So, fall is finally here, and time is going quickly. Before you know it, we will be headed into winter, and getting ready for our spring activities. Make fitness your priority during this season when your days outdoors will be limited. We have new SkiErgs and BikeErgs at Pat’s Gym. We also have new equipment you should come check out. If you need help setting goals, reach out to Pat Gilles (pat@patsgym.com) to set up an assessment to determine a realistic, stretch goals, and to determine if you have any imbalances or other issues you should work on. To help you stay healthy, and improve during fall and spring, we have a lot of special events going on…. read on so you don’t miss out…..
Good Luck Coach Cody! Coach Cody is going to Hawaii to compete in the Ironman – Kona on October 13, 2018. Let’s all wish him well. He has been training in and out of Pat’s Gym. He’s ready and excited to go. His year-long of training has definitely prepared him well. His discipline and passion, and his natural talent will take him far. We will be posting the results so stay tuned.
If you see him in the gym or around town, wish him luck. We all wish him luck, but we don’t think he needs it – he’s ready!
November Project – Pat’s Gym Style – On October 6, 2018, at 9:30 a.m. at Pat’s Gym, we will host a November Project workout. It will be exciting to partner with the November Project to expose many of their members to Pat’s Gym and also to help support the important initiative of this free fitness movement. Pat’s Gym stands behind the idea that you need a simple sense of accountability to motivate and encourage people to get out of their beds and get moving. As the November Project advocates “if you think you’re not fit enough to join the group, stop thinking and come see what the fuss is all about”. Come make this an event to remember and expose yourself to Pat’s Gym and the November Project. Pat Gilles will be coaching this event.
A Healthy Pat Gilles Get Away – Pat Gilles is planning a healthy getaway next February 2019, where a group of Pat’s Gym athletes, will get away to a tropic destination. The goal of this tropical Get Away Destination Vacation is to have a blast with other fun Pat’s Gym athletes, stay in shape, and learn a bit more about fitness and to discuss strategies to excel in the Pat Gilles and Pat’s Gym type workouts. The dates are February 14-18th. So far about 17 athletes have indicated their interest in such an event, and half of those have placed a deposit to reserve their spot. You definitely will have a lot of free time to catch up on books or movies or you can explore around the tropical destination. There is great shopping in San Juan and great hiking in the tropical Hugo forest. If you’re interested, contact Pat Gilles at pat@patsgym.com for more information, and to indicate your interest in going. There will be a limited number of spots, so you need to act quickly.
Athlete of the Month – Pat’s Gym is excited to announce its athlete for October 2018. This athlete is very driven and focused on his goals. He is 60 years old, but that has not given him any excuses to slow down, and he keeps pushing himself. Eric is an inspiration for all of us.
Eric is employed by Aprilaire a division of Research Products Corporation. Pat’s Gym and Aprilaire have a partnership that allows Aprilaire employees to workout at Pat’s Gym five days a week. Eric has been working out and taking advantage of this benefit for the past five years. Eric started by taking 2 classes per week to see how he liked it, and to see if he would see results. Two classes a week, eventually led to three classes a week and eventually the results motivated Eric to attend classes five days a week.
Eric has had two surgeries, and each required him to take 4 – 6 months away from physical activity. Although, Eric had to take it easy initially coming back into the gym, the coaches at Pat’s Gym were able to help him return. While it was a class that Eric attended the coaches were able to tailor the workouts to help Eric recover. Eric believes that even after five years, the classes are still challenging and always have something new. The classes are tailored to provide a changing level of challenge and reach the individuals failure point regardless of class conditioning level, as long as you bring 100% effort. As the fitness level improves Eric was pushed to lift heavier weights and put out more calories on each machine than he did when he started. Eric has recognized that you recover much faster as your fitness improves, which allows you to feel great doing 5 workouts a week, sometimes still a little sore, but in a good way! Eric loves the coaches at Pat’s Gym because they constantly change the workout routines so that it never gets boring, and they add in safe alternatives if there are any injuries or physical limitation you have. The coaches at Pat’s Gym have helped Eric work around and through injuries, finding modifications that work the same muscle groups, but eliminate the impact or adjust for my flexibility limitations. Eric loves the Pat’s Gym classes. Eric loves pushing himself daily, and his effort level. In classes, the people are much younger than he is, but they keep pushing him. They push hard every day, and Eric loves it.
Eric is the winner of the Pat’s Gym September Monthly Challenge. Eric was able to lift 43 bench presses with the bamboo earthquake bar. Eric beat out many other talented athletes, who are much younger than he is, and he did so with such great humility. If you see Eric at Pat’s Gym, introduce yourself to him and be ready to be inspired.
Pat’s Gym Monthly Challenges – Each Month at Pat’s Gym we have a Monthly Challenge which helps our athletes identify weaknesses and is a great way for our athletes to compete against one another. September’s Monthly Challenge is a tough one. This one favors no one, but all can win it! We hope that this encourages you all to try!
October Monthly Challenge – This month’s challenge will be fun, but intense. It
Consists of various exercises that will tax various parts of your body, that will help you identify various imbalances and weaknesses. Give this one a try, which only takes 10mins, and see what you can do. The workout consists of the following:
Max reps in 10mins of a plate complex
Squat to press
Ground to Overhead
Overhead Squats
Front Squat
Burpee onto plate
Start at 1 of each, then 2, then 3, etc.
Plates – Females use 25# plate, Males use 45# plate
September Monthly Challenge – This challenge was very popular. Maybe it was because it involved only one exercise, or because it would only take a few minutes. Regardless why our athletes participated, they had a lot of fun and the results were impressive. The challenge was:
It’s max reps of bamboo bench press.
Females used 2×25# KBs and males used 2×50# KBs attached with blue bands on the outside rungs of the bar.
The bar could not rest on the chest, and full extension was required
Once the bar was racked that is your total number of reps
The winners of the September Monthly Challenge were Eric Sokn with 43 presses, and Gretchen Zahorik with 74 presses. Please join me in congratulating these stellar athletes.
