We are joined by Armagh Ladies and All-Ireland player of the year Aimee Mackin to discuss her playing career and journey in sport, how she recovered from a serious injury and the role strength & conditioning plays in her performance on the field.

In this episode Paul, Darragh and Ruairi discuss some of the knockoff effects of lockdown on gyms such as equipment availability, home gym competition and equipment prices. We thank our members for their loyalty and support and answer questions from our Insta followers on staying motivated through lockdown and what our opinion is of personal trainers transitioning to "Life Coaches"

Paul & farrago sit down to discuss all the challenges they've faced as gym owners since re-opening after lockdown. They also discuss the governments latest "obesity strategy" and who should be tracking or not tracking their nutrition.

Paul chats via zoom with Matt and Dean who are both coaches at Focus Strength & Conditioning about how powerlifters should train at home during lockdown. We talk about what we should be focusing on if w have no equipment, exercise selection, how we can overload with no weights, nutrition and then what we should be doing when gyms reopen.

Owners of Focus Strength & Conditioning - Paul, Darragh & Ruairi chat via zoom to discuss what we've been doing in lockdown. We also talk about the best training methods for GAA players at this time with the uncertainty of the season, the best home training methods in general, our main takeaways and what we've learned from the whole situation, plans for the gym and Darragh puts the tin foil hat on!!!

Former Manchester United and Wigan Athletic player Pat McGibbon joins Paul & Darragh to talk about his playing days under Sir Alex Ferguson, the ups and downs of a professional football career and the adjustment to moving back home after retiring from football. He also talks about how he came to set up his charity Train To Be Smart which helps promote mental health & well-being through the medium of sport and the importance of early intervention. We also talk about the TTBS #itssmarttotalk campaign and their innovative wristbands that are helping people to make the first steps to talking and listening more.

Paul answers your questions on Instagram. Accuracy of calorie trackers, best sets and reps for different training cycles, go-to power exercises and how to avoid binging while on a diet are all covered in this weeks episode.

Darragh and Paul are joined by Online Coach, Tony McAleavey to discuss the online fitness industry, steroids, recreational drugs, nutrition and training considerations and protocols for females and top tips for aspiring online coaches.

Show notes:

0-10mins: Intro, Influencers and Online Coaching
10-20 mins: Steroids and recreational drugs
20-30 mins: Training & Nutrition Protocols for females
30-40 mins: Top Tips for Online Coaches

Recommended Apps for tracking menstrual cycle:

Flo Period & Ovulation Tracker
Fertility Friend

Also please check out Tony McAleavey on Instagram @tonymcaleavey

Darragh and Paul focus on how to best set yourself up for success in the New Year whether  you are new to the gym, starting over or just want to set some new goals. They discuss potential pitfalls to look out for and provide some simple advice to set you on the right path.

Darragh and Paul answer questions from our followers about health, fitness, performance, the challenges of running a gym and social media.