My fitness journey began over 20 years ago.  It had mostly consisted of lifting weights with minimal cardio, and eating habits that resembled a roller coaster.  After recently celebrating my 38th birthday, I decided to put my health and fitness at the forefront of my life. I was tired of sporadic workouts, low levels of energy that made me lazy and average.  It was time for me to LIVE MY BEST LIFE!

Realizing now is the time to untap my full potential I joined Life Time Tempe a few months ago and began training sessions with personal trainer Brad Wein.  When I sat down with Brad at my initial onboarding session he told me about the 60 Day Challenge.  I felt this was the perfect opportunity for something to hold me accountable to achieve maximum results.  Seeing my “before” pics the day of the weigh-in provided me the motivation and desire necessary to compete with a high level of intensity.  I knew I had to take control of my own fitness destiny at this point.  My goal was to not only gain a six-pack, but more importantly to become healthier and develop workout/eating habits that I could maintain long term to lead a more fulfilling life.

I started my 60 Day journey by completing a Metabolic Assessment which proved to be vital towards my weight loss goals.  After finding out my resting and active heart rate to pinpoint my actual Fat Burning Zone, Brad tailored a cardio plan specific to me and my goals, which I have followed to a T.  Meeting with Life Time Tempe nutrition expert Nate Moses was my next step.  He put together a detailed eating plan (I do not like the word diet) that was crucial to my dramatic change in physique.  Nate emphasized how portion control and eating smaller meals more often throughout the day is key to gaining the lean muscle I had desired for years.  I took my eating habits very seriously by only eating two cheat meals (Thanksgiving and Christmas) coupled with zero alcoholic beverages over the entire 60 day period.  This was a gratifying achievement given my past non-disciplined lifestyle.  After four weeks I was down 20lbs through hard work in the weight room, cardio machines, and most importantly the kitchen.  At my official weigh-out I have lost approximately 23lbs, am the strongest pound for pound I have EVER been, and have felt my overall health reach a peak it has not seen in years.

During this process I realized that my training methods for the last several years were flawed.  Brad assisted and guided me to improve those techniques and I seen results instantaneously.  He instilled a mind over matter approach and mental toughness to complete workouts I previously did not think possible.  The three major tips I learned from Brad are:

1) Precision over quantity.  “I want you do do 10 sets of 1, and not 1 set of 10.”

2) Train abs before every workout.  “Your body is a wheel and your core is the spokes of the wheel.”

3) Exhaust a body part before moving on to the next one.

This is an individual award, but it truly was a team effort.  I want to sincerely thank my amazing Life Time Tempe duo: Brad Wein and Nate Moses, without you two this would not have been possible.  Even if I do not win this contest, in my mind I am already the champion because of my new physique and healthy lifestyle.  This has given me an extra boost of confidence in other areas outside of the gym as well.

This is not the ending to my fitness journey, it is just the beginning!!!!