Watch Abeline Baker demonstrate the sandbell toss. Excellent form!
Who better than to demonstrate our new sandbells at the studio than Mr. Terry Lonsberry. Terry recently came in and asked me "Sandbells?? What's up with that?" Well, let me show you.
After a short demo from yours truly, Terry took over and did his thing. We incorporated it into his regular routine and he just loved them. Terry commented after his workout what a great addition to our studio. He said, "it's fun and it really gets your whole body working."
We love them too and it's only the beginning. Sandbell training adds a new dimension of movement to your body which has a positive effect on body functionality. The results are limitless and so are the exercises.
Man Who Walks Straighter
As a previous client of the month Bob Dendoff is much more than that, he is a man on a mission.
Only Bob knows where and how bad he really was before he walked through the doors at Able Body Studios.
He took pain killers everyday to cope with his chronic pain, his body bent and twisted from the restrictions of his back, hips and neck and yet modern medicine had not helped him. Instead he was taught to deal with his problem. He learnt that that was the way it was and he had nothing to do to better himself...
I honestly did not know where Bobby wanted to go with my aid but I was willing to try my very best for him..
One year later Bobby is a new man. He walks evenly, stands erect and straight and he no longer has a grimace on his face – just a smile.
After cleaning up Bob's food intake, he instantly began to transform, losing over 25 lbs. He looks and acts younger, he no longer takes any painkillers and has a ton of newfound energy. He goes on long walks or a short hike and works on strengthening his back muscles like never before.
Bobby truly amazes me every time he comes to our studio with his improvements, his positive attitude and his hard work and dedication.
For Bobby the goals are endless and with his mindset I know there are no limits to this mans great successes.
AUSTIN POWER
When Laura told me she was pregnant I was very happy for her. Laura was in the best shape of her life and I knew she was prepared to have a healthy pregnancy.
Years have gone by and baby Austin is growing into a fine young boy who will be turning 3 this May. In the meantime Laura has been bringing Austin in to train with her on a regular basis."I'm hoping that this kind of exercise environment encourages Austin to do the same," Laura explains.
Well, one way or another, Austin certainly has more fun than ever at the studio. He jumps on the vibe machine with his mom every chance he gets. Lately his newest love is our sandbells. He just has so much fun pushing them down and around and throwing them all over. So far he hasn't helped me to put them away but I'm always hopeful.
One thing for sure that I've learnt is: give our children a chance to choose good things, opportunities and help support them and the rest is up to them. We can certainly empower without any limits.
TERRY'S MAGNIFICENT JOURNEY
In the fall of 2007 it seemed like a normal day for me I had several clients from the early morning to afternoon, I worked out, came back and then I was to meet Terry Lonsberry an overweight new client of Able Body. I remember walking in and seeing the behemoth of a man sitting and waiting for me. Although I have seen some very big men in my life I actually have met with the Giant Andre on several occasions in a gym out Montreal. Terry was definitely a very big man, standing 6'4' and weigh well over 400lbs when we met. The honest truth was I could not properly weigh this man nor measure him up properly, even the tape measure wasn't big enough. I did not want Terry to see the scale nor could he look down to see anything, and so I told him that scale was not very accurate, but actually the needle went right around gave me an indication of over 400lbs and our scale never functioned properly again after that.
Our Journey began that day with a future I never expected. I had no idea how much this man wanted to change his life nor if he could. I felt compelled to listen to everything Terry had to say, how everyone ignored him and even Doctors had written him off. I genuinely felt sorry and I decided from that moment that it was my purpose in life to at least give it my best. Terry's explanation of how he got so big was very interesting for me and I explained to him that after seeing what he ate in a day was not even close to how much I ate which was way more. When I explained that he would have great success to eat in a similar fashion, in one month he lost 30lbs. We began walks first and soon the treadmill was able to be used but once again Terry broke the treadmill because of his weight. We got it fixed so Terry in the meantime continued.
As Terry's body changed Terry's determination grew, his goals were set each and every 3 month period and away he went. Terry always achieved each goal and every goal he set was usually surpassed. We started to roll up and down on a big ball and used his own weight to squat it took time but Terry always believed he could do and so did I. I was Terry's guide on this journey, I was his motivator as well as a supporter. His journey was not easy by any means, life changes occurred a separation leading to a divorce, changing of jobs and work, family issues and daily stresses of life. Terry had them all and yet he continued to stay on track. He never let go of his new lifestyle of eating healthy and exercising regularly. Eventually Terry showed up at the studio riding a bike with a smile that was too big to measure.
In the summer of 2008 as I prepared to enter my 28th body building competition Terry saw my body ready to step on stage and said to me "I want that". I looked him in the eye and said after losing all your weight so far "why not".. It wasn't until January of 2009 that we started a different way of training, and intensifying his workouts and training more days that Terry's body definitely was shaping up.. That year was extremely challenging for Terry with some life commitments and relationship issues that Terry needed to address, although we kept working through the hard times it wasn't until 2010 when we made some incredible muscle changes in Terry's body. He was now being prepared and bodysculpted to achieve his new goal of stepping on stage, a whole new Terry was now emerging.. he looked better every day, every week, every month.
We carefully chose a contest that he would be ready for in the spring of 2011 and after more than 3 years later and losing 300lbs Terry had reached a lifetime goal. He became a bodybuilder, but much more than that a sculptor with a purpose.. Terry was now a very healthy man.. Terry shaved his face, practiced posing every day and night and stepped on stage Sunday June 5th to display his art. Never in my lifetime have I ever heard of any man achieving such a goal or looking so completely the opposite of how he started. Terry stood on stage Tall and confident and received a 3rd place trophy for all his hard work and determination. A very small token for his enormous amount of work, yet for Terry, and new beginning and a whole new World, a whole new life. A Magnificent Journey.
The Stevens family shares their successes with everyone and they are not shy to admit to it. Its truly amazing to see how this family believes in a healthy lifestyle from Gloria(Mom) Dan (Dad) and Harrison their son all train at our Studio. It is a wonderful blend of life when we can get all 3 in here at the same time. The energy soars whenever they combine a partner training workout with husband ,wife or mom and son or individual one on one its all good for them. One awesome workout after another this family thrives on a great serious effective workout. Gloria is our chosen client of the month for January (awesome my dear)... and just going back a few years ago by changing her lifestyle. A complete turn around while losing over 100lbs..wow. You read right... Gloria's success was the catalyst for all the family to incorporate a more active lifestyle with regular workouts and proper healthy eating.
Gloria is continuing her journey with us learning great skills and proper coaching into a great personal trainer. She cares so much that I'm positive she will help many succeed just like herself. Dan is Gloria's husband and through proper rehab he is able to continue his journey into a healthy injury free body. Dan is a wonderful person who like Gloria warms our studio up every time he steps forth into it. His smile is bright and our workouts together are amazing. Harrison is 26 years old with super body potential,he is learning new proper techniques that his body is responding in a very positive fashion. I deem Harrison to have a great 2011 with very positive improvements in both muscle growth and strength. I'm in their corner and I'm with them every step of the way.
The Stevens family executes strong family ties that is blended with a healthy Lifestyle ,tons of shared support, immense love, and a great respect of one another something you rarely see. I wish all of them a great future with tons of wealth, health and happiness.
When it comes to consistency these two indidviduals exemplify the true meaning.Faye Lutz and Karen Sturton Pollock do not miss there workouts period.Infact it has to be a very serious matter for one of these two ladies to miss there regular workout here at Able Body.
KAREN STURTON POLLOCK
Karen has just recently turned 58 years young and she acknowledges that exercising regular makes her feel better everytime she leaves the studio. She loves the variety of workouts she recieves and she enjoys the company of all our clients and the clean healthy atmosphere at our studio. Karen's most improved areas in her conditioning in the last 5 years she has been with us are the following. Karen explains "My balance, core and stabilizing units have improved so much that its very difficult to remember how bad I once was". Karens strength has more than tripled in many exercises and her body tone is of that of a thirty year old. She contributes her successes in a slow gradual way to her regularity at the studio and personal one on one training as well as her Friday bootcamps. Karen says "Its certainly not the scale I'm intersted in its more the muscle versus fat that makes me believe that I'm both stronger and healthier, and believe us when we say.. Karen is fit.
FAYE LUTZ
Faye joined us here at the studio in 2002. She has been the most loyal and hard working client and friend for the past 8 years. Faye is 67 and when you see her you don't believe it. Her vibrancy is felt the minute she walks into the studio. Faye loves to stay fit and enjoys her time here at the studio.She works out 2 times a week regularlly one on one with Chris and enjoys our Friday bootcamp as well. Faye explains "I want to live a healthy strong life for my Grandchildren, to me that is very important". Faye finds her balance, range of motion and her flexibility are the most improved areas in her conditioning. Although We have all seen Faye's strength develope extremely well over the years as well. Faye loves the way her workouts vary and variety each trainer provides. Faye say's "Here friends could benefit from the the exercises she does if only they could see the light, but to no avil they seem not listen. For Faye a bright healthy future indeed.
Together the friendship that has developed between Faye and Karen is really something special. The common areafor them both is exercise and they help motivate one another. For us at the studio a truly amazing story that all should take a great lesson from... Consistency is the name of the game.
Keli and Steve Slaughter have now passed there one of training at the studio. Through regular consistent work outs they continue to impress us on their huge improvements and great conditioning. When Keli is not able to come to the studio because of work Steve has brought in his sister Shelley or his daughter Eden. When Steve is not able to come to the studio Keli brings Erin or Eden or both and we put them through a family bootcamp.
One of the nicest things I have seen is when Keli and Steve purchased a gift certificate for his dad Al to come and train with us.Not to mention that Steve's mom Sharon has joined us as well as a regular now training twice a week, and we can honestly say that Sharon is constantly improving in leaps and bounds.
The inspiration the slaughter family share with one another is amazing in itself. They are all a very close knit family encouraging one another young or old to share in their health and fitness. Together they help one another, by motivating and challenging each other to better themselves. For the Slaughter family they exemplify the true meaning of A FAMILY THAT TRAINS TOGETHER STAYS FIT TOGETHER.
Our Climb up Mount Benson finally happened on Sunday June 27/10, and even though it was about 1 month late due to the weather conditions, the day we went up it was very nice. There were 8 of us that stood up to our word of actually challenging the Mountain. There was Violet and Bryan, Wendy and Bruno, Laura Mercer and Karen Sturton Pollock, and Mersedeh and I rouned the group.
The route we took was called Wicthcraft Lake. Although some parts were very steep none of us had any problems going up. It took us about 2 1/2 hours to climb the mountain where we hung out for 3/4 of an hour and shared a lunch. I was quite impressed by all the healthy snacks and lunches I saw. Another big thing was our water consumption and even though it was cool to begin our day the heat was on once we climbed the steep trail, and everyone brought enough water.
Our trip down the mountain was slow,cautious and precise. No problem when you do it right and no one injured themselves this way. Usually 80% of injuries occur on the decent and I'm very proud of everyone. Thanks to everyone from the studio for joining Mersedeh and myself reach a milestone in our endevours.
Seven months ago I was blessed with bouning baby boy, Austin. Everyone says "it takes nine months to put on the weight so it should take you just as long to take it off." While that is true, no one tells you that you will have a few more "wobbly bits" after pregnancy than you had before. So this is were Joey comes in. When Austin was three months old, I returned to my regular gym workouts. As I wanted to be fit and healthy during my pregancy so do I want to be fit and healthy afterwards. As a new Mum you are so busy looking after your child (and everything else) it can be very easy to forget to look after yourself. I have made it a priority to have two gym workouts a week and try to get a walk in everyday.
I am enjoying being back at the gym. I find that I am more energized (even after an interupted night of sleep) and relaxed after my workouts. It is amazing how a 45 minute workout can do that for you but I am proof it does. Austin has a much happier Mum because of it. Healthy eating is also important in our house. During the first few months with Austin it wasn't alway easy to eat as well as I should have. Being up every 2 - 3 hours feeding him was difficult to find the energy to do anything but function. I truely learned what it meant to be tired. Now that he is sleeping through the night and on a regular schedule I am able to put energy into planning meals for the week that are balanced and healthy. It makes such a difference, physically, mentally and emotionally, to get into a regular exercise and eating routine.
I want to lead by example with regards to my son. I want him to be active and healthy his whole life and the best way to do that is to show him it can be done. He loves being outside so that is a good start. Exercise is something that we can all do together as a family as well. The walks are always a family affair as Austin loves being outside, rain or shine. He even comes to the gym with me on occassion. He loves all the attention Joey pays him. By exposing Austin to all of these things, we hope that he will grow up to incorporate them into his life as well. In the three months that I have been back at the gym, I am down 4% body fat. I have about 8% more to go. It isn't easy getting rid of the "wobbly bits" but nothing worth doing is ever very easy. I can always count on Joey to be there to push me to meet my goal.
We held our first annual golf tournament on Friday September 19 2009 at The Fairwinds Golf Club.The weather made everyone's day perfect in the 20's .We had 2 group teams which battled with a best ball format .Which meant everyone had a chance to contribute.The jokes were flying and both teams played and had fun.
The team of John Hough,Pat Shannon and Kathleen Wilson bursted in the lead with a whooping 9 birdies, 7 of them coming in the first 9 holes. The team of Steve Slaughter, Keith Wilson, Julie Shannon and myself held a steady 5 birdie pace but bogeyed the last hole to end up with a -4 for a total.
One of the highlights of the round was watching a bird trainer with a Falcon and a Bald Eagle do there duties and keeping the Canadian Geese from heavily populating the golf course.
Our meal afterwards was very delicious healthy dishes with some very nice company,fun and jokes had by all.I want to thank everyone for coming out and although our numbers were small the tournament was a great success.Hope to see more of our client base out next year...Hit them straight...
Hi my name is Adeline Banks and I have been coming to see Joey from Able Body Consulting since February of 2006. I was 72 years of age when I met Joey.. I will never forget that day, when I asked him "is there any hope for someone of my age to see and feel a differince in my health"? Joey assured me with great confidence that there was.
Let me explain why I did come to Joey in the first place. Several years earlier my doctor told me I had Osteoperoisis and both my hips and lower back gave me grief. I was devasted. I felt restricted, uncomfortable and mostly helpless.
Through my own mind set I figured that if I could invest the time and money I could change the way I felt. With the proper guidance and motivation, Joey has helped me achieve all my goals. I have seen an improvement in my skin, I have less wrinkles, I have more muscle on my body and most of all my back pain and restrictions of what I can do and and what I want to do is completely ..as I put “AWAY WE GO “.
I have much more energy, I walk everyday no matter what, and workout with weights 3 times a week. For me staying active is my number one priority in life. At 76 I feel better than I did many years ago. It will be 4 years in February that I walked threw the doors at Able Body and it was the best choice I have ever made.
Most times I am questioned on "how do you look so good"?? and they usually do not believe my age. I tell them that my money is well spent and that my monthly budget is for the best investment money can buy ...for my health. Most people call that luck, I call that putting your priorities in the right order. I can cut spending in other ways...that alows my training with Joey. If I can encourage one other person to make there changes as I have they too will see and feel a differnce in their lives as well.
“I feel very fortunate to be able to live the life of exercise and eating healthy, it has made me live a lifestyle I have always wanted to live“. When I achieved one of my goals I was so happy, I had lost 15 pounds of unwanted body fat and earned 7 pounds of beautiful lean muscle.. I am much stronger everyday.. Joey helps me set new goals every couple of months...our next goal is to be in fantastic shape for our Mexican Riveria Cruise in January... I know my future goals are set and I will be able to achieve them all.
This is a question often asked by the uninformed people on the topic. First I would like to define what the process of natural body building is. Natural body building is a process by which you transform your body through diet and training to achieve results of reducing fat and gaining muscle. No banned substances or steroids are allowed to be used by competitors in natural body building contests.
As you may know last September I started a training program to enter a body building contest this Spring. I did it with the strict supervision of my trainer, Joey Palladini of Able Body Consulting. Joey is not only an excellent trainer, but has been a natural body builder for 35 years and has completed 20 competitions. During my training the only substance that was foreign to normal eating habits was protein power.
Joey told me that 80% of my journey would be diet and 20% weight training. The program lasted 8 months and I went from a 27% fat content to 10% and lost 44 pounds of fat and gained 18 pounds of muscle, for a total weight loss of 26 pounds. It was quite a journey that resulted in entering the “Best In The West” body building competition in Phoenix, Arizona on April 25th.
The real point of this article is to talk about the health aspects of a person going on to a routine such as this. This was important to me because on January 11, 2008, I successfully beat prostate cancer with surgery.
The biggest barrier to natural body building is the psychological speed bumps that you will hit along the way. They are generally imposed upon you by outside forces of uninformed people who say: “you are looking too skinny”, “taking all that protein powder is not good for you”, “you need more variety in your food”, “pasta is good for you”, etc.
The proof of whether natural body building is healthy is really in the pudding. For the past 15 years, I have been having annual checkups with my doctor who insisted on a full line of blood work. This was fortunate as it caught my prostate cancer in an early stage. I have kept all the records from my blood tests over the years and thought it would be an interesting exercise to see how my last years’ body functions, as represented by these tests, compare to my current state after my 8 month training program.
My doctor looked at the results and told me they were almost unbelievable as they were so good. I was improved on every single test on the chart, many of which have no meaning to me. The test that I could understand was that related to cholesterol. As most people know cholesterol is stuff that is in your blood that clogs up and blocks arteries, creating high blood pressure and subsequently heart attacks, which is the number 1 killer of people.
My cholesterol has always been good and well within the range of acceptability. What the program did to my cholesterol was almost astonishing to me. The following table shows the cholesterol reduction from one year to the next. It shows the reductions ranging from 20% to 33% of all my cholesterol levels.
I have to say that after looking at these results that natural body building is a very healthy lifestyle, one that I would recommend to anyone wishing to pursue it.
