Pete Eggleston weighs in on fit20

and sceptics who question our method

fit20 and sceptics seem to go hand in hand given our extraordinary claim that one can get fit in just 20 minutes per week. This goes against everything most gym goers believe. They will probably insist you need two or three gym sessions a week. However once people try our unique method, they don’t remain skeptical for long. The manager of our Exeter studio, Pete Eggleston explains why.

'At fit20 Exeter we love to invite people to try out our training for free, especially anyone who questions the fact that you can get fit in 20 minutes' says Pete. 'We also like to talk to people who find it hard to believe that you can improve your strength with just one training session a week…

It’s surprising how many people still think fitness can only happen if you’re in the gym regularly for a couple of hours at a time. However, that is no longer the case. You can get fit in one short session per week through the advances in technology and our proven scientific method which is known as minimum effective dose training.'

We look forward to making a positive contribution to the community.

Pete Eggleston, who has a MSc in the Psychology of Sport and Exercise has been with fit20 for five years. During this time, he has seen many surprised faces as people witness the power of fit20 training first hand. 'One of our biggest sceptics to date says he did copious amounts of research before his trial session. He also had a long list of tough questions for me to answer which I did. However, it was only when he started exercising on our machines that he had a ‘lightbulb moment’. He has been a fit20 member ever since and is now one of our biggest fans!'

fit20 and sceptics: bridging the gap between doubt and results
How is it possible that someone can have a complete turnaround in what they believe about fitness training? The answer Pete provides is that there are three distinct reasons and they both provide documented results:

  1. fit20 clients are blown away by their personal strength gains week after week and especially because they are so accurately recorded. This is possible due to our unique technology that includes sensors that capture the progress of each session.
    You can also see results on each of the five machines each targeting a specific group of muscles. This enables you to see a graph plotting your strength gains and your ongoing percentage increases. So, you can monitor your personal progress which is a complete fitness game changer that spurs you on to achieve more.
  2. They are also impressed to discover that their experience of fit20’s training is backed up by the data of close on 15,000 participants as part of the largest study ever undertaken within sports and exercise science. This concludes that “One weekly 20-minute workout is enough to significantly improve muscle strength.”
    The scientific study, led by Dr James Steel, Associate Professor of Sport and Exercise Sciences at Solent University was conducted over a seven-year period and is published in the Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.
  3. Having a Personal Trainer makes all the difference in helping clients reach their full potential. You couldn’t achieve such significant results without one. See: Meet 3 of our fit20 Exeter trainers – each with a Sport’s degree.

'When Dr Steel did the fit20 Study,' Pete continues, 'He needed something to compare the data against and who better to choose than a group of elite power lifters? When he compared their data and strength improvements with fit20 members he found they were on an even par. So, the reality is that you can achieve significant gains in a short space of time through minimum effective dose training.

'However, you need to come and try it out for yourself. Until you’ve had a go, you can’t really understand how fit20 works. It always makes me smile when I observe skeptics trying out the first exercise. Assuming we've got the weights right, you see the expression on their face change as things start to get more difficult after the first minute. You can sense what they are thinking…. There’s definitely something in this!'

fit20 vs traditional gym training
Pete explains that in a regular gym session, for example using a chest press, you may be doing 30 second reps every couple of minutes. This means you’re most probably working anaerobically so you're not even utilising your heart and lungs. Whereas with fit20 training you are under constant tension for a full 1 minute 20 seconds to 2 minutes, so you are in fact under pressure for longer.

'You may do a warmup and a 45-minute workout then cool off in a shower and before you know it two hours have gone by,' he says. 'This is great for some people, of course it is, but are you getting the most out of your training?

On the other hand, even the best athletes cannot sustain fit20 training for a whole hour exercising every single muscle group. This is because our training is designed to be 'minimum effective dose' with times of rest and muscle repair in between.

Body builders train at an increased volume, because they want to get to a particular size, but they also understand the need for their muscles to rest between sessions in order for them to develop. They also don’t train all muscle groups at the same time. For the average person it is unnecessary to be in the gym, five, six days a week, for several hours at a time, because they're not looking to be bodybuilders.

In a fit20 trial session, it’s all about helping people understand the principles of the training. Some people get it the first session while others take a bit longer as they like to monitor the difference week after week. Either way you are assured of the fit20 Exeter guarantee – If you don't see results within three months, you will get your money back! But, in the 5-year history of the fit20 Exeter studio where we have trained hundreds of people, not one has asked for a refund...'

27 March 2024