Wolverhampton expert leading way to better fitness

State-of-the-art equipment used to accurately gauge fitness of top athletes such as Paula Radcliffe could soon be available at local gyms, thanks to a Wolverhampton fitness expert.

Luke Horsfield, who runs the Exercise Lab in Tettenhall Road, is one of the first personal trainers in the country to use Fitmate – fitness assessment equipment which uses technology previously only available in sport science and research labs.

The machinery uses oxygen analysis to measure cardiovascular fitness levels, and can assess many aspects of physical fitness from muscular strength to body fat distribution and cardio vascular risks, helping trainers accurately identify strengths and weaknesses.

The 37-year-old, who specialises in both personal and clinical exercise testing and training, said the equipment is revolutionary in its technology, and will allow people

to achieve greater levels of fitness by concentrating their training on areas where they are needed most.

“People usually go to the gym for two reasons - they want to get fit and/or lose weight. They see, and measure, how much weight they are losing, but they do not measure how their fitness is improving, which does not make any sense,” he said.

“Using Fitmate, you can see initially where you need to make improvements, design training to specifically address these areas, and then measure how you are getting on.

“This is also really useful for people training for specific events, such as marathons, as it allows you to plan your training really accurately.”

Mr Horsfield, who spent years working in hospitals concentrating on the clinical aspects of exercise physiology, prior to setting up the Exercise Lab last year, said the equipment also has medical applications.

“Oxygen analysis is an enormous indicator of having or being at risk of developing heart disease, and will become essential to hospital testing.  Research shows it is invaluable in diagnosing heart disease, lung disease and predicting how well a patient might recover from major surgery.”

He has been using Fitmate when working with his own clients for the last three months, and says it has proven a great help in fitness assessment and devising training programmes.

“I was used to using equipment like this in exercise labs, but found there has never been anything as advanced for general use by personal trainers and gyms.

“I have been working closely with the Italian company, Cosmed, who have developed this, using more than 20 years experience with sport science and research physiology labs.

“Having used it in my own work, I would love to see Fitmate more widely available, so that everyone trying to get fit can use the latest technology to help them achieve their goals,” he added.

Talk to us now - here