DREAM TEAM
Motivation MIA? WH has teamed up with the National Fitness Games to bring you your next challenge – plus, a 28-day plan to kick-start your training
Do you have what it takes to join Team WH at National Fitness Games’ Fitfest?
The tummy-tingling feeling of stepping up to a starting line in an atmosphere as electric as a festival can’t be beaten. And yet, since Covid hit, we suspect the closest you’ve come to that feeling is overtaking the bloke you see on your morning park run during your 3,714th lap. But the absence of competitive spirit is a problem for reasons beyond boredom. Having something to train for – be it a triathlon, half marathon or charity bike ride – is motivating; one 2016 study* found that attendance for workouts was 90% higher in exercisers following a programme with an element of competition, compared with those going it alone. And without that competitive carrot, training can start to feel like an exercise in box-ticking.
Want the good news? Competitions are coming back – and with a bang. This year, Women’s Health has partnered with the National Fitness Games (NFG) – a Uk-wide competition that aims to test your speed, power and strength, whether you’re new around here or a seasoned pro. Unlike similar competitions, the idea that fitness is for everyone is at the heart of the NFG, which was founded in 2018. ‘We want to make this the kind of event that, no matter what your level, your age or your body type, you’re able to compete in and challenge yourself,’ explains founder Mark Hartnett-morgan. ‘All that hard work you put into your workouts – we want to give you the arena to come and show that off.’
Ready for a challenge? Good. We’re assembling a team of women made up of WH staff members, friends and readers to compete at the NFG’S Fitfest event, taking place in Loughborough on 10-11 September – and if you’d like to join us, we want to hear from you. We’ll be competing across all three categories; Elite (who will compete individually), Open (intermediate exercisers, who will compete as a team of four) and Novo (functional fitness beginners, who will also compete in a team of four). If you’re only doing home workouts right now, don’t fret – the Novo team won’t be required to work a barbell, Hartnett-morgan says, so you’re good to train with a pair of dumbbells. You’ll find full details of how to apply to join our team on the page opposite, but if you still need a bit of persuading, here goes. As a WH team member, you’ll get free entry to the competition, an overnight stay in a hotel, a hamper, branded kit and training guidance from Laura Hoggins, PT and director of boutique London gym chain The Foundry. You’ll also have a chance to appear on our website and in the magazine.
Remember, you don’t have to be a seasoned competitor to take part. ‘I was petrified to enter my first fitness competition,’ says Hoggins. ‘But I soon realised that the win was in the journey, not the final result. You’ll learn so much about yourself, and you’ll know for next time how you can get better – just watch that hard work and progress carry over into your everyday life.’ Ready to get going? Hoggins has created a four-week functional fitness plan to kick-start your training, whether you’re working towards the NFG or looking to build a body for life. ‘This way of training helps you to achieve general physical preparedness – not just strength development, but also improved balance, coordination, mobility and stability,’ she explains. The goal? To build a body that’s ready for anything, be that sprinting for a bus, doing a flat move solo or entering your first fitness competition.
‘No matter what your level, age or body type, you can compete and challenge yourself’