It’s been 2 months since Mum started her strength training program.

If you haven’t already read the previous 2 posts on Mum’s strength training program then I highly recommend you read them before reading this:

Inspired to Start Strength Training & Mum’s First Strength Program

In this post on Mum’s 2 month review we will:

• Find out how mum has found the exercises.
• See what positive and negative effects she has noticed.
• Review her existing program.
• Create a new program for the next few months.

The last 8 weeks

I have asked Mum to answer a few questions about how she has found things so far.

How have you found the workout having done this for the past 2 months?

The exercises are definitely becoming easier and I notice it most with the lunge as I can touch my knees to the ground now whereas initially I had to use a cushion.

Have you noticed any negative effects?

I did feel muscle pain after the first few workouts but that has now subsided. Also immediately after one session of lunges my hip felt quite sore, as if I had pulled a muscle, but this disappeared the following day.

Have there been any barriers that you hadn’t foreseen? If so how did you manage them?

I found it was easier than I thought to fit the exercises into my daily routine and by keeping the log it gives me further incentive to tick off another day. I also know that I probably wouldn’t have kept up the exercises if I hadn’t been reporting back to Chris!

During the 2 weeks that I spent in France I managed to keep up the exercises apart from the fact that I could only take the 4 kg weight in the
car with us. However as only one exercise involved the 6 kg weight I didn’t think it would matter too much if I used the lighter weight.

Do you feel any closer to your goals?

I don’t feel quite so achy climbing stairs now and also I have noticed that when walking our dog I can manage hills a lot better. I still cannot really get up from the floor easily so that it something which I hope will improve. My energy levels have improved slightly and we did a lot of walking whilst on holiday.

Were there any other positive effects that you weren’t expecting?

I have felt more motivated to do things that I have put off for a while such as house tidying and organising my sewing studio. I have also been keeping more lists of daily tasks which, since retirement, have fallen by the wayside.

Were the actual workouts as hard as you thought?

Initially the exercises were as hard as I thought they would be and I struggled to do all the repetitions. However, they have gradually become easier and I am able to put more effort into them.

Was keeping motivated as hard as you thought?

No this was in fact easier, mainly because I was accountable to Chris! Also by reminding myself of my goals on a daily basis and filling in my strength training log, this provided the motivation to carry on.

Program Review

Below is a video showing a couple of pointers from mum’s existing program as well as the new program that mum will be working on for the next couple of months.

As shown in the video above some of the exercises have changed, whilst others have been adjusted to improve her technique.

Her new program will follow the same pattern of 2 alternating workouts, aiming for 4 per week. We have kept it to 3 sets of 10 reps. Once her technique improves and she becomes even more confident we will increase the resistance in order to reduce the repetitions. To learn why this is ideal, read my post on reps and sets.

New Workouts:

Workout 1

• Staggered Stance Squat to Chair
• Single Arm Shoulder Press in split squat position
• Clams with Miniband

Workout 2

• Hip Thrusters
• Split Squat
• Upright Rows

The 3 pieces of equipment that mum has been using in her workouts are listed below. If you click on the pictures below they will take you through to the relevant page on Amazon. Please be aware that these are affiliate links.

Summary of mum’s 2 month review

It is really great to see how mum has taken on board the concept of strength training, not only with the exercises themselves, but by identifying goals and barriers and using accountability to maintain motivation. I’m really pleased that she has enjoyed it and has already started feeling benefits after such a short time.

We will of course check in with mum in the near future to monitor her progress.

Give mum some motivation!

If you have found the ‘Meet Mum‘ series inspiring, please take the time to comment below with some motivational messages for her. I know it would help spur her on and that she would appreciate it.

This post was written by myself, Chris Tiley, a physiotherapist based out of Movement Therapy Clinics in Harborne, Birmingham. For more information on how I can help you visit christileyphysiotherapy.com