Testimonials • Sensible Fitness

These are ordinary people, just like you. We all have a champion within!

Personal training in Blue Ash resulted in weight loss

“My life changed in 2013 on the day I realized I was going to have to buy even bigger pants to be comfortable; I told myself, NO WAY. I had my first training session with Sensible Fitness in early December 2017. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I knew I needed to do something more than what I had been doing. Sensible Fitness has taught me that I am strong and I am not going to break. I have learned to work my body toward change. I never imagined I was capable of the level of fitness I have been able to attain with their help. There’s no going back.”

Susan Ernst, Sharonville

“Many things can happen unexpectedly due to letting other responsibilities weigh one down and take over. Unfortunately, I let that happen to me from 2005 until 2013. I put on too many pounds while taking care of my elderly parents 24/7 and along with my two little children at the time. Thus, becoming overweight and out of shape then, I wasn’t the same, healthy Kate anymore. Sensible Fitness helped me get my mobility back. The excruciating pain that I had from my hip to my knee gradually went away as I worked very hard on building up my strength through their physical fitness training expertise, direction, and motivation. I focused on healthier eating every day and because of all of that I accomplished my goal in less than one year. I went from a size 16 to a 0 and I am now running in 10K Races. I feel like me again.”

Kate Thesing

Kate was featured on the news…

Patti M

“37 years of providing nursing care in a variety of disciplines took its toll on my back! After a year and half of medical interventions, I decided to have lumbar spinal fusion. My husband and I had already planned a trip to the Swiss Alps before my surgery. I left for Europe as planned and hiked almost 2 miles up the side of Jungfrau, “the top of Europe” mountain in the Swiss Alps through 8-12 inches of snow and 30 degree weather. I was exhilarated and felt a heart full of gratitude to Sensible Fitness for helping me attain this feat, not even 5 months post- surgery! I feel so blessed that I had Sensible Fitness to turn to for help in getting my life back!”

Patti McElroy

“I have struggled with my weight and fitness level all my life and have been up and down many times. At the beginning of 2015 I was approaching my highest weight and body fat… once again. With some blood work results also showing my numbers going in the wrong direction and my physical strength at a low, I realized it was time to make a change or really face a future of poor health. It has been a journey so far and along the way I have gained muscle mass and strength, lost weight and the doctor just stopped some medication! I’m not at the finish yet, I still have a lot of work in front of me. But it is worth the effort and I would encourage anyone who feels like I did a year ago to just get started – wherever you are.”

Lisa Olson

elderly fit man

Dick Thomas. Started exercising at 91 years old!

Dick Thomas came to us after his daughter thought it would help with his mobility. At 91 years old, you just don’t get around like you used to! Dick’s doctor agreed and thought that exercise could help his COPD (chronic onset pulmonary disease).

Although Dick had never performed strength training in his 91+ years, he decided to start.After a short time, Dick reported that “life is just easier” with the strength that he gained. He especially noticed the difference in his legs, which was where we put a little more emphasis. Many of the exercises we gave him were very challenging, but he never complained and did everything we asked. I can’t say that for most that is half his age without COPD!

“I was officially diagnosed with Scoliosis at age 16 and I was diagnosed with Spondylolisthesis at age 25. This impacted my daily activities by requiring frequent rest breaks due to pain.

I turned to Sensible Fitness. For the first time in the past 5 years, I feel like I am able to stand taller, and like my body is finally strong enough to accommodate the imbalances that my back conditions have imposed. My posture has really improved and my back is becoming stronger and rarely aches unless I am on my feet too long. I feel like a new person. I actually stepped backward, downhill, onto the uneven pavement, and stumbled while visiting the zoo on Sunday….it is amazing that I was able to regain my balance and prevent myself from falling. I assure you that I would have landed on the ground if I were not training with Sensible Fitness.

While strength, posture, and balance are all important to me, so is wearing heels. Wearing shoes with heels greater than 1 inch was not an option before I began training at Sensible Fitness. Recently I was able to successfully walk in 3.5-inch heels, with confidence. Now that is worth celebrating!”

Farah Robinson

“Retired, morbidly obese carrying over 200 lbs in excess weight, with two total knee replacements, neuropathy, arthritis, and developing back issues. I took small steps, bent over, and out of breath. I always looked for a place to sit, I was exhausted everywhere I went. I had no energy, no strength. I was in serious trouble health-wise.

On my first day, Sensible Fitness suggested I arrive early to warm up. I thought to myself, exercise before I exercise? I was out of breath by the time I walked across the parking lot. In the beginning months, I used to sit and hide in the restroom to catch my breath from the walk in.

My overall quality of life has improved dramatically. I have a long and continued challenge to achieve the healthiest lifestyle possible and weight loss, but I have surprised myself looking back how far I have come physically, how much I have learned, how much stronger and motivated and happier and healthier I am…and I’m no longer hiding out in the restroom!”

Kathy Dubbs

Kathy’s 100+ pounds of weight loss was spotlighted by the local news…

Trevor lost 90 pounds

Trevor Phelps. Lost 90+ pounds and quit smoking.

Trevor had been living a sedentary lifestyle when he came to Sensible Fitness as a semi-private client. He habitually enjoyed many of the “usual’s” such as soda, junk food, and eating out. He also had very little physical activity. Like many people, he got moderate activity such as walking or lifting while at work but lacked real exercise in his life.

Trevor had extraordinary results by simply sticking to the basics. He did not have a crazy, intense exercise program with us. He had a sensible one that addressed added muscle tone to increase his metabolism, with bouts of cardiovascular exercise mixed in to keep his heart rate up. Being committed to his goal, Trevor also walked an additional 20 minutes after each of his 55-minute workouts. Trevor’s nutrition program was not strict. He did not eat tree bark and bean sprouts, as our approach is not to deprive people of food or have them follow trendy diets. Trevor enjoys a variety of foods that he likes.

Trevor is a testament to the huge changes a person can make by committing themselves to change their lifestyle. He turned to Sensible Fitness for the added guidance and accountability that a trainer offers, but the amazing discipline and commitment he displayed is what won the battle against the 90 pounds he lost. The battle against yourself is usually the biggest battle in changing one’s lifestyle.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Angela Nickel suffers from MS and came to Sensible Fitness, choosing private personal training, to improve her quality of life.

“In the past, I had an exacerbation of MS that caused me to leave my job. For three months I could barely get out of bed and needed assistance with basic daily tasks. I am so grateful to the team here at Sensible Fitness who has helped me on this journey of returning to a normal life. When I started the first session I could only work out for 15 minutes and I had to rest for 2 days. Now, I am able to go twice a week (most of the time) and work out the entire hour. I just walked a mile in my first 5K.”

Angela Nickel

Ryan Davis. Facing the challenges of dwarfism.

Ryan faces the challenges of dwarfism head on, and certainly does not let it hold him back. Besides being an Eagle Scout, and a Rescue Scuba Diver, Ryan played football through his entire high school years. As a senior, he received the Award of Courage from the National Football Foundation. Although in a sport that was full of giants, Ryan persevered and inspired all.

Ryan Davis also competed in powerlifting and placed 2nd at the 2013 World Dwarf Games, held in East Lansing, MI. Ryan has never competed in powerlifting before, and he jumped right into an international competition. This guy has guts!

Multiple Sclerosis Does Not Stop This Personal Training Client

Mainville personal training client Colleen — Colleen, Mainville, OH

Colleen is a semi-private personal training client from Mainville that has Multiple Sclerosis but it does not stop her from achieving a higher quality of life. Here is her story….

My husband Marty and I started working with Sensible Fitness back in February and my main goal when I started this journey was to improve my overall health.

I was apprehensive when I started because I have MS and really wasn’t sure what I was going to be able to handle. I am not someone who let’s my disease define me but never pushed myself when it came to exercising and fitness. With help of my personal trainer, it turns out that I was a lot stronger than I thought. While my 25 lbs weight loss isn’t anywhere close to Marty’s 70 lbs, I do see changes. Over the past couple of weeks, I had a couple of events that validated my progress and commitment to this lifestyle. The first was during a business trip to NYC, I was able to climb to the top of ‘The Vessel’. ‘The Vessel’ is a new tourist attraction in NYC that you can climb to the top to get great views of the city and is 18 flights of the stairs to the top. I would have never had been able to climb to the top if I hadn’t committed to changing my lifestyle back in February. The second was during a family event where I had so many people mention that I looked great and for the first time in awhile I actually liked how I looked in the pictures.

I can’t wait to see how I feel and look after the next 6 months. Thanks for having such a positive impact on my life.

Colleen

Personal training client loses 50 pounds!

personal training client Marty, holding dumbbell

Personal training client, Marty, has lost over 50 pounds and 5 pant sizes since he started with us, less than 6 months ago! When he started, his ankle arthritis was a huge limitation to his quality of life. It was difficult to even walk without pain. Today he is walking 30 minutes a day, and being encouraged by his personal trainer to start bumping up the speed and incline on the treadmill.

Congratulations on your weight loss and improved quality of life Marty!

Congratulations To Personal Training Client, Ryan Davis

Personal training client Ryan with parents

Congratulation is in order to personal training client Ryan Davis! He just graduated college with a degree in Civil Engineering from Valparaiso University.

Many of my long-term clients have seen Ryan grow up before their eyes, as he came to Sensible Fitness as a freshman in high school when he started personal training to prepare him for football. Those that have been around Ryan know that he is a motivated and ambitious man. Before he even graduated high school, his list of accomplishments is longer than what most people acquire in their entire life.

~ Rescue scuba diver

~ Eagle Scout

~ Lettered in 4 years of high school football

~ Award of Courage from the National Football Foundation

~ 2nd place in power lifting at the World Dwarf Games, competing at age 16 against men of all ages.

And now he is a graduate of Valparaiso University! He will be working for Michigan Department of Transportation, and living in Kalamazoo.

Client, Susan Ernst, Inspiring Cincinnati

Personal training in Blue Ash resulted in weight loss

Cancer survivor, Susan Ernst, came to Sensible Fitness to become healthier and to live a higher quality of life. The side effect of every day healthy habits is weight loss, and as you can see the results are dramatic.

Local 12 news picked up on her story and invited us down to the studio so her story could be shared with others.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE BROADCAST

Most inspirational client in Sensible Fitness history…

jeremy-car-copy

If I had to pick one person to represent the success of Sensible Fitness, it would be Jeremy Hedman. Hands down. Nobody else comes close.

Imagine waking up in a hospital of a foreign country, missing an arm, needing a ventilator to breath, unable to communicate, and not remembering anything from recent history. This is only an abbreviated version of injuries to Jeremy who was in a tragic industrial explosion, while working in Brazil for a local company. But from Jeremy’s life changing tragedy, comes a story of triumph and inspiration.

In 2008, Jeremy was admitted into a Brazilian hospital, after an industrial furnace he was working on exploded, traumatically amputating his right arm, crushing his trachea, causing head/brain injuries, sternal fracture, two collapsed lungs, ruptured jugular vein, trauma to his aorta and subclavian arteries, and damage to his spine. Others were killed.

After spending a lengthy term in a Brazilan hospital, he was transported to Cincinnati, where his hospital stay continued. To add insult to injury, it became apparent that Jeremy had suffered a stroke at some point in time, causing catastrophic loss of muscle control throughout his body, which disastrously included his only remaining arm.

Without the use of muscles in his left arm, Jeremy’s independence and quality of life would be minimal. The muscles that straighten his elbow, and the muscles that control his wrist and fingers were non-functional. This means that Jeremy could not perform the simplest of tasks. Imagine not being able to straighten your elbow or to use the muscles in your only remaining hand. You could not reach for and pick up a fork, a toothbrush, or a tissue to blow your nose. You become dependent for everything.

To increase his functional ability, Jeremy underwent a series of surgeries to transfer muscles in his left arm. The biceps, a muscle that bends the elbow, was detached and moved to help assist in straightening the elbow. Other muscles were also moved that gave him minimal control of his wrist. Still more were moved simply to allow him to move his fingers. While these surgeries increased his ability to move his elbow, wrist, and fingers in some directions, it hindered his ability to move in others. Simply put, you cannot rob Peter to pay Paul when it comes to function….something pays the price somewhere. None-the-less, the surgeries were the lesser of two evils.

After post-operative physical and occupational therapy, Jeremy was discharged, while still being severely limited in his ability to perform many of the daily tasks that you and I take for granted. He remained largely dependent on others, and had a diminished quality of life.

This is when Jeremy’s employer, being dedicated to his full recovery and providing all means necessary, brought Jeremy to Sensible Fitness. Knowing of our education and experience, and also that we embrace challenges, hoped that something else could be done to help him.

Jeremy walked through our doors barely able to walk to the bathroom independently, and had the simplest of goals. He wanted to be able to walk through Wal-Mart without getting tired, and he wanted to fasten his own seat belt.

Putting together a plan of attack for Jeremy’s program was not easily done. It took a few sessions to simply figure out which muscles were working and which were not, as his medical records did not agree with the reality of what I was seeing from a functional sense. Jeremy jokingly said that his medical records should simply say, “broken”.

Exercises for Jeremy had to be uniquely designed, because of his compromised functional ability. When muscles that gives your body a certain motion are not working, you have to strengthen accessory muscles and find other means to accomplish the task at hand. More and more exercises were developed as Jeremy’s fiancée (now wife), Amber, shared her thoughts on improving his day-to-day function, as she was witnessing his struggles first hand.

Jeremy had horrendous balance issues from his injuries. He also could not pour his own glass of milk, or even get up from the floor independently. As time went on, Jeremy’s list of goals increased, yet remained simple goals of performing daily tasks. Weeks into his program, Jeremy was gaining more function, as his muscles were getting stronger. As he got stronger, more advanced exercises could be added, that further enhanced his abilities. The goal of fastening his seat belt was reached, and a new goal of being able to drive was established.

Jeremy had no use of his chest muscles, and was unable to completely turn a steering wheel to the right. Again a series of unique exercises were developed, which included turning a 100 pound suspended weight plate that mimicked a steering wheel.

jeremy-car

P1000419 - Version 2

jeremy-drive

Today, Jeremy is not only fastening his own seat belt, but he is also driving independently. He is getting up from the floor independently (with weights added), and pouring his own glass of milk.

And what about Jeremy’s goal to walk through Wal-Mart without getting tired? To date Jeremy has completed four 5K (3.1 mile) walks, and recently celebrated a belated honeymoon in Yellowstone that included much walking. Amber also says he is not dropping and breaking dishes like he used to, because his grip/arm strength is greatly improved.

Jeremy is in continual total-body pain from the trauma to his central nervous system, and he never speaks a word of it. He will have this pain for life. Even though he is always hurting, Jeremy comes to every personal training session and does everything that we ask of him, without complaint. He is happy to have the ability to perform the exercises we give him.

Jeremy is an amazing man, and has humbled many clients at Sensible Fitness, as the modest ache or pain does not seem worthy of complaint after seeing the challenges he overcomes each and every day. He demonstrates incredible courage and bravery….you know, the stuff movies are made of. I am proud to say he is my most incredible client ever, and my friend.

If You Cannot Change Your Situation, Change Your Attitude

Traci with her husband

My sister is a massage therapist and has been telling me about her client, Traci Lindholm for years. I finally had the chance to meet Traci and her husband Curt a few weeks ago. What an incredible couple with an “out of this world” story of inspiration….

In 1986, at age 17, life as I knew it changed in an instant. I was in a car accident that left me on a ventilator and paralyzed from the neck down. Between the ICU and rehabilitation, I spent 6 months in the hospital. Though the doctors were able to wean me off the respirator, I remained paralyzed from the neck down with limited use of my left arm. I had to figure out a new way of living. I was faced with a decision, a decision I have to make every day: sit around and be miserable or live the best life possible. On August 16th, 2016, I will celebrate 30 years of living with a C2-C3 spinal cord injury and 13 years of marriage to my husband, Curt, who also has a spinal cord injury.

During my rehabilitation, I ended up an outpatient at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, home to one of the best spinal cord injury centers in the world. This is where I began see that part of living the best life possible means staying active. Fortunately, I was able to train my legs using FES (Functional Electric Stimulation). I purchased an Ergys bike, with my mom’s help, and I have bike shorts equipped with electrodes that allow me to ride.

By staying as active as possible, people with paralysis can experience:

Reduction in muscle spasms
Prevention or retardation of muscle atrophy
Increased blood circulation
Muscle re-education
Maintained or increased range of motion
Prevention of venous thrombosis post-surgery
Other physical and psychological benefits

In addition to staying fit and active–despite my physical limitations–I maintain a sensible diet. I drink a lot of water and NEVER leave home without it. I love to eat, but I limit desserts and junk foods. I never deprive myself of any particular food, but you won’t find me eating a whole piece of cake by myself. I will typically share a dessert with somebody or simply limit myself to a few bites.

I try to keep my brain active as well. I graduated Magna Cum Laude from Drake University with a Bachelor’s degree in finance and my Masters in Rehabilitation Counseling. I also have a home-based business selling Rodan + Fields skin care products. Not only have I finally found a product that treats my acne, I’ve also found a business I can work into my life as a quadriplegic. I am also a big sunscreen advocate after being diagnosed with early stage melanoma in January 2016.

After almost 30 years of paralysis, I have had very few complications. I attribute this to “riding” my bike, twice-a-day range of motion, maintaining a sensible diet, trying to lead a “normal” life, and a supportive husband, family, and friends. I could not ask for more!

My husband, Curt, sums up life pretty well, “If you can’t change your situation, change your attitude.”

Traci on her bike

Lisa Olson: Making The Journey of Lifestyle Change

LisaO Lisa saw what the future offered with a less than healthy lifestyle, and decided she wanted something better. This is her story…

“I have struggled with my weight and fitness level all my life and have been up and down many times. In the beginning of 2015 I was approaching my highest weight and body fat… once again. With some blood work results also showing my numbers going in the wrong direction and my physical strength at a low, I realized it was time to make a change or really face a future of poor health.

I didn’t feel like I could make a change this significant on my own, I knew I needed some professional guidance. Over the past few years, I had seen information about Sensible Fitness
and it seemed like a great option.

In my beginning workouts I was even weaker than I thought – it’s hard to start on the weight machines and not even use one plate! But the trainers were very encouraging and motivating – starting where I was and pushing me to improve with tons of helpful advice along the way. It has been satisfying to see the weights add on as the months pass.

One more thing I needed to add was more cardio to continue to improve my endurance and burn more fat. In January of this year, I decided to take up running with a first goal of running in the Heart Mini 5K. I’m thrilled to say I trained and completed the 5K – my very first one! I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of Doug and Patty and the progress I have made at Sensible Fitness. I’m continuing to run and looking forward to the next race too.

It has been a journey so far and along the way I have gained muscle mass and strength, lost weight and the doctor just stopped some medication! I’m not at the finish yet, I still have a lot of work in front of me. But it is worth the effort and I would encourage anyone who feels like I did a year ago to just get started – wherever you are. I have met a lot of other really inspiring people along the way and they have shown me it is just as much about the journey as it is the finish.”

Lisa Olson

Sonya Hughes: From wheelchair, to walker, to marathon

Sonya Hughes is a honorable graduate of lifestyle change. After coming to Sensible Fitness years ago, she has maintained a healthy lifestyle and is still living large today. This is her story…

I have struggled with my weight since 2004, after I was severely injured in an automobile accident. My most notable injury was a crushed pelvis, which left me immobile for several months. I started in a wheelchair, and once I was able to get around with the use of a walker, I continued to receive physical therapy for nearly a year after that. Unfortunately, I let personal issues, and my fear of re-injuring myself, keep me from getting back into shape immediately. For these reasons, I allowed my weight to creep up from an average of 140 pounds to a staggering 200 pounds!

The even scarier thing is, obesity runs in my family, and very poor eating habits. Throughout my 20’s and 30’s, I was very cognizant of this and really worked hard at staying in shape, and keeping my body weight at a healthy range for my height.

Two years ago, my employer initiated a weight loss contest, which helped motivate me into getting back into shape, as I knew that using my accident as an excuse to live a sedentary lifestyle was getting old, quickly! I won that contest, by watching what I ate very carefully and walking an average of 5-6 miles every morning. Just by making those changes, I lost 40 pounds in three months! After winning the contest, I became addicted to walking every day, but very quickly got right back into the eating habits that I had prior to the contest.

While walking every day has helped me to keep my weight from creeping back up, I am really struggling to lose the last 20 pounds, and that is why I called Sensible Fitness. I realize that restricting myself to 1200 calories every day and walking from here to Tim Buk Tu every morning isn’t going to solve my weight issues long term. I need to learn lifelong skills from trainers who know what they are talking about, and are going to put me through my paces, when I start to falter.

This isn’t going to be easy, nothing worth having ever is. This is an investment into my future, and my long-term health. I feel very comfortable at Sensible Fitness, and the trainers have been very insightful and motivating. I am very happy in the knowledge that one day soon, I am going to have the body back that I lost, and took for granted for the last six years.

-Sonya Hughes

UPDATE: Sonya successfully completed the Flying Pig Marathon and maintains a healthy lifestyle to this day!

Kathy Dubbs and her incredible change

Kathy Dubbs came to Sensible Fitness a year and a half ago. These are her words…..

Retired, morbidly obese carrying over 200 lbs in excess weight, with two total knee replacements, neuropathy, arthritis, and developing back issues. I had lost over 100 lbs on a 20 week medically supervised diet of meal supplements with no exercise or lifestyle changes. It was 5 years before and gained it all back. My lifestyle had become sedentary, one of TV, my recliner, take out and restaurant food; if I did cook, I had to sit on a stool in the kitchen. My body was so weak and out of shape I couldn’t get up of floor, couldn’t actively play with the grand kids, was exhausted and out of breath just walking down the driveway to the mailbox. I took small steps, bent over, and out of breath. I always looked for a place to sit, I was exhausted everywhere I went. I had no energy, no strength. I was in serious trouble health wise.

I had never exercised or strength trained before.

My first day, Doug suggested I arrive early to warm up. I thought to myself, exercise before I exercise? I was out of breath by the time I walked across the parking lot. In the beginning months I used to sit and hide in the restroom to catch my breath from the walk in….. then grab a towel and stroll slowly around the gym for my warm up …sweating, hurting, hoping not to get out of breath before my workout even began. Ten crunches and I was out of breath. I had to do all my exercises sitting on a bench as I didn’t have the strength to get on and off the floor. I couldn’t even get my arms over my head for various arm exercises. Everything hurt. I couldn’t do more than one exercise standing without having to sit in between and rest before the next exercise. A walk outside from the back door to the front door of the gym was nearly impossible. I lacked both the balance to sit on a stability ball and the strength to go from sit to stand. I could only lift light weights.

They continued to challenge and encourage me every workout, making adjustments, trying new things, slowly increasing weight, reps, walks, cardio. Crunches went from 10 to 15 to 30 to 50+. I was shown techniques to get up and down off the floor, and soon I had gotten strong and confident enough to try, and it worked. I now am able to do floor exercises, and play on the floor with the grand kids. I am strong enough and have improved my balance to get up and down off the stability ball, even doing push-ups on the ball. My warm ups went from hiding in the restroom to rowing, now to 10-15 minutes on the bike. My reps went from 15 to 20 to now I can even do a more challenging timed interval workout. And my weights are getting bigger in size! I actually am having fun in the gym and developing confidence that more is possible.

2 minutes, level 1 on the stationary bike at 30-50 rpm was nearly impossible several months ago. Each week I have been challenged to do a little more, last week I was able to bike 12 minutes at 80 rpm level 2 and recover fairly quickly. Now level three is possible for short durations during a ride. Recently we started on the elliptical, a machine I thought I would never be able to use. It was a challenging 5 minutes, but we even did it a second time. Me on an elliptical! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could exercise like that!

I have taken advantage of nutrition and eating classes offered, and continue to learn ways to eat cleaner in addition to strength training. I am loosing weight, my clothes are fitting better, taking walks, using my clubhouse gym, exploring new healthier foods, loving cooking standing up, have remarkably improved energy, endurance, and am so much more active overall. My overall quality of life has improved dramatically. I have a long and continued challenge to achieve the healthiest lifestyle possible and weight loss, but I have surprised myself looking back how far I have come physically, how much I have learned, how much stronger and motivated and happier and healthier I am…and I’m no longer hiding out in the restroom!

Being 60, Feeling 30, Looking 20

Here is a piece of a recent email I received from Erica Gripp, who earned 1st place in a Master’s Figure Competition.

Doug,
Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner! That’s me at 60 years young. Yes, I am in denial because I feel better than I did at 30!

Thank God for the gifts of discipline, perseverance, and commitment. (Having Charlie Gripp as my husband is a huge bonus, too, since he does the majority of the grocery shopping and meal prep.)

Doug, first of all, THANK YOU, for taking such good care of my dear, dear, friend, Debbie!

She loves you guys and I sincerely appreciate all of the support, encouragement, and guidance you give her.

2^nd of all – tell your “senior citizen clientele” that they are never too old to accomplish their fitness goals.

And also, tell them that SUGAR IS THE DEVIL!! These pix are from when I competed in the Monster Mash Competition.

See what you started?!?!?! A healthy, fit, lifestyle is a good addiction. : -)

Hugs,

~Erica

Doug sets the record straight…

I often hear gals saying the muscularity is not appealing. Let me school you.

With this type of competition, the contestant gets super lean, through diet and exercise, so that muscle definition is easily seen on contest day. After going back to a normal healthy lifestyle, a thin layer of welcomed fat covers Erica’s muscles, and then she goes back to merely looking incredibly smoking hot.

So don’t be a hater and say “I would not want to look like that”. Trust me, you would.

Look ya’ll, no bra bubbles!

Firefighter Fights Back…

Roger Neff is an Evendale firefighter that had a mandatory fitness test lurking in his future. A big problem that faced him was a terribly painful knee condition known as Chrondromalacia. A part of his fitness test is carrying a heavy load of gear while going up steps, and with this painful knee condition it would make that impossible.
Chondromalacia is when the underside of your knee cap becomes irritated and extremely painful. Often times the cartilage is wearing away because the knee cap is not tracking properly in the groove of your knee joint. Going up and down stairs is one of the worst and most painful things you can with a knee that has this condition.

Roger turned to us for help in passing his fitness test, because with a failing grade, his job was in jeopardy. And I should mention another problem that was challenging Roger was that he was overweight and a smoker, putting away a full carton of cigarettes a week! This was going to also make the stair climbing aspect of his test outrageously difficult from a Roger after weight loss from a cardiovascular standpoint. He was going to be wiped out after the stairs, which is the first event…how could he possibly go on and conquer the push-ups, sit-ups, and overhead ladder lift (only to mention a few)???

With only 10 weeks to go from his test, Roger committed to us for 2X per week. We established a program that would strengthen the muscle around his knees in order to get his kneecap tracking properly. We also focused a great deal of attention all the various muscle groups that would help him with the other events. We encouraged him stay after his workout and ride the stationary bike to increase his cardiovascular endurance, while also promoting weight loss.

So how did he do? Roger’s story has a two-part happy ending. First off, Roger passed his fitness test on the first attempt. This in itself was an incredible accomplishment, as Roger completely transformed his fitness level in 10 short weeks. But the best part of Roger’s story is where he is at presently.

Roger is still with us today and continues to move his lifestyle in a healthy direction. He has cut his smoking down from a full carton a week, to a pack a week. He stays after every workout and rides 30 miles on the bike, a total of 60 miles a week! His knee is much better, he has lost weight, strength and endurance are greatly increased, and he reports higher energy levels along with a drop in his waist from 40 to 38. When I asked him to list all these results he just shared, he ended with the best words a trainer can hear from a client…”overall better health”. That is the magic stuff!

Kate’s incredible success revisited…

You may have heard Kate’s story before, but I just cannot resist giving you an update. Kate came to us years ago and was obese and literally unable to tie her own shoes. Her daugther had to tie her shoes for her because of a painful hip condition that two orthopedic surgeons could not help her with. This hip also stranded her in the middle of Jungle Jim’s, where she could not take another step and had to call her family for rescue.

With a well planned strength and flexibility training program, along with attention to her eating habits, Kate has lost 80+ pounds and just finished her 3rd half marathon (13.1 miles) in the Grand Tetons National Park. Kate invested in health care (lifestyle change) rather than sick care (doctors and drugs) and has a new life that she is running with.

What I love most about Kate’s story is that she made a decision not to be a victim of her medical condition. She got off her ass and did something about it. With the majority of disease being from lifestyle choices, millions of people can learn from Kate. Your lifestyle and your quality of life is 100% in your hands. Take charge.

KATE MADE HERSELF A VICTOR, NOT A VICTIM!