When I decided to make contact with the Personal Trainers at Melbourne City's juggernaut Personal Trainers my weight had drifted out to an all time high and whilst I was getting to the Eureka Tower gym it did not seem to be doing a lot of good.
I signed on form my first session with Gary in May. It is a perverse thing that you can think of some one as such a nice guy when most of the time you are with them you are busting your arse.
My primary goal in doing the Eureka Tower Based Personal Training sessions shifted from weight loss to trying to continue the improvement in my fitness. To be honest I can not believe the extent to which my fitness has improved and the amount of work that I am now enjoying doing. I had thought that at 47 this kind of work was beyond me.
When my steady weight loss stalled Gary introduced Cara (juggernautPT Dietitian) who helped with a bunch of thoughts on diet that were new and challenging and a bunch of stuff I knew but needed further encouragement to implement, Cara's empathy is compelling and there was no expectation of existence as a monk so I was back on track with continued weight loss, I have shed 14 kilo's and new goals have been set, again at levels I previously thought beyond me.
Gary seems to have a real "sense" with his training. The variety and motivation are fantastic. He balances getting you to work with having "fun" and there is a huge sense of achievement from his sessions.
I feel I am on track to realize some of the fantasies that I have held for the last decade or more of getting back in shape. You never know I may eventually conquer the "grunt"!
Mark Hopkinson
Marks Latest Update - Next Goal Please!
This years Melbourne half marathon was my third consecutive run over the distance at this time of year. It was my first with the support of the juggernautPT team.
So what did I do differently…..I asked for the juggernaut Personal Training teams' help in preparing for the run, but without making the run our sole focus. In truth I did less road running in preparation than I have done in either of my prior two preparations. I basically took it to the streets once a week and this was complimented by Gary and Cara working on strength and flexibility in our sessions and Gary setting me a tread mill session each week. I was fortunate that Serena Williams* got involved in some of these sessions as well.
On race day instead of standing around worrying about how I would get me around the 21 km I did a warm up and stretch session with the juggernautPT zealots at Alexandra Gardens near the Melbourne CBD. I was pretty pumped on race day and a little concerned about going out too hard and blowing up. Gary who is normally pumping me up was great settling me down and providing some simple advise about monitoring how I was progressing as the run progressed.
I thought things were different as I started and instead of creaking away at the start and feeling stiff across the first couple of km I was moving comparatively freely and feeling “good”. At 12 km I was getting a better response than I imagined as I tried to follow Gary’s advice and assess how my body was holding up. I thought I was good to push a little harder. At 15 km I thought I was on target to beat my goal by a fair bit but thought I must be miscalculating. At 16 km my calculations were confirmed. In prior years at this point I was hurting and it was an effort to keep going, this year I felt strong and was moving up through the field. To be honest it was bit of an outer body experience over the last 5 km as I brought it home stronger than I had imagined I could.
In the end I did this half marathon ten minutes faster than my prior two attempts and my second half was four minutes faster than my first. Whilst my time, at 1 hour 58 minutes, is far from world beating I was rapted.
The most significant aspect of this run with juggernautPTs' support is that a week later I have my 47 year old legs back on the road. Last year I was still trying to walk properly at this stage.
Get on board and they'll be happy to introduce you to Serena* as well.
* juggernautPT Note - Surprising as it may be we do not actually know Serena Williams personally, Mark is referring to his favourite audio workout he uses at times on his runs which if you are interested in purchasing we will happily arrange for you.
When we do get to meet Serena in person we will be sure to let you know :)
Gary
Update 2009 - March the Month of Mark's 2 Week Freak!
In March we gave Mark the opportunity to truly jump to the next level in fitness, fatloss, strength & health, it was an opportuinty he had earned with hard work. Since he joined us he has truly turned his health around dropping his weight from over 113kilos to 93, not to mention the positive changes in mobility, blood pressure, cholestorol & reduction in biological age!
Despite him now having a solid build & being able to outrun people half his age he still had a belly that he wanted off so I presented him with a challenge my '2 Week Freak' a Personal Training program I designed to peak clients on an individual basis, similar to how an elite athlete will peak their performance levels for a major event.
Marks primary focus during the 14 days was to drop his weight below his 90kilo marker & beat his belly down. He was told that or 2 weeks he would be owned by the juggernautPT training team of Cara & I, he would workout when we say, eat when, what & how much we said, sleep when we said & as a result he would get the results we said GUARANTEED!
Weight below that 90 kilo barrier, belly blasted off for Good, Strength, Endurance, Flexibility, Energy Levels & Capabilities boosted through the roof all after just 14 days....
So what were the core ingredients for his success?
- Self Honesty on his Starting Point
- Faith in himself, his potential & his allies
- Realisation who it is for
- A Determination to Succeed
- Discipline to see it through
- Support, Tools & Knowledge to bring it all together & make it work
In Marks words;
" Two truths:
After Christmas I had stalled or faltered in progressing my weight loss
I was feeling a little unloved by the JuggernautPT team, where was my special treatment as a loyal client?
Trouble was Gary and Cara worked these truths out before I did. Next thing I knew, but after plenty of warning, I was enlisted in their Personal Training FREAK OUT FORTNIGHT and getting way too much attention!
For me this was an intense program that required much more of me than I had imagined;
Strict Nutritional Plan
Work out two times a day
High level of focus & Intensity in workouts
I did have a break through with weight loss but the really meaningful gains were an amazing elevation in how strong and fit I feel now and a smashing of my preconceptions of what I was capable of doing by way of work volume. To be honest I am a little in awe of the work I did, I do wish I had been a bit tougher once or twice with the dietary aspects but overall feel like I have really stepped up a level. Also I have learnt a bunch about diet and my capacity that I can carry into my ongoing training. You may wonder if you can work out twice a day fourteen days straight, but there is heaps of support provided so this is not the hardest piece from my experience.
WARNING: Do not go near this programme unless you are really serious about breaking through and you are ready to scare and amaze yourself. Also make sure you plan your calendar so you have two clear weeks in your diary and a week to readjust following."
So what in cold hard figures did Mark Achieve after just 2 weeks?
3 - the amount of additional burpees/grunts he could perform in 2 minutes bringing his total to 35
3 - is also the number of seconds he dropped off his 1km timed run
4 - the kilos of fat he lost as he 'Freaked' his gut away
6 - the number of centimetres he lost off his Hips
12 - the number of centimetres he did shed off his belly
15 - the number of years YOUNGER he looked just 2/3rds of the way through the program
17 - the amount of extra Pushups he could complete in just 2 minutes bringing his total to 87
Unlimited - his new perception of his potential after the program
Melbourne are you ready to invest in yourself as an individual & start seeing & feeling your potential ability to take it to the next level quickly & efficiently, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and ask how you too can change your body & life in just 2 weeks in our Personal Training Program!
P.S Why the 'Freak' in the title? Because for 2 weeks you will train, eat & live like a Freak (at least people may say that) but they will also truly Freak out at the results you will achieve!!
