Last week I was in Colorado Springs for a the SPF CEO Mastermind meeting. This is a group of
10 of the top gym owners in the country. We meet quarterly for a deep dive into each other’s
businesses.
One of the 4 meetings we have each year takes place in Colorado Springs. And we have made
a tradition of getting up early one morning before we start our meeting and climbing the
manitou incline.
The manitou incline is one of the steepest climbs in the US and the world. It is 2000 feet of
elevation gain in less than one mile! It is as steep as almost 70% grade at some points and
takes the average person about 2 hours to reach the top.
Now, we are a bunch of ultra-competitive meathead gym owners, so it takes most of us about
45-50 minutes to do.
But, just because we are in the business of helping people get in amazing shape, doesn’t mean
that each of us is always at our best.
Last year, one of the youngest guys in the group, Giancarlo, who is only 28 and visually looks
to be in great shape, really struggled.
He started out at a quicker pace and by halfway up the mountain, he was ready to pass out.
He was completely exhausted and needed to take breaks every couple steps.
He eventually made it to the top, but it was a huge eye opener for him!
He didn’t realize that with all the focus on his business the last couple years, his fitness had
taken a backseat and he wasn’t as fit as he thought he was.
However, instead of allowing this to discourage him, he used it as a wake up call to ramp up
his personal fitness routine!
Over this past year, he started running, ramped up his strengthening program, and has lost
over 20 pounds! (See him pictured in the light purple tank top right next to me)
When it came time to do the manitou incline this year, he finished at the top of the pack,
shaving over 20 minutes off his time from last year!
I share this story because even at the highest levels, as a personal trainer and gym owner of
multiple successful locations, as Giancarlo was, it’s easy to let your fitness fall off track.
—Whether from being busy with kids activities, dedicating more time to work, a busy travel
schedule, or a thousand other priorities… it’s very easy to put your fitness on the back burner.
My hope though, is that you don’t need a catastrophic wake up call to realize how important it
is to prioritize your health.
Many clients I’ve worked with over the years have had that wake up call, but it is something
much scarier than struggling on a hike..Too often, it is a heart attack, a stroke, or being diagnosed with diabetes or high blood
pressure.
The vast majority of chronic health conditions that affect people over 40 years old are
preventable with a healthy diet and a regimented and consistent exercise program.
Believe me, I get it, sticking to a diet and exercise routine is not easy! That is the whole reason
personal training gyms like mine exist.
We understand all you have to manage on a daily basis, so we want to take all the guesswork
out of it by providing top notch training and programs, with all the accountability and
motivation you need to keep you on track to your goals and avoid the wake-up call that has
become all too common for so many people.