier.

>

Have a great Sunday ��

Harry

I'm writing this sober ... honestly

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 27 Nov 2021 19:47:42 GMT

It’s horrid out there.

You can hear the wind howling from inside.

And it also feels like it’s cold enough to snow.

But we get rain instead.

Good luck to you if you’re reading this whilst out & about.

And it’s also maybe (apart from 1 other) the latest email I’ve written on a Saturday night.

So naturally.

Not a mega long one tonight.

Just this quote from Steve Jobs

"If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time."

Have a good one.

Harry

Why I'm doing 20 minute training sessions

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 09:19:43 GMT

I’m doing a deload week from training at the moment.

Something that I do every 8-12 weeks or so.

And have done for years.

I’ve actually done an email on it before.

But when I’ve mentioned it to people this week.

They’ve come back with questions.

So here are the answers.

What is it?

It’s pretty much a recovery week.

You train, but with reduced volume & intensity.

The idea is that you keep things ‘ticking over’.

But allowing your muscles, joints, connective tissues & brain to fully recover.

Ready to start the following week 100%.

Because fatigue accumulates.

As we know.

You start feeling like you ‘need’ a holiday/time off after a while.

Etc.

A good way to do it is to just cut the number of sets you do in half.

So 1 or 2 sets on your exercises.

That’s it.

Maybe reducing an exercise or two as well.

Not really pushing to failure.

But still using similar same weights you usually use.

Not having the toughest training week ever.

But you’re also not taking the week off completely.

Not restarting the following week at square one.

But feeling like you’re ready to smash your training again.

And you can draw a lot of lessons from this.

Playing the long term game.

Not burning out.

And so on.

>

Disclaimer: Unless you’re very on top of your training.

And NEVER miss any sessions over months.

You probably don’t need to schedule deloads.

As you do that already when you skip sessions/weeks etc.

The truth ��✌️

Have a good one.

Harry

Easy care 40º 💯

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 21 Nov 2021 10:20:32 GMT

Anyone else love using Sunday mornings to get a lot of boring jobs done?

Or is it just me?

Even though they never take longer than 5-10 minutes.

I feel like I have to have a clear 4-5 hours allocated to do them.

Or I feel like I wouldn’t have enough time.

Mad isn’t it ��

If don’t get those jobs done.

I feel like the mornings been wasted.

Because doing them in the afternoon.

Would be silly.

So for housework…

Having no time constraint is a WINNER.

The open-ended time scale works.

>

When it comes to training?

I think the total opposite is true.

Having a STRICT time constraint produces a better session.

Compared to having it open-ended.

As in …

You HAVE to be finished in 55 minutes as you’ve got a meeting.

So even if you wanted to.

-> You can’t be emailing in rest periods

-> Changing songs constantly

-> Taking 3 minute rest periods

You have to go beast mode.

And whilst it’s way more stressful than having 4 hours to train.

It feels so GOOD when it’s done.

And you end up having a better training session.

>

Anyone else get that?

Or do you prefer having a 3-hour training slot?

Let me know ✌️

And have a great rest of the weekend.

Harry

What a difference 12 hours makes

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 19 Nov 2021 06:40:44 GMT

So most weekdays.

I’m in the gym early morning.

And I’ll usually out by 4 pm latest.

Because most people (myself included) like getting their gym work done in the early hours.

Pre-work.

Quieter gym.

Less chance of something ‘popping up’ and ruining your schedule.

So I’m rarely … if ever, at the gym during the post-work rush.

6 pm onwards.

But yesterday was different.

Ended up leaving at 8 pm ��

And wow.

The gym at 7 am feels TOTALLY different to the same gym, but 12 hours later …

at 7 pm.

Different crowd.

Different vibe.

Different mentality … I think.

It’s a weird one, and I’m actually struggling to put it into words here.

>

I will say this though.

I do like a late-night training session.

There’s something that feels “hardcore” about it.

You can give it your all.

Because all the work of the day is behind you.

And while you COULD skip it & go home.

You’re choosing to train.

Knowing that afterwards.

It’s home time … then bedtime.

In the morning, you’ve got the whole day ahead of you.

And sometimes that can distract you.

I dunno.

What do YOU think?

Early morning sessions? Pre-work.

Or evening ones? Post work.

Interested to know.

Drop your reply in an email.

��

Harry

When would you stop ...?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 05:23:08 GMT

Good morning Monday.

New week & all that.

West End looking pretty Christmassy already.

And we’re into the last couple of weeks of Autumn.

��

Was asked the other day by a client.

“At what point would you stop training?”

“How old will you be?”

And to be honest with you.

I have thought about this before.

And as long as I’m relatively able-bodied …

And I could manage it.

Doctor hasn’t put me off games or anything.

And climate change hasn’t completely destroyed the planet by 2071.

I wouldn’t.

Retire from training …?

Imagine losing those gains you’ve spent 30, 40, 50+ years building.

All that progress.

It’d be like losing an 18,250-day meditation streak.

I don’t think I’d be able to just stop & let go.

Would you?

What would you do with all the extra time?

Because I assume that if you’ve retired from training.

Hung up your boots.

You’ve probably retired from working too.

>

It’s a funny one.

I don’t see a lot of 70-year-olds in the gym.

But maybe that’ll change in years to come.

Have an awesome Monday ��

Harry

Plans for Easter 2022?? 😂

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 14 Nov 2021 20:55:43 GMT

No that’s not a typo.

This year.

The weeks & months have FLOWN by.

We’re already into the second half of November.

And before we know it.

We’ll be writing down our goals, targets & plans for 2022.

In that hazy week between Christmas and NY.

Where no one knows what day it is.

Or how much is too much chocolate.

You know what I mean …

Re losing body fat & getting in shape.

A lot of people will say:

A) it’s too late to start

And

B) it’ll take too long

We already know that it’s never too late to start.

And while it might take LONGER than you’d like.

(Who wants to wait for anything anymore, btw?)

If the time goes by as quickly as it has done this year.

Then what’s the problem?

It’s going to take you 6+ months to lose a SIGNIFICANT amount of body fat.

Which sounds like a lot.

But snap your fingers.

Wait a bit …

Breeze through a few more weeks.

And we’ll be in May ’22.

And that’s either a scary thought.

Or an exciting thought.

Have a good evening ��

Harry

Almost missed it this morning

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 13 Nov 2021 17:55:22 GMT

Sorry I didn’t appear in your inbox this morning.

Opted for a lay-in instead of typing out an email.

Although I probably could have ended up doing both …

If I wanted to?

Only just thought of that.

Never been a fan of the whole ‘laptop in bed’ type vibe, though.

But maybe I should try it?

Tomorrow could be a trial run.

Will let you know.

Anyway.

Not going to write a super long one now.

As I know you’ve got better things to do on a Saturday night.

But will say this.

Some of my BEST results have come from people who’ve started their Transformations at ...

Strictly speaking …

The WORST possible times.

During Winter, Christmas, New Year, Holidays.

You name it.

But they ended up getting their BEST result.

“Time in the market beats timing the market”

Have a good one ��

Harry

Experiment with this?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 11 Nov 2021 05:18:04 GMT

If you ever need proof of how simple the fat-loss equation is.

How straightforward the process can be.

… To get the desired outcome.

Get your dog to lose weight.

Or if you don’t have one.

Imagine that you do.

And imagine that it’s 2lbs overweight.

What would you do?

>

Well …

You wouldn’t start giving them additional supplements.

Or try to reduce their stress levels.

Or even sleep more.

None of that.

You’d:

A) Start feeding them less food

and

B) Take them for more walks

��

That’d be it, no?

Is there anything else you’d do?

Have I forgotten something?

… Don’t think so.

Pretty sure that’s it.

Because that’d work.

Pretty well.

They’d start losing weight.

Depending on how much food you’ve cut from their usual portions.

And how many walks they go on.

>

So even though we’re a different species.

The same fundamental rules of energy balance will still apply to us.

We just like overcomplicating things.

(Just don’t ask me why cows weigh as much as they do by only eating grass … I still don’t know the answer to that one)

Have a good one ��

Harry

Almost set off the smoke alarm doing this

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 10 Nov 2021 07:34:22 GMT

Didn’t opt for my regular breakfast this morning.

Went with something else.

I usually go for a straightforward protein porridge with various toppings.

And have been for years.

But today …

I went for a beef stir fry.

With an egg on top.

At 6 am.

I uploaded a picture of it on Instagram about an hour ago.

And already …

52 minutes after posting it.

I’m getting questions on it.

>> Why this …

>> How come that …

And to be honest with you.

I’d love to give a complex, scientific answer as to why I’ve gone for the beef & vegetables.

Protein & fat is better for neural focus in the morning.

Less of an insulin spike due to the vegetables.

etc.

But the reality.

Is that the veg was about to go out of date.

And I had the beef leftover from the other night.

So wanted to use it up before I head off to the gym.

The reasons were PURE practical.

And for the most part.

Most decisions about your fitness regime should be.

Practicality prevails.

-> Science is great

-> Theory is fantastic

-> Optimisation is awesome

But we don’t live in a theoretical world.

We live in reality.

And with that.

Consistent execution is king.

Practicality, my friend.

Base your diet & training around that.

And you can’t go too wrong.

Have a great day ��

Harry

Quick one

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 07 Nov 2021 21:22:04 GMT

I’ve just written up one of my clients’ new training programs for this month.

We change it every 4 weeks or so.

We’re now on phase 15.

That’s not even the most I’ve had people doing.

I’ve got others on phase 30+.

30 months of training.

And you still get mad when you don’t see results in 2 weeks …

��

The point I’m making?

For those that work with me.

This is typical.

I work with people for a LONG time.

Much more than the initial 12-week appetiser.

Because all great things need a lot of time.

It never happens overnight.

It takes YEARS to develop a good amount of muscle mass.

Years to add significant amounts to your lifts.

Years to lose fat if you have lots of it already.

>

So remember that when you’re going about it this week.

Play. The. Long. Game.

Goodnight ��

Harry

More is sometimes better 😳

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 06 Nov 2021 06:28:34 GMT

One of the best things I’ve done in the past year.

For my own training.

Is to train pretty much every day.

6x days a week.

With the rest day on Sunday.

E.g, instead of doing 4x sessions a week at 70 minutes a pop.

6 sessions at 45 minutes.

The added frequency, but less time training seems to work for me.

And it might do for you too.

Here are a few reasons:

-> Easier to make it part of your DAILY routine

When you’re training almost every day, you make it as routine as brushing your teeth.

I started the whole 6x sessions a week thing back in June when gyms opened back up.

Wanted to make up for lost time etc.

With them having closed for months.

And it stuck

-> Sessions seem easier

Short, sharp and sweet.

45-50 minutes, after warming up, prepping etc.

Means you can squeeze a training session into an hours’ slot.

Training less frequently probably increases the ‘dread’ feeling of each session.

-> Skip a session? It doesn’t matter as much

Because you’ve got 5x more to play around with.

Train 3x a week … miss a session … and that’s 33% of your weeks’ training volume out the window

It’s a numbers game.

-> More chances to stimulate

We know that VOLUME is the main driver of muscle growth.

So it’s the total work done over the week, which really matters.

BUT, training more frequently allows you to hit muscles more often.

You’ll be ‘fresher’ when you do hit them.

(As opposed to long, drawn-out training sessions)

And so the total volume for the week MAY end up being higher on 6x sessions at 45 minutes.

Rather than 4x sessions at 70 minutes.

>

Food for thought.

Have a great weekend ��

Harry

I thought I had a good email planned ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 04 Nov 2021 04:47:11 GMT

A 10/10 email idea came to me yesterday.

As I was walking to the gym.

In what felt like … sub-zero temperatures.

And while I was tempted to write it down.

Just so I didn’t forget later on.

It was so obvious and so good …

That I told myself I WOULDN’T forget.

So I didn’t put pen to paper.

Low & behold.

At the time of writing this.

I’ve forgotten.

No idea what it was about.

A mini writer's block.

I’m sure it’ll come back to me, but for now.

I’m going with this.

Because there is a lesson here.

Amongst my failure.

> Record your stuff <

Photos

Notes

Videos

Food logs

Numbers

Training sessions

If you want to progress it.

Record it.

It seems tedious at the time.

And you think you’ll remember all of it.

But, as I found out yesterday.

We’re bad at remembering things.

>

Have a good one ��

Harry

Did anyone else feel like this last night??👻

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 01 Nov 2021 05:33:07 GMT

Halloween gets bigger and bigger every year.

And it has been for some time.

Last night for example …

I don’t think I’ve EVER seen the residential streets of London so busy at 7 pm.

On a Sunday.

Not a patch on NYE or Christmas time.

Packed.

Every single type of trick or treater were out.

The whole spectrum was represented.

To a group of 10 teenagers roaming around, looking for trouble, and not really getting the whole fun vibe.

Right through to families politely knocking on doors.

Asking for sweets.

Genuinely trying to produce some magic for their kids.

And whilst writing this email.

It got me thinking …

Which group ended up having the best time last?

Creating special memories?

Probably the latter of the examples.

(I could be wrong here, BTW … open to that)

>

And I guess it’s a bit like looking round the gym floor when you’re mid-workout.

You’ll see plenty of people training.

Using the machines, free weights etc.

In the same building as you.

‘Technically’ doing the same activity as you.

But not everyone there will be getting the same outcome.

The same result.

It’s those who are focused on the task at hand who will reap the rewards.

Those who’ve done their homework.

Know what they need to do.

And have a plan to execute.

Not those that are only showing up because they feel they ‘have to’.

Have an awesome Monday ��✌️

Harry

The BEST way to setup your training week

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 26 Oct 2021 07:40:45 GMT

Having a chat with my client this morning about training splits.

-> Why everyone follows the 1 muscle group per session approach?

-> What’s the best split for muscle growth?

-> Best split for strength?

Etc.

And the conclusion I came to was this.

In the grand scheme of things.

Zooming out of the whole training thing …

It doesn’t matter.

Not in comparison to what the sessions look like on the gym floor.

Rather than on paper.

You don’t train on a spreadsheet.

You train in real life.

As in.

Your program on paper MIGHT be perfect.

10/10.

But the execution of that program on the gym floor might be 4/10.

And because the latter carries FAR more weight.

Your overall score is probably a 4.5/10.

You’re far better off having a 1/10 training program.

But executing it at an 8/10 level.

Because then your overall score is more like a 7.5/10.

See what I’m trying to say?

Instead of nitpicking over your training split.

Nitpick over your training technique.

Over your exercise control.

Over your ability to push yourself to failure towards the end of your session.

Because that’s where the real growth happens ��

Have a good one.

Results are in 📲

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 24 Oct 2021 08:29:14 GMT

A huge thank you to all of you that took the time to reply to my email on Friday.

I thought I’d share the results.

For those of you that are interested.

Here’s an overview.

> Pretty much everyone plans their workouts ahead of time

Varying degrees to how structured that plan is.

For some, it’s down to the t.

Reps, RPE, rest periods etc.

Others, just have a vague idea of what they’re going to do.

> Most of the time, they don’t get changed last minute

Although lots of people will be flexible depending on circumstances.

If the gym is busy, it’ll change to accommodate.

If the phone runs out of battery, same thing.

But mostly, people stick to their guns.

> Almost everyone plans to continue training throughout December

Because potentially …

If you’re recording your workouts.

Planning them ahead of time.

Therefore making good progress.

AND thus enjoying the whole thing.

Why would you want to stop in December?

Plus …

I guess the December training slackers aren’t subscribed to my email list.

> Training on holiday was mixed

Some like to take the time off training, to spend more time with family etc.

Completely deload from the gym.

And resume when they get back.

Others, like to keep training.

Endorphins, burning a few extra calories and checking out different gyms.

Sometimes, just to get 45 minutes away from the family ��

Have an awesome Sunday.

Time > timing 🎯

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 20 Oct 2021 04:35:08 GMT

There’s a well-known quote from Warren Buffet.

You’ve probably heard it before:

“Time in the market beats timing the market”

It’s difficult to time the ups & downs of the stock market.

You never know what’s around the corner.

Even if you’re heavily researching up to date info.

Could go up.

Could go down further.

You don’t really know.

The last 18 months have reminded us that.

But zoom out.

And look at it over a 5, 10, 20+ year view.

….

That’s where the real money is made.

It doesn’t matter whether you timed it well on the day.

EXACTLY the same as a fitness regime.

Delaying your start to wait for the “right conditions” is a false economy.

Because you never know what’s around the corner.

Life happens.

Work gets busy.

We get sick.

Stuff happens.

You might think you’ve got a clear run …

But the reality could end up being the total opposite.

So while you THINK you have a good idea as to how your next 11 weeks till 2022 will pan out ….

Anything could happen.

So you could end up delaying …. delaying ….

To no avail.

Especially when you zoom out and look at the long term view.

And what’s why the best thing to do.

Is to start now.

So you start building up important time equity in the game.

Have a good one ��

"I'd rather chat ... if that's OK??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 17 Oct 2021 18:08:19 GMT

Sooo …

A bit of context on the title here.

Yesterday in the gym training a client.

About to finish up the long’ish 2 minute rest period.

In-between sets on the hack squat.

3rd exercise of the lower body session.

… Yup, it was getting tough.

Had already done some back squats, hip extensions.

And we’re chatting away while he recovers.

Me: “Ok times up … let’s do this last set”

Client: “… I’d rather chat … if that’s OK??”

Me: ��

We both laughed.

For a bit …

Then proceeded to tackle the last set.

Which was to failure.

So I can understand why they wanted to carry on talking.

Because it was tough.

Left to our own devices, we wouldn’t do any of the tough stuff.

We’d skip it.

Avoid it.

Carry on chatting.

Basically, do ANYTHING other than the difficult task.

Hence why you need more than 1 person (you) in your corner.

Because we let ourselves off the hook too easily.

A bit like me with this email this evening.

Tempted to give it a miss & watch an episode of Celebrity SAS instead.

But seeing as I told the client in question.

That I’d use his funny comment as email content for today.

I could hardly miss it, could I?

��

Have a great evening.

How I built a £350k fitness business 💰

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 04:33:41 GMT

I’ve always wondered why these 6-figure ‘business guru’s’ on Instagram spend so much time & energy trying to sell their online courses.

Teaching you how to do it.

The ins & outs.

How they managed to build MULTIPLE passive income streams.

And so on.

Rather than on their other businesses.

Which, supposedly, are making them millions.

In real estate, fitness, trading etc.

With little to no effort.

Because we’d all do the same, wouldn’t we?

That’s the rational thing to do.

Give your time & energy to the things that provide you with the greatest return.

And alas, the reality is that it’s all smokes & mirrors.

They probably don’t have ‘multiple’ 6 figure businesses.

And if they did, that’s probably the top-line figure.

With the bottom line being far lower.

Don’t believe everything you see online.

Far too easy to paint an illusion that is vastly different to reality.

-> Getting in shape is tough.

-> Dieting is tough.

-> Consistently training 52 weeks of the year whist managing a normal life is tough.

It’s usually a long, hard slog.

With many ups & downs along the way.

But you’re probably doing better than you think ��

Stay with it, and have a good one ��.

Special delivery 🍕

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 04:27:55 GMT

The majority of the lessons put forward in Squid Game aren’t brand new to us.

We already know most of them.

-> Money isn’t the key to happiness

-> We shouldn’t screw our friends over

-> Spiralling into uncontrollable amounts of debt isn’t a good idea

-> Shouldn’t judge a book by its cover

Etc

But what made the program so good …

And made it stand out.

From all the other programs out there that ALSO aim to illustrate lessons.

In my opinion.

Was HOW those lessons were delivered.

That’s where the magic lies.

In the delivery.

And in Squid Game’s case …

The brutality highlighted that.

A diet plan on paper is nothing without good delivery.

You need to actually execute for it to work.

Neither are exercises written down on an app.

There are thousands of ways to do the same exercise.

Some good, some not so good.

Or even how well equipped your local gym is.

It could have the best kit in the world, but unless you go regularly, it means nothing.

So your approach to health & fitness on paper only needs to be simple.

Easy for you to deliver.

Day in, day out.

✌️

Red light green light

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 05:48:23 GMT

Ended up having a late one last night.

Following everyone’s suggestions.

And watching chain watching ‘Squid Game’ on Netflix.

On episode 4 at the moment.

If it hadn’t been for people telling me how good it is …

How it’s a “must watch”.

“Weird but wonderful”

I wouldn’t have watched beyond the first episode.

No way.

Especially not the 2nd.

How slow did that one feel?!

But I’m well into it now.

And will watch more tonight.

So many parallels to draw from that.

Not enjoying something at the start.

But growing into it.

So by the mid / endpoint, you’re loving it.

Even if strictly speaking.

Whatever it is, isn’t your usual cup of tea.

I’ve lost count of how many people have told me they HATE training.

Exercising.

Going to the gym.

Hitting steps.

Etc.

But they usually haven’t given it a chance.

A couple of sessions a week for a month …

Maybe miss a couple of those along the way.

Then understandably lose interest.

And get nowhere with it.

Those same people would benefit from the Netflix binge-watching protocol.

Going from not enjoying it at the start …

Tempted to switch off …

ALL the way through to loving in at the end.

And itching to watch another.

Have a great Sunday ��

Did I oversleep this morning?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 07 Oct 2021 08:13:07 GMT

Trying something different this morning.

And writing this email from a Nero near Piccadilly Circus at 9 am.

Rather than the kitchen table at 5 am.

Change of environment and all that.

-> More background noise

-> Different people walking in & out

-> Flat white instead of black espresso.

And I’m liking it.

A change from the norm.

A minor variation to what I do day in day out.

Hearing people shout out their coffee orders as I type gives me a different sort of vibe.

Compared to hearing the dogs snoring away in the background.

But with that.

I’ve also got some other bits & bobs to do.

So I’m keeping this email short.

And leaving you with a quote:

“The bad news is that time flies …

The good news is that you’re the pilot”

Have a good one ��

They call this a "switch"

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 04:38:17 GMT

At the time of writing this.

It’s pouring here in London.

Well … pouring would be an understatement.

And it feels like the start of that period we get every year.

Where it seems to rain non-stop.

Every day.

And night.

Until April 1st.

When spring arrives.

And the clouds finally clear.

This is the perfect time for you to switch your efforts from fat loss to muscle gain.

Put the deficit on the back burner for a few months.

Put yourself in a tiny surplus.

And start putting on that winter coat.

After all … we’re all covered up most of the time when it’s like this.

So no one is even going to notice you’ve put on a few lbs.

Do that and you’ll get stronger in the gym.

Build muscle.

So when spring arrives, you can turn on the fat loss taps once more.

Little Tuesday tip for you ��

Have a good one.

Dear Member,

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 03 Oct 2021 05:54:15 GMT

Ever watched someone really go “all in” during a set at the gym?

Everything they’ve got.

Pushing to the absolute limit.

Muscles to failure. Blue in the face.

You know the deal.

It could be your training partner.

One of the PTs training themselves at your gym.

Or even your ‘gym rival’ you’re looking it.

And amongst their hard work.

There’s something that they literally … cannot do.

And that’s speaking.

Notice how they’re almost unable to speak mid-set.

They just don’t have the breath.

Or the ability to multi-task like that.

If you can hold a conversation during your working sets … they’re not working sets.

��

Felt like I had to get that one off my chest this morning.

As pains me to watch.

Apart from the odd word or phrase here & there to your training partner …

“Another one”

“Yup I can feel that”

“Take it”

Etc

You shouldn’t be able to chat.

And if you are, treat that set as a warm-up & go heavier on the next one.

Have an awesome Sunday ��

I'm finally coming off Furlough 💥

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 30 Sep 2021 05:40:17 GMT

Well.

Not exactly 100% true …

I’ve been hard at it since March last year.

But I’m glad if I’ve got your attention now.

Was having a post-training conversation with a long time client yesterday.

(Who I’ve been training for coming up to 5 years now)

And at the end of our chat.

This was our conclusion:

There’s never an easy time in the day to train.

It’s always tough to fit it in.

And that’ll never change.

Because there are always other important things going on in your day.

Just like the government ending Furlough today.

Damned if they do.

Damned if they don’t.

They’ll always be people who’ll say it should have ended months ago.

And an equal amount of people who’ll say the support wasn’t enough.

��‍♂️

A bit like trying to schedule training sessions.

Into a busy, ever-moving, fluid diary.

There’s never going to be a good time.

You just have to make whatever it is that you can do … work.

And spend a few weeks trying out different times to see which is the lesser of 2 evils.

Ciao ��

Good morning

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:52:33 GMT

I’m always tempted to delay writing my Sunday email till the afternoon.

And whenever I’ve done that.

It never turns out well.

Because I think about it like this.

If I always spend each weekday AM writing it out.

I kinda want Sunday to be a bit different from that?

A break from the routine.

Something different.

Maybe watch some funny dog TikToks for 5 minutes rather than typing out my 847th email.

But then there’s also something satisfying about getting things done early.

Things you’d rather put off till later on in the day.

And that’s today’s lesson.

Albeit one we’re ALL heard many times before.

Whatever you need to do, but don’t want to do … tick it off early.

-> It could be your training sessions

-> Cardio / steps

-> Meal prep

(Yes you can do this first thing BTW if it’s always something you put off)

-> Coach check-ins

(I do mine first thing, otherwise, I’d forget)

Etc

Because otherwise, if you’re anything like me.

You end up NOT getting it sorted.

Then it builds up etc etc.

And on that …

I’m about to set up an ADT direct debit.

Clear my emails from British Gas.

And update my Mac software after weeks of telling it ‘remind me later’.

Have an awesome Sunday ��

Looks around gym floor

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 20 Sep 2021 04:27:54 GMT

One thing I’ve noticed more recently.

Last few weeks in particular for some reason.

Is how people approach their workouts.

Or just the general ATTITUDE towards workouts.

Training

Weight training

Exercising

Cardio

Whatever you’re doing in the gym.

(Or outside, whatever’s your jam)

Should be done to BENEFIT you.

Not hinder you.

I’ll give you some examples.

-> Throwing weights around with no control

-> Performing endless cardio with poor technique

(Yes you need technique for running on the treadmill)

-> Exercise selection based on which exercise can f*ck you up the most

-> Using weight training exercises to burn calories

Etc

I’m all for training hard.

(As you know)

And I stand by that everyone should.

(Relative to them)

But you need to do it intelligently.

With a long term view in mind.

Because you want to reap the rewards for the next few decades.

Not only for the next 12 weeks.

Pick up an injury in the gym and you won’t be training hard for long.

And the ones you have to watch out for aren’t the ones that happen suddenly.

It’s the ones that DEVELOP over time.

Months, years of poor training leading to joint problems that you may never recover from.

So if you’re training today, make sure it’s hard & smart.

And if you’re resting up having done all yours.

Then remember this for tomorrow morning.

Have an awesome Sunday ��

Adapt your focus depending on your goal priority

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 06:12:13 GMT

So …

You’ve lost a decent amount of body fat over the last few months.

5-10kg.

Bloody brilliant ��

Because it’s not easy.

And now you want to consolidate your *new* body composition.

/ Level of condition.

And start to build your physique (muscle).

(Because BTW, those are the 2x phases out there. You’re either losing or you’re gaining)

Call it the POST diet phase.

Because to lose the fat, you probably:

-> Became stricter on your diet

-> Did more activity

-> Reduced alcohol consumption

-> Avoided social gatherings/nights out that you usually would have said yes to

-> Ate out less and prepared more food at home

And while that’s all GREAT for fat loss.

It’s soul-destroying to do that forever.

For the next 30,40,50+ years.

… Some robots manage it better than others.

But for you & I, we need to live a little.

So you need an exit strategy.

Because now … since losing the 10kg.

Your goals have changed.

You no longer want/need to lose another 10kg.

Or even 5kg.

You want to:

A) pretty much keep your current condition

and

B) build muscle. Because that’s hard.

And as such, your actions can change too.

When your goal is no longer fat loss, you should use that as an opportunity to enjoy the things that you leave out when you’re on a diet.

-> Going for more meals out

-> Loosely tracking food intake

-> Having a few drinks here & there

-> Generally being less strict on yourself

Because you’ll need to do another fat loss phase again.

And when that time comes.

(Probably spring next year)

You’ll want to be FRESH for it & ready to rock.

Not burned out & never wanting to eat a salad again.

Have a great Sunday

It's a LOOONG way away ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 04:29:12 GMT

A little over 12 weeks now till December.

Scary thought.

That’s when the fat loss taps get turned off.

And we all go into "damage limitation" mode.

Enjoying the Christmas that we didn’t get last year.

See how the time gets eaten up…?

I remember writing, what seemed like, a couple of weeks ago that we had 16 weeks left.

Doesn’t feel like much has happened since.

And poof

��

Now it’s down to 12.

And they’ll go by equally as quickly.

And let me be real with you here.

January … not the best time to start a fat loss phase.

Sure, it’s the typical one.

And one that a LOT of people have had success with.

But they probably would have had more success starting in September or April.

-> Better weather

-> Longer days

-> No seasonal depression

-> Gym are not as busy

Etc.

So don’t wait till post-Christmas.

Get the bulk of the work done PRE Christmas.

Then you’ll be able to enjoy yourself that much more.

Have a good one.

How do champion powerlifters get so strong??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 04:21:32 GMT

They undercook their lifts in their gym.

They rarely … if ever … truly max out.

They’ll do it at a big powerlifting meet if they need to.

To hit a new world record.

And beat the other competitors.

But in their training, they’re ALWAYS leaving RIR.

(Reps In Reserve)

((This is for their main lifts BTW. The big, barbell, multi-joint ones at the start))

They focus on BUILDING strength.

Not testing strength.

And they do that by leaving something in the tank.

So they get stronger.

Pushing heavy heavy loads to failure would probably cripple the rest of the weeks’ training for them.

So they simply don’t do it.

That’s smart.

Now …

-> Am I telling you NOT to train hard when you’re in the gym?

Absolutely not.

-> Am I telling you that you can NEVER push yourself to failure on the big lifts?

No. You’re not a professional powerlifter, so you don’t have to train EXACTLY like one.

-> Am I telling you to train hard & smart?

Thinking about the short, medium and long term repercussions of your training?

YES.

And on that note.

I’m off to the gym.

Ciao ��

Here's how I messed up my diet 😣

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 05 Sep 2021 06:27:27 GMT

I won’t lie to you here.

Doing a bodybuilding show and getting crazy lean for it.

Massively altered my relationship with food.

See, before I started dieting for it.

-> I wasn’t tracking on Myfitnesspal

-> More or less eating intuitively

-> Never really hungry

-> Able to enjoy meals out

Etc

And as some of you know, I was able to maintain a pretty lean’ish physique doing that.

Yes, not shredded, veins popping out from everywhere.

But an athletic look.

And now?

6 weeks post-show?

I’m still not back to where I was PRE diet.

I would say I need another 6 or so weeks to be there.

Essentially …

I need more time.

Because right now.

-> I have to track on myfitnesspal, to give me that structure

-> If I eat initiatively, daily calories would be off the chart

-> My hunger signals are still not 100%

-> Meals out are MORE enjoyable than they probably should be, if you’re food focussed

I’m being reminded again that the post-diet phase is JUST as important as the dieting phase.

And that’s a huge take home.

Because this body composition game is for life, not just a single event.

So whether you’re dieting, training or generally just getting your act together in a specific time scale.

Spare a thought for the 12 weeks after that.

And have a great Sunday in the meantime ✌️

P.S, I didn’t forget to send an email yesterday.

Completely intentional to give you a day off ��

(It won’t happen again)

How many sessions did I skip last month?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 04:37:54 GMT

Here’s a couple of tips I have for when I’d rather do anything else but train.

4 to be specific.

Because believe it or not.

It happens to me too.

And unless you’re usually training 6x days a week consistently …

And can afford to miss one every now and again.

Skipping sessions isn’t ideal.

E.g, if you schedule in 3-4 and end up skipping one. You could be down to 2x sessions in a week.

(Hardly a recipe for building muscle in the long term)

ANYWAY.

Here we go.

Have a specific warm-up you do at the start of every session.

Make it EXACTLY the same, each time.

So over time.

When you’ve done it for long enough.

You start to initiate training mode whenever you do it.

The body primes itself for training.

And so does the brain.

Don’t start with the hardest exercise.

It can be daunting/demoralising starting with your least favourite, most challenging exercise.

Think squats, deadlifts, lunges etc.

Basically anything lower body.

You might dead doing those so much … that it puts you off.

And I get it, you SHOULD in theory do those first …

But we’re trying to be practical here.

Instead, start with a ‘primer’ exercise. An easier one.

-> Think pec dec instead of bench press

-> Leg curl instead of an RDL

-> Pull down instead of a bent-over row

Things like this.

You’ll find you ease yourself into the session better.

Tell yourself you’ll just do the first 2 exercises.

And genuinely mean it.

“I’m going to do my dumbbell press … then my row … then I’m going home”

10 minutes into the session, you’ll be enjoying it.

And you’ll finish the rest of it off.

Trust me on this one.

It works.

Ask yourself “what’s the alternative?”

Because there always is one.

E.g, not training.

And that’s fine if you don’t want to tap into any of the benefits of training.

(I won’t list them off … for now)

Thing is.

No one can do the training part for you.

So, if you’re not going to do it … who is?

Have a good one ��

Set ... Go

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 04:30:20 GMT

And just like that.

The start of the end of the year is here.

��

It came around quickly this time.

And if that’s anything to go by …

The next 4 months will do as well.

So we better all make the most of it.

(Myself included)

But I need your help.

I want to know what your biggest challenge has been so far this year?

Late-night snacking

Meals out

Alcohol

Skipping sessions

I want to know.

So …

Reply to this email with yours as the subject line.

And I’ll include it on the list of topics to cover.

Help me to help you.

Ciao for now.

This is the worst email I've done

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 29 Aug 2021 04:27:27 GMT

I was tempted to give the emails a miss this weekend.

Bank holiday and all that.

I still sort of am tempted …

Kinda.

But I’m going to keep on typing and see what happens.

And I always find this …

Whenever I feel like NOT doing an email.

>> The more I type

>> The more words get ‘banked’

>> The more momentum I get

>> More ideas start coming to me

And I FINALLY figure out what I’m going to blab onto you about.

Funny how that works, isn’t it?

5 minutes ago I was about to pack it in and start brewing the first coffee of the day.

Before sitting down to enjoy the FT weekend with a dog (or two) on my lap.

Thinking that I’ll leave the emails till Monday.

(You wouldn’t mind though, right?)

But now … I’m genuinely enjoying writing this.

Full 360º.

I’ve lost count of how many of my own training sessions have followed a similar pattern.

You start off not wanting to do it. Only to start doing so after 5-10 minutes.

Early nights too, when you’re tempted to stay up late.

Along with good meals, when you’d rather fire up Deliveroo than cook yourself.

Hopefully, that’s some food for thought this Bank Holiday.

Have a good one ��

Looks like I'm making pancakes this morning 🥞

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 22 Aug 2021 05:35:52 GMT

Broadly speaking here.

Improving body composition is a simple process.

But it’s made to seem complicated.

Sometimes, by those who don’t fully understand how it works.

Other times, by those who’re looking to make some ££ by selling something.

Think of it as a recipe.

It wouldn’t have a lot of ingredients …

-> Hard resistance training

-> Sensible food habits

-> Staying active / moving

-> Recovering

Pretty much it.

Not many.

A bit like making a pancake …

You need 3-4 ingredients.

And that’s it.

Yes, you can go deeper than that.

And look into each ingredient in more detail.

But let me ask you this.

When you’re doing your weekly Ocado shop.

And purchasing ingredients for the week.

Let’s say you’re going to indulge and make those pancakes ��

Do you meticulously check each & every item before putting it in your trolley?

-> See where it’s come from

-> Look at the nutrition label

-> Find the use-by date

Or do you find the one you want …

Click …

Add to basket …

Then carry on with the rest of your shopping.

If you want to make pancakes, it’s more important that you have the ingredients in the first place, rather than missing one out, because you didn’t find the exact flour you wanted.

Because the quality of the pancakes lies in HOW you make them.

Not the ingredients you’re using.

And it’s the same for improving your body composition.

Get yourself some average ingredients but use them like a pro.

And have an awesome Sunday in the meantime ��

Where are you going this late at night?!

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 04:42:47 GMT

As most of you know by now.

I’m an early bird.

Mornings are my time.

-> You’re allowed to have coffee

-> The day feels like a clean slate

-> If you’re up before anyone else, you can get a lot done amongst the peace & quiet

And I prefer to get my training done then too.

If I can find a spare 60 minutes to throw some iron around.

But yesterday …

It had to be done at the very end of the day.

7.30 pm.

The graveyard shift at any central London commercial gym.

Which tbh, I didn’t fancy …

But you know what?

It TOTALLY hit the spot.

One of the most ENJOYABLE sessions I’ve done in a while.

It was a good feeling ...

Knowing that it was the last thing I had to do before clocking off.

I felt like I could give it my all.

Leaving nothing on the table.

Meaning afterwards, I had that HUGE endorphin rush you get.

But believe me when I tell you this.

I was very, VERY tempted to skip it.

After all, I rarely train that late in the day because I’m not an evening person.

And I was coming up with some good excuses not to go.

But glad I did in the end.

Because otherwise, I would have missed out on that ‘best session ever’ feeling.

Which has me all FIRED up for today as well.

Momentum at work.

Have a good one ✌️

Being totally honest here 🥶

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 15 Aug 2021 05:13:55 GMT

My response when someone tells me they can’t afford to train with me 1 on 1?

“Save up”

Hear me out on this one.

Some of my very best results over the years.

Have come from clients who have saved up for the program for months.

Some of them YEARS.

Until finances allowed them to work with me.

Why?

Because … trust me when I say this …

Saving up for anything brings the level of focus, commitment, discipline to a WHOLE new level.

When you’re forced to wait for it, it means so much more.

Think back to when you were a kid.

And you had to wait until Christmas Day to open presents.

How LONG did December feel?

And how overwhelmed with excitement were you when the big day FINALLY arrived.

You wouldn’t have got that if you were able to open presents on November 12th.

Or think about it like this.

You want to get started on the program, but current finances don’t allow for it.

You save up for 6 months, eager to start.

The time comes, when you can finally pull the trigger, and get going.

There’s no way you won’t give it 100%.

-> You’d be on your meal prep

-> You’d be getting to bed on time

-> You’d be turning up to the training session 10 minutes early

-> You’d go into total machine mode

And inevitably … you’d get the very best results you possibly can.

So THAT’S why I actually like it when someone can’t sign up straight away.

It’s like the prequel of the Transformation.

The arrow is being pulled back, just before its propelled forwards at high speed.

So if you’re reading this.

And the scenario is sounding familiar.

Take my advice and save up for the remainder of 2021.

So that come January 2022.

You’re 100% ready to rock & roll ��

I've hired someone ... again 😅

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 14 Aug 2021 05:47:58 GMT

I entrusted the help of a highly respected colleague to help me for the final few weeks of my bodybuilding prep.

As I needed help with specific aspects of the process.

Who, coincidently, is also called Harry.

And as of Monday …

I’m starting back up with him again.

Not to start prepping for another show this year.

But to work on the start of an "offseason" plan.

With the view to do it all again later on in 2022.

Because, believe it or not …

Even I need guidance.

Accountability.

A different perspective.

An external view on my own stuff.

An opportunity to learn someone else’s thought processes & systems.

Like this quote:

“If you don’t have a coach, you don’t believe in coaching”

I’ve heard this many times over the years and I’ve always disagreed.

I actually used to roll my eyes whenever I heard it.

Putting it down to cringe-worthy sales tactics ��

And I could still be right about that …

Because until recently, I’ve never really had one.

And honestly, never felt the need to.

Except for when I wanted to achieve something which went above & beyond my pay grade.

And now I’d say agree with it more.

Not to the extent that you’ll see it posting it all over my IG page.

But enough to be looking forward to Monday, when the offseason begins.

Have a great weekend ��

WeightWatchers?? 🍔

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 04:54:11 GMT

So I’ve just read this article on BBC news.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58177676

Saying that Weight Watchers’ shares have dropped 25%.

Because people are now ‘pausing’ their fat loss journeys.

And going out more, enjoying themselves, socialising etc.

And that MOST people used 2020 to get in shape, focus on their health more etc.

Hence why their shares went up last year.

Now …

I’ve seen BOTH ends of the spectrum here.

-> Those that used last year to get into the best shape of their life.

Cleaned up their diet, stayed more active, starting training etc.

-> And those that ramped up their alcohol & Deliveroo spending by 400%.

The numbers don’t lie. That did happen on a HUGE scale.

With Deliveroo’s numbers continuing to stay strong, even with restaurants now being open.

But if I could show you my OWN numbers.

How many enquiries I get daily.

How much interest I have in getting in shape.

How many people are willing to invest in their health & fitness.

You’d be with me on disagreeing with this article.

But I’m interested - what do you think?

Do you agree with me, or am I talking rubbish as usual?

Let me know.

Something a bit different 💫

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 11 Aug 2021 04:15:42 GMT

Not a whole lot of time on my hands this morning.

So I’ll keep this one brief.

I have a couple of slots opening for 1 on 1 IN-PERSON training from next month.

-> In Central London.

-> Morning slots

It’s more expensive than the online program.

But it’s a bit more hands-on.

Literally.

And is what I do best.

So if you’re interested, let me know.

Drop me a reply with ‘1 on 1’ as the subject line, and I’ll get back to you.

Cheers ✌️

How to make your training sessions TWICE as hard 💣

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 10 Aug 2021 04:44:54 GMT

I wasn’t sure what to write for this email.

Nothing planned.

And having a bit of a mind blank.

Racking my brain through yesterday to see if anything happened worth writing about.

And funnily enough … I encountered the SAME issue I’m having right now.

Not having something ready.

Take my training session yesterday for example.

(I’m currently working WITHOUT a program. Just going with the flow / doing what I feel like)

And you know what?

I probably spent more energy & brainpower.

Deciding on what movements to do …

How many reps should I go for …

Shall I push to failure or take it easy …

How many sets should I do …

Then actually during the working sets. The important part.

I probably made 20 decisions in that 50-minute session.

18 of which were completely avoidable & unnecessary.

Had I been following a pre written out program.

Because I have that voice in my head that tells me that I DON’T need a program.

And it’s OK to ‘wing it’ ever so often.

-> Yes, fine for a short amount of time. As a break.

-> No, you end up making things harder than they need to be.

Because EVERYONE needs a framework to work from.

So I’m going to get cracking on mine.

And you should too.

Have an awesome Tuesday ��

I don't do this often ... 🙏

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 08 Aug 2021 06:26:38 GMT

And I promise I won’t make a habit of doing this.

But here goes …

I’m asking you for something.

Promise it won’t be much.

It won’t take you a lot of effort.

Nor will it take you a huge amount of time.

It won’t actually cost you anything either …

And it’s this.

>> If you know someone that would benefit from getting these emails in their inbox each morning.

Reply to this email with their address.

And I’ll add them to the list.

That’s it.

All I’m asking for.

(I’m probably playing with fire here (re GDPR) but I don’t really care about that)

If the government want to go after me with a £2 billion fine, I’ll take that as a compliment.

I care about helping people improve their body composition.

And I want as many as possible to read these emails.

So that’s it.

That’s all I’m asking for.

Even if it’s just 1 person you know.

A family member

A partner

Friend

Work colleague

Even someone you don’t like, so they’ll have to hit the unsubscribe button when my Monday AM email arrives in their inbox.

I’m not bothered.

Reply with an address, and I’ll be extremely thankful.

Have a great Sunday ��

What's my diet been like this week? I'll tell you ... 😨

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 07 Aug 2021 05:52:08 GMT

So being pretty honest here.

I’ve been struggling with my own diet this week.

-> Eating things I shouldn’t

-> Buying things I shouldn’t

-> Not being in complete control

-> Not really listening to hunger signals

-> Generally overeating

It’s been a bit of a high-calorie mess.

So I’m not sugar-coating it.

(Pardon the pun)

So I need to get back on it over the weekend.

(My accountability, typing this out to you … FYI)

And get back some control.

And I’ve been asking myself WHY.

Because …

I’m usually pretty good with dietary control after a cutting phase.

After photoshoots in the past, I haven’t had any problems staying relatively lean afterwards.

-> Cravings weren’t that bad

-> Energy levels were good

-> Body did a good job at telling me to stop eating when full

-> Wasn’t that food-focused

Etc …

But this time round …

When you’ve been restricted for so long.

Months on end.

Start of Feb to end of July.

It’ll probably take me a good few weeks / (maybe months) to get back to ‘normal’.

Where you don’t feel the need to eat all the foods you’ve been missing.

In a 24 hour period.

And that’s where I’m at.

Not having completely fallen off the wagon.

-> Still hitting my 6 sessions a week.

-> Lots of steps each day

-> Lots of fruit, veg, variety with food choices

Just having dessert with every meal, when I know I shouldn’t��‍♂️

And some would call that living, so I’ll embrace it a tiny bit.

Have a good one✌️

I'll get a 99 & a Twister, pls

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 04:33:57 GMT

Not a lot gets on my nerves.

The list is pretty small.

But the things that DO …

End up winding me up a lot.

It’s probably 5-6 things in total.

And one of them is flakiness.

I just can’t stand it.

You either say what you’re going to do.

Or you don’t.

… Pretty simple, in my view.

But you know what the crazy thing is?

We’re ALL flakey.

In certain areas.

It’s impossible not to be.

(1 month of online coaching prize for anyone who can prove they’ve NEVER been flakey)

Even me.

So the thing that winds me up … I do too.

Talk about being hypocritical.

We end up being flakey with the things that AREN’T that important to us.

-> If you’re into fitness, you’re probably flakey with going on nights out.

-> If you’re into going out a lot, you’re probably flakey with your training sessions.

-> If you’re not into anything whatsoever … you’re either flakey with it all, or not at all.

Get what I’m saying?

Even though it winds me up … and probably does for you too, we have to accept flakiness.

And that’s the lesson for this Thurs.

Have a good one ��

Wakey wakey 🥱

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 02 Aug 2021 05:33:34 GMT

Always find I never sleep well on a Sunday night.

Difficult to get to sleep in the first place.

Combined with being easily woken up.

It’s almost like sleep quality PEAKS at the weekend.

Friday & Saturday night.

Then takes a huge tumble on Sunday.

Leaving you feeling deprived of a good few ZZZ on Monday morning.

Anyhow …

Here we are.

We’ve got 4 full months before the year starts winding down.

Yup … not a typo.

4 weeks.

And when you factor in a few weeks missed here & there …

(As there always is)

Busy work weeks.

Maybe you get poorly.

Go away on holiday(?!) even …

We’re probably left with c.12 proper weeks.

Proper training, on your diet, structured, working weeks.

… Not long.

Is that a good enough segway to sell my 12-week program?

Probably.

But I’m not going to push you to it.

I want you to push YOURSELF to do it.

As I only want to work with action takers ��

Have a great Monday.

Pinch & a punch 🦾

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 01 Aug 2021 12:31:43 GMT

I had a lot of interesting feedback on yesterday’s email.

With the main topic that people were interested in …

Being the fact that I used mostly MACHINES for my show prep.

No barbell movements.

And only a few dumbbell movements.

And I think that surprised a lot of people.

Because it’s common to hear that those are the ‘bang for your buck exercises you need to build muscle.

And to be honest with you …

I would AGREE.

They are.

Barbell back squat - good exercise.

Barbell RDL - wonderful.

Barbell incline bench press - love.

So why did I not do these?

A lot of it came down to 2 reasons.

Time.

These exercises require a larger setup time than their machine counterparts.

If you only have 45 minutes to train.

(Like I mostly did) …

It’s not worth spending 15 minutes of that setting the barbell up, loading the plates on etc.

So from a practical perspective, if you want to get 20 good working sets in a 45 - 50 minute session, go with machines.

Safety.

You can’t push yourself to failure on these exercises when you’re training alone.

I trained alone for the whole prep.

And if I was looking to push myself to failure.

(Which I did, a lot) …

Then I couldn’t choose the big, barbell movements.

Because I didn’t fancy getting STUCK underneath the bar whilst bench pressing and needing someone to pull the bar off me.

So there you have it.

Will I use barbells again? Of course.

If I start running a strength phase and drop the total working sets of my sessions down from 20, then I’ll have more time to load up the barbell.

If I’m not pushing to failure as much, and I’m leaving 1-2 reps in the tank, then sure, I’ll use the barbell.

I’ll just be using some common sense when picking WHICH exercises I’m doing in the gym, for my specific goal at the time.

Hope that helps.

Have a good one ��

The upside of getting stage ready 🦾

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 31 Jul 2021 06:59:17 GMT

Here are a few things I personally GAINED from prepping for a bodybuilding show.

-> My training lit up.

That spark you get, when you very start training is awesome.

I found that I got that back when I entered the show.

You ramp your training up SEVERAL gears.

-> I took fewer risks when training.

Mainly in terms of exercise selection.

I played it ULTRA safe.

As an injury derails the whole process.

No barbell movements.

Limited dumbbell movements.

Mostly fixed machines.

8+ reps. Didn’t go any lower than that.

Less risk of injury that way.

-> Organisation seeped into other areas.

When you HAVE to be on top of your training & diet.

Doing them both at the highest level you can do.

You end up adopting that same mentality in other areas.

I think some people experience the EXACT opposite, but I didn’t find that to be true, for me.

-> Learning how to pose improved muscle awareness.

I didn’t know how to ‘flare’ my lats, for example.

Learnt how to pose = voila.

-> Character traits became exaggerated.

If you’re someone who’s naturally organised, you become even more so.

If you’re someone who stresses over the details, you do even more.

(This can be positive OR negative, whichever way you look at it).

-> My taste buds became more sensitive.

When you restrict processed food to a large extent, your palette becomes ‘cleaner’.

Meaning apples taste like sweets.

Pretty cool if you ask me.

-> My digestion improved.

Because you’re eating LIMITED calories, your body maximises the digestion/absorption of that.

For example, if it usually takes you 1-2 hours to digest a big lunch, when you’re NOT dieting …

It may only take you 30 mins for the same meal WHEN you’re on caloric restriction.

-> The path ahead is clearer.

You get into the best shape you can.

You see the photos/videos.

Then there’s your goal.

Beat that next year etc.

Have a great weekend ��

I thought my calendar was broken ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 30 Jul 2021 06:05:25 GMT

Had to double-check the date this morning before writing this.

30th July 2021.

Could have sworn we were still in the first half of the year.

But looks like we’re halfway through the peak summer season.

And soon it’ll be ‘that time of year’ again ��

Looking forward to 2022.

And whatever trials & tribulations that brings.

When we write our goals down at the start of the year.

We’re writing as if we literally have thousands of days to achieve them.

All the time in the world.

I know, because I do exactly the same thing.

But the reality couldn’t be any different.

As we know.

I’m not turning this email into a Friday morning motivation speech …

Far from it.

Merely just a casual observation.

“Our goals always take longer than anticipated …

And our time always gets used up quicker than we’d like”

There.

Think I summed it up pretty well.

Have a great Friday.

Hangover VS bodybuilding show

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 09:44:33 GMT

I was asked a few times yesterday about WHY I thought getting stage lean wasn’t worth it.

For the average person.

(Who doesn’t body-build to earn an income)

And why I’d also do it again.

Because I agree.

It makes ZERO sense for me to say that.

And I fully expected to get asked about it.

So here’s my rationale.

It’s a bit like the morning after the night before.

You had a great night.

Out & about. Alcohol. Living. Friday night.

You know the drill.

But come Saturday morning …

You’re riddled with an awful hangover.

Can’t do much, headache - we’ve all been there.

Do you regret the night before?

In most cases, you usually do.

“I’m never drinking again”

“We shouldn’t have had so much”

Etc

But fast forward a few days later.

Maybe even a few hours later, after the hangovers' gone.

And you could well be drinking again.

Or out again.

That’s exactly what I’m saying, in real-life action.

Because we humans forget the downside pretty quickly.

And only remember the upside.

And there’s plenty of upside for doing a BB show.

… to be continued.

Have an awesome Wednesday.

Was it worth it? 🤷‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 27 Jul 2021 04:35:05 GMT

That’s a question that has been running through my head over the last few weeks.

Is getting competition ready worth it?

And before I delve into the nitty-gritty.

On what I REALLY think.

Let me say that next time around.

IF I choose to do it again in the months & years ahead.

I’d be doing certain things differently.

When it’s your first time doing anything, you make mistakes.

You don’t do things optimally.

Sometimes not even close.

You get this wrong.

That wrong.

Because it’s your first time navigating your way through the jungle.

But after you’ve done it once, and you have a better idea of the path ahead, it’s a little easier.

I think ...

Anyhow.

There’s a huge opportunity cost that comes with really locking in on your training, diet & overall lifestyle.

We know this on a basic level.

Trying to lose a bit of fat?

Lay off the Friday nights out.

Looking to save money at the end of each month?

Don’t spend it all.

Improve recovery?

Get to bed on time.

And that ALL get’s amplified 10x when you’re getting ready for a show.

And … based on what you prioritise & value, some of the trade-offs are probably not worth it.

Your health markers take a beating (testosterone production goes out the window, for example)

= not worth it*

Your energy levels become so low, that you can’t give any to those close to you

= not worth it*

Your social life evaporates from planet earth and leaves you questioning whether life is really worth it

= NOT worth it*

*Unless doing this is your job & it puts food on your table. Then it’s a different story.

For the average person on the street, getting competition ready is NOT worth the opportunity cost(s).

But would I do it again?

… probably.

And that’s the topic for tomorrow’s email.

Have a great Tuesday ✌️

What did I eat last night?! 🙃

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 05:05:44 GMT

Done & dusted.

Brought my best.

AND.

Won 3rd place.

Which, to be honest with you …

I’m absolutely over the moon with it.

Seeing as the two guys that beat me were more than twice my size.

And fully deserved 1st & 2nd.

But more than happy that I gave it everything, with no regrets.

(It’s a nice feeling knowing that)

And so having enjoyed a ‘normal’ meal out last night.

Steak & chips with a few glasses of red.

It’s back to good habits for this week.

If you had asked me a few weeks ago.

What I’d be doing the first week AFTER the show.

I’d have just listed off a whole bunch of things I wasn’t able to do.

(At the time…)

The funny thing?

Now that I CAN do them …

They’re not nearly as appealing.

Sure, I’ll enjoy myself this week and live again.

But it’s striking the balance between letting your hair down, and not putting on 5kg in 2 days.

Something that I am FOREVER helping clients do.

When they finish their first Transformation or fat loss phase with me.

And it’s something a lot of people get wrong.

Or start with the best of intentions …

Then allow things to run away from them.

Anyway, I’m rambling.

And you’ve got better things to do.

Have a great Monday ��

Coming to you from the heart of Devon

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 25 Jul 2021 05:27:55 GMT

It’s here.

Today is the day.

Show day.

6 months boiling down to probably about 5 minutes on stage.

All the build-up.

The months of dieting.

The years of training.

… It’s here.

And to be honest with you.

Today is about ENJOYMENT.

Because it’s going to be over in a flash.

So … I’m not going to write a huge email now.

But I will be writing a lot next week about what I’ve learnt by doing this.

And trust me when I say this.

I’ve surprised even myself.

But right now, I’m off to see if anywhere in Exeter is open for coffee at 6.30 am.

Ciao ☕️

This got me 👊

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 21 Jul 2021 04:27:09 GMT

I never realised how difficult getting competition lean really was.

Until I started doing it myself.

And now I know.

Of course, beforehand, you have an idea.

It’s sort of the same as just getting in shape, surely?

Meal prepping

Staying active

Not missing training sessions

Avoiding alcohol

Avoiding eating out

Just generally prioritising fitness.

But doing all of those things on at a 10/10 level for weeks on end.

Is a whole other ball game.

Usually, most of us are doing it a 5-6 out of 10.

So, take my word for it …

It’s tough being this lean.

Not that fun …

… It looks cool after you train.

But generally speaking, you’d only want to do it if you’re hopping on stage.

But the end is in sight now.

4 days out & feeling good.

But hungry …

Mostly hungry tbh ��

And on that, I’m off to train.

Dropping a ‘prep thoughts’ email tomorrow.

So stay tuned for that.

Have a good one ✌️

2 weeks in

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 18 Jul 2021 06:16:55 GMT

So here we are.

Sunday morning.

I’ve done 2 full weeks back in the gym …

I have a few extra minutes than I usually do …

Caffeinated ☕️

Classic FM pumping in the background ��

Let’s do this.

Here they are.

-> Don’t reinvent the wheel

It doesn’t need to be.

Complicated exercises? You don’t need them.

Adding twists onto classics? You don’t need to.

Try exercises that don’t even exist? No, you don’t need to be doing them either.

There’s nothing wrong with BASIC exercises.

Basic exercises build world-class physiques.

-> Less can sometimes be more

Think about it like this.

The more total sets you’re doing in your training sessions.

The HIGHER the likelihood that the quality of those sets will be poor.

If you only did 10 sets in 45 minutes, each of those will be HIGH-quality sets.

30 sets in 45 minutes? And you’ll be rushing through them.

For you, maybe fewer sets may be better.

Quality is just as important as quantity.

-> Train like you only get 1 body

Because … frankly & stating the obvious … you do.

We all only get 1.

Once it’s broken, that’s it.

Forever.

Train like you LOVE your body.

You want to look after it.

Keep it healthy for DECADES.

Not because you want to beat it into oblivion every time you step foot in the gym.

-> Setup time is real-time

No-one really talks about this.

But MINIMISING your setup time (dead time) during your sessions should be a HIGH priority.

If you’re training for 45 minutes, you don’t want to be setting things up for 25 of those.

Otherwise, you only get 20 minutes of actual training time.

Machines help a lot with this.

Setup is minimal.

Barbells tend not to.

As there is lots of faffing involved.

-> Training isn’t only for the first half of the week

This is classic.

Monday through to Wednesday = busy.

Thursday to Monday = dead.

Tricky to squeeze in 4-5 sessions into only 2-3 days.

So … someone is telling fibs about training 4x per week consistently throughout the year.

Want to avoid busy times? Train in the 2nd half of the week … no one else does.

Have a great Sunday ✌️

Dry run day 📸

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 17 Jul 2021 05:04:15 GMT

Typing this email out before I head up to High Wycombe for a photoshoot.

My practice run ahead of show day next weekend.

Carbed up.

Tanned up.

Hairless.

Ready to rock.

The epitome of a wild Saturday morning.

Off the back of an even wilder Friday night.

And the side of fitness that … to be perfectly honest with you …

I really don’t enjoy / like doing.

LOVE the training.

The journey.

Pushing yourself.

Learning new things.

HATE the admin.

The posing practice.

The pre-spray tan logistics.

All that stuff.

But I guess you have to do both.

If there’s no yin to the yang, it’d all feel the same.

And a matter of fact …

Even the FINAL destination.

The show, shoot, event - whatever it is.

Is always a bit of an anti-climax ��‍♂️

Usually, it’s over in a flash.

And that’s it.

Done.

And I’ve always found the real fun, to be in the moments leading up to that.

That’s probably the same for a lot of other things out there too.

Anyway.

I’m heading off.

My ‘2nd week back in the gym thoughts’ will be out tomorrow.

So in the meantime, have a good one ☕️��

This is embarrassing to admit 😣

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 04:47:13 GMT

Fun fact.

Back in the day …

The early lifting days.

I used to stress out over spiking my bodies insulin levels.

Properly worrying about it.

Because I read that you’re in ‘fat storing’ mode when your insulin is high.

(Which is true, btw. Just not in the broader context)

And you’re in ‘fat burning’ mode if it’s low.

(Also true)

So … naturally, looking at those facts, I wanted to keep it low.

As low as possible.

All the time.

… So I didn’t put on any fat, whilst trying to build muscle.

Makes TOTAL sense, right?

Well, I thought it did.

Because then, I would get the best of BOTH worlds.

Gain muscle & losing fat.

And I can tell you a WHOLE lot of other people did as well.

I’ll give you a couple of examples of how that played out.

If there WASN’T a sweet potato at the dinner table.

And only regular, white, high GI potato.

I’d stress out & not eat any.

Total refusal.

Hadn’t hit my protein target before I went to bed, and needed to bump it up.

Knew that it was important to hit my daily protein goal

But it couldn’t be a whey protein shake, as that digests too quickly and spikes insulin.

It HAD to be casein.

The slow-release, overnight protein.

And if I had run out, I didn’t have any.

Looking back on it all, I was stressing & worrying about the 0.01%.

As if it was 80%.

-> Yes, whey does digest faster than casein.

But it’s not going to make ANY difference.

-> White potato IS higher on the glycemic index than a sweet potato.

But it’s not going to make ANY difference.

-> Nutrient timing is important for body composition.

But it’s nowhere near as important as a host of other things.

I would have been better off focusing on consistently executing the basics over a LONG time.

Rather than looking for the clever, quick route to success.

…

Storytime over.

Have a great Thursday ��

So this happened ... 🤷‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 04:29:02 GMT

A couple of you pointed out in yesterday’s email.

That The Rock doesn’t have 253 BILLION Instagram followers.

Only 253 million …

As I mistakenly wrote he did.

And seeing as that was 24 hours ago now.

I’d either put it down to getting too trigger happy with the zero’s at 5 am.

Not proofreading.

Or my awful maths ability, which is only good for calculating macros and plates on a barbell.

Anyway.

I hold my hands up.

I was asked yesterday if I’m still enjoying / liking being back in the gym.

Whether the novelty has worn off yet.

And as I did last week, I’ll be writing up some more thoughts over the weekend for you.

Because with every day that goes by.

I’m getting more content ideas.

But for now, you’ll have to wait for the weekend.

Have a great day ✌️

Dwayne, if you're reading this ... 🤨

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 04:17:15 GMT

The gym was eerily quiet yesterday morning.

More or less had the place to myself after Sunday’s disappointment.

And to be honest with you?

I wasn’t surprised.

After clocking in just over 4 hours of sleep.

I didn’t want to be there either tbh.

If you follow The Rock over on Instagram.

(Which over 253,000,000,000 of us do)

You’ll notice that he regularly gets up stupidly early.

3-4 am etc.

After getting stupidly low amounts of sleep.

Sometimes none at all.

Then proceeding to do stupidly gruelling workouts.

40+ sets, heavy loads etc.

Followed by a stupidly strict diet regime.

Everything weighed out, zero junk

…

(Noticing the pattern here?)

He throws the rule book out completely the window.

Almost does the EXACT opposite of what you should do.

And look at where that’s got him?

The very TOP of his game.

He’s well & truly broken away from the pack.

And we can all take something from that.

-> Sometimes you need to train off the back of no sleep.

-> Lock your diet in when all you want to do is eat junk.

-> Take your goals personally, and hone in on them.

And then maybe, you’ll work your way to 0.0005% of The Rocks IG followers.

Have a good one ��

Was that just a dream? 🥺

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 04:22:31 GMT

Struggling with what to put here.

After waking up, what I had hoped was just a disappointing dream.

But quickly dawned that it was stark reality.

There has to be a loser.

As there has to be a winner.

It’s just pretty rubbish being on the losing side.

But this email isn’t going to be a post-match analysis of last night.

(I’m not qualified enough for that)

But more of a gentle reminder that come win or lose (the outcome) …

Which sometimes is out of your control.

As there are factors, such as luck involved.

You have to be content with your performance (the processes).

And you work on that tirelessly to improve.

Making sure that, when the next opportunity arises.

You’re able to grab it with both hands.

Have an awesome Monday ��

My thoughts, 1 week back into the gym 🧐

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 11 Jul 2021 08:05:25 GMT

So here we are.

I’ve done 1 full week back in the gym.

Training my own clients …

Watching other people train …

And generally being back in action.

Here are my thoughts & observations.

-> Everyone CAN and SHOULD train harder.

Myself included.

99% of us don’t train often enough, or consistently enough to overtrain.

In a typical month, most will average between 12-15 training sessions.

Even if you train 4-5 times a week.

There’ll still be sessions you miss, skip, can’t do etc.

The likelihood of overtraining is low.

So in the session you do, your body can probably take you to push it harder.

-> The wrong things get rushed.

Working sets get rushed.

Fast reps, bouncing out the bottom - generally not doing things in a controlled manner.

Whilst the rest periods get elongated.

You’ll benefit from swapping it the other way round.

Slow down the working sets.

And rush through the rest periods.

-> People chop & change their workouts too much.

Everyone seems to be doing a different workout each day.

Different exercises, implements, machines, rep ranges.

Change too much, and you won’t be able to get into a good training ‘grove’.

Yes, you need to change things up occasionally to avoid boredom / give yourself a different stimulus.

But for the most part, you need to MASTER your training regime in order to progress.

-> Focusing on supplementing pre/post-training.

The most popular item at the gym vending machine?

The pre-workout caffeine shot.

The 2nd most popular item?

The 450kcal post-training shake.

Peri-workout supplementation is of little relevance/benefit if your nutrition isn’t solid.

And the consumers of these pre/post workout drinks look like they need a larger dose of fruit & vegetables.

Not caffeine in a bottle.

Sorry!

-> Going for low rep ranges.

Unless you’re a professional athlete.

Have been training properly for a LONG time.

Or need to perform low rep range for a specific sport. E.g, powerlifting.

You shouldn’t really be utilising reps UNDER 6.

For hypertrophy & general fitness/wellbeing…

(99% of gym users)

… Stay in the 8-12 range.

Have a great Sunday ��

A word from Olivia, Chantal & Faizan ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 09 Jul 2021 04:17:24 GMT

A few case studies for you this AM.

As it’s been a while since I’ve shared some.

So grab a cuppa.

And allow these to FIRE you up ��

——————————

Olivia Harvey >

I’d always wanted to be lean and have a muscular physique ever since I can remember. I was never skinny and never really wanted to be. I wanted to be strong.

With Harry’s help, my dreams came true. I never had the type of body where you could “tell I worked out” even though I was working out six days a week! .. this was all up until I met Harry and started with Visfit!

Where was I going wrong? Not only am I super happy with my body now, but I also now have the tools and knowledge to know exactly what to do in order to keep making progress in the right direction. I couldn’t be happier!

This wasn’t just a “one time fix and now where do I go?”... I now know and understand the process. It has done an incredible job to heal my relationship with food and learn that food is FUEL! …

Harry was there with me every step of the way with my journey and still continues to be now! He’s awesome. I’m currently “lean bulking” (I had no idea what this was a few months ago) and feel like an expert!

I’m eating above maintenance calories and building muscle like crazy. I feel so strong! This journey has been completely and utterly educational.

——————————

Chantal Posthoon >

During the lockdown, I wanted to lose some weight and get more active. Harry's training program was great.

He adjusted the exercises to what we would be able to do at home and gave some recommendations on extra materials.

I really liked that you just recorded yourself and then got great and extensive feedback from Harry every week.

The results were better than I expected and I will definitely recommend him and go back to him in the future!

——————————

Faizan Shah >

Where do I begin?! I began training with VISFIT during the pandemic, a time where I thought id wait for gyms to open (Never happened) however harry was able to convince me to train and it was the best decision I ever made.

I am now in the leanest body comp I've been in and healthiest I've ever been. I've learned so much about myself and have been able to reach my dream body without stepping foot in the gym.

I've now lost 20kg! in 20 weeks, it truly has been amazing Thanks harry!

——————————

And to be honest, I have MANY more of these.

But you don’t want to be reading a 10,000-word email at 6 am.

I get that.

So, if you’re ready.

I want to hear from you.

Reply with ‘YES’ and I’ll take it from there.

Have a good one ✌️

Mark as unread

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 05:26:52 GMT

A night to remember.

(It has to be a football-related email this morning … sorry)

Coming back from behind to book a place on the biggest Sunday night of this century.

Even if you’re not an avid follower.

(Like I’m not)

You can’t help but join in the celebrations.

Brilliant ��

Had some luck along the way.

Of course.

(Which you ALWAYS need to do anything)

But stayed calm & got the job done.

Exactly how WE need to be with our fitness regimes.

You get taken 1 step back.

You need to come back with 2 steps forward.

You have a bad week.

You come back with 2 good weeks.

You get injured, and have to take time off training.

You recover, learn from it, then come back better.

It’s all part of the journey.

And the team are showing us that at the moment.

Now … I’m off to the gym to hit legs.

Which I really don’t want to do, but I’ll do it anyway.

Have a good one ✌️

2nd best way to learn

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 07 Jul 2021 04:23:48 GMT

I’ll write up some thoughts on my first week back at the gym over the weekend.

In a bit more detail.

When I’ve got some more time on my hands.

It’s not going to be stuff about me.

(You already know too much ��)

But more what I see from others.

As it’s jogged my memory.

And how you can learn from some of the things they:

A) do really well

(Yup, plenty of people in there doing good things)

B) do poorly

(We can always improve somewhere)

C) should avoid doing at all costs, unless they want an expensive injury

(you’re best off avoiding all of these things)

Because learning from others is one of those things I’ve missed over the last 15 months.

Of not being in a gym environment.

A training environment.

And it’s usually the 2nd best way to learn.

The first is from yourself.

The OG.

Nothing teaches you faster than messing up your own stuff.

Feeling that pain, then growing from it.

But a close second … is from others.

You don’t have to make ALL the mistakes yourself.

Learn from the mistakes of others.

You’ll leapfrog the competition.

By … largely … exercising properly.

Which I’ll go into more depth on over the weekend.

Peace ��

For the 1 millionth time 🙄

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 04:18:16 GMT

So I get asked this question a fair old bit.

“What is the best xxx for yyy”

Supplements for fat loss.

Exercises for building muscle.

Foods for health.

Routines for efficiency.

And trust me when I say this …

I have used DIFFERENT approaches with people.

That leads to the same outcome (a result).

Because ‘best’ is subjective.

For me, getting up at 4.35 am on weekdays works best.

For you, it might not.

Training 6x days a week for me right now is working.

For you, 3x might be more than enough.

Preparing all my meals at home & not eating on the go is 100% the best way forward for me right now.

For you, you might need to ALWAYS eat on the go.

See where I’m going with this?

In all three examples, you & I BOTH get the result we want.

And that we’re working hard for.

But in different ways.

What’s optimal for Mr & Mrs Jones down the street, may not be optimal for you.

Although you can’t go too far wrong with split squats, blueberries, vitamin D supplements & h20.

Have a good one ✌️��

I'm off ... CYA 🏃‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 05 Jul 2021 04:30:14 GMT

My first proper day back in the gym for 18 months is today.

Which is a crazy thought.

But here we are.

Leapt out of bed with excitement.

Even if that was at 4.40 am.

So, not only do I get to train people in ‘real life’ again …

I will be hitting at least twice as many steps as I usually do on a WFH day.

And who knows …

It may EVEN feel easier to stick to some deficit macros.

As the fridge won’t be following me around all day.

If you’ve made the same transition, you know what I mean …

So I’m keeping this one short.

The good news is that I’m still doing my online work.

And there are still opportunities to get your name on my infamous waiting list.

Drop me an email with ‘YES’ as the subject line.

And one of my team will be in touch.

(That’ll be me ��)

Have a good one.

God I hate this 😨

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 04 Jul 2021 13:09:16 GMT

You know you’re enjoying your own training.

When you reluctantly have to take rest days.

Anyone else gets that?

Usually, rest days are a godsend.

-> More time to do other things.

-> Body gets a rest.

-> No need to worry about changing out of the training kit.

-> You miraculously have a spare 2 hours in the day to do whatever you like.

HEAVEN … most of the time.

But when you’re into your own training …

For whatever reason.

-> Maybe you’re making more progress than you ever have done.

-> Taking steps further towards a goal.

-> Or maybe it’s just the feeling you get after the 60 minutes of work is done.

Taking a WHOLE day off is hard, mentally.

And I’m having one of those days RIGHT NOW.

Forcing myself to rest up before a full week ahead.

If you love your rest days too much, then it might be time to look at your own training a bit closer …

Because it should be ONE of the highlights of your day/week.

An opportunity for you to work on you.

Project you.

The most important project you’ll ever do.

And taking 1 step back, to go 2 steps forwards …

(rest days, innit)

Should, most of the time, be something that you don’t really want to do.

So ... find that spark.

(if you’ve lost it in the first place)

Over and out ��

Throwing the towel in ... McDonalds, here I come

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 01 Jul 2021 04:40:03 GMT

With a bit more time on my hands this morning.

And just before I pop out for a coffee run.

(Need to see where’s open at this 6 am first)

Here’s one main training take-home which I’ve relearned over the last 4 or so weeks.

(I’ve always known it)

(My memory just needed jogging)

When I’ve made the switch from just getting a bit leaner.

Dropping a few lbs …

Increasing activity …

The usual stuff.

To BEYOND the lean stage.

Is that unless you actively prioritise your training.

E.g, place it IN FRONT of other things.

You won’t consistently do it.

Plenty of us inactively prioritise training.

When it suits us.

(Easy to do)

4-5x sessions a week might happen on a quiet week.

It may even feel like a breeze getting them done.

No problems there.

But the moment things start to get hairy, and you get busier.

Diary gets filled up.

Instead of having 90 mins to train, you may only get 20.

It’d mean a change to your OTHER routines.

Your training time will get cut off.

Inevitable.

Unless you deliberately stop that from happening.

And allocate time to it.

Sticking to that -> whilst also being flexible.

So over the week, month, quarter, year …

You’re still hitting all your sessions.

And thus moving the needle forward.

Have a great day.

☕️

Did you lose muscle??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 27 Jun 2021 05:31:42 GMT

Here are a few Sunday AM thoughts.

Straight off the top of my head.

None of us has as much muscle as we think we do. A large % of what we see in the mirror is fat. When you strip that down, you realise there’s not much left.

Wishful thinking when it comes to fat loss. You’re probably not going to be able to lose 5kg a month consistently. You probably also have a lot more than that to lose. Be realistic.

The best time to start was yesterday & the worst time to start is tomorrow. You’re better off starting now and making of it what you can.

Training might be pretty low down your priority list right now, but in old age, you’d probably do anything to be able to train hard again. You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.

An early dinner & an early night is one of the best health tools there is. Try it for a week and see.

Legendary physiques of the past were built with less know how / technology than there is now. You only have to watch how Arnold used to train at Golds Gym. Hard work with the basics.

Dropping your first 5kg (give or take) is relatively straightforward. Most of that is going to be water. Dropping the next 5 requires you to level up, as that will be mostly fat.

The most difficult aspect of nailing a diet is social pressure to eat out & drink. Living isolated on a remote island = fat loss paradise.

There are only 26 Sunday’s left in 2021. Don’t let another one go to waste.

Have a good one ✌️

Harry

This has taken me way too long ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 26 Jun 2021 06:05:37 GMT

So after writing well over 500 of these daily emails.

It’s starting to become far easier to write them.

But it’s been a gradual process.

I’m 90% on my way to total autopilot mode now.

They don’t involve TOO much thinking.

As my brain knows what to do.

I started off at 0% back in 2018 (obviously).

And the progress has been incremental.

Not linear either.

Some weeks … months, I’ve felt like I’ve taken steps back.

But big picture, there’s been progress.

I mean, when I first started writing them.

It used to be a WEEKLY thing. Not daily.

As I needed THAT much time/brainpower to come up with a good one.

And it’d take me a good 2 hours to get 300 words done.

On a Sunday evening.

(Used to leave it till the very end of the week)

Now it takes me 15 minutes if that.

Could do it quicker, but when you factor in coffee refills …

Then drinking said coffee.

It takes a little longer. Which I’m okay with.

Some might say they don’t have the patience to stick at something daily for more than 18 months.

Takes too long …

What’s the point …

It’s far too boring …

And at the very start, MOST of that is true.

It is.

Like learning any skill. The very beginning sucks.

First learning a musical instrument …

-> not enjoyable.

First learning a new language …

-> hard work

First learning how to train …

-> painful & not pleasant

But if you KNOW what the result is going to be at the end of it.

And you WANT that.

It SHOULD … in theory … be worth it.

But that comes down to a bit of soul searching.

Which after doing so myself …

Made me realise that giving you a daily dose of what’s on my mind at the moment, is of the utmost importance.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

The ultimate mismatch

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 05:11:08 GMT

One of the WORST things you can do for your own motivation.

Which is hard enough to come by as it is …

Is comparing your results …

Or your progress …

Or your journey …

(Whatever it is that you’re doing)

To someone else’s.

Because you compare THEIR highlight reel.

They’re best photos

Best angles

Best lighting

Best edited … (!)

Pumped up

Photos.

To your less than perfect wardrobe mirror selfie.

Not your best photo

Not your best angle

Average lighting

No editing

Zero pump / relaxed

And 9 times out of 10 …

Their photo will (obviously) trump yours.

It’s not difficult for it too.

But that is to be EXPECTED.

So don’t get caught up on it.

Flip it around and use that to hold yourself to account.

A better standard.

Positive spin.

Not negative spin.

Because the chances are.

THAT person or physique you’re comparing yourself to.

Probably feels EXACTLY how you feel.

(A bit deflated after the comparison)

When they compare their Instagram shots to someone who’s even more jacked/toned/tanned/better looking.

(There is always someone out there who is)

Stay in your own lane, my friend.

You’re probably doing better than you think.

Harry

It's that time again

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 04:50:52 GMT

Treated myself to an impromptu Epsom salt bath last night.

Wasn’t scheduled, planned for a shower instead, but thought why not?

I haven’t had one for a good while.

And I never used to be a fan of them.

Couldn’t see the point.

-> Takes up too much time.

-> You have to keep your eye on it whilst running.

-> I NEVER used to get the temperature just right.

-> Would get bored easily and after 5 minutes want to get out.

-> And because I had them so infrequently, I didn’t have all the gear (salts, oils, smelly stuff), which makes them worthwhile.

But now, I’ve done a full 360º.

And treat them as a luxury. A guilty pleasure.

And wow.

How well do you sleep AFTER you’ve had one?!

Like a log … or baby … whichever one sleeps the best.

10/10.

So, naturally, feeling like a renewed human being this morning.

Recovery working its magic.

And that’s something that’s easily overlooked.

The recharging portion.

“You can only train as hard as you can recover”

The input has to match the output.

If you want to increase and improve the latter.

You need fuel in the tank in order to make a big journey.

Without filling up, you’ll only have 10 miles in you, not 100.

Maybe it’s time for a bath & an early night tonight?

Harry

I've started doing this ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 22 Jun 2021 04:46:05 GMT

If you’re anything like me.

And LOVE an early morning ‘to-do list.

That gets ticked off every day.

The routine.

More or less, performed on autopilot.

Which sets you up for the day.

Then add in a quick summary of yesterday in there.

Can be as long as you want it to be.

But I’d suggest starting with something basic.

To get yourself going.

That’ll only take you 1-2 minutes to write down.

Then if you like, you can build on that.

… Start small, though.

Make it EASY for you to do.

You’ll be surprised at …

A) how much of yesterday we actually forget.

I remember a dozen of things if that.

B) how much clarity & purpose it can give you for today.

You’ll be like a laser pointer chasing down your goals.

C) how great a seemingly usual day can be.

If you put the right spin on it.

Which in turn, gives you some momentum for today.

Give it a try.

(Now) ��

Harry

If you have a few mins ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 20 Jun 2021 08:04:36 GMT

I always seem to get a lot of good work done on a train journey.

Assuming that I’m not sat within earshot of a crying baby.

Or sat next to someone tucking into a McDonald's breakfast wrap.

And it’s not just a quick 20 minuter …

The lack of distractions is a GODSEND for writing emails.

If I have longer than an hour, then I can relax into it.

And let my brain do the work.

Currently writing this sat on the train down to Gloucestershire for Fathers Day.

So, what’s caught my eye this time?

Apart from the empty roads of West Ldn …

Breakfast options.

You see, I haven’t been on an early train for a while.

So I’ve forgotten what the rush hour breakfast on the go looks like.

I think we probably all have.

And mind you …

It’s difficult to resist if you’re not on a plan.

When at Paddington, there are at LEAST a dozen places to choose where to buy your pastries & coffees from.

Not to mention the fast food outlets which are always open.

Even during the pandemic, these places must be doing well.

Is breakfast the most important meal of the day?

No. It’s your OVERALL intake that matters.

Will having 2x pastries & a latte put you in a surplus for the day?

Maybe not, but you’re making it difficult. More difficult than it needs to be if you’re blowing 1000kcal on a low amount of food.

Can you eat whatever you like?

Of course. Do whatever suits you.

But, does breakfast set the tone for the rest of the day?

Absolutely. Nail breakfast & you’ve got some good momentum for the rest of the day.

Will you feel GOOD after having a protein-rich, ‘healthy’ option?

Obviously.

Fat loss is a budget management game.

And generally speaking, nothing good happens when you use up your budget too early.

Your night out on the town would be fairly unenjoyable if you used up ALL your money in the first 30 minutes, with nothing else to spend for the rest of the night.

You’re far better off pacing yourself, resulting in a more successful night out.

Rather than ending up passed out in a ditch.

Have a great Sunday.

Harry

"Get me thinking"

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 19 Jun 2021 06:02:34 GMT

Officially heading into the end of June this weekend.

Which is crazy.

So far the year has felt like:

January —> a couple of cold weeks later —> a week of sun —> End of June

Anyone else get that?

It still amazes me how QUICKLY the time goes.

Especially when you pack a lot into your weeks.

Which everyone who I speak to does.

Life is long in many ways.

We don’t need to have done everything by next week.

Most of us might end up living past our 100s.

That is assuming we reach old age.

Which, compared to a few centuries ago …

Is double life expectancy.

So we’ve got time on our hands.

Or do we?

Because life can be short too.

Take the last 6 months for example.

Or the last 18 months.

Poof.

That time has flown by.

People have been on furlough that whole time.

And will be until September.

Some will have made the most of the extra spare time to take up hobbies, push other interests.

And others will have watched every Friends episode three times.

Gaining a Dorito addiction in the meantime.

Make of that what you will.

But you for …

The time is now & the moment is here.

Start the 2nd half of the year with a bang.

And have a great weekend in the meantime.

Harry

What I got up to yesterday

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 18 Jun 2021 04:49:10 GMT

Had my first Men’s Physique posing lesson yesterday.

Basically learning how to present yourself on stage at a bodybuilding show.

Wild Thursday.

A few initial thoughts:

Outsourcing to a professional ALWAYS pays off in the long run.

I could have trawled through youtube and taught myself …

-> But that would have taken me hours.

-> No guarantee that the videos I’m watching are the right ones.

-> And I’d have no one to critique what I’m doing.

= Waste of time, energy & opportunity cost.

So I found someone at the very TOP of that field.

To learn from.

And I’m sure my investment will pay off.

(It probably already has)

The main thing I learned?

I have little / no awareness of what my body is doing.

Almost ZERO.

When I’m not in a familiar setting.

(You should have seen all the funky stuff my shoulder blades were doing, without me even realising)

So I’m going to practice 10 minutes a day to sort that out.

Low volume (only 10 mins)

High intensity (100% focus)

High frequency (7 days a week)

= Skill acquisition.

Little by little.

Building up the muscle memory.

So that it becomes MORE familiar for me.

And will soon become second nature.

Am I expecting to have it nailed in 7 days?

Probably not.

Not even in 21 days.

But in that time, I’ll be a HELL of a lot better than I am now.

And that progression is exciting.

Have a great Friday.

Harry

Could you find an extra 15 mins?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 05:32:19 GMT

Yesterday’s email seemed to resonate with a LOT of people.

As I got more replies than I usually do.

(400% more, if you’re wondering)

And it’s probably the single BEST piece of advice I can give.

For improving your physique.

And improving your health.

Baby steps.

No matter how small.

But what if I told you those BIG steps you think about.

Dread doing.

Feel like you need 3 clear hours to really tackle.

Are really still only baby steps.

Just in disguise.

Because we make them seem more DIFFICULT than they really are.

More challenging.

And more daunting.

Hence, we put them off.

-> Getting your training sessions done.

-> Cooking your meals.

-> Going out for a walk.

-> Canceling plans that you don’t want to do anyway.

-> Taking your progress photos

…

All fairly straightforward & simple.

But we think of them as HARDER as they need to be.

Some of them would only take 15 minutes.

Hell, we ALL waste far more than that browsing TikTok every afternoon.

Something to think about.

Harry

What's your favourite chocolate bar?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 13 Jun 2021 05:33:15 GMT

Slightly worse for wear this AM after my 2nd jab yesterday.

So taking it easy with this email.

(No aggressive telling off about slipping up on your diet this time …)

((Will save that for tomorrow))

But seeing as I’m less than 5 weeks out from my shoot.

And the end of my fat loss phase.

I really can’t afford to completely slum it today.

Lay around eating Reeces Pieces watching the footy.

Etc.

Some things still have to get done.

I won’t list them off, but you know what they are.

If I hadn’t had it booked in for 17th July … would my behaviour change?

Absolutely. I’d let myself off the hook.

Immediately.

Nip down to the shop & treat myself.

Because … why not?

There’d always be tomorrow to burn it off.

That’s where forced accountability comes in.

It does wonders for your thoughts & actions.

It gives you purpose, drive, determination & FORCES you to be disciplined.

A total game-changer for getting anything worthwhile done.

Tony Robbins famously says:

“If you want to take the island, burn the f*cking boats”

Because when you give yourself no choice BUT to put the work in …

You do just that.

That’s what we human beings do.

That’s why we’ve survived so long.

And so successfully.

Managing to get to the top of the food chain.

And firmly stay there.

So get something booked in, and enjoy some of the forced accountability pressure.

Have a great Sunday.

Harry

Info

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 12 Jun 2021 04:59:16 GMT

Different type of email from me this morning.

‘Practical dieting tips’

Bigger, more satisfying, less frequent meals usually trump smaller, less satisfying, frequent ones. When your calories are heavily restricted, go for big meals.

You won’t accidentally hit 20-30% deficit numbers by accident. You’ll hit a 10% surplus. You need a strategy. And a plan.

However many grams of fibrous vegetables you’re consuming each day at the moment, you could probably double that.

Shakes & juices are useful up to a point. But when you’re truly hungry, on your diet & want to eat more, you’ll wish you hadn’t had that 350kcal breakfast smoothie.

You can consume more than 20-30g of protein in 1 serving. Nothing bad will happen if you do. If you’re doing 3x meals a day, each one will need to be 30-60g depending on your target.

When you think you deserve a weekend treat after being on track Monday to Friday … don’t. You probably don’t need one & it’ll only jeopardise your hard work. After 6+ weeks, maybe.

Use fatty protein sources sparingly. They’ll use up your calorie budget MUCH quicker than their leaner brothers & sisters, for not a whole lot more satiety.

If you put your mind to it, you can probably get by on fewer calories than you think you need. Why not try it for a week and see?

Brush your teeth 30-60 minutes after each of your meals. And just like that, you won’t feel like eating anymore.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

Devonshire Arms tonight??🤩

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 10 Jun 2021 05:08:32 GMT

I’m often asked if you can drink and still lose fat.

Or drink and stay in shape.

And seeing as here in the UK we’ve been able to go out over the last few weeks.

More pub trips. Meals out. Dinner parties.

Since the endless winter of not being able to …

I’ve been getting this question a LOT more than usual recently.

And I’ve also had some first-hand experience with trying out some new things when it comes to alcohol.

E.g, going out more than usual.

So here’re my thoughts.

Yes, you can.

But it comes at a COST.

And THAT is what you have to personally manage.

The cost to benefit ratio.

Alcohol has little to no benefit to your physique - FACT.

-> But it can help you unwind after a tough week - also FACT.

You’ll likely have SOME type of hangover the following day - FACT.

-> But it’s sometimes worth it to have a great night - also FACT.

Your sleep, performance, appetite, digestion mood … all negatively affected post-consumption, sometimes for days - FACT.

-> Celebrating with a nice bottle of Champagne on a Friday night is something we all love doing. Who wouldn’t?!

You get the idea?

It’s all a trade-off.

If you’re training for the Olympics - probably best to avoid it.

If you’re not, and wanting to be in good shape AND enjoy yourself - you need to play the managing game.

In any given year, you’ll go through periods of drinking more some weeks, drinking fewer others.

Your recovery & performance will be better on those weeks where you don’t.

But your social life will suffer.

So you aim to balance it out.

Trying to cover the middle ground as best as you can.

E.g, being sensible, not going overboard and limiting consumption to special occasions.

I’ll leave it there.

Harry

Why this game is so TOUGH

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 04:39:08 GMT

One of the reasons getting lean is so difficult.

Is because it's completely and utterly a solo endeavour.

It’s all on you.

And you alone.

If you’re used to working in a TEAM environment:

-> Playing team sport growing up

-> Big group of friends you socialise with

-> Part of a close team at work

-> Have siblings you can organise rota’s with

It can be TOUGH to be on your own for something

And unable to rely on someone else to carry you forward.

Think about it like this.

We’ve all experienced being part of a ‘group presentation’ back in the day at school/university.

You know exactly the ones I mean.

-> 3-5 people

-> Topic you don’t fully understand

-> A day or so to prepare

And if you were lucky enough to have a hard worker in the group.

You’d be able to skive off doing ANY work.

As that organised, hard-working individual would do 99% of the hard yards.

The ideal scenario, no?

If you were one of the slackers, yup.

If you were a hard worker, not really.

ANYWAY …

Now take changing your physique.

TOTAL opposite to that scenario.

It’s all on you.

You can’t rely on anyone.

You have to do the work.

You have to do the training sessions yourself.

Say no to late-night treats when you’d do anything for one.

Sacrifice your favourite things for the end goal.

Give up your short term pleasure, for your long term gain.

And that’s why it’s SO hard.

And yet those group presentation projects potentially were VERY easy.

There is a flip side.

And that is if you come out the other side.

Successful in your Transformation.

Having put in all that hard work YOURSELF.

And yourself only.

You get a FAR GREATER sense of accomplishment.

Higher risk, higher reward, my friend.

Something to ponder over.

Harry

What's the light in the fridge for?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 04:51:08 GMT

I’m *sometimes* guilty of not following my own advice on things.

Not all the time.

But some time.

And ATM, it comes down to diet.

Because right now …

I do the vast majority of my work in the kitchen.

And for those of you that are doing the same …

You know how tough this is.

I catch myself ‘picking’ …

Because the fridge is right there.

(I never used to pick before … EVER)

An arm's length away, or feels like that.

And it’s taking a lot of willpower to stop myself.

But you know what I’m finding out ...

In this mini, first world power struggle I find myself in?

It tests the water tightness of my plan.

A lot.

Like, if I didn’t have something concrete to follow.

I’d be toast.

Because all the little cracks that I can usually glaze over …

Winging it etc.

Are getting highlighted.

Exacerbated.

And overall, that’s a good thing.

Because a better thought out plan, executed at a higher level, yields better results.

Harder work, but better results.

And that’s what I’m here for.

At least until 4th July.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

When was the last time I posted??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 03 Jun 2021 04:55:14 GMT

Some of you may have already noticed.

That I’ve been pretty quiet on IG lately …

Have taken a posting break for a few weeks.

Still posting up a story each day mind you.

But haven’t done a proper post in a WHILE.

Not sure why …

Could be that I just needed a break from it.

Could be that I get tired/bored of seeing other peoples’ posts.

Could be that there’s not much to post about atm.

But one thing I do know …

Is that I’ve been putting my energy into other things.

Like my current crop of clients ��

And dragging the dogs out for AM cardio at 4.33 AM.

Because our energy is FINITE.

It’s not an infinite resource.

It runs out.

You have to pick & choose what you put that into.

Think of it like you have 5 energy credits that you can spend every day.

You only get 5.

That’s it.

What would you spend it on?

Hopefully, THE most important things that matter to you.

Health

Family

Work

Sleep

Exercise

Scrolling through Tik Tok

You get the idea.

See how I put health at the top of that list?

Yup - really.

It’s that important.

Without that, we’re stuffed.

So …

Drop me an email with ‘YES’ as the subject line and I’ll send you the details of my program.

Harry

Details

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 01 Jun 2021 05:15:00 GMT

Hello June.

Hello, summer.

Hello, 2nd half of the year … ish.

If that doesn’t fire you up on this fine Tuesday morning …

Then maybe this will.

I’m opening a few spaces on my program this week.

It’s on a first come first-served basis.

And they’re usually all gone within 2-3 days.

So you’ll have to be quick.

AND I’m scaling back my online program.

With the intakes being smaller & less regular.

So, now is your chance.

Reply with ‘YES’ as the subject line, and I’ll send you the details.

Harry

Pub grub

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 31 May 2021 05:37:32 GMT

Not sure about you on this one …

But I’m a real stickler for NOT wasting food.

Absolutely hate it.

And can’t bring myself to do it.

From an environmental & financial standpoint.

It goes against my natural instinct to throw it away.

After it’s been carefully produced by the chef.

And paid for with hard-earned cash.

And I’ll do everything in my power to stop it from happening …

At home …

It results in a few random combo snacks throughout the week.

Think roast beef slices, cucumber and raspberry salad.

And when it’s eating out …

It means I swap plates with whoever I’m with to finish off what’s left.

Bits of this.

Halves of that.

And boy.

Is that the worlds EASIEST way to rack up your meal out calorie count.

Wow.

150% portion sizes on pub food?

Good luck sticking to a deficit on that.

Unless you’ve run a marathon that day.

And that’s EXACTLY what I dealt with this weekend.

Moral of the story?

If you’re a stickler for wasting food like me.

And you KNOW you’ll consume a lot when you’re out.

Try not to eat out … too often.

Save it for a special occasion.

As it’ll be THAT much more enjoyable.

Maybe once a week, if you’re wanting to tighten things up.

Have a great Bank Holiday Monday.

Harry

20º & counting

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 30 May 2021 15:44:24 GMT

And just like that.

Summer is here.

Poof.

Felt like that happened earlier in the week.

Overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.

And I’ve held off from mentioning it …

In case it’s one of those CLASSIC cases of hot for 2-3 days.

Then back to the winter chill for weeks.

Like we seem to get every year.

And it’s usually in April / May.

But at LAST.

This weather looks like it’s staying …

Hopefully for good.

And it finally feels GOOD to be out & about.

Sun on your skin

No jacket needed

No hat

Vitamin D levels rising

Lovely.

You also know what this means?

It’s getting lean season.

Shredding season.

If you follow a SEASONAL approach to building/cutting.

Then the switch has flicked as of this week.

Say goodbye to a calorie surplus.

And welcome the deficit with open arms.

(My shoot was 5 weeks away yesterday)

And that’s keeping me on track until at least July.

With spaces for my online program opening up next week.

That'll be your chance to work with me for the next 12 weeks.

Drop me a line with ‘SUMMER’ and I’ll get you the details.

Harry

Happy?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 27 May 2021 05:42:23 GMT

Dropping body fat and getting in shape is a balancing act.

And it’s usually between 2 sides of the same coin.

Improving the quality of your life.

Basically, on the one side, you have

**Being on it**

Early bedtimes

Preparing your own food

Avoiding alcohol

Cutting down on eating out

Going for walks

Monitoring your progress

(Most of the things needed in order to get in shape)

The things you KNOW you need / should do, but it’s hard work to execute.

And on the other side, you have

**Enjoying life**

Staying up late watching good TV

Not having to prepare your own food

Having a drink or 2 most nights

Eating out at restaurants

Laying in

Not worrying about whether you’re progressing or not

(The fun stuff … basically)

What we’d all do, all the time if we could

Go 100% on one.

At the expense of the other.

And you’re probably in trouble.

You’d either get in really good shape AND be completely miserable / have ZERO life.

Really out of shape, have a FUN lifestyle, but with health problems coming at you like a truck.

You have to have a bit of both.

And balancing that. Judging that. Figuring that out is the tough bit.

Do you go 80/20?

50/50?

90/10 some weeks?

Then 10/90 the other weeks?

It’s a tough one.

The good news? It doesn’t have to be set in stone.

You can be flexible with it.

You can be ‘on it’ when you can/want to be.

That could be Mon - Fri.

And ‘off it’ Sat - Sun.

Which is what most of us do anyway.

Just make sure you’re aware of when you are, and that will, hopefully, act as your rudder.

Harry

Did this reel you in?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 26 May 2021 05:15:57 GMT

We’ve all seen those OTT social media thumbnails.

Whose sole purpose is to reel you in.

Usually, to watch a 10-minute video that isn’t nearly as good as the thumbnail would suggest.

Funny that.

The photo is usually ridiculously over-edited, with someone wearing a minimally acceptable amount of clothing.

It looks so out of this world, that you HAVE to click on it.

Human nature, eh?

ANYHOO.

This email isn’t a rant about the photo.

It’s the wording of the title.

And they usually sound something like this:

“SHOCK your legs into GROWTH by following this 1 tip”

Or my favourite.

“CONFUSE your muscles into BREAKING through that plateau”

And that’s bullsh*t.

Here’s why.

Muscles don’t have emotions.

They’re not people.

They’re not like you & I.

They don’t get upset or excited.

They have an origin & an insertion.

And they pull / contract.

That’s it.

They are, simply put, mechanical.

You can’t confuse them.

You can’t shock them.

You can’t alter their fundamental job.

You can’t ‘wake them up'.

You can work them.

And contract them under load.

That’s pretty much it.

They respond to the tension that is demanded of them to move the joint(s) / skeleton.

So … next time you’re about to start your training session.

Remember what the PRIMARY objective is.

Train your muscles with sufficient tension & sufficient load.

And leave the shocking/confusing to something else.

Harry

Circle back to 2002

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 25 May 2021 05:07:47 GMT

Watched 8-Mile for the first time over the weekend.

19 years late to the party.

But glad I did.

And boy.

Did I get some valuable lessons from it.

We do our best work when our back is against the wall. When you have no choice but to perform.

And we can all relate to that.

Give yourself a whole day to 1 small task.

24 hours to write one email.

The email being of 5/10 importance.

Averagely so.

Chances are, it’ll take you the whole day to do.

Why?

-> You’ll procrastinate.

-> Find other things to do.

-> Write the email … read it through … realise you could do better … delete it all … start over. Because even though it’s only a 5/10 in importance, you want to get it right.

-> You’ll take a nap instead, so you can ‘focus’ better.

ALL of it, you’ll probably do.

Because you’ve got the whole day.

What’s the rush?

There is none.

Give yourself 30 minutes to write that same email?

A hard deadline?

But bumping the importance up to an 8/10?

(Let’s say it's for a new job, and you NEED this job for ��

You’d get it done in 28 mins.

Maybe 27 at a push.

No questions asked … if you HAD to.

If it was either that or go hungry.

-> You’d be 100% focused.

-> ZERO procrastinating.

-> You’d find the extra gear needed to write the best email you could.

-> Then you’d have set yourself up for the remaining of the 23 hours & 30 minutes of the day.

See what I’m getting at?

We, humans, thrive under pressure.

Just like Eminem did all those years ago when he started with nothing.

And went on to sell over 220,000,000 records

(and counting)

And you might need that same environment too.

Details coming soon.

Harry

Almost mentioned the C word

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 24 May 2021 05:06:15 GMT

The last full week of May.

Then we’re into Month 6 of the year.

��

I’m not even going to rant on about how mad that is.

Because we can all safely say it is.

And if last year is anything to go by …

People will have already started ordering their Fortnum’s hampers.

And reserving Ocado delivery slots for December.

And whilst all that excessive PRE planning is frustrating.

When you’re caught on the wrong side of it.

We can draw a lesson from it.

“Get in there quick, otherwise someone else will”

And seeing as I’m opening up a few select spaces on my online program from next week …

Which will go quickly (as they always do).

You’ll need to be fast.

Details coming soon.

Harry

Tired?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 22 May 2021 05:31:11 GMT

If you want the most RELIABLE alarm clock out there …

That’ll NEVER let you down …

Will always wake you up …

Won’t ever ‘bug out’ …

Or let you snooze for 5 minutes …

Get yourself a dog.

And if you want to take it 1 step further.

To really make sure you don’t miss an early morning.

Time to rise & all that …

Get 2.

Job done ��

You can delete the alarm app now.

Phone doesn’t have to be anywhere near you at night anymore.

As you’ll be able to hear the bark from anywhere.

Talk about creatures of habit.

-> Doesn’t matter what day it is.

-> What the weathers’ like.

-> What time they go to bed.

They’ll always wake up at the same time.

(Unless they’re poorly, ofc)

Never missing a day.

Sundays.

Wednesdays.

Holidays.

Christmas.

You name it.

They’re there.

Imagine if we humans had that same mentality.

Habits & routines that are so drilled into us.

That they’ll ALWAYS happen.

No matter WHAT.

You can & probably do with some things.

(Brushing your teeth)

(Checking Whatsapp every 5 minutes)

Etc

But there are also things that we don’t do it with.

(Skipping training sessions)

(Going over on macros)

And being real with you.

It’s TOUGH to match up to a dog.

When it comes to habits.

But is there any harm in trying?

I’ll leave that to you.

Harry

I'm back

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 17 May 2021 05:00:53 GMT

So …

As I’m sure you will have noticed over the weekend.

I didn’t send you any emails.

Nothing.

Was I tempted?

After not missing a beat in 18 months …

Give or take 500 emails …

A hell of a lot of words …

I had to RESIST the urge to fire up the Laptop yesterday morning and type.

As it’s so ingrained in me to do that now.

But I didn’t.

Why?

A bit of scarcity is good.

Things CAN be a bit too predictable.

Even the good things.

Like these emails.

That appear in your inbox every morning without fail.

(I was even asked on IG over the weekend if I was alright, as I hadn’t sent an email. True story)

Believe it or not.

Writing to you each morning is a BIG part of my daily routine.

And I love it.

*for the most part

But sometimes you even need to switch up the good stuff.

Like your training program

Like your daily walking route

Like your shopping list

Like your plan of attack when things aren’t working

Variety is the spice of life.

And if that means going off the grid for 48 hours …

Reading the paper instead of writing an email …

Walking the dogs instead of prepping your meals …

Laying in instead of getting a training session in …

(Joking on this one)

Then so be it.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Something that Barack & Jeff do

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 12 May 2021 05:11:42 GMT

One of my favourite 1 liners from the Tim Ferriss podcast, from a few years back >

“If you can’t find 5 minutes a day to meditate, then you REALLY need to meditate”

True, isn’t it?

If you’re rushing around, zero time, stressed, prioritising everything else but yourself …

You probably need to give yourself some love.

And to flip that over to training.

If you can’t find a couple of 45-minute slots each week to sweat:

Push yourself physically

Bump your heart rate up

Move your body

Contract muscles against load

Train for a specific goal

Then you need to reassess your priorities.

Okay sure.

There will be a few weeks where, for whatever reason, the sessions may not happen.

Cool.

But the VAST majority of your weeks in any given year.

Should contain a handful of productive training sessions.

I mean …

Who else is going to do them for you?

You can outsource many things now.

Training though isn’t one of them.

If Obama found time to train when he was in office.

You can.

If Mr Bezos can find 30 mins here and there to hit some arms, whilst running a big company (as he clearly does).

You can.

Everyone is always busy.

With SOMETHING, at the very least.

So you’ll have to find your own way of squeezing those all-important sessions in.

Have a great Wednesday.

Harry

Tree cutting

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 10 May 2021 05:07:43 GMT

Short one this morning.

And I’ve got a quote for you, that we’ve all seen before:

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”

I love this.

So relevant for getting in shape.

Or for achieving anything difficult.

You spend time preparing first.

Then execute.

Brilliant.

Now … read it again.

And check the ratio.

It’s relatively even.

2/3rds of the time preparing.

1/3rd of it doing.

The quote ISN’T:

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend all the time watching videos on how to do it.”

There’s still a GOOD chunk of time spent chopping down the tree.

Two-thirds of it.

It’s not ALL preparation and no action.

Look at it this way.

No exaggeration here.

I’ve spoken to people who’ll watch Youtube training videos for 10 hours over the week.

Yet only train themselves for 1 hour.

…

Watching OTHERS train for 10 hours VS actually doing it themselves for 1 hour.

Madness.

You’re better off doing it the other way round.

Paralysis by analysis is a real thing.

And it’s often the EASIER route to learn about it.

Rather than taking action on it.

Harry

I needed this

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 09 May 2021 18:29:14 GMT

Writing this email from an empty carriage on the South West train service.

Back up to London, after a day away.

And I honestly can’t remember the last time I did this.

Many many months ago.

Feels like FOREVER.

And even if only for a day.

It’s left me feeling totally refreshed.

Recharged.

Ready to roll for another week.

Because environment is key.

As we know.

And sometimes … you need to change that to get some FRESH perspective.

Maybe even more so in the current WFH environment.

But probably more challenging to do with current restrictions.

So …

It doesn’t even need to be a big change.

I’m not asking you to hop on a plane to The Falklands on May 17th.

Or book a weekend away in Cornwall.

Could be taking a different route on your walk.

Or doing your work in a different room in the house.

SOMETHING.

To change your environment.

As you’ll never know you needed to do it.

Until it’s done.

Harry

Is it August already?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 07 May 2021 05:00:26 GMT

When the weeks fly by THIS quickly.

Those long term goals you have.

Are probably closer than you think.

Anyone else feel like that?

Because 12 weeks SEEMS like a long time when you think about it.

3 whole months.

1st May to 1st August.

Almost the whole of spring and a good chunk of summer.

Gone.

“I couldn’t go that long without a cheat meal”

“I don’t know how people do this for that long”

“I’d get too much FOMO from not going out as much”

All of which are perfectly legitimate concerns.

But when the weeks RUSH by.

Like they’re doing right now.

It all seems a bit more manageable - doesn’t it?

Now, all of a sudden.

-> You’re only giving up the foods you love for a short, limited time.

-> You don’t have to lock yourself away forever.

-> You don’t have to track things forever.

Just for a short-ish period of time.

Long enough for you to lose that 5-10kg.

And get things moving in the right direction again.

And the best time/place to start?

This weekend ��

Harry

Rant inc ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 05 May 2021 04:55:29 GMT

It never ceases to amaze me how QUICKLY some people give up.

And not just giving up a little bit.

-> Taking the foot off the gas pedal.

-> Slipping up a few percentage points than normal.

-> Opting for a rare meal out, rather than another meal in.

(Something we all do from time to time)

I’m talking COMPLETELY throwing the towel in.

And giving up.

For several months.

And heading straight back to square one.

All because they’ve ‘hit a plateau.

Or they think they have at least.

(There’s no such thing as a plateau, btw)

That’d be like starting a brand new job.

Working hard for the first 3 months.

Really going for it.

Ticking all the boxes.

Generally adding TONS of value.

Then abruptly quitting in month 4.

Because you had a rough couple of weeks.

And you didn’t ‘feel’ like you were making progress during that time frame.

First 3 months = tons of progression.

Last 2 weeks = zero progression

= Quit.

Wouldn’t make any sense, would it?

OR at the VERY least …

It’s not a recipe for a successful career.

You have to stick with it.

This game rewards the long term players who keep working away in the rain.

Not part-time summer temps.

Harry

Having a lay in or going for that pizza??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 03 May 2021 07:47:08 GMT

I’m sure you’ll agree with me on this one …

The thought of having a good lay-in during the week?

When you’re tied up with Zooms, work, responsibilities …

HEAVEN.

Frankly, it’s always right up there on my wish list.

A few hours extra ZZZ and being woken up by the sun.

Here’s the catch.

Whenever I actually get one …

(Which is a rarity)

Like today.

It RARELY lives up to the hype …

1. I don’t get my usual head start on the day

2. I feel like I’m playing catchup for the rest of the morning

3. It messes up my sleep schedule/pattern for the following night

Anyone else gets this?

The same goes for FOOD.

And alcohol.

And pretty much anything else you can consume.

The thought of it is usually incredible.

10/10.

Hits the nail on the head.

ESPECIALLY when you know when you shouldn’t be having it.

You’re eating your turkey salad with no dressing.

And you’re thinking about how GOOD a pizza & wine would be.

And maybe while you’re indulging, it’s pretty good.

You get that dopamine HIT right away.

But a few hours after …

/ the following morning.

/ the following week.

You sort of wish you hadn’t.

As you’re now playing catch-up on your goal(s).

And you’re starting to get in that vicious cycle.

We all know about it.

So by all means go for it.

But know there’s a downside to the upside as well.

Harry

OFF topic

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 05:14:59 GMT

I was asked the other day what I’d be doing if I wasn’t a trainer.

And to be honest …

I haven’t spent much thought on it.

These last few years I’ve been totally immersed on Transforming people.

But if my PT career has been anything to go by.

I’d pick something I can make progress with.

There’d have to be a CLEAR career path.

Because that’s what keeps things interesting.

And I’d HAVE to stay interested.

Or it won’t work.

Even if I ENJOYED doing it …

Leaving aside your interests for a second.

(Plenty say to follow your passion. But what if you can’t make a living from your passion?)

The same goes for this Transformation game.

You have to become SLIGHTLY obsessed with making progress.

-> Tiny steps forward.

-> Making small gains here & there.

-> Overcoming challenges.

-> Seeing the change.

-> Documenting your progress.

It’s all part of it.

And that’s what I’d want my other career to have.

The sense of adventure.

The Day 1 vs Day 1000 comparison.

That’s what it’s all about.

And that’s probably the sort of career I’d chose.

Harry

You'll laugh when I tell you this ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 05:02:56 GMT

Fess-up time.

I accidentally DIDN’T send through the email yesterday.

I had every intention to.

(A good one at that)

It was on my list.

Was going to write it up after flicking through the paper.

But I made 1 mistake.

Which meant by 11 am I had TOTALLY forgotten about it.

And didn’t come back to me until this morning.

(Similar scenario to the Meditation Streak a few months back, if you remember)

The mistake I made?

I strayed from the routine.

And surprise surprise, stuff didn’t happen.

I.e, the important email that I write to you each morning.

Which usually, it does.

There is no better advice than that for getting in shape.

A ball in motion stays in motion.

But you have to set the ball in the right direction first.

Same goes for habits.

The important stuff needs to become habitual.

You don’t want to be actively thinking about all of it.

You want it to be second nature for you.

Like brushing your teeth.

Putting a face mask on before you head into a shop.

Or driving a car.

Your diet? Autopilot.

Your training schedule? Autopilot.

Drinking enough water? Autopilot.

Staying organised? Autopilot.

Because as I’ve said before.

Results come when you combine EFFORT & TIME.

The latter being the one everyone misses out on.

And for you to do this for a long enough time …

You need a LOT of the key variables to be habitual.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Imagine if we all did this ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 24 Apr 2021 05:19:32 GMT

So after I opened up in yesterday’s email.

About my own challenges over the last few weeks.

Lockdown fatigue 3.0 etc …

I got a TON of people messaging me back.

Saying they feel EXACTLY the same.

And that email made them feel a WHOLE lot better.

Because it’s often reassuring to know that you’re not the only one.

It’s not you VS the world.

All to easy to THINK everyone else has it easy.

Because we naturally only disclose our HIGHLIGHTS.

The LAST thing you feel like doing after you’ve had a terrible week.

EVERYTHING going wrong etc.

Is posting all the details on your social media.

You just wouldn’t.

Because we play down our losses.

Hell …

My Instagram would get way more interesting if I published all the bad stuff.

Maybe for another day.

Or in my memoirs once I’ve retired.

But just because it’s challenging …

Isn’t a reason to NOT give it your all.

Because this game is a no-flake zone.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

9 ways to mess up your food tracking

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 05:20:49 GMT

Not sure why I’ve got with 9.

But it’s a multiple of 3, so we’re going with it.

Here we go:

Not recording oils/sauces

THE biggest culprit for eroding a deficit.

Easy to rack up 100s of kcal from these.

Track ‘em.

Tracking in the AM, but not the PM

I only say this as it’s something I’ve found myself doing.

The day starts off with good tracking intentions.

But finishes in a calorie fest.

Track your food after 6 pm, my friend.

(Note to self, also)

Logging your meal out as a meal in

You can’t.

They’re not the same.

Your homemade grilled chicken breast & steamed vegetables won’t be the same as the same dish (energy-wise) ordered from Maroush.

The latter will probably be DOUBLE the calories, for the same chicken & vegetables.

Throw in some cooking oil/sauces to get it accurate.

Getting the cooked / uncooked thing wrong

This is such a big one.

Because there will be a HUGE difference between the weight.

Double-check that your entries match what you’re measuring.

Choosing bogus entries on MFP

Anyone can create an entry on the app.

So you’ll have some chicken breast entries on there, which are plain wrong.

Use the green ‘tick’ where you can and or double-check the entries to make sure they make sense.

If your doughnut is 0c 0p 0c, you know it’s too good to be true.

Missing off Fri - Sun

Honestly … hand on your heart.

Can you say that you track your Sundays as rigorously as your Tuesdays?

Didn’t think so.

Not getting specific on the numbers

Rounding up, rounding down.

Estimating teaspoons, scoops.

It’s all a recipe for UNDER reporting what you’re consuming.

Using analogue scales

Don’t use them.

Digital all the way.

Missing things off

Tracking only works when you log everything.

Bites of this, bits of that, packets of them.

You’re not a hardcore MFP user if you’re only tracking the ‘good’ food.

Harry

This'll take 30 secs

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 05:05:48 GMT

Short one from me this morning.

Keeping up my Monday email routine by giving you the most value.

In as few characters as possible.

Here we go >

You learn more in the tough times than in the good ones.

Frankly, you get taught ZERO lessons when everything is going your way.

If there were lessons to be learned, you probably wouldn’t notice.

Think about it like this.

*You head wildly off-plan with your diet for a week.

But you still lose 1kg of fat.

The following week, you’d carry that on.

*Skip ALL your training sessions for the month.

But still get stronger, build muscle & feel great.

Errr … you’d probably never train again. Because why would you?

See what I mean?

Flip that around though, and things start to go the OTHER way.

And you’re learning.

You’re figuring out what went wrong.

You adjust your behaviour.

And you get yourself back on track.

And that, my friend, is why you either WIN or you LEARN.

(Not my quote, btw)

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Not my quote

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 06:09:11 GMT

One of my favourite Training quotes.

That, I think, sums up how you should approach your workouts.

Regardless of what your goal is.

Or what your lifestyle is like.

At home or in the gym.

Or anywhere else tbh.

“Instead of counting each rep, make each rep count”

Golden.

Isn’t it?

So …

The exact OPPOSITE of going through the motions.

(What most people do)

Quality > quantity.

You’re better off doing 5 good quality sets in a training session.

Which would literally take you 15 minutes.

Then spend an hour doing 20 sets.

All of which are terrible quality.

And the quicker you learn HOW to do this.

The better your results will be.

And that’s probably the best training tip anyone can give you.

Ever.

Make those reps count ✌️

Harry

It went THAT fast ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 05:08:05 GMT

So the last space on my program went pretty quickly yesterday.

11.06 AM to be exact.

And that’s it now till the Summer.

If you missed out.

And didn’t get a spot.

… Tough.

My energy, attention & time is finite.

I can’t work with everyone.

(Not that I’d want to)

ANYWAY.

I’ll be doing more informative emails over the next couple of weeks.

->’ 5 ways to do this’

-> ’10 to avoid doing that’

-> ‘Don’t do this mistake if you want to get that result’

Etc.

But I need your guidance on what YOU need help on.

So hit reply with your 3 biggest struggles, and I’ll put them in an email for you.

… Fitness struggles.

Not life struggles.

Mans not a life coach, yet ��

Have a great Monday.

Harry

This is difficult to explain, but I'm going to try

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 10 Apr 2021 05:17:26 GMT

So I’ve been getting a LOT of questions about my program this week.

As I’ve opened up a few slots for a limited time.

(Closing it down tomorrow btw, and still have a slot … or 2 leftover if you want in. Details at the bottom)

I won’t list them all off.

But here’s one main one that CAUGHT my eye.

As I’ve been getting it a lot:

“How does the program work when the GYMS open back up?”

And I usually have to bite my tongue on this one.

Pretty hard.

And NOT reply straight away.

And it’s funny because this time last year …

The main question I used to get was the EXACT OPPOSITE.

Funny that eh?

“How does the program work with HOME training?”

We’ve done a full 360.

And I’m going to put it simply …

Answer this in the most BASIC way possible.

The main, and probably only difference …

Between exercising in a purpose-built training facility - the GYM.

And exercising in your front room.

Is that you have to leave your front door to attend the former.

That’s it.

��

>> So how does the program change based on whether training is at home or the gym??*

It’s actually easier to write down what STAYS the same.

In NO particular order

*Your diet

*Your daily step count

*Your sleeping pattern

*Your tracking variables

*Your protein target

*Your calorie target(s)

*Your supplement regime

*Which muscles you train

*Probably the training split you do

*Probably how many reps you do

*Probably how long you train for

What changes:

*The address at which you choose to do your training.

That’s it.

The fundamentals of a Body Transformation remain largely the same.

Don’t be fooled into thinking you need to change EVERY aspect of your program next week.

Keep doing your thing.

And have a great weekend in the meantime.

Harry

Case studies & program update

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 07:42:47 GMT

By the end of this week, I’m closing down my online program until the Summer.

Mid-July, to be exact.

(Reply with ‘I’m in’ and I’ll get you the details)

But before it gets shut down in 7 days’ time …

I wanted to drop you 3 case studies from clients who pulled the trigger on my last intake.

The action takers.

Which have since then.

Achieved phenomenal results.

——————————

Alice Briegel >

I got in touch with Harry to help support my ambition of getting in the best shape of my life for my wedding this year. Having recently recovered from a major knee operation, I wanted some expert advice and motivation to get me back on track with my fitness and health goals …

Being accountable to Harry, as well as myself, keeps me smashing my weekly goals whilst also receiving great nutritional and training advice. Harry has used his knowledge and expertise to tweak my training and nutritional goals week on week, making sure I'm achieving whilst also managing my expectations. It's not always easy but Harry has been a great support and a true professional.

I've worked with multiple trainers over the last 10 years and this has been by far the most transformative to date. I'm 11 weeks down and can't wait for the next 6 months ahead!

——————————

Manjet Kenht >

I would highly recommend Harry/VisFit if you are looking to make positive changes to your lifestyle and physique.

They are very professional, motivating and offer great advice. I learnt more in a few days with them, than I had learnt in years, beforehand. I also saw results in the first few days.

You get great value for money and should not hesitate to start with them if you want to be educated in terms of training and nutrition.

Once you get started, you get into a good routine that sets you up. I’m very happy with the service so far so thank you!

——————————

Nick Papavassiliou >

Harry has shared his experience about exercise and nutrition which I've used to great effect. And I've seen huge improvements!

The planning is meticulous; daily emails, weekly check-in phone calls to keep you motivated, macro/calorie targets, exercise planning, daily step target....it all comes together to help your body transformation.

I'm enjoying the journey and have learnt so much about nutrition and exercise, if you want to change your lifestyle and your look, I wholeheartedly recommend Visfit to achieve those things!

——————————

And listen.

I have MANY more of these.

Too many to type out into 1 short email.

So If you’re ready to start getting SERIOUS results?

NOW IS YOUR TIME.

Reply with ‘I’m in’ and I’ll get you the details.

Harry

I messed up last night ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 03 Apr 2021 05:06:36 GMT

The long Easter weekend off to a flying start for me.

Pulled a muscle in my back yesterday.

During a 7 pm Friday leg session.

(Don’t ask me why I did it that late …

Even I’m struggling to understand why)

And it’s one of those ones where you struggle to bend down.

Having to move around with a flat back etc.

Not cool.

But it got me thinking …

I KNOW how to train properly without getting injured.

I teach my clients how to do it.

Have been for years.

And I’m pretty good at it as well.

-> Locking in exercises

-> All movements controlled

-> Squeeing the right muscles

-> Keeping certain body parts still, whilst working others

-> Generally not training like an idiot

But …

(Always a but)

Even with all the above …

Injuries happen.

You can be doing EVERYTHING right 99.9% of the time.

And just lapse concentration for that 0.01% on your last set.

WHILST putting the weights down back on the floor.

And boom ��‍♂️

A little niggle appears.

And it’s often only AFTER your training session that you realise.

Because the body blocks out some pain while we’re training.

Adrenalin, cortisol etc.

While you’re actually training unless it’s REALLY bad …

You won’t realise till 15 minutes after.

Am I going to take a full week off training because of this?

Am I going to do anything crazy with it / try to fix myself? Get the foam roller out and go nuts?

Nope.

Am I going to be picking everything up with a straight back?

Err yes. It hurts otherwise.

Am I going to work around it, doing movements I know won’t aggravate it?

You bet.

The BEST athletes in the world pick up injuries.

You will too.

And it’s just another obstacle that you need to work around on your journey.

Have a great Easter weekend.

Harry

Not an April fools email

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 01 Apr 2021 05:17:03 GMT

And just like that.

The first 25% of the year gone.

Poof ��

Q1 - finito.

Crazy, huh?

Christmas seems like a CENTURY ago …

But still almost feels like we’re in January …

Anyone else get that?

And look, I’m not sure how your first 3 months of the year went.

You might’ve expected it to go better than it did.

Thought you’d be on holiday.

Have lost a few more KGs.

Be back in the office.

Or you could have pulled it out of the bag and EXCEEDED expectations.

Who knows ��‍♂️

But I DO know that those who pulled the trigger on my program back in January have CRUSHED it.

I’ve seen it first hand.

Day by day.

Week by week.

The going rate seems to be 10-12kg body fat drop in that time.

Along with a DOUBLING of load used during training sessions.

And better habits built for the long term.

That’s a POWERFUL winning combination right there.

Who knows what the next quarter will bring??

Not me.

Not a clue.

I don’t have a crystal ball.

(And neither do you)

But what I DO know is that tho lucky individuals who work with me will be killing it.

Like they always have done.

And the option is there if you want to hop on board for that.

Reply with ‘Q2’ and I’ll get you the details.

Harry

Do you agree?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 05:17:25 GMT

My word.

How much easier is it to hit 10,000 steps when the weather is like this?!

It’s no longer a chore to head out of the house.

*No dragging your feet.

*No umbrella.

*No sitting inside thinking you’d rather do ANYTHING else.

It certainly makes things a LOT easier.

Not to mention that when it’s warm like this …

You eat less.

Appetite comes down.

Salads become that bit appealing than a hot sausage roll.

Oh.

And there’s nothing like shorts & t-shirt weather to give yourself an extra kick to get in shape.

As you can no longer hide underneath a big jacket.

This ^

Is why it’s easier to get lean (and stay lean) over summer.

Take full advantage.

Milk it for all it’s worth.

Go crazy on the steps.

On the salads.

On the home (garden?) workouts.

Because, if the Weather App is anything to go by …

We have until Monday next week.

Then it’s back to 5º temperatures and light drizzle throughout the day.

Ordering sausages rolls from Greggs at home, when we should be out on a walk getting our steps in.

Have a great day.

Harry

"I'm going to wait this one out"

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 05:11:00 GMT

Got a note here from Faizan.

One of my clients who signed up early November 2020 last year.

After a LOT of to-ing and fro-ing about whether he should sign up.

-> He didn’t want to because the gyms were closed.

-> Wasn’t the right time.

-> He’d rather wait for them to open.

Etc

If memory serves me right, he was thinking about it for 6 MONTHS before he pulled the trigger.

In that time, he was getting bombarded from me about joining.

Because I knew he was serious about getting in shape.

His result?

Well …

I’ll leave what he said below:

—————

“Where do I begin?!

I began training with VISFIT during the pandemic, a time where I thought id wait for gyms to open (Never happened) however Harry was able to convince me to train and it was the best decision I ever made.

I am now in the leanest body comp I’ve been in and healthiest I’ve ever been.

I’ve learned so much about myself and have been able to reach my dream body without stepping foot in the gym.

I’ve now lost 20kg! in 20 weeks, it truly has been amazing.”

—————

My question for you.

What will YOUR next 20 weeks look like?

Harry

You CAN'T lose fat when you're stressed

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 06:10:28 GMT

This wasn’t my intended email this morning.

I had planned something else.

But, as I was typing that …

(Will send tomorrow, don’t worry)

Something popped up on my feed which prompted me to change course.

And here it is:

————

You don’t need the stars to align for you to lose fat.

*You don’t NEED to optimise your sleep.

*You don’t NEED to train like The Rock.

*You don’t NEED to eat your 5 fruit & veg a day.

*You don’t NEED to follow your meal plan every day.

You simply need to consume LESS food & drink …

Then you burn.

On any given day/week.

History is LITTERED with examples of people who lose a TON of body fat in less than ideal circumstances.

In some cases …

FAR less than ideal circumstances.

Prisoners of war come to mind.

They’re not overweight, are they?

When they get released by their captors if they’ve survived the ordeal.

Quite the opposite in fact.

They’re unimaginably stressed.

Fearing for your life will do that to you.

Sleep-deprived.

They’re not getting 8 good hours a night.

Consuming the absolute lowest quality food available.

Protein? Organic? Fresh? Forget about it.

Sick & in pain.

It’s called torture for a reason.

I don’t think they’d have been on Bupa, either.

Hormones all out of whack.

Can’t lose fat if cortisol is high, right?

A lot of the IG fitness crowd would say that just going just off that …

They SHOULDN’T be losing weight/fat.

But they resemble a living skeleton if & when they make it back home.

And if they perish from starvation before then?

You can bet your life savings that they weren’t 20% body fat before they did.

An energy deficit in action, my friend.

——————

And I’m not saying that you need to throw away all your vegetables.

Consciously deprive yourself of sleep.

Or keep your activity low.

But, what I AM saying is you can still keep things ticking along.

Fat loss wise.

In LESS THAN IDEAL CIRCUMSTANCES.

You don’t need to ‘have it all down’.

Harry

9 Rules to Fat Loss

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 21 Mar 2021 16:18:29 GMT

Sunday quick fire round.

Fat loss edition

———

Have a deadline to work towards.

A specific date that your dieting phase ends.

You’ll achieve more in that time frame by doing so.

Train like you’re trying to build muscle.

Because if you don’t, you’ll lose it.

Standardise your mornings.

Up to lunchtime, aim to have as much REGULARITY as possible.

Routine routine routine.

Mess around at the end of the day, not the start.

Ditch the fat.

As your calories get lower, and the deficit gets bigger.

Take calories from fat, not carbs.

100kcal of carrots VS 100kcal of almonds and the former wins every time.

You’ll get smaller.

Get over it. It’ll happen.

Your clothes will fit looser. People will mention your weight loss to you. You may even get called skinny.

You’ll need to go to bed hungry.

Sometimes.

Not ravenously hungry, but definitely in the ‘could eat more’ category.

Start early.

The longer your time frame, the easier the journey.

It’s stressful & not enjoyable leaving yourself 20 mins to make a 45-minute journey in the car.

The same goes for fat loss.

Work with a Trainer who gets results.

With people like YOU.

Similar physiques, similar lifestyles, similar challenges.

Not results with other 20 y/o PTs on steroids.

Share your journey.

It’s a whole lot easier to stay on track when people around you KNOW that’s what you’re doing.

Partners, friends, parents, colleagues - all need to be told that you’re on a MISSION.

Have a great rest of the Sunday.

Harry

Do you want to remember this password?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 20 Mar 2021 06:18:28 GMT

As human beings, we don’t remember much.

We forget about MOST things in the end.

*What you learnt in your GCSE’s.

*What you ate 4 days ago.

*What your Apple ID password is.

*What you did on your family holiday to Corfu in 2004.

I mean, at best …

You probably remember a HANDFUL of moments from 2015.

Good and bad.

Maybe even NONE from 2020.

(If you’ve been smart and wiped that from your memory, a la Men In Black)

The same applies to the training sessions you do.

We forget all about them.

If you’ve ever DREADED doing a training session …

You’ll know EXACTLY what I mean.

You spend so much time & energy BEFORE the session ….

-> Thinking about how painful the split squats are going to be.

-> How you’d rather do ANYTHING else.

-> How you DON’T need to train today, as you can catch up tomorrow.

You reluctantly do it.

And 2 hours later …

You forget all about it.

Like it didn’t even happen.

Just another ‘thing’ that occurred in your day.

One of hundreds.

Sometimes, I’ve genuinely missed my own training sessions off my ‘what have I done today evening roundup.

And considering how much I’ve dreaded doing those same sessions beforehand.

It’s pretty startling.

So if we forget most of the difficult things we do …

Should we not just suck it up & get them done?

I’ll leave that down to you.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

Advice from a Life Coach?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 18 Mar 2021 06:19:23 GMT

There is no better feeling than following through on YOUR word.

Those daily conversations you have with yourself.

1) Saying you’re going to do something.

2) Encountering all the life roadblocks out there.

3) And still carry through with it.

Heaven.

You max out your levels of self-respect.

Have a sense of accomplishment.

And feel like you could apply the same energy to ANYTHING.

THAT’S why this Training & Dieting game is so good.

Because you can experience all of that.

Just from Training hard.

And eating right.

Consistently.

Leaving the excuses (that we all have btw) at the door.

Now …

I’m no life coach.

I’m not here to tell you how to live.

Or even how to sort ALL your problems out.

BUT …

I am here to help you build muscle & lose body fat.

That’s what I do.

Quite well ��

So, if 2021 was meant to be the year you got into shape.

Then reply with ‘RESULT’ and I’ll get you the details to work with me.

And be a person of your word.

Harry

I'll have the prawns as a starter ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 16 Mar 2021 06:20:14 GMT

The Transformation history books are FULL of starters.

You probably know a good number of people that have.

I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve spoken to over the years.

That have told me something like this.

“I tried a Transformation before, but …”

“I was doing well for the first 3 weeks, then …”

“I started one years ago, but ….”

Etc.

-> It’s really NOT that difficult to start a journey.

Anyone could start today.

There are not too many barriers to entry.

Apart from the STORIES, we tell ourselves in our own heads.

Download Myfitnesspal on your iPhone.

And 10 seconds later.

You’ve started your Transformation.

Not hard, was it?

Unless the Face ID didn’t work, and you’ve forgotten your password.

-> It’s difficult to finish that same process.

Because there are PLENTY of prerequisites before you can wrap up your initial fat loss journey.

You can’t finish your Transformation today.

Unless you’ve already started.

And have done the boring middle part for 3+ months.

(That’s the tough part, btw)

There’s no ‘Ideal Physique’ app on the app store that lets you download a body.

There’s no time accelerator machine that can skip all the hard work for you.

————

And BEFORE I get slated for often telling people that getting started, IS the hardest part.

It IS in some ways.

Because you’re potentially having to undo years of bad habits.

BUT

The proof is in the pudding.

MORE people have started (easy).

FEWER people have finished (tough).

That’s why a lean, athletic, muscular, toned physique is somewhat of a rarity.

In comparison to the overweight, unfit and inflamed physiques you see on a daily basis walking down High St Ken.

(At least they’re getting some steps in though)

—————

Be a finisher, not just a starter.

Harry

Did you win Lockdown?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 14 Mar 2021 07:38:16 GMT

Let’s talk plans.

Plans to get in shape.

Covering training, diet, activity & recovery.

I’m a BIG fan of flexible ones.

Your plan should fit you.

Not you fit your plan.

BUT …

It’s not completely 1-way traffic.

There has to be some leeway.

A good way to think about it …

75% is the plan fitting you.

And the remaining 25% you fitting the plan.

Because if the plan COMPLETELY fitted into your preferences.

You’d probably train once or twice a week.

And only head out for a walk on the few days of the year when the weather is nice.

Usually a couple of days in April / May.

Think about it this way …

If it was 100% the plan fitting YOUR lifestyle …

And you were to make no compromises on that.

Those CRAZY months you have with work?

When you’re completely snowed under and don’t have a moment to breathe.

Zoom after zoom.

Logging on at 7 am and not leaving your desk till 9 pm…

(We’ve all been there)

Would also coincide with:

-> 0 training sessions

Because when would you have time to train?

-> Untracked eating

Difficult to track when you don’t have time to weigh your food.

-> Very low activity

No time to leave the house,

-> Poor sleep quality & quantity

You never sleep well with a high workload.

For the WHOLE month.

That’s not good … is it?

———

What about if that same month dragged on?

For another 30 days.

Then you’d be looking at a 6th of the year GONE.

Fitness-wise.

As I just tweeted:

“If you don’t find a way to still train when you’re busy, you’ll never make training a part of your long term lifestyle”

Find the middle ground and you find your plan.

Happy Mothers Day ❤️

Harry

How often do you do this??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 13 Mar 2021 07:51:06 GMT

Whenever I lose my Mojo for doing these daily emails.

As I’ll be the first to admit …

It’s sometimes NOT the number 1 thing I’d rather be doing each morning …

Sometimes, not even in the top 5.

More coffee, anyone?

>I flick through my old ones <

A) To jog my brain to remember the kind of things that go down well.

B) Ideas come to me when I put myself in the right environment. E.g, reading through old emails.

C) It gives me a little confidence boost knowing that I’ve done one of these pretty much EVERY day for the last 18 months.

And lo and behold …

After 5 mins of having a read through.

I get an idea for a NEW one.

Just like that.

To put this in the context of getting in shape.

When you don’t FEEL like doing it …

Have a look back to see:

A) WHY you started.

B) How FAR you’ve come.

C) You might stumble across something amusing on your camera roll.

Then you’ll probably feel more up for it.

Whatever ‘it’ may be …

-> Could be your 5th home workout of the week you REALLY don’t want to do.

-> Your 6th day of being ‘on it' with the diet, when you could really do with Deliveroo.

-> Those rainy day steps you KNOW you should be doing.

(Rain is a terrible excuse, btw)

————

Winners get it done.

Losers don’t.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

3 things I've learnt in March

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 06:35:16 GMT

If there’s one thing I’ve learnt this week.

Having gone from NOT tracking food on Myfitnesspal.

Which I’ve been doing for the best part of 18 months.

To logging everything on the app.

(Leaning up for summer … if we get one)

Is that even when your diet is FAR from perfect …

When it’s all logged, you consume less.

-> I’ve been ‘picking’ at food FAR less than I did.

Because picky food is a PAIN to track.

Handfuls of this.

Bits of that.

Every tried to track a homemade antipasti platter with 17 different items on?

If you’ve weighed it, you need a MEDAL.

So naturally, you eliminate those and stick to easier to track items.

It makes your life a whole lot easier, so a complete no brainer.

-> No tracking = bigger portion sizes.

Even after my YEARS of tracking on Myfitnesspal.

Month in month out.

Having a pretty solid understanding of how many calories per 100g in things.

I still massively cut down the amounts, just by logging it.

Because dieting is controlled starvation.

Left to our own devices, we OVER CONSUME food.

Because that’s how we survive.

-> You start prioritising protein … again.

I’ve been guilty of this before.

Thinking that this untracked meal is going to give me 50g of the good stuff.

And then I’m sorted.

Only to then put it all in the app, tally it up …

To only find out its 41g.

Doesn’t sound like a huge difference.

What’s 9g in the grand scheme of things?

But think about it this way.

If you’re doing that 3 times a day.

7 days a week.

For weeks … months on end.

You end up undershooting on protein by a lot.

Causing you to consume more calories from other sources.

Having sub-optimal recovery.

And generally not killing it.

**I have ZERO affiliation with Myfitnesspal btw**

(Wish I did)

Harry

W10

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 10 Mar 2021 06:11:13 GMT

Week 10 of 2021.

And some people are **STILL** waiting for the gym to open to start training & watching their food.

Until then, for them …

It’s Beers, Burgers and Box sets.

And when you ARE able to hop on the beloved leg extension machine once again in April.

It’ll also coincide with the rest of the economy opening up.

-> Meaning more meals out

-> More nights out

-> Parties

-> Holidays

And just generally more roadblocks to navigate around.

There’s ALWAYS a good excuse if you look for one.

And if you don’t find one for whatever reason.

You can make one up.

As you only have to convince yourself.

(Which is EASY as we know)

…

Unless you’re one of the LUCKY ones …

And you’re working with moi.

Then you have me on your case.

Which helps a TON.

…

More spaces opening up next week.

Stay tuned.

Harry

Don't you DARE mess this up ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 06:02:34 GMT

As it’s Monday.

And we all have a lot to get on with.

I’ll leave you with this.

Getting in shape.

Or even staying in shape after you’ve already got there.

Isn’t about perfecting your lifestyle.

It’s about doing ENOUGH … most of the time.

(read that bit again ^)

Instagram has created the myth that you need the perfect training setup …

The perfect diet plan …

Perfect adherence …

To achieve a cover model physique, or whatever it is that you’re aiming for.

The reality is far from that.

You just need to be making small steps forward each week and month for long enough.

Don’t deliberately mess things up.

But when you do, accept it’s part of the adventure.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Quick-fire Sunday round

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 08:20:39 GMT

In no particular order.

You don’t realise how much body fat you have to lose until you lose it.

If you’re thinking you have 5kg to lose. Double that and you’re closer to the actual figure.

Getting organised with your training, diet & lifestyle will filter through into other areas.

Nothing like getting on top of your diet to improve your overall life productivity.

Unless you genuinely have all the facts (in almost all cases you don’t), don’t compare your Transformation to others’.

We all show our highlight reels / best bits and don’t give the rest airtime.

Everyone should log & track their food intake at some point in the year.

Even when you’re a veteran tracker (like myself), going back onto MFP is always an eye-opener.

Training is for building muscle. Not burning energy.

Might make you think twice about going for that run to ‘burn off’ last night, eh?

Plant-based diets are what we should all be aiming for.

We just need to add protein sources to that, so we don’t waste away.

“There’s no such thing as a bad workout”

Someone who’s clearly never been to PureGym.

Thinking about hiring an Online PT to get a result? Check out their Instagram page.

If it’s mainly photos of themselves and not their clients, they won’t care about your results.

If you’re planning on getting a pastry when you’re out and about this morning …

Like I am … make sure you don't 'forget’ to log it.

Tracking only works when nothing is left off.

Have a great Sunday.

Harry

Michael Phelps on Training

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 07:18:29 GMT

Had one of those days yesterday.

Lots of screen time.

Low steps.

Long periods without food.

My training session was (almost) the LAST thing on my list for the day.

And, as you’ve probably already guessed …

I would have preferred to do ANYTHING.

But put my headphones in …

Hop in the, what felt like -10º freezing cold garage …

Start the isometrics warm-up …

Load up the spinlock dumbbells ….

And train.

But you know what?

Sometimes … all the time …

That’s just HOW it needs to be.

Because.

Training at ANY time is tough.

Morning or night.

Training at the gym or at home.

Both tough in their own ways.

You’re never going to escape the fact that’s it’s ALWAYS going to be a slog.

And despite it being my ‘easier’ session of the 3 I have on rotation.

Training is meant to be difficult.

Listen to world-class Olympic athletes talk about their training regimes.

Tim Ferriss had Michael Phelps on his podcast recently.

He puts our ‘training struggles’ to shame.

-> No days off (literally)

He trained every day, for 5 years straight before the Bejing Olympics

-> Training sessions spanning several hours

None of this 45-minute stuff we do. 3-hour sessions

-> Multiple sessions each day

Before the sun comes up AND after it goes down

And yeah.

We might say:

“But that’s his job. He’s paid to do that.”

-> He’s also got kids to raise.

-> Partners to support.

-> Businesses to run.

-> Family problems to deal with.

-> All the same stuff that you and I deal with.

————

Now, I’m not saying you need to emulate Michael Phelps.

But if you’re in this to create the BEST version of YOU.

You’ll need to get the job done.

Especially on the days you DON’T feel like doing it.

Have a great day.

Harry

The 'Reggae Reggae' sauce of building a physique

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 02 Mar 2021 06:06:02 GMT

Some of you reading this might be doing the whole Training & Dieting thing better than me right now.

But won’t be in the same shape.

-> You might be more consistent with your diet.

-> More consistent with your bedtimes.

-> More consistent with your steps.

And yet you still might not yet be the same body fat % as me.

Why is that…?

I remember when I first started training.

Effort wise, I was probably working out HARDER than the bigger guys in the gym I looked up to.

They had vastly more muscle than me.

Far stronger.

Far more experienced.

Despite 17 y/o Harry training harder than them in the gym.

*Going off RPE (rate of perceived exertion) here BTW

Man was going to all-out failure on EVERY set … ��

The ingredient I was missing?

Time.

Once you have the necessary pieces of the puzzle in place.

To build muscle.

To lose fat.

To get stronger.

Those pieces need TIME to work.

Because it’s not about doing those things necessarily BETTER …

It’s about doing them for LONGER

No matter how HARD you train …

You can’t build 1kg of muscle in a week.

But train ‘not very hard’ for 6 months …

And you probably can build that 1kg of muscle.

Completely NAIL your diet today …

You still won’t have abs tomorrow.

Stay in a deficit 60% of the time, for 6 months …

And you could get abs by the end of it.

The magic ingredient is always time, my friend.

Consistency > Intensity.

Harry

Okay then ... show me your screen time

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 28 Feb 2021 08:17:49 GMT

So I completely freestyle one of my training sessions each week.

4x are structured, planned and tracked.

The 5th is whatever I fancy doing.

I try to make it as ‘enjoyable’ as possible.

It gets done on the weekend.

Usually a Saturday.

And although on paper …

I have WAY MORE time to train on a weekend …

I ALWAYS feel like getting my workout done ASAP.

I feel like I’m getting FOMO if I’m spending too much time in the garage on the weekend.

So yesterday’s session.

Took me 25 minutes from start to finish.

That’s it.

Which for me, is probably some sort of record.

Even I was surprised at how quickly I got it done.

4x exercises

4x sets on each

10x reps on everything

2 lower body movements

2 upper body movements

Started at 5.02 pm

Done at 5.27 pm

I easily spend that mindlessly (and often unknowingly) browsing through my phone.

-> Looking at TikToks people have sent me

-> Checking the stock market

-> Watching the funny videos people make with their pets

If I even just got rid of 50% of that time …

I’d have enough to do one of those 25-minute workouts.

(And probably more)

Have a great weekend.

Harry

All this again?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 06:01:46 GMT

So I didn’t watch the announcement from Boris the other day.

But as you know.

Pretty near impossible to NOT know what he said.

Dates

April this

May that

Timelines

Which gets opened first

Honestly …

Feels like deja vu from 2020.

And me personally …

I’m learning the lesson from last year and NOT getting my hopes up this time.

Can’t handle another round of disappointment.

ANYWAY

What it does mean.

Is that ALL the things that hinder fat loss.

Will be available on demand again.

Holidays

Restaurants

Pubs

Popping round next door for a cuppa & a whole pack of chocolate digestives

None of those is hardly conducive to losing fat.

So we have a few weeks to create a ‘buffer’ for when it all kicks off.

(Again)

And I may be opening up 1 or 2 slots on my World Famous Online Transformation Program.

Who would like in?

Reply with ‘RESULT’ and I’ll give you the details.

Harry

9 quick fire thoughts

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 23 Feb 2021 06:01:18 GMT

Most of our limitations exist in our own heads.

They’re not real.

Losing fat is a marathon.

Sustained commitment over time.

Most people lack the last bit.

The weeks you don’t feel like checking in with your Trainer.

Are exactly the weeks that you should.

Exercising is enjoyable short term.

Training is life-changing long term.

It’s tough to eat too many vegetables.

Fill that plate up.

Fatty protein sources don’t give you the calorie flexibility that leaner ones do.

It’s tricky to have Salmon AND nuts.

3 weight training sessions a week is non-negotiable.

Hitting 10k steps p/d isn’t.

We could ALL go to bed 30 minutes earlier.

Don’t wait for the gym to open back up to start taking your fitness seriously.

Harry

Lebron can't do that??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 20 Feb 2021 07:09:09 GMT

Had something on my Twitter feed pop up a while ago.

That for once caught my attention.

And I’ve been meaning to do an email on it ever since.

But every time it’s slipped my mind.

When I come to write every morning.

And it’s only just come back to me.

So here it is.

A basketball fan over in the US was OBSESSED with watching his idol train.

From memory, I think it was Lebron James.

And this kid was a huge basketball fan.

Completely in awe.

He wanted to see all the cool stuff Lebron was going to do in practice.

-> All the trick shots

-> The crazy workouts

-> The cutting edge protocols

He thought he was going to see it all.

And have the most eye-opening experience of his life.

So one day, he could use what he learned.

And become a great player too.

But after an hour of watching.

This AVID basketball fan …

Who idolised Lebron …

Got bored of watching him train and left.

Why?

Because all he witnessed …

Was Lebron drilling the SAME simple shot.

1 shot.

Time after time.

For the hour.

No trick shots.

No fancy stuff.

No special secret.

Just repeating a basic move.

Perfect practice.

And I think we can all learn a LOT from that.

Don’t get caught up in short cuts or sexy stuff.

Stick to mastering the basics.

Because those work.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

I see it, they don't

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 05:59:34 GMT

Part of my job is to see the untapped POTENTIAL in people.

Many times, when they don’t see it themselves.

I’ve lost count of how many clients have seen results.

That they didn’t think were possible FOR THEM.

When we started on Day 1.

Think about it like this.

It’s RARE for someone to start a Transformation.

And know EXACTLY what their outcome will be in 12 weeks, 6 months etc.

It’s difficult to know.

Unless it’s not their first time.

And they’ve gone through the process before.

But for the first-timers.

It’s almost like starting blind.

-> HOW much muscle can you build?

-> WHICH body parts are going to develop more?

-> WHICH celeb am I going to look like at the end?

-> HOW lean can I really get?

All these questions are common.

So … what do you do?

You just start. You get going.

1 foot in front of another.

Day by day.

Week by week.

And you focus on the PROCESS, not the outcome.

And after a few weeks, you start to NOTICE change.

Then the blindfold starts to come off.

And you get an IDEA of where this is all going.

It won’t be a lot.

Small changes here & there.

But they build on each other.

See what I mean?

But right at the start.

You DON’T need to concern yourself with that.

You need TRUST in the process.

Because in those CRITICAL first few weeks …

When you’re really getting your head down.

And you DON’T make some good progress.

Usually, and sadly, it’s already over.

And you lose interest in the whole thing.

Don’t let that be you.

Have a great day.

Harry

I MESS UP as well, you know

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 14 Feb 2021 14:25:57 GMT

If you’re anything like me …

You probably ate & drink a bit too much yesterday.

Got carried away with the first (and hopefully last) Lockdown Valentines Day weekend celebrations.

And let the hair down.

Here’s the damage:

-> Scales were up this AM.

-> Feeling a bit groggy today. Typing this is making me feel better though.

-> Felt like I ‘undid’ a lot of the hard work from earlier in the week. Awful feeling.

-> Not feeling that hungry today (tell tell sign that you overdid it the night before)

-> Motivation to eat well & stay active today is low.

But you know what’s cool?

Is that, if you’re playing the LONG game here …

With body composition.

This stuff doesn’t really matter.

Because its 1 day out of many.

I’ve messed up 1 day in 7.

I’ve still nailed the other 6 days.

IF I was playing the short, get rich quick game …

And thinking of the journey in terms of days.

Then I’d be completely screwed.

Utterly so.

But it just so happens that I’m not.

Phew.

Because when you have the LONG TERM vision.

Daily fluctuations aren’t important.

Not compared to the weekly & monthly big picture.

So if this is you.

And you’ve messed up a bit this weekend.

(Like me)

Don’t worry.

It’s not ideal, but neither is Lockdown.

Focus on getting back on it tomorrow.

And enjoy the rest of your Valentines Day ❤️

Harry

"I don't have another month left in me ..."

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 12 Feb 2021 06:01:58 GMT

As we’re almost done with week 6 of 2021.

(How quickly do these Lockdown weeks go by, BTW?!)

It’s safe to say the initial January spurt of fitness motivation has fizzled OUT.

Well and truly gone.

What SEEMED exciting & different back on the 4th of Jan.

Has become uninteresting and mundane.

Not sure about you …

But hitting 10k steps p/d in sub-zero temperatures is NOT fun ��

Neither are garage workouts when there’re icicles on the ceiling.

And it won’t pick up again until at LEAST we’re allowed to book some holidays in the sun.

And the weather gets hot enough to enjoy a few G&Ts outside.

So …

What do you until then?

Pack it in?

Throw the towel in?

Put the whole fitness thing on the ‘back burner’ and wait it out?

Hell no.

My clients certainly aren’t.

Because in a months’ time …

March 12th.

You’ll be GLAD you kept it up during the darker times.

And the hardship will be easily forgotten.

I’ll leave you with one of my favourite quotes:

“Motivation is what gets you started. Discipline is what carries you forward’

Have a great Friday.

Harry

Has this ever happened to you??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 11 Feb 2021 06:14:41 GMT

So recently I’ve had a few old niggles resurface.

And whilst it’s completely a first world problem …

It can be frustrating … very frustrating.

Firstly, it makes you appreciate the times when you’re injury-free.

No aches & pains.

No clicking joints.

No frustrating training sessions.

So if you’re reading this, and you’re ‘niggle free’ …

Enjoy it.

Secondly.

They often come about because of overuse.

Because everything has a limit.

Especially your joints & connective tissues.

They have a threshold.

And you can exceed that.

Sometimes easily.

*Would just like to add. This does NOT mean you’re overtraining. More just overusing certain body parts/movements.

So when you do start to pick up injuries …

It’s your body’s way of telling you, you need to change the plan of attack.

Here’s what you do:

-> Revisit your training program.

-> Take a deload week. Train at 50% of your usual volume.

-> Tidy up your training sessions. Slower tempo, pauses, warming up properly.

-> Pay attention to movements that cause you joint pain. Cut them out.

-> Look at your diet. If you’re trying to lose body fat, and you’ve gone the low-fat route (common), you might be undershooting your dietary fat requirements.

-> Give yourself time. Niggles may take a few weeks to iron themselves out, so make sure you allow the process time to complete.

And if the issue still isn’t resolved after all of that.

It’s time to see a specialist.

Harry

System overload

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 05:51:58 GMT

In my many years of doing this.

At the highest level.

One attribute that the successful people have.

Which often the others lack …

Is the ability to systemise everything.

From hitting the daily step target.

To more or less, nailing the macros every day.

-> Not winging it.

-> Not hoping it happens.

-> Not chopping & changing variables each day.

Having an organised system which produces the end result.

And of course …

They don’t immediately get that on Day 1.

It may take a few weeks.

But once it’s in place, it gets put to work.

——————

Question: What are your systems like?

Harry

You're expecting the WRONG thing ...

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 08 Feb 2021 06:05:34 GMT

It’s Monday.

And seeing as we’ve all got a million things to do …

I’ll keep this one short.

And leave you with this:

“Fat loss isn’t linear, because neither are you”

Because we’d all like to lose EXACTLY the same amount of fat each day.

Always losing -0.2kg on the scale each morning.

It’d be heaven ��

But that would require each day for you to be EXACTLY the same.

-> Exactly the same calorie intake.

-> Exactly the same meal timing.

-> Exactly the same activity level.

-> Exactly the same water intake.

And lets not even dwell on the variables that would have to be the same …

That aren’t even in our control.

Like what the weather is like.

Because believe it or not, that has a BIG impact on scale weight.

————————

Your progress won’t always play by the rule book.

But make sure your level of effort over the long term is.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

What my diet is like ATM

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 07 Feb 2021 08:59:26 GMT

Recently started a mini diet of my own this week.

I like to see it as a ‘tidy up’.

Before we hit spring & summer.

A bit of early spring cleaning you could say.

As I’ve enjoyed a good amount of body fat gain over the last 6 months.

Intentionally … I may add.

Before I get slated for letting myself go.

Bulking bro ��

So … what am I doing diet-wise?

-> Consciously checking/tracking activity (steps) a bit closer. Setting myself a target and sticking to it. 12k p/d.

-> More fruit & veg. However many I was eating before, I’m now upping that. Meals have more vegetables & snacks/deserts are more fruit-based.

-> Consciously drinking more water. I drink a lot anyway, but I’ve increased it by a litre or so.

-> Taking out milk in coffee, sauces in food and generally being a bit more sensible with snacks.

-> Sticking to 3 meals and 1 snack. Trying not to consume anything outside those ‘feeding times’. Yeah, eating like an animal … in a zoo.

-> Not chopping & changing the diet. Every day is the same.

—————

As you can see, I’m not OVERHAULING my whole life.

Not doing IF.

Not changing my training.

Not drinking liquid egg whites.

My goal is to:

A) Increase my energy expenditure slightly, via steps.

B) Save 300-400kcal each day from what I was doing before.

That’s it.

Simple.

No crazy this, crazy that.

I won’t even start tracking on Myfitnesspal yet.

That’ll come later down the line.

But for now …

I’m going to let the above do its thing for 4 weeks.

Have a great Sunday!

Harry

This is ALL my fault 😨

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 06 Feb 2021 07:05:49 GMT

One of the most underrated values needed.

To succeed in a significant Transformation.

(Not just talking about losing a 5 lbs in 10 days here)

Is PATIENCE.

Playing the long game.

Not getting frustrated when you don’t see DAILY progress.

And it’s a piece of the puzzle.

That a lot of people think they DON’T need.

And I’m partly to blame for that.

And I’m sorry ��‍♂️

The rise of the 12-week transformation.

That you see constantly on social media.

The whole ‘maximum results in minimal time’ thing.

Encourages the lack of patience.

Instant gratification.

Because most people NEED LONGER than 12 weeks …

To see the kind of progress to make the whole thing worthwhile.

Sure, changing your physique ‘a bit’ is cool.

But that’s not what gets you out of bed at 6 am on a cold February Saturday morning.

Breaking down a typical 12-week Transformation:

*The first 10 days are spent getting up to speed on the program. Sorting out the diet, training, tracking and routine. 10.5 weeks left.

*You’re under the weather for a week with a bad cold, and can’t train/follow the diet to the T. 9.5 weeks left.

*Work picks up and you miss a weeks’ worth of training. The diet is also less than perfect. 8.5 weeks left.

*You take annual leave for 10 days and relax on the food front. You train a bit, but it’s nothing worth mentioning. 7 weeks left.

7 weeks out 12, you’re actually ‘locked in’ to the program.

It’s no wonder people need longer.

You need to be patient.

Life gets in the way.

-> We take holidays.

-> We get sick.

-> We have ‘off’ weeks.

-> We have dips in motivation.

Play the long game.

And you’ll be rewarded.

Harry

Quick trip down the local 🍻

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Fri, 05 Feb 2021 05:57:18 GMT

This one might seem a bit harsh …

But as it’s Friday …

I’m sending it anyway.

(There’s a good lesson in here, promise)

When we FINALLY get out of this Lockdown.

And are allowed to socialise again.

-> Meet up with friends.

-> See family members.

-> Go out to a restaurant.

-> Maybe even the local for a cold one on a hot summers’ evening …

You’ll know STRAIGHT AWAY who’s been on their home workouts/diet.

And who hasn’t.

Instantly.

First glance will tell you.

You’re either making the most of this, or you’re not.

If it’s the latter, and you’re not being as productive as you’d like …

There is still time.

To get your act together.

And the best thing you can do is start t o d a y.

Then you’ve got the whole weekend to sort yourself out.

Harry

This is one of my BEST emails

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 04 Feb 2021 08:22:57 GMT

Let’s talk about TIME for a second.

Or a minute, whichever.

With Body Transformations.

It can be an interesting one …

EITHER

You feel like it’s going to take forever for you to see a significant result in your physique.

You feel like you’re progressing so much faster than you thought was possible.

And it boils down to this …

> What you’re actually doing with your time <

Your precious time.

Take a typical week for example.

7 days.

You NAIL these 7 days …

> No slip-ups

> Steps every day done

> No skipped training sessions

> No big high-calorie days

You’re on it, basically.

Let’s call you Person A.

And you’ll probably find you can lose more fat than you thought you could.

Over the month, quarter, year etc …

On the flip side …

Take the same 7 days.

> Add in the slip-ups

> Friday, Saturday & Sunday as untracked high-calorie days

> 3x training sessions instead of 5x

> Excuses slipping in

And you’ll end up treading water.

Not making much fat loss progress.

You might lose on the first 4 days of the week.

But those gains are lost on the last 3 days.

This is Person B.

Over the year, Person A loses 30kg of fat and is loving it.

Anything is possible for him.

He can’t BELIEVE how much he’s changed in ONLY a year.

It’s flown by.

He’s excited for what he can do in the next 365 days.

Person B hasn’t really got into the swing of it.

He feels like he needs 10 years to really see a significant change.

It just feels ‘so slow & difficult’.

And JUST the thought of that demotivates him.

Making the whole situation even worse.

—————

See what I mean?

About time?

It boils down to what you make of it.

The minutes, hours, days, weeks …

They all count.

Harry

Where do I get my email ideas from?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 30 Jan 2021 07:07:33 GMT

They say you get your best ideas in the shower.

Things come to you …

Thoughts

Ideas

Ways to solve problems

When your brain has a chance to SWITCH OFF.

From the outside world.

For me though?

I get some good ideas in the shower, sure.

(This email wasn’t one of them, unfortunately)

But I get BETTER ideas when I’m training.

There’s just something about it that flicks a switch.

-> Moving your body.

-> Squeezing your muscles.

-> Working hard.

-> Forgetting about the outside world for an hour.

That gets my creative juices flowing.

Email ideas

Training ideas

Forgotten items on my to-do list

I see it as one of the REWARDS for working hard in a training session.

That euphoric, creative, imaginative feeling.

And when you don’t train …

You don’t get that.

You miss out.

BIG time.

But it’s easy to forget about the upside.

When …

PRE training …

When you’re in work / relaxed move.

You ONLY see the downside.

-> “Not today”

-> “I’ve got too much work on”

-> “I can’t bring myself to do another home workout”

-> “I’ll just catch up tomorrow”

Don’t give that voice a platform.

Book in your training slots.

Stick to them.

Then ENJOY the endorphin rush.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

5 ways to ruin your deficit

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 19:39:54 GMT

Whilst still FEELING like you’re dieting.

A lose lose scenario …

That you want to avoid at all costs.

Not weighing your nuts

How many times have I encountered this?

Easily hundreds.

Maybe thousands.

A ‘handful’ could either be 20g or 40g.

And it’s difficult to tell which it is.

Unless you get them on the scale.

So do that.

Cooking with oil

I blame Jamie Oliver for this …

Who ruins every healthy dish he ever makes.

By drizzling the finished article in a litre of oil.

There’s no need.

You don’t need oil in your cooking.

Not if you’re taking your fat loss seriously.

If you REALLY have to moisten up the pan for your diced chicken breast.

Get on the 1kcal olive oil spray hype.

Drinks

Apart from protein shakes …

And maybe a homemade green celery juice …

Do. Not. Drink. Your. Calories.

Eat them instead.

Flat whites … orange juice … champagne …

Not fat loss friendly.

(Unfortunately)

Condiments

You can easily rack up 200-300kcal a day from sauces alone.

That’s how restaurants make their food taste good.

But we don’t need that at home.

Fine to have, but make sure they’re tracked.

Safest option = mustard.

Ordering in

Add 500kcal onto ANYTHING ordered from Deliveroo.

I don’t care if it’s chicken breast & broccoli from your local restaurant.

Or a prawn salad.

They are marinading all of it.

And probably drizzling it in the good stuff.

They want it to taste good.

They don’t care about your macros.

——————

Harry

Any ideas for a good email title??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 26 Jan 2021 06:11:09 GMT

I was very tempted about 5 minutes ago ...

To give this morning email a miss.

Won’t lie …

*I’ve got a lot to do …

*I’m not feeling particularly imaginative right now …

*And I’ve slept awkwardly on my neck for the 2nd night in a row …

Not the ideal recipe for a killer email.

But here I am.

Typing one out anyway.

Thinking of what to say.

And you know what?

The MORE I’m typing this …

The MORE I’m getting into it …

And the email juices are flowing that little bit more.

Then they were at the start.

And that …

My friend …

Is positive momentum at work.

A bit like your training session planned for later on.

The one you REALLY don’t want to do.

(And can think of 10 other ways to better spend 45 minutes)

But you know you really SHOULD.

*You’ll hate it at first.

*Reluctantly go through the motions.

*Music on, warm-up done etc.

*10 minutes go by, and you’re into that training flow.

Enjoying it.

Moving your body.

Taking steps towards your goal.

Killing it.

Have a great Tuesday ��

Harry

re: You going on holiday??

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 25 Jan 2021 06:08:15 GMT

So back throughout Lockdown 1.0 last year …

I was RANTING on about how it was a GREAT opportunity to get in shape.

None of the usual distractions.

That hold EVERYONE back.

(Myself included)

-> Holidays …

-> Nights out …

-> After work G&Ts …

We couldn’t do any of them, and my clients used that to their advantage.

What’s the deal now…?

In Lockdown 3.0…?

EXACTLY the same, my friend.

Think about it this way.

Fast FORWARD 6 months.

July 2021.

Lockdown is over.

Summer is well and truly here.

Restrictions lifted.

-> You might be away on holiday.

-> Eating out at restaurants.

-> Pina Colada’s on the beach.

-> Summer drinks parties next door.

Heaven …

Do those scream fat loss to you?

Good muscle building conditions?

Optimising health environment?

If you’re having a good time, they shouldn’t.

NOW is the opportunity.

Amongst all the doom & gloom …

Seasonal depression …

Freezing temperatures …

Boredom …

To make lots of fat loss progress.

Because come July, August etc.

You’re going to be enjoying yourself.

Not worrying about calories in vs calories out.

Harry

I'm moving to Siberia

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 08:22:23 GMT

You probably don’t more knowledge.

Yup.

What you know ALREADY is most likely enough.

Once you’ve learnt a certain amount on Training & Nutrition.

You’ve got a SOLID understanding of how the basics work.

*How to train properly.

*How to construct a training program.

*What are the key principles around nutrition.

*Which metrics to track.

You get the idea.

You get diminishing returns on MORE knowledge.

And that grows exponentially.

Until you eventually get to the stage.

Where the NEW information you’re LEARNING.

Has ZERO benefit to you.

And you’ll likely NEVER use it in the future.

It’d be like me spending hours …

Trawling through the internet …

Looking at traditional farming methods used by locals in the Siberian Wilderness.

I don’t live in Siberia.

I don’t plan on living there anytime soon.

And that’s not going to help me with my mission.

(Which is to get my clients results)

So really, it’s not the BEST use of your time, trying to learn learn learn.

Now …

Before the knowledge police kick off …

I’m not saying it’s USELESS to have more knowledge.

I’m just saying that it’s probably not through a lack of knowledge …

That you aren’t where you want to be in your fitness journey.

What you already know is fine.

Just working on executing on that.

Harry

Lessons from 2010

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 23 Jan 2021 07:25:01 GMT

When I first started getting into all this.

Training with weights.

Watching what I ate.

Researching supplements.

Trawling through Youtube to find the best exercise for the inner chest fibres…

Figuring everything out … basically.

I THOUGHT people who’s physique’s I looked up to.

Were just more motivated than I was.

They had more drive

More intensity

Just wanted it a bit more

And looking back …

There was likely NO-ONE who was as motivated as 17-year-old Harry.

Trust me.

I was completely on it.

All over it.

So … it wasn’t motivation that separated us.

It was discipline & time.

Let’s assume it takes 2 years to massively Transform your physique.

Yes, you could do it quicker.

It could also take you way longer.

But let's go with 104 weeks.

You’re not going to be motivated for 100% of that time.

Not even 50%.

Probably not even 10%.

It’s going to be more like 5-10% of the time.

A TINY amount of the time will be spent in a motivated state.

The other time, you won’t be.

And that’s where discipline comes in.

“Doing what needs to be doing, even when you don’t feel like doing it.”

THAT’S what holds you back.

Not finding motivation from somewhere.

But teaching yourself to exercise discipline in different areas of your lifestyle.

So that over time, you can make your goals a reality.

Have a great weekend.

Harry

>Read this<

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Mon, 18 Jan 2021 06:04:11 GMT

Quick one this morning.

As I know you’ve got other things on your plate.

So here we go …

The best body composition results that people achieve with me.

Always take the longest time.

(Let that digest for a second)

Those who are able to stay at it for long enough.

Not those who blitz it for short periods of time.

> End up seeing the best results <

So …

Your mission for 2021 needs to be …

How LONG you can do this for.

Instead of.

How HARD you can do this.

Have a great Monday.

Harry

Comparison is the thief of _____

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Sat, 16 Jan 2021 07:31:02 GMT

Comparing other peoples physiques to your own is a good motivational technique.

Yup - you heard it.

It’s a good thing.

You see people in better shape than you.

(Usually on Instagram)

(And usually heavily edited/filtered/posed/touched up etc)

But that’s not the point here.

I think comparisons like this are fine.

If you’re using them to give yourself a healthy KICK to get your act together.

And usually, it works.

BUT.

You’ll never look like them.

Ever.

Because we’ve all got different physiques.

*Different bone structure.

*Different lever lengths.

*Different muscle origins/insertions.

And get this >>

In a weird sort of way …

This whole-body composition journey thing

Is like you’re REVEALING a masterpiece …

Through training & dieting,

Of yourself.

In your very best PEAK physical condition.

Which you’ve NEVER been in before.

And neither you.

Nor anyone else.

Will actually know what you’ll look like when you ‘get there.’

Cool right?

(And you’ll never feel like you’ve finished because there’s always something to improve on)

Harry

What do home workouts & a religious cult have in common?

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 08:39:47 GMT

Your PRE training ritual is one of the most POWERFUL tools you have.

In your quest for results.

You may think I’m mad for saying this.

( … you’re probably right)

But the 5-10 minutes before you train.

And what you do in those minutes.

What you fill them with.

Will MAKE or BREAK your training sessions.

Which in turn.

Make or break your RESULTS.

And we’re all after results, aren’t we?

You need a solid checklist.

Which you carry out.

Every.

Time.

You.

Train.

Here are a few ideas:

Music that amps you up.

Warm-up that fires your muscles up.

A specific start time.

A specific end time.

Pre-workout drink (even if this is just coffee or water)

You do these enough.

And you’ll train YOURSELF, to get ready for training.

Cool huh?

*11.45 you’re in full-on work mode, finishing up an email.

*And by 12.00, you’re in full-on training mode, killing your first set of split squats.

*Then by 13.00 it’s all over, and you’re GLAD you got your session in.

Harry

We all do this ... me included 🤦‍♂️

h.purvis@hotmail.co.uk (Harry Purvis) — Tue, 12 Jan 2021 05:57:37 GMT

Clients are killing it on the Visfit Online Training Program atm.

The January intake has just wrapped up week 1.

And it’s full steam ahead.

All guns blazing through week 2��

A BIG take home that I’ve seen?

> We eat out of boredom, not hunger <

And not just eating a little bit either.

It’s not an extra 70kcal here and there.

And extra apple when we hit the 3 pm afternoon slump.

No no no …

When it’s untracked …

We massively overdo it.

Without even realising.

300kcal here … 500kcal there …

So.

The best (and easiest), FIRST step you can make in your quest to lose body fat …

Isn’t to overhaul EVERYTHING at the same time.

It’s to simply to start tracking & recording stuff.

That’s it.

By doing that, you’ll inevitably start to ’tidy’ up your diet.

Organise your training.

Give your days more structure.

Drink more water.

And then you’re on your way.

Don’t try to bite off more than you can chew, especially at the start.

Harry

011197f2

taking nutrition advice from Piers Morgan 😱

this one hits hard .. 🤯

"only got time for a quickie today" 😏

Need your thoughts on this one .. 🤠

My posts never get much likes anymore .. 😩

well well well .. yup I get these DMs .. 😏

If your PT does this .. get a new one 😱

Had this idea in the shower last night .. 😈

What goes down at 5.52am at the gym .. 👀

Not the wake up call I was expecting .. 👀

Stories from Tuesday's pub quiz ..

Waking up having already done 9,723 steps 🤩

A Quiet Night Inn .. 🤠😈

What goes on holiday .. 😮‍💨

I might have to kick her out of bed if this carries on .. 😱

The dark art of losing body fat 🤑😈

Would you believe these too ..?! 🤭

.. yeah you might need to change your training 😩

read this if you've ever been in a sauna before .. 🤭

*not a paid add* 🤑

ngl some sun would be nice right now .. 🤩

Settling this debate once & for all .. 😏

You'll hate me for saying this .. 👀

So .. I'm going to do my first cycle 😱

I made a +24.2% return on my money last year 😏

I got told off for eating too healthily today 😂

Ibiza, Monaco, Cannes, St Tropez, Mykonos & Portifino 🤭

This week has felt looooong 🥵

I dislike these 2 exercises intensely 🤬

I probably know what you're searching on Google 🤯

The training equivalent of FRESH bedsheets 🤩

So I spoke to my accountant this morning .. 😰

I guess I'm relying on my Plan B now .. 😱

We got some funny looks doing this 👀

Pass me the Marmite cashews 🤩🥵

You'll never guess what I've got planned 🤭

I'll get my first tattoo after this experience .. 😏👀

Chances are ... your PT HATES training you 😱

'Celebrity Trainers' - the WORST kind of PT you can have ??

5 things I learnt from my trip to North London 😏

She didn't appreciate this DM from me .. 😏

My pet is better at learning than I am .. 😰 🐶

I messed up last night

My day so far

I didn't know this was a thing ...

Does this apply to you?

I did how many ...?!

Max out or Min out? 🥶

Have I swapped gym for the pub ...?

I was shocked when I found this out 🤯

Apple won't like to hear this ...

I'm quitting training ... for now 🤦‍♂️

Something I saw on IG yesterday

Where I REALLY get my email ideas from

Don't have any clients called Josh atm ... so I'm safe with this one 😂

The George Foreman 2.0

What does the S&P and losing fat have in common ...?

I realised this this morning 😳

Maybe I should be a football manager instead ...?

Rainy weekends aren't that bad

Win the _________

Revealed: The best time to consume your protein shake 💥

"What's it like in there ...?"

January ... the Monday of months 😂

White Lotus is fab isn't it

Happy New Year ... just not today 😅

Last one before '23 💥

7 useful pointers (keep reading)

The least Thursday ... Thursday 😅

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Interesting point below 👀

🥶

Go with the flow ... srsly 😎

I'll be honest ... it hasn't been my best week 🤦‍♂️

I probably had 6,000kcal yesterday

Happy Birthday to me 🎂

Christmas party you'd rather miss 😳

I'm a part time Deliveroo driver now 👀

This one holds everyone back ... except me 😂🤷‍♂️

not a paid add 🤑