The system works, if you work the system!

This week I am proud to have a guest post from one of my students.  I met Wendy a little over 8 months ago, and I have the privilege of being her TFW coach.  Below is a testimonial that she wrote about her experience with the TFW system, and a picture from before TFW and 8 months after starting TFW.  I hope you enjoy reading her story.

     "Last year, I decided I was tired of feeling sluggish all the time. At age 44, I couldn't stand the thought of feeling that way for years to come. As a work-from-home, homeschooling mom of 3 children—one of whom has severe autism and another who has a milder form of ASD—I felt like I just didn’t have time to work out even though I knew I needed to. And to be honest, I just felt like I had so little energy that I wasn’t sure I’d even be able to do it!

     I had made the effort to cut down on junk food and sugar, and I was taking supplements and trying to get enough sleep, but I still felt tired most of the time. I didn’t know what else to do except go ahead and try getting some exercise whether I felt like I had the energy to do it or not.

     I saw Chuck one day at the store and asked him about his gym. He told me about his gym and Training for Warriors, and I decided to make time to try it out. I went a few times and decided to commit to going 4 days a week. I couldn't believe how much better I felt just a few months later!

     It's been about 8 months now, and I've lost almost 20 lbs and gone down from size 10 jeans to size 6 (the size I wore before I had children). I'm at a much better weight for my height and build, I feel much more energetic, I wake up ready to get out of bed and get going in the mornings, and I look forward to going to the gym! I was also able to slowly cut down on my prescription medicines for depression/anxiety and sleep. (I did this with my doctor's supervision.) I don't take them at all now.

     I have never been someone who enjoyed any kind of exercise, so it’s amazing to me how much I actually enjoy TFW. And it’s even more amazing how much TFW has changed my health and the way I feel and function every day. I can honestly say that TFW has changed my life—and it has been a great change! I’m thankful to Chuck for being such a great coach/trainer and to TFW for helping me change my life!"

Wendy Hilton 

TFW Student

Age 44

I hope you enjoyed reading Wendy's story as much as I did.  We have new 8 week classes starting Monday, January 11th.  We will be offering a 9 AM, 12 PM, and 6:30 PM class.   These 8 Week Warrior Transformation classes are a great way to introduce you to the TFW system, and to get you started on your journey to writing your own transformation story.

The system works, if you work the system!

Hope to see you in my Dojo soon!

Chuck

Football--not just another sport

I love this time of the year for many reasons, like family time, food and, of course, football. I don't know about you, but I watch football almost non-stop, just ask my wife. In the South, no matter your age or gender, college football is the sport that everyone loves.  I love it too, but I also love professional football. While I was watching all the college and pro football games this season, I realized how much you can learn from the sport to help in training and overall health. So here are five ways we can learn from football:

1.            Kickoff. The first thing that happens in the game is the kickoff, and what team gets the ball first is determined by the coin toss. This is a perfect reflection of training and a healthy lifestyle, you have to start somewhere if you haven't been doing it already. This is the most important step, and probably the hardest, because it's not easy to get started. The team who wins the coin toss gets to choose if they receive or kickoff.  With so many choices in diet and exercise, it’s important to choose wisely in this area, like the strategy of a team choosing to receive or to kickoff. Whatever you choose, the kickoff has to happen to get the game started and to start moving towards better health.

2.            Huddle. One thing I love about football, that is different than other sports, is the planning that goes into every play. Other sports, like soccer for example, there is strategy, but it's a lot of reaction instead of specific plays like football. Each person has an assignment on each particular play, and the huddle is the place for the quarterback to tell everyone the plan. If you don't have a plan in football you won't be successful, and if you don't have a plan in training or eating well you will fail. Just like coaches have different philosophies, so too, there are different philosophies in training and eating. Choosing the right one will determine whether you succeed or fail. Choose wisely.

3.            Referee. There are so many rules, actually too many rules in football, so the referee is the one that makes sure both teams are playing fairly and following the rules. Sometimes, the refs are terrible, but I’ll save that for another post. The ref in training is the person, or people, who help make sure you are following a solid plan. It could be a trainer or a coach that can give you feedback to make sure you are doing things the right way, and not training incorrectly which could lead to injury or maybe getting no results at all. Just like refs are essential to football, someone in your life to guide you is essential to being healthier.

4.            Quarters. There are four quarters in a game and inside those four quarters are so many ups and downs, successes and failures. These four quarters are a perfect picture of how living a healthy lifestyle can have many ups and downs. After the kickoff of being healthy, you come out on fire and you can't be stopped. You're training the right amount, you’re diet and amount of sleep are perfect, and the touchdowns (results) come easy. Then something happens and you get a little relaxed and start eating a little bit more unhealthy food. Maybe skip a day or two of training and you start to get down. This is where the good teams fight through the hard times, and get it together and where successful people keep fighting to be healthy. The team, or person, that gives up will certainly fail. Keep fighting all four quarters.

5.            Team. Other than kickoff, this might be the most important thing. Obviously if you don't have a team, you don't have a game.  In football, there are good teams and there are bad teams. In trying to lead a healthy lifestyle, you need to be on a good team if you want to succeed. Just think in football about the most successful teams and the characteristics they have. They care as much, or more, for their teammates than themselves, they are helpful, they are hard workers, etc. These are just a few characteristics, but I think these are necessary to lead a healthy lifestyle. So many times we are discouraged by others and give up. If you surround yourself with good teammates you will have a far better chance to succeed, and you can share in the victories with others. Find good people who want to be healthy too, and surround yourself with them.

These five points are what I love about Training for Warriors. There is a program to help kickoff your training and healthy lifestyle in our 8 week warrior challenge class, or in personal training sessions. There is a plan that sets you up for success, and coaches to help make sure you follow the program for success. There is a team of people that love to see you succeed, and will be there to help you in those four quarters, through all of your ups and downs in health and everyday life.  

We’ve got a new 8 week warrior challenge that will start January 11^th.  I also have some spots open for personal training if you are interested in more of a one-on-one approach.  You’ve just received the ball, and now it’s your choice to either run with it or to take a knee.  I hope you choose to join us and take that first step towards improving your health and fitness in the new year. 

Hope to see you in my Dojo soon!

Chuck