1. What was the problem you were experiencing before you started working with Tom?
Before starting to train with Tom, I was 2.5 years post-partum and as a result of pregnancy feeling very unfit, with a weak lower back and weak knees. Additionally I had not been able to shake the last 12-14lbs of baby weight. I had wanted to get back to playing netball for a while but at that time felt as though I would have been an embarrassment to myself, getting out of breath chasing around my toddler or walking up a hill, the idea of playing netball for an hour (particularly as a centre court player) was laughable. I decided it was time to get myself back into shape, so that I would be match fit to return to netball, address some of the weaknesses that I had developed through pregnancy and birth, and as a bonus shed the last of the baby weight which was stubbornly refusing to leave of its own accord!
2. Have you previously tried anything else to achieve your goals? If so, what?
I had made a couple of attempts to rebuild my strength and fitness, primarily through yoga, pilates and swimming. However I found that sticking to the fixed schedule of a gym membership meant that once I returned to work after maternity leave, I gradually stopped doing them all. I also had a go at starting to run with a couch to 10k programme, but as somebody who has always preferred competitive team sports found that my motivation to get up and out of the house three-four times a week just simply wasn’t there!
3. What were the results of working with Tom?
My main two goals when I started to train with Tom were to get back to playing netball and to lose the last of my baby weight. I have smashed both of those goals! I have been back on the court now for several months and love being back out there in a competitive team environment. I have also lost 19lbs since training with Tom, in a really sustainable and gradual way. I don’t just feel healthier and fitter physiologically, the changes have been great for my overall mental health – giving me back some of the “me” that I was before I became a mum, ensuring that I find time every week to exercise and play the sport that I have loved to play since I was 5 years old!
4. What was the best thing about it?
The best thing about it has been how easy it has felt. It’s rare that I feel reluctant to work out, whether that’s in a PT session or a solo session in my own time. Tom has made the training fun and really tapped in to what motivates me, so that without even realising it I am pushing myself to go above and beyond my goals. On the nutritional side, Tom is completely realistic about sustainable approaches to eating well, and so whilst there were some drastic changes (or they felt like they would be before I made them) it’s not been hard to stick to at all, and I know that it’s fine to still treat myself and eat the things that I love to, but I also have a better understanding of what my body needs to sustain an active and healthy lifestyle.
5. What are three other benefits that they’ve enjoyed as a result of working with Tom?
I have found that as well as the obvious benefits of being active and fit I am also sleeping better, my moods are less likely to be changeable, and I just feel generally happier in my own skin. On the netball side, I would say that even compared to how I was performing prior to pregnancy I am fitter, stronger and faster. I used to get tired and find that my passing and shooting would get sloppy, but with the training I have done being tailored to the stop-start nature of netball, my ability to recover quickly and maintain the same level of performance throughout a full one hour game is 100% better than it was. I would say even comparable to the levels I was playing at when I was 17 and the peak of my game.
6. What would you say to anyone considering working with Tom and would you recommend it? If so, why?
100% recommend! I honestly thought that some of the types of training we would do were not for me at all, I’ve never really liked going to the gym, but when it came time to consider whether I still needed to train with Tom having achieved all that I had set out to, I just didn’t want to stop! Tom has really listened to what I wanted to work towards, and now that I am back playing netball regularly my programme has adjusted accordingly and we are now working on making me fitter, faster and stronger! It’s done an enormous amount of good for my confidence both on the court and off it. If you’re thinking about working with Tom, stop thinking and start doing it.
Comments