When Your Fitness Goals Come To You: With TruBe App
If you are one lucky person who knows exactly what you do in the gym, your technique is perfect and you know how to push your own training boundaries and achieve more - congratulations: you are a distinctive type and I am very jealous (even professional sportsmen have personal trainers though!). ;) If you are like me though, in need of knowledge and direction as well as professional ass-kicking, training with a PT is a way to go. Luckily, with the hot trend of tech companies launching 'Uber for X' platforms (meaning that a service comes to where you are at your convenience), you don't need to pay both for gym membership AND a personal training session. With TruBe personal trainer on demand app your London home, a nearby park or office breakout area can be your gym and a personal trainer will come to you (at the price of £65 per hour).
With your fitness choices on your fingertips, once you've downloaded the app you are presented with a number of fitness options. Each of TruBe app signature workouts is based on the function philosophy of squat, lunge, bend, push, pull and twist movements (3-dimensional multi-plane exercises). The types of workouts include high intensity interval training, ballet barre, toning and conditioning, strength and power or pre- and post-natal workouts, with yoga and boxing being in the pipeline. Select the type of workout and location and indicate your preferences in terms of your PT's gender, and you are then matched with a personal trainer who will use this hour to get you closer to your fitness goal.
If you have any specific preferences, there is a comment section on the booking page in the app. My fab PT Rowena who trained me both indoors and outdoors on a beautiful sunny Saturday morning recommends that you include as much information as possible there - whether you have an injury or prefer a particular type of exercise (for example, TRX) - as it will help your PT to come to the session prepared in the best possible way.
To be honest when I learnt about the PT on demand concept I was sceptical how much you can actually do indoors with the limited choice of equipment a trainer can bring (versus all the seriously looking machines in the gym) but TruBe challenged and changed my perception. Our body is (bingo!) the best tool we have, and complemented by TRX straps, kettle bells or rubber band the body movement can make fitness miracles.
Sessions are adaptable to the level of intensity that you want (my advice - go for one level up from your preferred level in order to push yourself further - you will be surprised how much better you are at it than you think!) and can be customised to your needs. Moreover, the available TruBe workouts can be adapted for one, a couple, or a small group of friends (no more complaining that PT sessions are expensive!)
TruBe works with qualified personal trainers, with experience ranging from strength training to body conditioning, who are not only best at what they do but are passionate about getting people to become more fit and healthy. My PT Rowena is a former professional dancer who is now into parcour and free running and she not only got me to do super functional exercises that should help my running routine (glute activating and leg muscle strengthening ones) but also shared some great thoughts and advice on the best way for women to exercise taking into account female physique and lifestyle.
Being very curious about fitness training, I kept quizzing Rowena on the best types of exercise for women. Turns out, women's training should not be too much different from the way men train - and no worries, don't expect to bulk up! Rowena recommends that women focus on building muscle as muscle requires more energy to operate - and therefore you will burn more energy naturally and give your metabolism a massive boost. Full-body exercises are also a way to go: isolating one muscle limits your progress while engaging various groups of muscles in one exercise means you are burning much more energy in one go and getting leaner and stronger quicker.
Having bonded with my PT over the hour of sweating and exciting discussions about nutrition and exercise, I waved Rowena goodbye and gave her a 5 star rating in the app (she can rate her experience with me too!) however whether I will be able to book with her next time is down to the app's algorithm, Rowena's availability and her will to accept my request.
At the moment you are 'assigned' a PT based on your requested parameters and you are not able to choose a PT from the list of those available. Those who prefer continuous relationship with a PT might see it as a disadvantage of the existing approach, others will see there an opportunity to have a new workout experience with every new PT session to keep your muscles getting and keeping your workouts away from boredom.
What you can do however is favourite the PTs workouts with whom you loved most, so that next time you make a booking your request is sent to your favourites ones in the first place for them to accept, before it is pinged to other available PTs.
So go out there and work out! I mean, let the PT come to you. And then work out! ;)
