On a Sunday afternoon in May of 2011 I was playing in the pool with my two children. My wife came outside and very nicely said that she needed to talk to me. She asked me not to get mad or take the comments she was about to make the wrong way. I agreed to listen and have an open mind. In a nice way she told me what I already knew. I had gotten fat and had developed a spare tire around my waist. “This is the worse kind of fat for a man to have because it can lead to a heart attack,” she said. She then asked me what I had been eating and I said I eat pretty well. She pressed a little harder and when I listed my previous couple of day’s meals it was clear, I had a problem. My diet was bad, my stress levels at work were high, and my self esteem was low. I decided that day to change my life.

 I was enrolled in a mega gym but as you can probably tell I wasn’t getting any results. I thought about a personal trainer, too expensive. I thought about spin classes or morning boot camps, the times that they offered didn’t work in my schedule. I really felt like I needed something different. I had worked out for years and had gotten into a routine. I would do the same exercises in the same order and was putting little or no effort into these boring work outs.  Then one afternoon at work a co worker told me about crossfit. He said his brother in law was doing it and seeing awesome results. He explained it briefly and told me about Real Fitness. It sounded exciting and something I would really like to try. At lunch I drove over to see what this Crossfit was about. I went at lunch and met the owner, TJ. He was really nice, informative, and welcoming. He said that I could try it for 7 days free. If I liked it and they liked me I could join. I thought that was really an interesting approach. No pressure to join, I had to be accepted, and if I liked it then I could join. I also looked around and noticed no machines, no cardio equipment, but lots of pull up bars. What had I gotten myself into? He told me to comeback tomorrow and told me the schedule. Classes start every hour on the hour from 5 am until 7 pm. I could come at lunch and be back to work in the hour. That was very convenient. I could come whenever I wanted I didn’t have to be locked into one time that was also perfect for my busy and ever changing schedule.  He also asked me about my fitness level and exercise background. NO ONE had ever done that at in all the years or any gym I has ever been a member of, I like this already. They actually seemed to care about me as a person.

 I went back the next day and did my first WOD. (Workout of the Day) I was blown away by a few things right away. The coaches were in awesome shape. They walked the walk not just talked the talk, not like I had seen at so many mega gyms. They were very patient and encouraging. They took the time to work with me and explain the exercises we were going to do. Then corrected me in a nice way, they never made me feel stupid because I didn’t know the move.  Another thing that really jumped out at me was the way the other people doing the WOD with me helped me and encouraged me.  They were so friendly and I thought that many of them must be employees. Their examples made me feel like I could do this CrossFit thing.

 I started researching crossfit at night. I began looking at crossfit.com to watch the demo videos of the exercises. This was a big help and I would prepare for the next days WOD the by learning the movement. I could tell I was hooked. I had become obsessed with crossfit. I have learned about the revolution that is happening in fitness and want to be a part of it.

 Many people said to me in that first week it must be expensive to join Real Fitness.  I guess that is all relative. I consider the price to be reasonable based on the results and the level of service I have received. I considered a personal trainer and that would have been much more expensive. I also know what I paid at the mega gym. I got little or no results there so what was the return on that investment? I consider what we pay at Real Fitness to be a great value vs. results and services provided. Here is why:

In ten weeks I lost 35 pounds. I have gone from a 36 in waist to a 33 in waist. I have abs again. Not just an ab. I can run 800 meters in 3:50. (Consider I couldn’t run it at all ten weeks prior) I feel great and my wife is delighted with the change. She should probably write a testimonial as well because she is happier about it than me. She also told me to report that my body has changed. I took steroids in my late teens and early twenties. I had gotten bulky and thick from the use of these drugs. My body looks more like it did before I experimented. I am leaner and my muscles look longer.  My stress level is down, I am more productive at work, and life in general is much better.

 Real Fitness goes above and beyond in customer experience. They have appreciation parties and are involved with charitable organizations. The lifestyle is about more than just working out. It is about being involved in the community and making a difference.

 Thanks again to Real Fitness Naples and CrossFit.