As a personal trainer and group coach I have found it difficult at times to get women to lift heavy. Getting stronger with strength training, doesn’t mean only physical improvements. My strength program will help with those mental gains as well.
There is a common fear some women have of getting too big or bulky. One of my clients admitted this was a fear she has had and was holding her back from joining. Once I explained to her how hard it is to put on size, that it takes months, if not years, to gain significant muscle mass, so that it won’t be an issue in our six week class, she was up to the challenge.
Lifting heavy weight has, among others, one really good side effect (that most of us could use) – increased core strength.
It’s really hard to squat, deadlift, or strict press with a weak core. Your form will break down and could lead to injury. Weak core? No worries, that is why I am here. Coaching you to gain strength and prevent injury.
Previously, I gave you an overview of how much stronger my clients were after just six weeks of a dedicated strength training class. Today I am going to provide some more context to those results. I’ll share with you some quotes from the clients themselves so you can see for yourself that this program works and makes people happy.
Like I stated before, everyone in this program had some experience weight training and had been in the gym since lock down ended. We had a variety of ages, up to age 59. That’s just a testament to what being physically fit can do for you. If you don’t think lifting at that age is important, consider this, strength is one of the leading factors in staying out of a long term care facility. I don’t know about you but I want to live a long and independent life. Being strong helps you stay that way.
#belikejoe
One thing that some people are afraid of when it comes to strength training is getting hurt. Joe had that same concern.
At 59 years of age, he has already had one back injury while deadlifting so he did have some concerns about re-injuring his back. So how did Joe do lifting heavy three days a week for six weeks? Here is what he has to say. “ I never thought that I could back squat or deadlift as much as I did. I have always been a little nervous about the deadlift because I’ve tweaked my back doing that movement, but your coaching helped to give me the confidence to exceed my previous PR by 50#”.
I would say that’s a pretty big deal. And not only did he improve his PRs on all three lifts, but his performance in our group classes has improved as well. He’s now able to lift heavier weights which allows him to push himself even further. Way to go Joe. If you follow us on social media, then you have seen Joe numerous times. #belikejoe
Lucas
Lucas was our youngest member of the class but he was also the biggest sponge in the class.
He always had good questions and was purely focused on his form, technique, and injury prevention. He set all time PRs and gained 5lbs of lean muscle after following my nutrition advice. Now he has the knowledge and base of strength to continue his weight training adventure at CU. I visualize other college students coming to him for advice because he is lifting so much better and looks so much better than they do.
Other than Joe and his son, Lucas, I am excited to tell you that all of the other participants were women!
Amber
Amber was my quiet assassin during the strength class.
She worked out in the back corner and nonchalantly crushed her PRs and expectations. She learned a lot about herself and her strength and what it means to push herself beyond what she had imagined. I’m excited to see what she does in the next cycle because I already know she wants to continue her strength gains!
Liz
One of my clients, Liz, had previous experience with powerlifting but had been dealing with a back issue before the class. This is what she had to say afterwards “during the six weeks I was not only able to get my back to stop bothering me as much, but I also increased my one-rep max pretty significantly on all my lifts (approximately 45 lbs on the squat and 25 lbs on deadlift) and even hit an all time bench press PR, which has always been the lift I’ve struggled the most with.”
How awesome is that??!! Liz loved how much stronger she felt after the strength training program so much that she stayed on as a personal training client until the next class rolls around. Mindy and Adrienne decided to join her as well, whom I’ll cover next.
Mindy
Mindy was excited when she heard that I was going to be holding a strength based class but she was also nervous.
She was the second oldest in class, I will NOT disclose her age, and she is a very busy real estate professional. She came in and worked hard every class and her results showed it. When asked about the class this is what she had to say, “I had no idea I would end up pushing my own limits and set personal records in ALL the lifts. I have always “played it safe” with lifting weights. I never wanted to get hurt or get too bulky!” It was a fear. But now her mindset towards weight training has changed and she too has continued on with personal training with me until the next class.
Adrienne
The last person I am going to talk about is Adrienne. She is my little diamond in the rough. To be completely honest, I wish she could see herself through my and Coach Patrick’s eyes. Adrienne is incredibly strong.
I took great pride in working with her not just because of her amazing increases in her lifts, but because she was my nutrition client as well and we got to see what proper nutrition and weight training can do, even in a short period of time. After six weeks, not only did Adrienne crush her deadlift and squat numbers but she also crushed it on the Inbody scan.
She lost three pounds, lost 4% body fat and gained 3lbs of muscle in just six weeks!
Here is what she had to say about the class. “Jason’s style of coaching, specifically how he pushes us to do our best and get out of our comfort zone… while accounting for our limitations (like I can’t do a push up right now). He made me feel capable and left room for independence in the workouts, so we could move at our own speed. I am extremely proud of my PRs and the growth I see over the last few weeks. It has made me reevaluate my strength. Being able to hit big numbers was energizing in a way I hadn’t felt before. It gave me confidence in and out of the gym.”
Get Stronger, not just physically, with our Strength Training Program
Again, I am so proud of the work these individuals put in over the six weeks. They all worked hard, listened to instruction, and allowed me to push them further than they thought they could go. To me as a coach, that is the greatest compliment I can receive.
Allowing someone to push you beyond your comfort zone means that you have trust in them and that is what I strive for. If getting stronger is something you’re interested in, then please come see us and get signed up before the class is full. I already know of three women that will be the first to sign up. With only 6 spots for each time slot, they will go fast! We start October 12th.