Strength & Conditioning
What this is and why is it good for you!
Strength and Conditioning is a great way to transform your body and get huge results, no matter where you are on your fitness journey. This type of training is not simply about lifting weights, but also focuses on a variety of techniques that help to improve fitness, movement and physical performance.
We combine practices such as plyometrics (training that uses Speed and Force across different movements to build muscle power), Olympic Weightlifting and Resistance Training, with stretching and mobility work.
Here at Salty Sea Panda, we focus on helping you improve the ‘Performance Quality Components’ to help you, the athlete, excel within your sport. Similar to coaching Animal Flow for Fighters or Mobility Sessions for Runners for example, our objective is help you develop your physical attributes rather than your technical or tactical abilities.
When we take you on as Personal Client, we’ll look at your specific goals and draw upon our specialist professional Coaching Skills sets to create tailored programmes just for you.
Training with heavy weights is shown to improve your self-confidence, releases endorphins that relieve stress and, guess what... make you feel happy overall!
Jenny Cooper, pictured on the battle ropes, will be EIGHTY this May 2023 – proof that age is not a limit to being active!
Rope Climbs – just a bit of fun when you are at school but now you can come across them on assault courses. Have you got access to a rope? They are great – a fantastic back workout with so much other good stuff thrown in, biceps, grip and some core if you do it right.
You can start with the J Hook in which you use hands and feet, trapping the rope on your top of lower foot with your upper foot. Once you progress, you can move on to the more simple ‘Hand over hand’ style not using feet. Really effective, functional back training which contributes to a rock solid grip.
Consistent Strength and Conditioning training combined with a tailored nutrition plan, sleep and water can deliver fat loss, whilst retaining muscle, over 3-4 months… the training part is actually only about 30% of the mix!
Staying physically active is critical to slowing the aging process and staying healthy.
Research shows that strength training can help maintain muscle tissue and strength, contribute to better balance and coordination, and reduce the risk of falls. The loss of muscle tissue due to aging, also known as sarcopenia, can be problematic for older adults.
After middle age, people lose between 3% and 5% of their muscle mass per decade, which affects their ability to perform many routine activities and lead an independent lifestyle.
So it is imperative to maintain muscle mass throughout life, helping preserve bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis. While it should not be used as a treatment for dementia or Alzheimer’s, it helps support overall cognition in aging individuals.
A good press up starts with a good plank!
Learning how to recruit the right body part to help perform an exercise correctly makes a massive difference to what you can achieve.
Take a press up for example; you might be surprised on how good your reps become when you learn how to place your limbs on the right place, and combine that with engaging key muscle groups.
Mind body connection plays a big part in helping you perform a movement effectively.
Strength and Conditioning makes my running better.
I’ve known Paula Panda for a while, so when she suggested some strength and conditioning training to complement my other activities (mainly running) I jumped at the chance to learn from the best!
I’d started Animal Flow classes in the gym, and then as we know the world went mad! However P’s online classes over lock-down were great, always varied but got all the right bits moving.
And then when we could meet again in person the coaching stepped up a gear and P was able to really target my weak spots and help me gain strength and power to really up my overall performance >>
P and Ian are a formidable pairing! Upper body strength is my weakness, and always has been, however with a few weeks of training (and the aid of a handy wooden block for my short legs!), I was managing to complete sets of chin ups unaided – something I never dreamt would be possible!
P’s enthusiasm for all things fitness is infectious and she’ll have you doing things you never knew you could in no time at all – would highly recommend!
Zoe Holmes, Dover Club Runner & Cani Cross enthusiast
Strength and Conditioning training can also reduce anxiety, ease depression and improve your well-being.
Exercising outdoors will condition your body and your brain; not only will you build up your physical performance, by connecting with nature will improve your mood, mental health and emotional well-being. And the best bit, it’s FREE! Find that rock, find that beach, that cliff top…
Ring flyes are an excellent progression for chest...
Ring Flyes, like the Ring Pressup is a chest focused exercise that adds a huge stability element. These should not be attempted by beginners – even if you are very strong, you can find the emphasis on biceps and tendons is massive.
Starting with a solid core and arms straight, hands together (Ian finishes each rep by turning his palms to face forward so this is his starting position), he then turn palms to face each other and ‘fixes’ a very slight bend at the elbows and slowly moves his hands apart until he reaches maximum comfortable stretch in his chest, then squeezes his hands back together.
The movement can be regressed by having the rings further from the ground or progressed by elevating the feet on a box or step. Not for beginners and start shallow and slow.
How does Personal Training with Ian work?
When first meeting your PT Ian, he’ll chat with you to assess both your sport and you as an athlete, to discuss what performance qualities are and how you can benefit from a tailored programme. You’ll undertake some relevant fitness tests so he can assess your strengths and weaknesses (these all help him to build up a picture of who you are physically), and then he’ll move to agree some goals with you that should excite you (the mental part!) – We want you to feel empowered by your fitness journey and see improvements along the way!
Then he will formulate a plan that is specific to you, around any competitions or event you might have, and around any injuries (sadly we know every athlete gets these!) so that you have phases in your training which are intelligent, positive and systematic in approach to your physical development.
The great thing is, between Ian and Panda, they have the skills to build in programmes using a mix of practices, involving free weights, body weight, mobility and flexibility techniques. So if there is something particular in a specific phase of training that you need to help you advance, they can work together to help support your fitness journey to give you maximum returns.
If this sounds like something you’d like to explore, please drop us an email!
Every moment is a new moment,
so why not make NOW your moment to start!
Personal Training (1:1) Strength & Conditioning with Ian
Sessions typically combine a mixture of body weight and free weight practices.
Each session would be focused around achieving/building towards specific objectives. You might find you are working drills, looking at structuring competencies in a specific move and building up lifts. Whether strict sets or tempo work, this style of training will help improve your strength and conditioning of your muscles, ligaments, tendons, helping preserve bone density.
All great for improving your health, well-being and supporting other specific fitness training. Each session will be tailored to your own goals and physical capabilities.
Personal Training (1:1) Beginners Callisthenics & Strength Coaching with Ian
Sessions typically combine a mixture of body weight and free weight practices.
Each session would be focused around achieving/building towards specific objectives. You might find you are working drills, looking at structuring competencies in a specific move and building up lifts.
Expect to learn and use compound body weight exercises such as Press-ups, Chin-ups and Squats, with some gymnastic moves in the form of a ‘Street Workout’ using minimal equipment.
All great for improving your health, well-being and supporting other specific fitness training. Each session will be tailored to your own goals and physical capabilities.
£250 for Six Block-Booked Sessions Outdoors in Dover, Deal, Folkestone (Kent)
Other venues TBD
2 person GROUP Beginners Callisthenics Coaching with Ian
Fundamental to all Callisthenics is a strong core which allows you to undertake advanced skills like Muscle-Ups, Human Flag, Front or Reverse Levers, Planche, L or V sits etc.
Expect to learn and use compound body weight exercises such as Press-ups, Chin-ups and Squats, with some gymnastic moves in the form of a ‘Street Workout’ using minimal equipment.
Enjoy working in a small group, learning together and building skills to take a way to practice with your mates!
£425 for Six Block-Booked Sessions FOR GROUP
Outdoors in Dover, Deal, Folkestone (Kent)
Other venues TBD
Meet your Fitness Coaches
We’re the Lains, a husband-and-wife team here to help make your exercise fun, motivating, engaging and transformative. We want to help you build confidence, feel empowered, be healthy and happy.
Ian Lain
Panda Lain
Let's choose to move together.
What does your Fitness Journey look like?
Whether you’re starting something new, re-kindling your love for exercise or already training, our sessions will support your goals.
If you want to have a chat, please just drop us a line!