Sarah Jones Testimonial
Six months ago I turned to Dan in desperation! I was in the most terrible pain – my back was stiff and my sciatic nerve was so inflamed I could hardly bend down to tie-up my shoe-laces. It was painful to sit for long periods of time and it was painful to walk.
How pathetic! At least that’s how I felt. So what had I done to cause this problem? Well my day job, like many people, is office based. I sit at a desk for an estimated 7 ½ hours a day, plus I have a 50 minute commute at either end of my day i.e I’m sitting in my car. I was 39 and had not done any regular exercise for over 15 years.
So it’s not really surprising that after a weekend of gardening I had mild backache. Usually it fades away but not this time…
As the pain got worse I decided to visit a chiropractor. I didn’t feel that she was getting to the root of the problem. I gave-up and went to the doctor for pain killers. I was prescribed Naproxen. The doctor told me he saw this type of problem 3 times a week. Great! I was just another moaning patient with a stiff back.
How was I going to get to the root of the problem? Dan was recommended to me on the understanding that a Personal Trainer would be able to build-up the muscles in my back and make me stronger. I was in pain, I was feeling pretty low and I was prepared to try anything!
My experience with Dan was not what I was expecting. There was no warm-up on a running machine, no use of fancy weight equipment. However, I did all sorts of exercises to help relieve the tension in the muscles that were being over worked (because of my bad posture) and then ‘switch-on’ muscles that should have been working but had become dormant after years of neglect! I would train in the morning and in the evening I had to send Dan a text reporting any niggling pain that may have been aggravated during the session.
Dan was incredibly patient and conscientious. I felt as if I was the only person he trained and getting me to feel fit and strong again was as important to him as it was to me, (unlike my doctor!). He was genuine in his approach and very knowledgeable: he explained why we were doing certain exercises or how certain muscle groups worked. It gave me the confidence to keep going and the reassurance that I was in very capable hands. And I needed that because, believe me, getting-up at 06.00 on a dark, cold, wet December morning to drive 30 miles to go training was hard work! But Dan was so committed I didn’t want to let him down!
The back pain faded after about 2½ – 3 months. Gradually, without me noticing the exercises got more strenuous and I started to lift weights. Five months after starting I went on a skiing holiday – amazing! Dan had given me strict instructions to warm-up every morning before hitting the piste, but no back pain, in fact I felt stronger and fitter than I had done in years! It had made a huge difference to my strength and stamina.
To some this may sound too good to be true, but it has been hard work and there were days when I didn’t want to get out of bed to swing kettlebells and attempt press-ups. But if I wanted to get rid of the pain and feel ‘human’ again I had to do something about it. With Dan’s support and encouragement I stuck at it.
This week I lifted more than my body weight – amazing! I’m on cloud nine!
Get Bigger Arms
I know this looks like the kind of title you’d get in a monthly fitness magazine but I’m going to share a secret with you….all guys want bigger arms. Hell, why else do you think every Mon, Wednesday and Friday is national ‘guns and bench’ day. The only problem is most people think doing bicep curls are the key to increased arm growth and here’s the kicker, bicep curls are doing as much for your arm growth as drinking that mocha choca latte!