Category: learning and living
Personal Training Success Story Spotlight- Omkar
Here is Omkar’s personal training success story in a nutshell.
When Omkar first reached out to me, he had been training in another gym that promises to train like an athlete. However, no matter how hard he was working, it wasn’t helping him get more athletic nor did it get him closer to his goal of reducing belly fat and gaining muscle.
It’s not like he wasn’t putting in the work. Omkar works hard. In his previous gym, he had worked out so hard in fact that he was advised by his doctor to delay training with me for a full 10 days since his muscles hadn’t recovered from the training they put him through. Quite simply, no matter how hard he worked it just wasn’t the right training program for him.
Frustrated with a lack of progress and nagging injuries, he came to me for guidance in training and nutrition and decided to give the free trial membership in my personal training gym a go.
During the free trial, I had taught him some of the exercises that would be included in his program. He was convinced that the kettlebell swing would hurt his back since that was his previous experience, but once he learned proper technique he was fine.
At the end of the trial, even though he believed in the training program as well as me as a coach, he was unsure he could commit for the minimum 12 weeks it takes to get the results it promises.
I gave him some basic guidelines to work with on his own, wished him luck, and never expected to hear from him again.
Much to my surprise a couple of weeks or months later, I’ll admit I can’t remember (time can be a bit of a blur sometimes) he reached out again. I remembered working with him previously and was happy to have him come back in.
But now we had to retest his strength to see if he did any of his homework. He did and was already noticeably stronger…so now with me guiding him through each session it was time to take his strength and his physique to the next level.
The workouts were designed to be at a level he could handle without issue and he put in the work, bringing his a-game each and every session. The kettlebell swings which previously would hurt his back we used as part of the finisher and he rocked it each time, never giving up or slowing down. He struggled a bit trying to get his nutrition right but got close enough to get the results he wanted.
Around the last week or 2 of the program, he took a short vacation to Utah to visit some family and he had said for the first time, he was able to take off his shirt and feel confident in the way he looks as well as actively engage in the outdoor activity he was doing (hiking, whitewater rafting, other outdoor activities that is more common in Utah, etc.). Though I don’t think we should feel ashamed of ourselves, it is easier when we are in better shape.
And his results speak for themselves. The belly fat reduction is the most obvious change, as well as the muscle development in his arms and chest.
And not only that but in a 12 week time period, we took his strength to levels beyond what we expected. Before the program, he previously had struggled to do 2 chin-ups but by the end of the program, he was laughing as he got 8 reps, defying even my expectations. He did his previous bench press 1 rep max for a set of 9 and did a staggering 25 reps with his previous 1 rep max in the squat. He explained what he thought about the program with one word…”Amazing!”
And the transformation, in his physique and his confidence, wasn’t just rewarding for him, it was rewarding for me as well. It’s people like him that make me enjoy what I do and why I seek to be the best at it.
Now even though he’s equipped with the skills to train on his own, I sincerely hope to train him again. Either way, I believe he’ll continue to get stronger, more muscular, and achieve more of his ambitions.
Eric Moss is a personal trainer in Boonton and doubles as a world-record-holding modern-day professional performing strongman, author, and motivational speaker. In the tradition of the strongmen more common during the turn of the century, he performs feats of strength such as bending steel and breaking chains as part of a show and speaks on goal achievement for corporations, nonprofits, government as well as for schools and universities. His exclusive personal training studio is located on Main Street in Boonton New Jersey, is close to Mountain Lakes, Denville, Montville and Parsippany New Jersey.
Personal Training in Boonton Success Story Spotlight – Siddy
When Siddy first came to me, it was shortly after I was allowed to reopen. She had recently moved close by from Jersey City. She wanted to lose weight and transform her body.
She had tried multiple things in her life before. She’d done kickboxing classes, small group personal training with other personal trainers many of whom let her down from just being rude (no need for that), and one trainer whose name won’t be mentioned and I’ll only say that he didn’t know how to train her so the only thing he had her do was squats (which I later had to fix her technique so he didn’t even do that correctly).
Then tragedy struck. Her mom was diagnosed with cancer. The stress from the diagnosis triggered her to develop Hashimoto’s and hypothyroidism (each of which makes weight loss extremely difficult). Then as if it wasn’t hard enough the pandemic hit, the world shut down and her mom passed away.
Siddy was devastated and as she tried to put the pieces of herself back together again, with limited options, she found an online trainer named Serena. Serena was good, but online training as a medium is extremely limited.
What she decided to do was find a personal trainer near Parsippany (where she lives) that she could see in person, that sanitized the place appropriately, and would know how to work with her. She needed a personal trainer to both be a guide in body transformation and a friend that would be patient and walk hand in hand with her through both the good days and the bad that someone in her position faces. Grief is something you just have to walk with for a bit and take one day at a time.
She found me and the first thing I did was try to assess what I was working with so I knew how to progress her both safely and effectively. When I taught her the kettlebell swing (a wonderful exercise for burning fat and building real-world work capacity), she was wobbling all over the place. Somehow I knew that picking up a weight plate with her feet would fix it and like magic it worked.
I put her on a progressive resistance training plan that I designed that would develop her all-around strength while burning fat that would help her do things she previously wouldn’t be able to do. It’s not about building bigger numbers in the gym, unless those bigger numbers help you get better at whatever it is that makes you happy (hence my tagline strength for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness).
One day she sends me a before and after pic that she took in her kitchen.
The time span between the two pictures was 3 months. So I took that moment to ask her a couple of questions.
It’s immediately apparent from the before and after pics that she’s lost weight and is looking much leaner. However what I found interesting is that as far as what she enjoys most about her achievements, is that she’s strong. That discovery of strength has led to increased confidence, positivity, and a new outlook on life.
Now with that confidence, positivity and energy, she’s living life better. It seems every time I see her she’s hanging out with llama’s, going on hikes and even recently took a trip to Disney World. She’s even in the process of starting a business helping others with Hashimoto’s and Hypothyroidism by becoming a certified AIP coach. Stay tuned for that.
Life isn’t about living beneath your potential, life is about discovery and growth. And life is better when you have the strength, the health, the confidence, and the outlook to live it to its fullest.
And I can’t think of a better way to honor the memory of her mom than by making the most of the first gift her mom gave her…life.
Eric Moss is a personal trainer in Boonton and doubles as a world-record-holding modern-day professional performing strongman, author, and motivational speaker. In the tradition of the strongmen more common during the turn of the century, he performs feats of strength such as bending steel and breaking chains as part of a show and speaks on goal achievement for corporations, nonprofits, government as well as for schools and universities. His exclusive personal training studio is located on Main Street in Boonton New Jersey, is close to Mountain Lakes, Denville, Montville and Parsippany New Jersey.
Daniel’s Personal Training Success Story
Meet Daniel. Daniel is not your typical college student. He has a wisdom that goes beyond his young age. While some of his contemporaries are focused on getting drunk, in his own words “If you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything.” and wanted to invest in his long-term health before it became an issue.
It’s not like he hadn’t tried it before. He’d worked out in gyms near Montville for nearly a year and never made the kind of progress he wanted, oftentimes getting hurt in the process. People his age are often the perfect storm for progress, but Daniel has long levers and a low appetite which made him “skin and bones” (his words not mine). Being tall and lanky, the levers of his skeletal frame are long, which can make it hard to use heavy weights (picture holding a broom by the end of the handle to get an idea of what I mean).
When he tried to work out, his arms would cramp up to the point where he couldn’t straighten them for a few days and his back would go into spasm. Long story short, he needed the right personal training program customized to his needs and abilities to help him achieve his goals of gaining muscle and strength.
So he started looking for personal trainers near Montville (the town where he lives) and found me. He did a little digging on me and found this picture of a steel bar I had bent on Instagram so he decided to reach out to me.
With his previous history of getting hurt in the gym, he had some initial concerns when he signed up for my personal training one-week free trial membership. I assessed him and came up with a corrective exercise program to make sure he wouldn’t get hurt. We put a plan into action and he was making decent progress.
Then with the surges of covid that had happened during the holidays, out of respect for his parents and concern for their safety, he decided not to risk it.
Luckily he did the corrective exercise homework I gave him and when tensions alleviated, he came back in. I assessed his movement patterns again and determined we could proceed safely on a more vigorous program. I put together a progressive resistance training plan that would span about 3 months to rapidly build his functional strength and muscle development expanding his capabilities to the point where he would surpass previous limits without even realizing it.
During the 7th week of the progression, when he was bench pressing I asked him “how does that feel?”
“A little bit heavy today.”
“Well that’s not surprising, that was your 1 rep max 7 weeks ago and you’re doing it for 5 reps…per minute”
BEFORE 12 WEEKS 
AFTER 12 WEEKS
By the end of the progression, his training weight in the bench press was a staggering 44% higher than his previous 1 rep max. To put that into perspective, an effective training plan may produce a 1 rep max of 25% higher if it’s done right. 44% higher for reps without performance enhancement drugs is often thought impossible even by knowledgeable coaches who I respect.
The success of a program can be proven by the results it produces. In 12 weeks he put on 25lbs of muscle simultaneously decreasing his body fat from 15% to 8%. His bench press 1 rep max increased by 64% and he churned out ridiculously easy 10 reps with what he previously could only do for 1 rep. He went from never being able to do a chin-up in his life to pumping out 3 of them consecutively with ease. We doubled the strength of his squats. We added 105lbs to his hex bar deadlift which is way stronger than anything he’s ever done before (not bad for someone who always hurt his back in the gym). He did all that without getting hurt, and without feeling sore. Now he’s stronger, healthier, more muscular, and more resilient to injury than he’s ever been before. Like Goldilocks and the 3 bears, my personal training program was just right for him.
Where do we go now? We continue to train and get stronger. Strength is a journey towards being better.
Is his journey complete? Hell no, but we are off to a very strong start. I’m proud of how far he’s come.
**** updated progress on Daniel’s personal training journey
So I had written his success story a while back and continued his progress. Just for the heck of it, we decided to test his chin-ups again. He’s now up to 8 consecutive chin-ups, which is more than double what it was before. Fun right?!?! One of the things I like to say is it’s not just a 12-week training program, it’s simply a strong start to a strong start to a lifetime of health and strength.
More of my personal training success stories
If you are ready to get a strong start to a stronger, healthier, and more muscular you, I have a 1-week personal training free trial membership. Just text me at 973 476 5328 to get started.
Eric Moss is a personal trainer in Boonton and doubles as a world-record-holding modern-day professional performing strongman, author, and motivational speaker. In the tradition of the strongmen more common during the turn of the century, he performs feats of strength such as bending steel and breaking chains as part of a show and speaks on goal achievement for corporations, nonprofits, government as well as for schools and universities. His exclusive personal training studio is located on Main Street in Boonton New Jersey, is close to Mountain Lakes, Denville, Montville and Parsippany New Jersey.