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No, this post isn’t about some new kind of gym shoe, it’s about the number of trainers I’ve gone through in my three-and-a-half years at Pure Fitness/Xplore Fitness/Vision Quest and the difference in their training styles. What’s funny is that the name of the gym I work out at has changed only half as much as the trainers have! Becca Becca was the first trainer I worked with and while I enjoyed working with someone my age from a rival high school (Ingraham), she didn’t really instill me with any new knowledge about working out. She quit after a few months to go back to college. I could tell her heart wasn’t really into it, and I think she figured that out too. Jason Jason was a polar shift from Becca, as he brought a heavy martial arts dynamic to our workouts. He was the influence for me really getting into the martial arts as well as becoming a lot more experimental with the way I work out. He taught me to “think outside the box”, as it were. He was trained by Daniel Inosanto, who was one of Bruce Lee’s pupils and is well versed in the principles of Jeet Kune Do. Jason was also quite the fan of Muay Thai (and Tony Jaa movies), so we trained techniques in both of those styles as well as doing exercises that helped strengthen the muscles required to really get the most out of each discipline. Jason also had two other people at the gym that he trained that were interested in the same level of intensity that I was. Their names were Justin and Victor, and the three of us started doing group sessions in addition to personal sessions. We were all put through the ringer by Jason multiple times a week and I know we all seriously benefited from the sessions. Jason and I worked out together for a year and a half, and I felt like I’d been kicked in the stomach when I got the phone call that he’d left our gym to train guys at Maurice Smith’s gym. It’s definitely a better job for him, as people that are training to fight could make use of his skills more effectively. Still, he was a blast to work with and I learned so much from him. Dave Dave was one of Jason’s workout partners at the gym and I remember he came with us (Justin, Victor, Jason and I) to go see the most recent Rambo movie right after it came out. Dave came from a power lifting background, so he taught me the importance of proper form while working out. Before I learned proper form, I had about six weeks of downtime due to using improper form on a deadlift, which caused my back to go out. After that mishap, I really focused on getting my lifting techniques down and I’d likely still be training with Dave if he hadn’t switched to mornings. I did the 7 AM sessions for quite a while, but I couldn’t maintain it. I could maintain it now as I regularly get up at 4 AM, but it would cut into some prime working time. Granted, it’d only be one day a week, but it’s a moot point as I don’t think Dave works there any more. Richard Richard played Huskies football in his formative years and won the 1994 Guy Flaherty award, which is an award for the most inspirational player. In training with him, I fully understand why. I have never worked with a more enthusiastic person and every time we trained together, it was a great experience. His training style was obviously more football-oriented, which was good for me because I was looking for a high-impact workout at the time. Richard and I worked together from July to November of this year, and every session he kept me on my toes and he appreciated the ferocity in which I worked out. Richard was also the general manager of our gym at the time, so getting a half-hour of his time was a privilege. He eventually became too busy to do the workouts and got me set up with other personal trainers. He’s currently down at the Auburn Vision Quest applying his enthusiasm and work ethic to their gym, and I’m sure things will get better with him helping out down there. Alex I can’t say much about Alex because we only trained once or twice together. He had a similar training style to Richard, but had nowhere near the same level of enthusiasm. He didn’t show up for one of our scheduled training appointments right before I went to the Oregon coast this year, and he was no longer employed there when I got back. Damarr I was enjoying working with Damarr over the past couple of months, as we were doing some rather intense workouts involving ropes, tractor tires, and kettlebells, but he disappeared as well after I worked with him three or four times. Ting I’ve only worked with Ting once so far, and my next session with him later today should be a barnburner. I’ve acquainted him with my background and he told me that he’s been a friend of Ivan Salaverry’s for quite some time, so he’s familiar with the martial arts disciplines. We’re going to do some bag work and high-intensity routines, which should be a nice kick in the behind right before Christmas! I can’t wait! As far as personal training goes, I've had some great experiences with it and have had some tremendous workouts. I’d definitely recommend it if you can find the money to do it. It is expensive, but I’ve learned ways to exercise more functionally and effectively from almost all of my trainers. Discuss this post at [The Forum of Jason Vincion]! Posted on December 23rd, 2009. |
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