Let's give this a go then...

I'm a NASM qualified Personal Trainer now, who saw that coming?!

This isn't a bizarre change of career, I actually started this course as a bit of a hobby more than anything. But it's grown into something much more than that.

The past ten years of my life have been tumultuous to say the least, but one constant area of my life that has helped me through the difficult times is exercise. Not just the feel-good endorphins after a session either - it's the feeling of getting faster and stronger, looking healthier, and actually just setting aside time to do something solely for the benefit of me. The NHS reckon regular exercise can be more effective for mild depression than antidepressants, yano.

Anyway, when I first started getting into fitness, I wanted to read everything I could about things I could do to help me reach my goals. But searching for legitimate information in the health and fitness industry is a bit of a nightmare. I was often disappointed by unreliable sources, conflicting studies, bizarre tips from people in the gym...

So, I thought I'd complete a Level 3 Certificate in Personal Training to get the facts straight. From one of the leading fitness organisations in the world, the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

Again, I'm not interested in selling PT sessions or anything, this was purely to learn more about using exercise and nutrition to meet my goals... Some of the information I've discovered though has helped me so much in my own training, that I thought it would be a shame if I didn't share what I've learned with others. Especially in this age of 'fake news' where anyone can be a publisher, and so much of what you read online isn't even correct or true.

I'm going to be writing about and sharing fact-based information direct from my course materials, referencing studies where possible so that you know whatever you read from me will be legit. In this blog but also on my Instagram (@ariaariana).

Some areas of focus for me will be hypertrophy training, women's health and hormones, mental health, disordered eating, meal planning... Might be of interest, might not.

See you around ;)

Ari