LIFT
" Elizabeth has created a brilliant full body strength training programme and guides you every step of the way. I feel stronger and more confident in myself than I have in a long time. Elizabeth's LIFT programme is the next best thing to a personal trainer. "
CORE
This is isolated core and abs work to supplement the work your core will be having to do during the Strength sessions. There is one Core session each week, of around 30 minutes' duration. I coach on pelvic floor and abdominal wall considerations in this session, offering modifications for pregnancy, postpartum and beginners. If these sessions aren't quite right for you, you can dip into my Core - Preg&Beg library instead.
STRENGTH
I release three strength sessions each week: full body, lower body and upper body. Mix and match to suit your capacity and preferences. The movements in each session stay the same throughout the month-long training block, enabling us to focus on quality of movement, consistency and progressive overload. Different exercise options are provided to suit different abilities. In addition to my coaching during the sessions, my movement demo videos take you through the exercises for the block and the key teaching points.
Conditioning is basically cardio, but we use weights or bands during some of the movements. These sessions are fairly high intensity when done "as prescribed", but we can always adjust them to suit our current ability. Some of the exercises will be high impact (e.g. jumps) but lower impact alternatives will always be provided for those who require them and, crucially, I will coach you on how to progress from low to high impact (or, in the case of pregnancy, from high to low impact) as we go.
CONDITION
SUMMARY
-
£50 per month (new LIFTers can grab a one-month trial for £25. I offer 10 spots each block on a first-come-first-served basis)
-
5 sessions per week - complete the ones you want, whenever suits you
-
Troubleshooting, cheer-leading and support from me
-
Female focused training: I will talk openly about things like the menstrual cycle, pelvic health, menopause and boobs!
-
Access to my library of Key Concepts, taking you through some of the fundamentals of strength training and pelvic health, so that you can get the most out of your LIFT membership
-
Access to a library of previous Conditioning workouts
-
Printable training logs, so that you can easily keep a record of each session
-
Monthly Q&A with Nutritionist Kristy Coleman.
-
Mobility snacks - one movement is added each week.
If you only want Strength sessions only, or just the Core and/or Conditioning sessions, be sure to check out my other price plans.
While you can do these sessions in a gym, it's designed to be a home-based programme. You won’t need too much space for the workouts. You’ll need a mat if you are uncomfortable lying on the floor. A few of the exercises will need you to have a bench or sofa to lean on or raise your feet on, others will require a strong, sturdy chair.
Ideally, at the very least, you'll need some dumbbells, miniband loops and a CrossFit style resistance band. That said, I would suggest you refrain from going on a massive spending spree and try your first block using whatever you already have or just getting some bands in the first instance, which are compact and relatively cheap.
If you are looking to buy some dumbbells and aren't sure what to get, adjustable dumbbells are a great option as they are more compact and give different options to choose from, heavier and lighter. I would suggest that you buy some that can go heavy, as you will definitely grow into them.
Basically, the more kit you have at home, the more options you'll have to progress and challenge yourself as you get stronger and more confident. I have LIFTers who have purchased barbells and pull up bars and have never looked back! See it as an investment, that will actually work out much, much cheaper than a gym membership and/or a personal trainer over time. And, of course, you will be future proofed against any future gym closures!
If you enjoy it, and get the LIFT bug, you can then invest in some additional equipment. I’ve popped some suggestions here - this is an affiliate link and you are of course free to source elsewhere.
WHAT DO I NEED?
CAN I JOIN POSTNATALLY?
While LIFT isn't a postnatal specific programme, my method of gradual, progressive, full-body strength training is very suitable for the post-birth chapters. Parents certainly benefit from feeling strong and conditioned for lifting and carrying! I have completed a lot of continuing education in postpartum exercise prescription, and have extensive experience of working with clients 1-2-1 postnatally as The Mummy Coach. This is a real passion of mine, and I am delighted to be able to help even more people postnatally via LIFT. I will coach you on intra-abdominal pressure management, pelvic floor/abdominal wall symptoms to watch out for and strategies we can use in movement to support our core health. I can also guide you if you are navigating pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence, pelvic girdle pain, hernia or diastasis recti.
If you are doing LIFT postnatally as a means of returning to exercise, I would encourage you to be realistic from the outset in your expectations of how many sessions you can manage each week. If you are starting back to exercise post-birth, I suggest that your emphasis for the first couple of training blocks should be on building a solid foundation, reconnecting with your body, which might feel a bit different, (re)mastering movement patterns in a way that prioritises quality over quantity and that loads should feel light and workouts should feel fairly easy. This may require you to keep your ego in check.
It is advised that anybody participating in this programme post-birth has been cleared to train and has seen or is working in conjunction with a pelvic floor physiotherapist. Please remember that I am not qualified to diagnose or give medical advice.
CAN I JOIN DURING PREGNANCY?
Yes! Unless contraindicated, physical activity comes with a host of benefits during pregnancy. It improves your overall fitness, sleep and mood, it can reduce high blood pressure problems, back pain and the risk of gestational diabetes, and can ease constipation. Plus, babies come with it lots of heavy shit - as well as getting quite heavy themselves - so strength training helps to prepare us for that.
The current UK Chief Medical Officer’s guidelines recommend that if you’re not currently active, you should start gradually and build up from there, while if you are already active, you can keep going. Pregnant people should be aiming to clock up at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity each week, as well as doing muscle strengthening activities twice a week.
On LIFT, I will guide you through movement modifications which tend to work well for pregnancy, as well as coaching you on intra-abdominal pressure management, pelvic floor/abdominal wall symptoms to watch out for and strategies we can use in movement to support our core health. I can also guide you if you are navigating pregnancy with pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence, pelvic girdle pain, hernia or existing diastasis.