FT Norwell Client Of The Month: Ed O’Brien

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First assessment 11/30/12:

• Body Fat % 33
• Weight 192
• Waist 42″
• Hips 43″

After 6 weeks, Assessment #2 1/16/13″

• Body Fat % 26
• Weight 172
• Waist 37″
• Hips 39″

Twenty-pounds. That can seem like a daunting amount of weight to lose. For some of us, losing twenty pounds only gets us part of the way to our goal, and that’s enough to keep us from getting started at all.
Ed O’Brien, 60, came to Fitness together this past November. You remember November, right? It was the beginning of that season when you surrendered completely to your cravings and bad habits and, come January, emerged from your post-holiday food frenzy suspecting someone had been tampering with your scale, because you couldn’t possibly have gained that much weight in, wow, only a month and a half? Well, that’s not what Ed O’Brien has been doing. While you (and I) were polishing off the cookie tray and the last of the eggnog, Ed was getting busy at Fitness Together in Norwell.
Says trainer Joe Caruso, “Ed came to FT with the desire and discipline that all trainers love to see in a client. He was easy to motivate and was a sponge when it came to learning new nutritional concepts and strength training techniques. The staff at FT is very proud of Ed’s results and the amazing time frame in which they were achieved.”
In his own words, here’s how FT Norwell’s Client of the Month dropped nearly 20 pounds and redefined his approach to fitness in less than a month and a half.
“I have always had issues with my weight and fitness. When I was younger I was able to summon the willpower to lose the excess weight and get into shape without third party help. However, as I’ve gotten older and become more of a couch-potato, I found it more difficult to continually harness the required willpower. Luckily, I happened to watch a TV commercial for Fitness Together and decided to follow through. A check of their website led to an introductory lesson at the Norwell Studio. I’m glad I did!
After discussing my goals and assessing my fitness, the trainers at FT, Joe, Mike, and Alicia, developed a program of cardio and strength exercises, which have, after only 8 weeks, brought me to a point I didn’t think I’d see again! I’ve lost 20 pounds, shown vast improvement in cardio endurance, and put my body in a shape it hasn’t been in 20 years!
Joe, Mike, and Alicia have been the willpower drivers, the conscience that sparked my ability to not only consistently train with them, but to also workout on my own. After discussing my nutritional intake with Joe, I was also able to institute a healthy diet plan, which is bringing my weight back down to its proper level. Has it been easy? No. Has it been hard work? Yes. Has it been worth it? Definitely!

FT Norwell

To find an FT Studio near you, go to FTGetsResults

Ed’s Trainers at FT Norwell

Joe Caruso Manager FT Norwell
Joe is a Certified Personal Trainer by the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength Conditioning Association. He has a degree in Exercise Physiology from UMASS Boston and is CPR and AED certified. This is Joe’s 7th year with Fitness Together.

Joe has been involved in personal training for nearly a decade and brings his own training experiences into his program design. His passion is strength conditioning for athletes. He has a deep knowledge of nutrition and cardiovascular training and enjoys coaching his clients in all the aspects of fitness.

Mike Eaton Certified Personal Trainer

Mike is certified as a personal trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine and is also a Certified CrossFit Level 1 Trainer (CF-L1).
Staying active and fit has always been an important part of Mike’s life. He was a three sport athlete at Plymouth South High School, playing varsity soccer, basketball, and track & field, and was the former school record holder for the long jump as well as the 4x100m relay team. He took soccer to the collegiate level and was a four-year starter and captain of his team during his senior year at Endicott College, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design.

Through his experience as an athlete, Mike has learned the importance of proper strengthening and conditioning for long-term fitness. He integrates these concepts into his workouts and tailors his training to meet the specific health and fitness goals of each individual client. When Mike is not training, he enjoys golfing, snowboarding, and playing with his black lab, Chloe.

Alicia Tasney Certified Personal Trainer
Alicia Tasney first came to Fitness Together Norwell in April of 2008. Her interest in athletics began at a young age with gymnastics and she continued to hone her tumbling skills into her young adult life, becoming a gymnastics instructor along the way.

Alicia played Varsity basketball, lacrosse and competed in Track and Field for Quincy Vocational High School. While there she also became certified in Rehabilitation Science and served as the assistant coach for the girls’ varsity lacrosse team.

Alicia is certified in CPR, First Aid basics and A.E.D. Her favorite thing about training is helping people do things they never thought they could. “I have a client who could barely do half of a squat and couldn’t sit without using her hands. After 4 months training with me, she’s down 30 lbs and she climbed Mt. Washington for the first time this summer!”

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FT Westborough Trainer Jonathan Tuttle says: “I’ve been there, down the very same road as many of our clients have been. I dropped from a size 40” to a size 32”. It was hard! I decided to help guide people along the same path I’ve been down with the knowledge I’ve accumulated over the years. For me, it’s very rewarding to see the transformation happen from week to week, and watch a client’s mood brighten up as the quality of their life improves.”

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You can Ignite Your Inferno at:
FT Westborough
FT Dedham
FT Cohasset
FT Norwell

There are more participating through Eastern New England, check out FTGetsResults.com
Please note, while all FT Studios will give you a free fitness assessment, not all FT Studios are participating in this special deal.

And to help you ignite your weight loss, and rewiring your brain for permanent fitness, check out our recent article, This Is Your Brain On Fitness

Kristin Joyce: A Losing Summer

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Another Great Jeans Challenge Success Story
by Martha Hicks Leta

When Kristin Joyce, 20, returned home to Hanover for summer vacation from High Point University in North Carolina, she had goals in mind: not only to lose weight and get back into shape, but to rediscover the happy, active person she was in high school. When she heard about Fitness Together’s Great Jeans Challenge, she knew it was exactly what she needed to help her reach her goals.

She sat down with us last week to tell us why:

I chose the Great Jeans Challenge at Fitness Together in Norwell for multiple reasons. This summer I made it one of my goals to get back into shape and lose weight but I knew I needed some extra motivation to do so and the GJC did just that. It offered the motivation not only from the trainers at FT but also the $100 gift card to shop for new clothes (after dropping two sizes.) I thought that would be a perfect way to begin my back to school shopping!

One of my biggest goals was not only to get back into shape and lose weight, but to become a happier healthier me. Back in high school I played field hockey and danced 3-4 nights a week and I couldn’t have been happier with myself. After going to college, these activities stopped and my body definitely took notice. I took it upon myself this summer to become the healthy active person I was back in high school.

Before coming to Fitness Together, the gym was always an intimidating place for me. I never really knew what to do there, so I never truly got in a good workout. Now I know and understand the importance of weight training, cardio, and a healthy eating is when it comes to losing weight.

I’d say the biggest challenge for me was not the Pack sessions or adding more cardio to my daily routine, but changing my eating habits to be sure I wasn’t countering the hard work I was putting in at FT with too many calories. The nutrition session with trainer Joe Caruso was extremely helpful and definitely added to my success at FT.

After the challenge I lost 3 inches, 2 jean sizes (from size 8 to 4) and a total of 13 pounds!

I think the constant support from the trainers at FT truly helped me reach my goals. Each and every session they are there for you 100% and just want to see you succeed.

After the challenge I didn’t just lose 13 lbs and 2 jean sizes, I gained a whole bunch of confidence that I didn’t have before. I feel more like the girl I was two years ago, and I couldn’t be any happier. I’m a new me who makes exercise and healthy living a major priority. FT helped me reach my goals and has motivated me to never go back to where I was before I started.

I would most definitely recommend Fitness Together to friends! It was an overall great experience this summer. I was really happy with it, (I even signed up for more sessions after the GJC was over!) and I know my friends would love it if they gave it at shot as well.

More Success Stories from FTGetsResults

Kristin trained at FTNorwell

To find an FT Studio near you, check out FTGetsResults.com

Letica Costa: Another Great Jeans Challenge Success

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by Martha Hicks Leta

One of the biggest fitness challenges women often face is getting back in shape after pregnancy and childbirth. A lot of us imagine that our bodies will magically spring back into shape once our precious cargo has been offloaded. Some of us may even be so delusional as to pack along pre-pregnancy jeans as we head off to the hospital. I can tell you from personal experience what a crushing disappointment it is to leave in the same maternity jeans in which you arrived.

Sizing in at a tiny size 0 prior to her pregnancy, Leticia Costa had an enviably slender frame. Even her post-pregnancy size 6 might garner a sneer or two from women bouncing toddlers on their cushiony hips. Nevertheless, when Costa, age 27, heard about the Great Jeans challenge after having her baby, she knew the disciplined workouts and nutritional counseling would be the thing to get her back on track in a hurry.

“I have always enjoyed working out, but after I had my baby I decided I wanted to try something different since my body wasn’t the same. My goals were to drop 2 pants sizes. I figured a size 2 was reasonable. I also wanted muscle tone specially on my legs, butt and stomach.”

Leticia trained with all three FT Norwell trainers, Joe Caruso, Mike Eaton and Alicia Tasney and says the sessions were a far cry from the workouts she was used to. “My old work out routine consisted of 90% cardio, 7% legs and 3% socializing at the gym! My trainers pushed me each session and also gave me good dieting tips.”

All three trainers were impressed by Leticia’s discipline, particularly in following her nutritional program. “Due to her amazing diet and total commitment to her workouts, she totally changed her body composition,” says FT Norwell manager and trainer, Joe Caruso.

Tasney agrees. “She really didn’t have much weight to lose. It was more about getting her muscle and skin tone back.” Leticia’s 1200-calorie diet plan featured a disciplined balance of high quality nutrition. “She really stuck with it and it paid off.”

During the course of the Great Jeans Challenge, Leticia lost five pounds, 5% of her body fat and dropped from a size 6 to a size 2.

“I felt accomplished and I feel a lot better about myself now. I lost about 4- 5 lbs, and gained muscles that I never knew existed.” That sense of achievement motivated Leticia to continue with FT beyond the Great Jeans challenge. She’s also proud to recommend Fitness Together to her friends.

FT Norwell

To find a FT Studio near you, go to FTGetsResults.com

Tough Mudder Part Three: Team Boom Factor Takes On Everest & Firewalker

By Martha Hicks Leta

On May 6, members from Fitness Together in Norwell, 2 trainers and 3 clients, formed a team with 4 other South Shore residents to take part in the Tough Mudder New England Challenge at Mount Snow. In Part III, our final installment, Team Boom Factor takes on the Firewalker and Everest!

The Finish

When last we saw the team, they were only through a third of the 26 challenges. Throughout the rest of the day we stop to watch other contestants going through the tougher challenges, like the Electric Eel, where challengers crawl through water under a grid of dangling electric wires. They scream and swear when the wires touch them. It’s a lot to deal with.

The Electric Eel

The wires are small, but the shocks hurt big time.

We catch up with the team at the Funky Monkey, a long span of monkey bars that climbs up a roof-like peak and down the other side. Rumor is, some of the bars are greased, though it’s hard to say for sure. By now the contestants have been wearing their soaking wet clothes for several hours and many of them are shivering as they wait for their turn. Some of the challengers don’t make it past the first two bars before falling into the filthy 3-foot-deep pool of snowmelt below. Others make it close to the end before slipping off.  Some can’t even reach the bars and they jump in, swimming to the other side. The incredibly agile cruise across as if they were raised in trees and this is their normal mode of conveyance. Mike makes it across. The others come close. As we stand watching, only one woman makes it all the way.

Lou takes a dunk at the Funky Monkey.

We see the team again coming through Firewalker, where contestants pass through a blazing gauntlet of kerosene-soaked straw that belches noxious grey smoke into the air. Once through the gauntlet they must jump over a gas-fed strip controlled by a fat guy in a green shirt who sadistically sends the flames leaping higher into the air as skittish jumpers attempt to clear it. Some racers pause by the blazing hay to warm themselves. No one that we know of catches fire.

One of the final obstacles is called Everest, where challengers must scramble up the curve of a 15-foot tall half-pipe as it straightens to a vertical face, striving to get up and over the top. Teamwork is fully in play here, for this challenge absolutely can’t be done alone. Here, momentum can carry a person only so far, ideally delivering him or her into the helping hands of others that have gone before, who then must be strong enough and willing enough to pull strangers and team members alike over the top.

The hundred or so challengers are spread out 20 or 30 feet across the width of the obstacle, ten or fifteen deep, waiting for their turn to go. Maybe five can go at once. There should be chaos and jostling and annoyance here—at least to the same degree as in the Starbucks line at rush hour—but inexplicably there is order. Over the course, it seems, the Mudders have acquired the sort of oneness that comes with unified suffering.

The members of Boom Factor percolate toward the front of the line. Eric is up. This is the first time I’ve seen him in action. He scampers up the side and is hoisted over in one fell swoop. He stands at the top and takes in the view like a pleased warrior chief before stooping to help the next few over. Lou and Mike make it over in quick succession. Kurstin follows, grabbing her way up and over the wall by sheer force of will. It’s impossible to tell that she is dealing with the excruciating pain she carries from the injuries sustained to her heels in the weeks before the challenge. It is only days after the race that she admits they were hurting her for the entire day.

Team Boom Factor tackles the Glacier

On another part of the wall, a grey-haired woman in her late 50s is struggling to get up the wall. After a few attempts, it’s clear she’s not able to climb high enough to grab a hand. Soon a group, some wearing the same team shirt and others not, begin to flatten themselves end to end up the side of the obstacle. The other runners wait to give them room. When the formation is high enough, the woman gingerly climbs up this human ladder where two men pull her over the top. The crowd—participants and spectators alike—cheers wildly as she stands at the top pumping her fists in the air like Rocky Balboa.

Sarah turns to me with a great smile spread across her face. Her eyes are a little misty. “That was amazing,” she says over the cheering. “I love this!”

 Post Mortem

The race now over, the members of Team Boom Factor have returned to their civilian lives and have perhaps spent some time drawing meaning from this experience beyond some catch phrase that can be stitched into a parlor pillow.

While it’s tempting to wax philosophical about things like camaraderie, mental toughness and the conquering of personal demons, it must be said that this experience, however daunting, is perhaps something our forbearers, who toiled in coal mines and lost limbs on battlefields, who birthed babies in tobacco fields and then finished out the work day, might say is frivolous. For what sort of a generation is it that equates this kind of personal risk and self-torture with recreational sport?

Mike Eaton swings across the monkey bar challenge.

Perhaps there is no answer to that question. Or maybe there are thousands of different answers, depending which Tough Mudder you ask. But one thing is certain: determining the value of the experience should be left to the individuals who endured it and not to those who observe from the sidelines.

Teddy Roosevelt put a bow on it when he said:

“It’s not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man (or woman, Teddy!) in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly…who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”

In the days since the race it’s clear that this particular group of valiant strivers has no plans to bask in the glory or rest their muscles for very long.  Several plan on doing the Tough Mudder again next year. Others have signed on for similar adventure races in the mean time, including The Spartan Beast, The Boston Ruckus and the Warrior Dash.

Says Allison Jones, “TM was truly the hardest thing I have ever done mentally or physically. It was such a high finishing that course. Now, I am even more motivated to continue to improve my fitness level so next year we can conquer the mountain again.“

Tired Yet?

APretty impressive.

In the future, as you’re going about the business of your daily life, if you happen to run into someone wearing an orange Tough Mudder headband or maybe the shirt, give that person a respectful nod and maybe even a “hoo-rah!” They’ve probably  earned it.

Part One of FT at the Tough Mudder Challenge

Part Two of FT at the Tough Mudder Challenge

Check out the official site for the Tough Mudder Challenge.

Want to learn more about the Wounded Warrior Project?

To speak with Joe Caruso, Mike Eaton or Alicia Tasney about training for your next adventure, go to FTSouthShore.

To find a Fitness Together studio near you go to FTGetsResults.com

Tough Mudder: Part Two

The challenge called “Hold Your Wood.” (Photo by Bonnie Leta)

In Part II of the Tough Mudder Challenge, Team Boom Factor goes off the grid as they navigate the early part of the course where they endure harrowing challenges and injuries. Meanwhile their trusty support team waits anxiously on the mountain side watching other challengers endure the “Hold Your Wood” obstacle, until, at last, Team Boom Factor appears…high?

Norwell Fitness Together Team Takes on The Tough Mudder Challenge

The Braveheart Charge.” This is as clean as they’ll be for the rest of the day. (Photo by Bonnie Leta)

by Martha Hicks Leta

On Sunday, May 6, members from Fitness Together in Norwell, 2 trainers and 3 clients, formed a team with 4 other South Shore residents to take part in the Tough Mudder New England Challenge at Mount Snow, VT.

Client Allison Jones of Team Boom Factor gave herself the gift of finishing the Tough Mudder Challenge for her 36 birthday. She says, “A special thanks has to be made to Joe Caruso, Mike Eaton and Alicia Tasney, the trainers at FT. Without their guidance, encouragement, and challenges, I would never have been able to do TM. They have made FT Norwell the success it is today and they keep us coming back year-over-year to push our physical boundaries. I was absolutely amazed that I could do what I did on that mountain. I give myself lots of credit, but I know it wouldn’t have been possible without FT and my teammates on Team Boom Factor!”

Here are photos and Part I of Team Boom Factor’s epic journey through one of the toughest adventure races on the planet.