Our Breakthrough Spotlight Member for November is Chris Maltese! In just a couple of months of training, Chris has seen major changes in the way he feels and how he recovers from playing his sport. He shares about how longevity and being able to enjoy the things he wants to do in life are a big part of his why.
BREAKTHROUGH: Thank you, Chris, for chatting with me. So, it’s been just a little over two months since you have been training with us.
CHRIS: Yeah, that went quick.
BREAKTHROUGH: It did go quick! In a lot of ways, it feels like you have been here forever, but yeah it’s only been about two months! So tell me what brought you to us in the first place? How were you feeling?
CHRIS: Basically, I came to you guys because, you know, I am 40. I have always been fairly active in my life. I noticed that as activities became a little less frequent or I had other obligations and couldn’t be as consistent in being active that it was harder to catch back up. So, when I would go play hockey or go for a big hike or do some of the things I used to do, I would either be really, really sore or end up with an injury. So, a big part of it was just trying to be more ready and in better shape as I got older to continue to do the activities I like to do. So that was kind of my motivation.
BREAKTHROUGH: Yeah, so now that it has been a couple of months, how are you feeling?
CHRIS: It’s been awesome! The biggest thing I noticed right off the bat was, I always had problems with hockey, especially being inconsistent, I would get tired, and I would get these lower back aches afterwards because I wouldn’t squat as much, and I would be kind of leaning over. But the biggest thing I noticed was, after that four-day hockey tournament - four games in three days of hockey - my back was fine, which was a massive turnaround! It wasn’t like I was only a little sore. It was totally fine, whereas I would normally be sore after just playing two days a week if I hadn’t played in a couple weeks. So, to play that much more and have everything be fine from where it was before was the biggest difference for me. Really exciting to see that benefit, just by itself.
BREAKTHROUGH: Right! When you mentioned that the other day, I thought, let me interview Chris and see what he has to say about this! I know that a lot of people are like you and they want to do stuff on the weekends. They want to be able to go on their hikes, and their adventures, and play sports or whatever their activities are on the weekends. So, I think that your training, the stuff that you do in the gym, should be in service of what you want to do in your life. And a lot of people think that it has to be this massive drain on your time to go to the gym, but you have really been coming twice, maybe three times a week occasionally for an endurance class…
CHRIS: Yeah, I didn’t get to come three times a week as much as I would have liked to so far because of my schedule but, yeah, the majority of this… that was the other thing that is impressive, seeing that big, dramatic difference just coming twice a week for the majority of weeks. I even missed a couple weeks…
BREAKTHROUGH: Yeah, you traveled or had stuff going on.
CHRIS: I had a trip, or I just couldn’t make it. I have been telling people about this – for me it has been a game changer. It is worth every penny. People spend money on all kinds of things, right? But when it comes to your body, your actual body, the thing that you do life with- like your most important asset – it’s worth investing in. It is worth it to get the attention, to be on a program. It is one thing to pay for a program where you have your training appointments, and it is another to pay your $50 a month and just show up whenever you want. That is two different things, and the results are going to be in line with that too, right?
BREAKTHROUGH: Totally.
CHRIS: I am paying to be here. I am getting the attention, I am getting supervision, and I am not going to miss a class - A: because I am paying for it and B: it is part of my program. It’s not like, “oh I will go if I feel like it because I am only paying 50 bucks a month and I’ll pop in whenever….”
BREAKTHROUGH: I will mess around on whatever machines…
CHRIS: That is not really a program. Those are some classes being offered randomly. So, I think that is probably why the results have been so dramatic. I mean I have tried a bunch of stuff on and off. I’ve done home workouts that kind of work for a month or two until you are disappointed. I’ve done other things where I have gone to a big box gym and gotten a trainer there for a little bit, but I didn’t like that. I’ve tried the CrossFit stuff and everything. For me and for how I am, I find that this is such a great fit. You guys have done an excellent job sort of tailoring it to my needs, which I thought was huge. And it wasn’t just that you did it from day one and you asked me. You remembered and you brought it up at different training sessions. Like, “Oh this is more in line with your goal. Or remember we are focusing on this.” So, I thought that was huge, too.
BREAKTHROUGH: Oh, good!
CHRIS: It wasn’t just lip service to it. It showed in the whole programming.
BREAKTHROUGH: Good! Well, I am so glad. I mean it would be so boring to us to just be writing random workouts. That is no fun.
CHRIS: Ha, ha!
BREAKTHROUGH: I mean selfishly, we want the satisfaction of seeing you guys progress. It’s satisfying for you and for us knowing that, “Oh my gosh! Chris did his hockey tournament, and he didn’t get sore! His back was fine! That is amazing and that is exactly what we wanted to have happen.”
CHRIS: Yeah! That is huge! Everyone wins, right?
BREAKTHROUGH: It’s a win-win! So then, one of the other things we like to have people talk about is their “why.” So, obviously, being able to do your sport is probably a big why. But are there any other whys for investing in yourself like this?
CHRIS: Yeah, I think I kind of got to a point where youth and a certain amount of staying active – you can kind of wing it, right? You’re young enough and staying somewhat active, sure, you can go take a three-day hiking trip and go backpacking somewhere and it is probably not going to be that bad. But I think as you get a little bit older, it takes more work to get there. I think, just in general, for me having a program and as well as the stability for my health, the physical preparedness to do the sport I want to do – I am still playing against younger kids – so I notice it. And longevity, too, right. If I want to stay active into older age and not be one of these people that as soon as they hit a certain age, they just can’t do anything anymore. When I travel, I like to get out and walk and hike and go see places. I want to stay active as long as I can to do that. I guess it’s just basically staying healthy and staying fit just supports an active lifestyle in general. Like I said, this is the thing that I do life with - this body, I get one body to do this life with. I want it to be in tiptop shape. I take care of my cars, I take care of my equipment, I take care of most everything I have so why would I slack on my body – like I have been doing for over a year. Ha, ha!
BREAKTHROUGH: Ha, ha! Exactly! We all know better, but we’ve all been there… It can be hard to get started, but once we do, it’s worth it!
CHRIS: It is! And I am really excited, and I think it probably took a program at this level to get me the results to where I would be excited. I feel like I have wanted this before, but I probably went the cheap route, or like I will just try a few classes and blah, blah, blah, or tried other things that just didn’t get the same results. Because it probably wasn’t a specific program tuned to me.
BREAKTHROUGH: It’s true. It really does make a difference! Anything else you want to share about anything.
CHRIS: I think the last thing, just in summary, it is your body. If you are going to spend money on anything or at least your time and effort on anything, your body is probably the most important one. And having a program tailored to you specifically with coaches that pay attention to it… You know, anyone can go anywhere and have a coach who says, “yeah, do more, blah, blah. Yeah, that is great. Awesome! Keep lifting more weight. Yeah, yeah, yeah!” I think this is really fine tuned in a way that I haven’t seen in a lot of other places. When I was climbing, they had a little gym where I could go and do my stuff. When I as doing martial arts, they had a little weight area. You would have the opportunity to do your own thing, but I think having a tailored program, at least for me and my body, the results are exactly what I was looking for for a long, long time. I am really happy I am here.
BREAKTHROUGH: That makes me so happy too!
CHRIS: I plan to be here for a long time!
BREAKTHROUGH: Oh, that is the best news ever!
CHRIS: If you are on the fence and are thinking about it, you should definitely do it. 100%!
BREAKTHROUGH: Haha! Awesome! Thank you so much, Chris! I appreciate it!
CHRIS: Of course! It was nice chatting with you!