A Typical Guild Study Day

Weights, Bands and Circuits

This write up is designed to give you a flavour of what the Guild study days are like and to encourage you to book up for the coming ones! Click on future study days above if you are interested.

The tutors for this day were Gillian Fletcher and Judy DiFiore, and the programme incorporated the very first Guild AGM.

After initial chats and catching up with familiar faces not seen since the last study day - or earlier - we got down to business. Gillian kicked off the day with introductions, aims of the day, and then a session on the basic theory and principles of fitness training. Much of this session was revision, but it was good to be reminded of some of the fundamentals which can so easily be forgotten. Gillian had provided us with handouts with copies of the overheads which she used, complete with space to make notes alongside. This struck me as being such a simple thing to do, yet not usual practice. It was immensely useful and a very nice touch - so ‘thank you’ Gillian !

I for one was ready for the coffee break that followed - it was 11.30, four hours since breakfast !

After our break, we re-located to one of the physiology labs for Judy to instruct us through a ‘postnatal circuit’. Unfortunately, the room was not large enough for us all to partake in the full circuit session, although we all warmed-up, so we sorted out amongst ourselves who would exercise and who would take notes.

I was one of the lucky ones able to complete the whole session, and I thoroughly enjoyed what followed.

Judy led us through a warm-up, mobility, and prep stretch, and then gave us a taster of two different types of circuit: the command circuit, and the multi-station circuit. Each type of circuit can further be categorised into aerobic, mse, or combined. The predominant characteristic of the command circuit is that every participant performs the same exercises under instruction together, and the individual exercises can be aerobic or mse in nature. This type of circuit has the advantage that the instructor has full control at all times over what is going on, giving opportunity to correct bad technique, give encouragement, etc., to all participants.

Multi-station circuits in contrast, can result in some of this control being lost. It is much harder to observe everybody as they exercise if there are 5 or 6 groups of 2 or 3 participants, all doing different things in different areas of the room. It becomes even more important to effectively demonstrate and teach the moves prior to the circuit start, so that everybody knows what they are supposed to be doing.

Judy very efficiently and professionally instructed us through a section of each type of circuit. For some of the mse exercises she introduced the use of bands and hand-held weights. This was followed by a cool down, short floor exercise session, and stretch and relaxation. Everything about the session was enjoyable, from Judy’s use of music and exercises, to her excellent delivery.

Lunch followed the practical session, but it was only a short break as we had to fit in the AGM. Gillian thought that it was the shortest AGM on record, but I’ve been to a shorter one - Swindon NCT branch AGM one year was 6 minutes long (guess who was secretary?) . This piece of business was short and sweet, just reporting on achievements to date (lots), thanking Meg and her family for all their hard work (phew!), and voting all post holders back into their posts - fortunately there were no resignations.

After the AGM we were fortunate to have a short presentation by Julie Hanson Moore, regarding her new video ‘Changing Shape with Carol Smilie’. The back sleeve of the video acknowledges the Guild and it is hoped that we may pick up some contacts as a result !

A feedback session on the circuits followed, and it seemed that everyone had enjoyed the experience as much as I had - even those watching. We had a brainstorming session about the muscle groups to target when designing a circuit, and then broke into pairs to work on exercises for a specific muscle group. Pam and I got the bum choice - actually I jest, I was thankful we had gluteals and not erector spineae ! This involved re-locating again to the lab to give us more room to demonstrate the exercises which we came up with.

The final session, presented by Judy, was about the content and structure of a postnatal circuit session. She gave us lots of tips and pointers to help in designing an effective circuit for this specialist client group. I have listed below the main points and considerations.

	about 12 participants is about the right number for manageability
	keep to the standard order of warm-up pulseraiser and mobility; prep stretch; followed by the circuit, and then pulse lowerer, standing stretches, floor mse, and finally cool down incorporating stretches and relaxation, and remobiliser.
	if weights are used, start slowly with 1lb weights, increasing later if required
	similarly with bands use bands with a beginners rating to begin with
	correct joint alignment is essential - especially watch wrist alignment when using bands
	emphasise slow, controlled movements at all times using full range of movement through each joint - avoid locking-out
	take care in bending and lifting when using equipment
	for mse exercises base the no. reps on the hardest exercise, and allow for muscle recovery by giving transitional exercises in between
	demonstrate and emphasise good technique at all times - allow plenty of time for participants to get into position before beginning

If a multi-station circuit is used :

	movements need to be learnt first as a group
	teach correct starting positions
	allow time for safe transitions
	pay attention to technical detail - stand back out of the circuit to observe as much as possible
	slow, controlled and effective performance
	give alternatives and adapatations where possible (do this at the beginning)

In summary, I came away from the day with the knowledge and ideas I need to confidently plan a postnatal circuit session - which I am planning on doing. Judy showed us that we shouldn’t be afraid of using weights and other equipment with postnatal women, although it was generally felt that the circuit format would be more appropriate for a follow-on course, provided we remembered certain safety considerations, and pitched the intensity correctly.

In addition to the information I gained, the day provided me with the opportunity to chat to other postnatal instructors and to remind myself that I am not alone ! My only criticism was one which was not the fault of the tutors, but please, please, can we have the heating on next time ?

To all you out there who were unable to attend, especially those who had planned to but who were ill on the day, my commiserations - I’m afraid you missed a good one !

Ruth Barrett

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