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Conroy Performance

Personal Training in St Albans & Hertfordshire

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conroy performance, personal training, performance training, dennis conroy, st albans, hertfordshire

Whatever your fitness level, we can help you look, move, and feel better

Whether it’s personal training, rehabilitation, online or group coaching in St Albans, we’re here to support you

BOOK A CONSULTATION CALL

OUR SERVICES

THE DIFFERENCE

Led by sports scientist, Dennis Conroy, we strive to deliver a well rounded, sustainable fitness approach for everyone

WHAT WE DO

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Personal Training

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Personal Training
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Rehabilitation

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Rehabilitation
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Group Training

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Group Training
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Online Coaching

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Online Coaching

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TESTIMONIALS

marie mcmanamon
Marie McManamon, St Albans

Dennis Conroy’s knowledge, passion and attention to detail took my Muay Thai career to the next level. I joined Dennis over a year ago to improve my strength and conditioning however he has done a lot more than that. It has been a real education training with Dennis.

After some tests which pin pointed areas that need to be done improved, he created structured plans which worked in parallel with my goals. One key educational piece has been mobility and the importance of it, particularly needed for the sport I do. Dennis has been key in helping me develop as a fighter and becoming UKMF British champion!

Dennis Conroy is a fantastic personal trainer who always keeps the sessions interesting and is always learning himself to assist his clients needs. I leave each session buzzing and would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a personal trainer in St Albans or the nearby areas!

Katie Osbourne

Dennis is extremely professional and knows his stuff inside out. He is very thorough in his approach to designing the right programme for you. He’s patient and takes the time to ensure you really understand what you’re doing and how it will help get you to your goals.

He has introduced me to a completely new type of training and because of his attention to detail, I’m more confident than ever in the gym even outside our sessions, which is another massive benefit for me. Ultimately he’s a motivating, friendly trainer who knows how to challenge you every week and I enjoy training with him immensely!

Daria Gambles

Dennis is a very experienced and attentive Coach. I feel like i’m always taking a lot away from the online coaching that I have been following for the last 3 months. My overall strength and progress within Crossfit has improved since I have been following the 1-2-1 programming. I would highly recommend Dennis to anyone who wants to take their performance to the next level!

Peter Williamson

Dennis, in my opinion, is a very knowledgeable coach. I have attended his classes for almost a year and they have helped massively with my triathalons, shoulder health and allowing me to perform on a daily basis.

Elizabeth Chandler, St. Albans

Dennis is an incredible personal trainer. I have always been into keeping fit and healthy but Dennis has helped me to break boundaries and complete exercises and programmes, I didn’t know I was capable of.

After a scary rare episode of inflammation on my spinal cord, just over a year ago, I wasn’t sure I would every get full use of my hand back. I could not exercise for months and after my Physio finished and I was able to use my hand again I signed up to train with Dennis, to help build up my fitness. Now 6 months later, I have gone from strength to strength and I am easily the strongest and fittest I have ever been.

Dennis has taught me that exercise isn’t just a session in the gym, it is a lifestyle change and a life time commitment. It is about getting the best out of yourself and always pushing yourself to the limit. I am now training for my first ever sprint triatholon in October, something I can say I never thought I would do.
Thank you Dennis you have been a great PT and an inspiration and I look forward to continuing to work with you.

Hayley Bilantz
Hayley Bilantz, St. Albans

Dennis has been great.  The eating plan he prepared for me felt fairly easy to follow and was personal to me.  He is a great personal trainer, very supportive, encouraging and challenging.However, I think what really sets Dennis apart is his depth of expertise and knowledge around the human body, and his ability to observe, calibrate and correct posture and movement. I would recommend him in a heartbeat.

Karen Molloy
Karen Molloy, St. Albans

I have been training with Dennis for over a year now and it’s my first experience of working with a PT. I had put on weight and was feeling generally unfit and unhealthy. I was quite nervous to start with but Dennis has been fantastic! He is highly professional, very knowledgable and extremely motivating. I am now lifting weights which I never would have done myself and my confidence has really grown. I’ve lost the weight I needed to and I am fitter and stronger than ever. I feel so much healthier and completely hooked on exercise! No two sessions are the same and I always feel challenged by the varied training sessions. The nutrition and diet advice from Dennis has been invaluable and really made a difference to my health and well being.

paul newland
Paul Newland, Welwyn

In December 2014 I was enjoying a first outing at the Olympic Velodrome until the inevitable happened and I ended up falling off at high speed and finding myself with a dislocated shoulder. Following a few months of physiotherapy, I was looking for a personal trainer who could get me back up to strength but without the risk of causing further damage. Dennis has been training me for several weeks now and we are starting to move on to more exerting training and I will continue to use him to maintain my (somewhat low) levels of fitness. I would have no hesitation in recommending him.

Katie Lees
Katie Lees, Welwyn

I have always been fit and healthy and when I was younger played a range of competitive sports many times a week.  Several years ago I underwent an operation on my foot which had a recovery period of a full year.  Following my year off exercise of any kind, I attempted to get back to my old fitness levels.  However, no matter what I tried, I seemed to pick up niggling injuries which would put me out of action for anywhere between two weeks and three months.  Fed up of having my return to fitness continually stalling I decided to commit to having a personal trainer.

First, and most importantly, Dennis took the time to listen to my fitness history as well as my goals for training.  Whilst my main concern was returning to fitness whilst avoiding injury I also wanted to get to a good enough level to be able to compete in triathlons.  Following this Dennis put together a comprehensive programme which would first strengthen muscle groups to ensure injury was avoided and then focus on improving the endurance and speed required to complete triathlons.

During sessions Dennis explains clearly the exercises he is asking you to perform to ensure that you get the most from every movement.  In addition, he explains the benefits of each exercise to help build the picture of how it fits into your overall training.  The sessions are challenging but fun – you are pushed further than you would push yourself.  The result is that the improvements in muscle tone, stamina and speed are rapid.  I now feel fitter and stronger than ever and, most importantly, am injury free.I have no hesitation in recommending Dennis as a personal trainer.  He is fun to work with and helps you to achieve your goals, whatever they may be.

Nick Hayhurst, St.Albans

Dennis has been my personal trainer for coming up to 8 months now, twice a week, prior to this I trained very inconsistently and consequently with very little progress. In addition, when it came to good nutrition, I realise now that I didn’t have a clue. From the first meeting with Dennis what struck me the most was his professionalism and his attention to detail and this has continued with every session. Be it cardio, weight training, nutrition or general wellbeing, Dennis has been able to bring a huge amount of experience and guidance. I thought I knew lots of stuff, but I really didn’t!

I have made more progress physically in the last 8 months than I have in the last 8 years, but also I have learnt so much about all aspects of fitness that I can take away with me.Yes he is professional, yes he is committed, but he is also fun to be around which makes the training sessions more enjoyable than they might be.

Kathryne Robinson
Kathryn Robinson, St.Albans

Dennis is a great PT. He has been able to pitch the training sessions I have had with him at exactly the right level. This sounds easy but actually is not. He is the first person I have found that has managed to achieve this. He assessed my specific needs and aims and pitched the sessions so I improved slowly and steadily. This has been the key to my,and his success, in training me so I can be fit for everyday life. I first started training with Dennis on walking sticks after many years of reduced mobility and following 2 hip replacements.

His knowledge of physiology and which parts of the body to focus on to get me walking again, as well as his focus on my goals to improve my fitness, has been fantastic and the key to success.I can highly recommend him as a PT.

My father now trains with him too. He also has seen results, has been encouraged to see the benefits of exercise, and is enjoying the training. Thanks Dennis, you’ve made a big difference to our lives!

Chris Stark, St.Albans

I started training with Dennis last summer and it has been my first experience of structured and tailored exercise. Dennis has provided me with achieveable goals, motivation and lifestyle changes along with a varied programme. We train either in the park or in the gym and the session variation ensures you are constantly challenged.

The sessions are hard but extremely rewarding. Dennis pays close attention to the areas where you need improvement and pushes you outside of your comfort zone. However, he doesn’t push you to the point of injury, with his knowledge/awareness of the various muscle groups and recovery periods always ensuring that you feel exhausted but not uncomfortable.

Dennis has given me great advice on diet and nutrition which has proved very beneficial. He has raised my awareness of food and the body which makes me think about what I do outside of the 2 sessions we do each week.With Dennis’s help I am on the road to where I want to be. The sessions are a very worthwhile investment of time and money and we actually have some fun along the way. Dennis is an extremely personable and nice guy, I would have no hesitation in recommending him.

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ACCREDITATIONS AND ASSOCIATIONS

crossfit, st albans, personal trainer, dennis conroy, conroy performance, batchwood     functional range conditioning, st albans, personal training, rehabilitation, dennis conroy, conroy performance     strength and conditioning, uk strength and conditioning, st albans, dennis conroy, conroy performance, st albans, batchwood, personal trainer

conroyperformanceuk

Conroy Performance
Strong Knees = Happy Knees 😊 Knee pain sucks! Strong Knees = Happy Knees 😊

Knee pain sucks! In many cases symptoms don’t just stem from the knee solely, it can be a myriad of problems that can be associated with weak/dysfunctional ankles/feet or even the hips, but not all cases. 

In a lot of the knee issues I help my clients with I tend to always look at the whole picture and its functioning in the real world.

As always my go to is getting stronger. Below are some of the current exercises I have my client Emily executing. These are some sound exercises to add into the mix when looking at strengthening the hamstring (distal), quads, calf, and tibial rotation ⬇️

1️⃣ Harrop Curls - These influence the back of the knee at the distal end of the hamstring. I tend to favour the hamstring work over the quads as individuals tend to favour exercises that work the anterior compartments.

2️⃣ Slant Board Step Down - a great way to introduce knees over toes work. The elevation on the slant board takes out the demand from the ankle. These feature quite a bit in my client’s programming. 

3️⃣ Single Leg Calf Raise - another staple. When performed well there’s not many exercises that can beat them. Building up to these are important, isometrics and eccentrics are the way to go first. Always check in with the pelvic/lumbar region at the bottom/top.

4️⃣ Tibial Rotation - an important exercise when training the knee. We see rotation in many sporting examples, but yet never train it. I never miss the opportunity to educate clients about tibia rotations. The focus most of the time is more on internal rotation. 

The exercises above can be great options for the knee, however, always make sure that you get as much out of each exercise with lots of intent 
💪
 
#conroyperformance #kneeovertoes #kneestrength #jointtraining #longevity #performance
This time last week 🏃‍♀️💨 Super chuf This time last week 🏃‍♀️💨 

Super chuffed for these two finishing their first Hyrox event in 1:12:36, 7th overall in their age group 👏

More to come 👀

@hyroxuk
@eagelldl 
@maddymlewis 

#conroyperformance #hyrox #run #fitness #training #performance #nofluke #hardworkpaysoff #postivevibes
Fixing the shoulder and scapula for rowing mechani Fixing the shoulder and scapula for rowing mechanics 🫵

When it comes to these mechanics often people think about the arm first before what actually happens at the rear of the shoulder.

In many of the cases that I deal with in a gym setting lots of them involve the upper traps being more dominant. This can cause a myriad of problems, but it’s imperative to make sure that proper recruitment of the lower lats, rhomboids etc takes place.

A cue that I like to use with clientele to help them with this is thinking about pulling the shoulder blade/s down to the back corner. That being said, I’m a believer that the cue ‘squeeze the shoulder blades’ can be misinterpreted. 

The misinterpretation exists when we overly retract (which can easily be done) not allowing the correct upwards rotation on the shoulder blade. The aim should be shuttle retraction and depression so that a solid stable position is created. Always be careful that the shoulder blades are gliding in the way they should without congestion in the upper trap area. @mai_rehabu is a great source for this.

Here are 3 exercises that I feel are important in the cueing of correct mechanics, helping create more space, and assisting with more glide ⬇️

🎥1️⃣ On Knees Scap Push Up
🎥2️⃣ Split Stance Single Arm Banded Shoulder Retraction
🎥3️⃣ Seated Row (retraction first, then row, full range)

Here I’m working with a new client focusing on shoulder rehab, specifically strength inputs post supraspinatus tear. A lot of the work that I’m doing with Joubert at the moment is focused on correcting poor mechanics, and horizontal rowing is a good place to start 😊

If you feel like you need guidance after an injury with a clear progressive plan 📧 dennis@conroyperformance.

#conroyperformance #movebetter #shoulderhealth #strengthtraining #rehabilitation
Shoulder Joint Stability ⛓️ In my experience, Shoulder Joint Stability ⛓️

In my experience, joint laxity can either be something that an individual is born with or has suffered an injury resulting in joint instability. 

Shoulder instability is a condition of increased joint mobility that affects the passive restraints of the shoulder joint (labrum, capsule and ligaments).

I like to classify them into traumatic and atraumatic. Traumatic results from an injury and are usually present on only one shoulder (unilateral). Atraumatic often present without an injury and demonstrates increased mobility on both shoulders (bilateral) and can be multi-directional.

The exercises in the video are taken from the derby shoulder instability programme. These exercises are targeted to help regain stability in the joint. Specifically, a drop and catch with a 1.4kg dumbbell in various positions of the shoulder (2 shown).

It’s important to mention that in many cases rehab can help with the above classifications. However, sometimes traumatic cases need surgical intervention.

If you suffer from instability of the shoulder, make sure to give conservative care, specifically, neuromuscular control and muscle strength/endurance exercises a try 😊

#conroyperformance #acjseperation #shoulderinstability #dropandcatch #rehab
Progress 📈 When @bindimaisuria started with me Progress 📈

When @bindimaisuria started with me going over on her ankle was a big problem. Lots of work has been put into the ankle/foot, and it’s great to see her progress.

A key element to a lot of this stuff at the foot/ankle is the ability just to be able to execute a good calf raise, simple, nothing fancy. Firstly, from a bilateral stance and progressing to unilateral.

Although we haven’t targeted much low-level plyometric work, we sure have been putting a big emphasis on getting the area as strong as possible before layering in qualities for other fibre types.

Here are some bent knee single leg options that I’ve integrated into the programming…

➡️ Split Squat Calf Raise
➡️ Wall Stride

The above are great bent knee options for strengthening and developing key athletic positions.
 
#conroyperformance #ankle #rehabilitation #anklestrength #longevity #performance
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Conroy Performance

Batchwood Golf Course & Sports Centre
Batchwood Drive
St Albans AL3 5XA
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