Barry MacInnes Personal Trainer

Barry was inspired to become a personal trainer after speaking to his own trainer. He talks to Sundried about tough races and life in the fitness industry.

Please tell us about sporting events you have taken part in or have coming up.

I have taken part in various events throughout life but it has all been aimed towards adventure racing and endurance events. I started with Tough Guy many years ago and I quickly realised that these type of events were what I enjoyed most as it required an all over level of fitness, while competing against other competitors and the weather. 

Since my first event, I have completed several more Tough Guy events, an endurance event that involved mountain Biking, kayaking and running across the Brecon Beacons for over 5 hours, several Paras10 events and the Winter Fan Dance.  I have completed several more of these events throughout the country to keep me active.  I will hopefully be taking part in a special forces bootcamp.

Tell us about your journey to fitness? Where did it all start?

I have always been active and my fitness journey started when I was at school.  I was involved in several martial arts such as Tae Kwon Do and Kick Boxing.  I left Glasgow and moved to London for work reasons and had my own personal trainer for several years.  During a conversation with him, I decided that as I was spending so much time training and enjoying it, I would invest my own time and money in becoming a qualified Personal Trainer and maybe look to a career change or run a Personal Training business alongside my main job.

What are your training goals now?

My main training goal now is to have a good level of all round fitness.  I don’t concentrate on one specific area of training, however, I tend to include more loaded marching with a weighted Bergen in preparation for up and coming events.  I have increased strength training and added plyometric training as this will assist me with my Brazilain Jiu Jitsu training.

Tell us one unusual fact we wouldn’t know about you:

I have had the pleasure of meeting several celebrities through my day job.

What advice do you wish you'd been given when you first started out?

• Never give up
• Expect knock back’s and disappointment’s
• Enjoy the journey as one day it will be worth it
• Never let anyone tell you that you are not good enough.

Do you follow a specific nutrition plan? If so, what/when do you eat?

I don’t follow any of the fad diets you read about.  I maintain a healthy balanced diet ensuring that I fuel the body as required.  This will vary, depending on what training or activities I have planned.

What do you do to keep your clients motivated? Do you have any top tips to keep motivated?

My top tips are:-

• Ensure that you highlight the progress being made
• Make sure that clients can see positive changes being made
• Encourage clients to set goals at the end of each session
• Set a realistic objective to achieve by the end of the next session
• Always try and add something new to each session so that clients can see and feel the progress
• Never do the same session twice in succession as this helps keep clients interested and keeps sessions fun and enjoyable.

Talk us through your training regime.

My training regime is quite simple. I will train in the gym 3 times a week, ensuring that one day is for lower body with the other 2 covering strength and core.  I will normally try and include a rowing session into each visit, as this gives the whole body a workout.  On top of this I will train at least twice a week in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.   I will always try and have at least 2 outdoor runs or loaded marching sessions per week. My day job requires me to maintain a certain level of fitness and as a result I am active every day.

How do you keep your fitness knowledge up to date?

I completed all my training through Future Fit and have recently moved away from REP’s and joined CIMSPA as I felt this would benefit me more.  I continue to add skills and qualifications every year and have joined the Prozone through Future Fit.  This keeps me up to date with all the changes in the fitness industry.  On top of this, I ensure that I continue to read and research the latest training methods and see how I can incorporate them into my routine.

What are your top 3 trainer tips?

• Be patient as every client will have an off day. Although this can be frustrating it could be the moment a client decides to give up.
• Make training fun and enjoyable. If the client enjoys training they are more likely to continue and make more of an effort.
• Be approachable, at any point of a client’s fitness journey there will be times where they have uncertainties and need to be supported.

If you could only do one workout for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I think it would have to be a High Intensity body weight work out as it requires no kit and can be done anywhere, it is suitable for anyone.  It would combine cardio, strength, core and flexibility.

What are your training goals?

To be as fit and healthy as I possibly can so I set a good example to my clients.

Why work with Sundried?

The clothing is very good quality and ethical. Anything that can be done to protect the environment is good and should be promoted.

Favorite fitness quote:

It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.