Almost One Year

Next month will mark the one year anniversary of my first appointment with YMCA Personal Trainer, Matt Brouse. To say I got my money's worth in bettering my physical and mental well-being by learning from, and being motivated by him would be an understatement. Matt has had a huge positive impact on my life.

Long story short, (and you six readers already know this), I have always battled in the weight department. Although running marathons as an adult helped for a while, I was getting fatter and less happy about life over the last few years. I decided to humble myself and get one-on-one help at the Y.

Not knowing whom to choose for personal training, I threw an imaginary dart and picked Matt from the photo line-up of trainers on the wall of the fitness center. My choice was not completely random; his picture made me think that if Jim Gaffigan and my brother had a love-child, Matt would be that baby. Plus, he called himself "The People's Meathead" in his bio blurb. It made him sound approachable. And funny. There was a slight possibility he was a Communist/Marxist weight lifter, but I hoped not.

Jump to our first meeting. He weighed me. 167! Ugh. And he measured my butt and everything. Fatness everywhere. I figured he had seen it before so I just accepted the situation. The details of the first session are a blur except for the weighing and measuring, which I can play over and over on a video loop in my mind. After that horror, I think he took some baseline fitness measurements like plank time, push-ups, etc., and gave me a plan to return and do some work-out homework in the meantime.

I survived my first personal trainer appointment.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a trip to Texas got in the way and I didn't get back to the Y for a while. Nor had I followed through on Matt's homework assignments. I reported this to him. A note at the bottom of the trainer record sheet for my second appointment read, "Noncompliant."

That was the turning point.

I can be (and have been) a failure in a multitude of ways but GODDAMMIT I was not going to be the cause of my own failure this time. I started doing what Matt said. Slowly and steadily I have lost 40 (+/-3) pounds since January by doing the workouts Matt gives me. I can't remember the last time I weighed 125. I'm pretty sure I was in junior high.

It's not just about the body weight. Matt's emphasis is on strength and I am surprised by how much fun it is to lift heavier weights each week and feel strong. He's not surprised. He knows it's fun and I think that's why he is so good at his job. He shares that enthusiasm with clients.

Matt has an inspirational poster on his Facebook page that reads: "I want to inspire people. I want someone to look at me and say, 'Because of you I didn't give up.'"

Well, I'll say it. He inspires me and I'm not quitting or giving up any time soon.

He's helped me make it this far and it's been a blast.