Testimonial by David Bartholomew

Some folks think that only women suffer from body image problems. Some folks would be wrong. I was very much the chubby geek in high school, good at academics but intimidated by any kind of serious phys ed. As college rolled around I was beginning to find that I enjoyed exercise at my own pace, but I resigned myself to the belief that I would never achieve the level of personal fitness that the jocks did. Since I couldn't dunk a basketball or throw a football fifty yards, how could I ever be really fit? This attitude was reflected in my sporadic workout habits: I'd go a few months at a fairly serious clip, then gradually stop making progress. That plateau would discourage me enough to quit exercising for another year.

The matter got a whole lot more serious in my early forties. In 1999, I was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, and spent a difficult month in a local hospital. I was obviously no longer able to work, I lost almost a quarter of my body weight, and then a year later I had to have two additional cancer surgeries. Within a few months I regained the weight, but almost entirely as fat. This reinforced those lurking, whispering self-images of being overweight and unattractive. I was treated for clinical depression, which began a long, unpleasant experience with antidepressants and the gauntlet of nasty side effects they can produce. I came to believe that I was too old, too tired, and too weak to do anything about my life. At my doctor's suggestion, I tried joining a prestigious medically affiliated exercise facility in Charleston. Unfortunately, it was the same old sequence: intimidation, plateaus, discouragement and loss of motivation, negative impact on self-esteem, quitting.

In spring of 2001 I had a free fitness assessment at Faster Fitness, and learned that I was below average for my age group in every category. This did not surprise me. What did surprise me was Chris offering to guarantee my results if I would make a commitment to his program. I decided to try one workout, expecting to fail at that. My trainer was Paul, and I cannot say enough for his skill and sensitivity. After that one workout, I decided to try one month. I'm still not sure how he did it, but Paul managed to coach me through my insecurities with machines and exercises. My attitude gradually changed from, "I can't do that," to "I can do better on this than I did last week." In retrospect, what I appreciated the most were Paul's sincere compliments and his honest encouragement. It was never the "rah-rah" kind of phony cheerleading that so often turned me off with group exercise-at 43, having a 20-year-old aerobics leader shrieking WOO! FEEL THE BURN! just doesn't do it for me-but instead a consistent, specific feedback that forced me to acknowledge that I was getting stronger, fitter and faster. I was stunned to find that after about five weeks of working out three times a week with Paul's coaching, I had dropped almost three inches from my waist and reduced my exercise heart rate by 14 beats per minute. After four months on the program, I now find that my fitness levels are above average in every category for my age group.

It's mind-bending how this realization can change one's life. Last week a woman half my age asked me if I'd had plastic surgery implants on my calves, because they looked so impressive. I've had guys ask me how I get my arms to look so good; usually they explain they've been working out for a long time and wish they could have arms like mine. Given my own history, these kind of unsolicited comments from strangers usually provoke childishly giddy fits of laughter in me. In a recent gym-wide rowing competition, my performance was among the top three of any Faster Fitness clients. This, from the fat nerdy kid who was afraid of gym class! My own doctor even asked me for a referral to my trainer, saying that I look great, he's amazed at my progress and wants to know how he can do it. I don't have six-pack abs (yet), but at least I'm not carrying around a couple of two-liter bottles there any more!

When I think back to my last high school reunion, and think ahead to the next, I realize that the little fat kid isn't going to be showing up. I am substantially more fit than most of those jocks who seemed so intimidating back then but have let themselves go. I'm able to compete with individuals who are fifteen or twenty years younger than myself, without embarrassment. Even more than my body, my mental outlook has been completely transformed. I increasingly view myself as a person who is fit, strong and capable of taking care of his health. The Faster Fitness program has animated tremendous change in my life. I enthusiastically endorse it.