I began my fitness journey at 14 years old as an endurance runner. I was a very scrawny kid growing up, weighing 115 lbs at 5'8. I was not athletic at all otherwise. Nobody wanted me on their team for gym class. I had always strived to be strong and athletic. I started lifting at 18 years old. I fell in love with it, even though at first I could not bench press the 45 lb. bar. At 20 years old, I had skyrocketed to 195 lbs, still standing at 5'8. Looking back, I know it was my terrible nutrition and habits I developed. I ended up struggling to lose the weight at first, but I eventually lost 50 lbs. over a summer, and I have kept myself under 15% body fat for the past 20 years since. I also suffered an excruciating low back injury at 27 years old. It sidelined me for over a year. I was determined to recover and be better than ever after initially I became depressed. I could not pick a pencil off the ground, then a few years later, I deadlifted 405 lbs. while weighing 160 lbs. I learned so much about my body at that point, and it was when I recovered, I knew I eventually wanted to pursue a career in fitness. I didn't pursue fitness until the following year after getting demoted at my job. I took my personal experience into how I began to relate to my clients. Many of them have had aches, pains, and high levels of stress. I have a great track record of helping clients lose weight and keep it off in a sustainable way.  I do not subscribe to the fad diets that are all over the fitness industry.  You can expect a challenging, yet fun program for your current level of fitness that will help you lose weight, gain strength, get that flat stomach you always wanted, make you look confident in a suit giving that big presentation at your job, fit into that dress you always wanted to fit into, and help prevent injuries.I am big on dynamic warm-ups to help prevent injuries. I typically focus on compound movements first after your warm-up, and I know one size does not fit all as far as exercises. I meet you where you currently are. Depending on the client, I may throw in corrective exercises, cardio work, explosive work. More recently, since I am 41 now, I did a personal focus on mobility work, and it has made me feel 10 years younger. I also include some of those exercises in my routines. I help you with nutrition choices, macros, and the best gameplan to suit your lifestyle. What works for one client may not work for the next, so we plan accordingly. I also prioritize safety. I make sure your form is correct, especially since it is tempting to use too much weight or mimic what you may have seen in the gym. I started out with the NASM CPT certification. Next, I ended up getting the NASM CES (Corrective Exercise Specialist). I then received my Level 1 certification with Precision Nutrition.

My favorite client story

One of my clients could barely get up and down her stairs without knee pain when I started with her back in February 2014. Fast forward to May 2014, now she is able to not only do her household chores effectively, but she recently did a nine mile bike ride, walked all around Busch Gardens the entire day with her family, and enjoys hikes with her friends that she was not able to do prior to training with me. It goes to show how powerful of a medicine exercise truly is.

My favorite exercise

The pull-up. It is one of the most challenging exercises, but it is also one of the most beneficial. You get an incredible upper body workout, and I have credited a lot of the definition of my upper body to the pull-up. There are progressions to help you do your first pull-up. There are also progressions that make the regular pull-up seem like a walk in the park as well. It is a true accomplishment to be able to do a proper pull-up for anyone. .

My favorite quote

Success at anything will always come down to this: Focus and Effort...And we control both! - Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

My training philosophy

I believe in a mix of hard work and healthy sustainable nutrition, not the latest diet fad. There is no substitute for that. Sure some people drop weight significantly from the fad diets, but the drop is not sustainable, and most people end up gaining the weight back. I study the latest gadgets and make sure they are useful for your success rather than just some over-hyped gimmick that will just collect dust. I provide motivation and accountability not just the hour we train, but outside of our sessions as well. There are mixed opinions about this but I believe in avoiding machine weights (except in the case of working around an injury or to correct a significant muscular imbalance) because they isolate one part of the body, as opposed to using free weights or bodyweight exercises, which recruit several muscles at once and give you a much better overall workout.

My training experience

Weight Loss, Strength Training, Abs, Core, Endurance Training, Plyometrics, Corrective Exercise, Calisthenics