For years, the discussion around FiT has centered on how we can best serve our clients and community.  Thom and I would hear frequently from our team that they were doing everything they could for their clients but felt frustrated that they couldn’t do more – ‘We only see them 2 to 3 hours a week, how can we help them when they are not here?’ 

Simple Changes Lead to A Larger Understanding of What it Means to be Fit

This question has really guided FiT’s evolution.  We implemented a baseline assessment for all new clients many years back. This is not the typical gym-in-a-box, step onto the scale, caliper pinch and a waistline metric, we standardized a process that enables us to  dive into their reality in order to identify blind spots and bright spots, determine where we can build on successes and where we might experiment with change to aid them in adopting sustainable habits that will support them in attaining their goals and optimizing health.  As more clients went through this health and lifestyle benchmarking, it quickly became clear that some would benefit from additional support, education and accountability which led to FiT’s Health Optimization Program (HOP).  

Client Zero for Long-Distance HOP

As we were developing this program, Jonathan, a financial planner who lives on the other side of the country from FiT, and I were having a conversation about the parallels between caring for your wealth and caring for your health when planning for the future.  He shared his struggle with finding a program that he could successfully manage given his having four children at home ranging in age from 14 to 4, and his own business that required him to spend about 40% of his time in Europe. He was concerned about his health as well as his weight.  As HOP had no geographic limitations and seemed ‘doable’ given Jonathan’s constraints, he decided to give it a try. This is his story.

Hi, I am Jonathan,

I left high school in 1987 as a fit tennis player weighing188 pounds. The “Freshman 15” came easy during my first semester at college.  I have struggled to return to what I would consider a healthy weight throughout the ensuing 32 years. I considered not being able to lose weight as one of my biggest failures, after all, it seemed to me that calories-in versus calories-burned was not all that complicated.  On July 25th of 2019, I weighed 235 pounds. On October 10th I was officially under 195 pounds, where I have remained for almost 3 months. I was not ill; I did not have surgery; I did not go on any special diet. 

Thom and I started working together in October 2017, meeting on-line for weekly or bi-weekly coaching sessions. I learned a lot more than I ever expected about nutrition, health, weight loss, exercise, stress management and sleep and in July of 2019 everything came together.

• Daily Calories dropped from~3500 Calories to~2250 after making a good friend bet me that I couldn’t lose 10 kg on July 25th.  
• I focused on eating very low quantities of foods with added sugar, bread, pasta, and other grains. Lots of fruits, vegetables, and protein.
• I drink mostly water and coffee; and yes, there is still room for G&Ts and Redwine.
• The “Daily Calm” with Tamara Levitt, on the App Calm, 10 minutes of guided meditation helped me in the early weeks to accept being hungry and let it pass without eating
• Average steps per day increased from 12,000 to 18,000 (~8 miles /13 km per day) 8 years of Fitbit!
• 7-8 hours of good sleep every night [Using sleep supplement Doc Parsley when needed) & several daily supplements including Vitamin D, C, Omega 3, a multi-vitamin & Magnesium.
• I lost about 4 pounds per week for 10 weeks and remain~40 lbs (18kgs) lighter
• Bi-Annual review of blood tests showed significant improvement in my health profile.
• I feel confident that I have the tools and knowledge I need to stay under 200 pounds and to maintain a healthier lifestyle. 

The focus of my work with Thom has shifted to incorporating strength training and maintaining a healthy, well-balanced lifestyle, given the constraints of family life, regular travel and desk work. I would also like to thank the many of you who have encouraged and noticed my weight loss and improved health, the compliments never get old and everything I do from morning to night seems easier. I have a lot to be thankful for and plan to stay fit for my family, my clients, my friends and for myself and hope to make the next 50 years even better and healthier than the first 50!

How Jonathan Changed FiT & HOP

Each client confirms the power of our Health Optimization Program to change lives for the better in a sustainable way. On-site, the manifestation of improved physical and mental vigor is evident not just in physique but in the mental acuity expressed through the eyes, smiles, and sharpness of cognition. What Jonathan changed for FiT is the recognition that our application of the five-domains is not constrained by the confines of our walls, but by an unfounded bias that our best results were.