Fit For Life: What’s in Your Toolbox?

Sunday, June 05, 2016

Matt Espeut, GoLocalWorcester Health +Lifestyle Contributor

“If you can’t get results working with me, you won’t get results anywhere.” That’s my new tagline. Taglines help to tell people why your company or store or product is different – what sets you apart – what makes you unique – and why people should “go” with you. I picked this one for me because it exudes confidence – something we should all have in our line of work – but it also is TRUE – and many taglines are not. I believe in truth in advertising – truth in what I write to you here each week. So, let me show by example what I mean – and then let me ask you – what would be YOUR tagline, your slogan – as a person committed to your own success – success at life, at health, and at looking and feeling great?

I first remember saying that line to a client when he jokingly told me if I picked on him during his first workout after a week of absence from the gym, that he’d join another place. I thought about that for a minute – sure, there are other places out there - shiny nice new facilities with discount prices to lure you in – yes, there are plenty of those – but what makes me different – and so confident in what I offer – what is really needed to assure someone of their success?

Blueprint.

At most facilities, you’ll get a general workout plan with a card and checkmarks to make as many gyms do; unless you go even further and hire a personal trainer, you won’t get that customized for you. What do I offer? I draw you a blueprint to your health and fitness success. A blueprint that assures you of not failing, if you follow it, and it’s customized. Other facilities may offer shiny new big pieces of equipment, but it's like having a tool box full of the best tools money can buy sitting next to your broken car, and someone telling you to "go fix what's wrong". Most people, (including myself) would be confused and clueless about what to do. But if you were given directions, and had someone standing over your shoulder directing you every step of the way, you would most likely get it fixed. So, that’s another thing that makes me, and my program different, and it’s why we’re so successful at getting people the results they came here for. I walk you through every step of the way.

Mindset.

When you first come to an orientation, I try to program your mind. I tell you that it won't come easy, and it won't come unless you make it a priority in your life and are willing to put in the hard work. I don't lie, make false promises, or sugar coat things (pun intended). You can't be here because it looks fun, or someone told you you look like you gained a few pounds. You truly need to be here because you want to better your health and fitness. You need to want it and be willing to make the sacrifices to get it. I show you proof that I have helped hundreds of people achieve their goals, and if you adopt the right mindset, you can do it too.

The Nutrition Part.

It doesn't matter how hard you exercise, without a good nutrition plan, your results will come much slower or not at all. Regardless of what your goal is, without the right fuel, your plane is grounded. I will never say it's a waste of time to work out without eating correctly, because movement is always good and beneficial, but you need to implement the full program to be efficient and successful in achieving your goals. We not only supply you with a sensible whole food nutrition plan, we explain how to implement it into your routine and follow up with you regularly to make sure you are on track. You get everything spelled out for you, so you can't fail unless you lack the discipline to follow the plan.

The Workouts.

Every day we develop a new functional movement based workout to get every muscle in your body working. Not only that, we coach you through your workout, and make sure you are working with proper form, technique, and enough intensity to make a difference. No, we don't have a bunch of electronic devices that you can watch TV on while you are supposed to be sweating and paying attention to what your body is doing, we just have the stuff needed to get great results, and have fun while doing it.

If you have interest in health and fitness, understand that it takes more than just "joining a gym" to get great results and succeed at achieving your goal. You need the right mindset, nutrition plan, and exercise design, more than you need 150 different types of equipment. You also need to know that when you walk through the doors, you will not only get a customized blueprint and instructions on how to accomplish all three, but you’ll know that we stay with you through the whole process and remove all the guess work, so you stay focused, and gain confidence that "you will achieve your goals".

Let me ask you again – if you had a tagline for your success, what would it be? Think about it, really think about it. And be as confident as I am when I tell you mine: "if you can't get results working with me, you won't get results anywhere"!

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitnesss consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one!

Related Slideshow: The 7 Best Health and Fitness Apps

Here is a list of some of the most obsession worthy health apps.

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MapMyRun

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Made for iPhone, Android and Blackberry

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MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal seems to be the clear favorite amongst everyone polled. It is helpful not only for the fitness tracking aspect, but everyone polled mentioned how much they loved the food/diet aspect as well. From carb counting for diabetics to recipe ideas to complement your fitness goals, users love this app.

Made for iPhone and Android

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JeFit

JeFit is another fitness app that has rave reviews. It not only tracks progress for you, but offers a huge database of workouts. While many apps offer community support, JeFit allows you to sync workouts with friends who use the app, offering a (real) virtual buddy system.

Made for iPhone and Android

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Strava

Strava gets the highest mark of all the cycling apps. While it is also great for runners, the cyclers seem particularly inclined towards the fierce competition that can be ignited by this app. You can track all of your rides via GPS, then you can compare your efforts to those logged by others in the community on the same stretch of road. You can also join ongoing challenges that can net you great prizes (in addition to bragging rights).

Made for iPhone and Android

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YogaStudio

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Made for iPhone only

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SimplyBeing

SimplyBeing meditation app offers the best of both worlds. You can choose to run this app as a background for your meditation with soothing music or natural sounds that run for a set amount of time. Conversely, for those of you who have trouble focusing during meditation, you can choose a soothing voice-guided meditation.

Made for iPhone and Android

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Fooducate

Fooducate is an app all about educating people so that they make healthier food choices. Although not perfect, this app is easy to use (you can even take pictures of bar codes to instantly find foods in their database). It gives food a letter grade, tells you the pluses and minuses, and gives you better ranked alternatives. You can also use it as a weight loss tool by tracking your daily calories.

Made for iPhone and Android