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Aging and staying fit can be a challenge. As an A4M (American Academy of Anti-Aging) Board Certified Health Coach, I know the importance of exercise for maintaining heart health, metabolic health, brain health, a strong immune system, strength, flexibility and mobility. Let’s face it, though, as we age it gets harder to exercise and we are more prone to injury. Despite working my entire adult life, I was finding it harder to maintain my fitness levels the older I got.

I was introduced to Rhonda several years ago when a friend asked me to tag along to her personal training session. I had just turned fifty and would have described myself as being in good shape. I worked out routinely and consistently but was starting to notice my body working against me. My back hurt, not infrequently. My knees were starting to bother me after years of running and playing sports. Aches and pains one might chalk up to getting older, except that I knew better than to just accept and surrender to the aging process. I know we can extend the youthfulness of our bodies through proper exercise, nutrition, and lifestyle. What I didn’t understand until meeting Rhonda was the value a professional, highly-skilled, top personal trainer adds to developing and maintaining fitness…at any age.

At 56 I am in better shape than I was in my thirties or forties. I’m stronger, which defies the aging process and the natural tendency to lose muscle mass. One of the first adjustments Rhonda made to my work out was to focus on the posterior chain and making it stronger so I don’t succumb to back and knee troubles. She explained that after years of playing soccer and running track my muscles and supporting ligaments were out of balance. I needed to develop stronger glutes, hamstring, and back muscles to support my posture and structural integrity. I no longer do long cardio session. Rhonda’s HIIT (high intensity interval training) has increased my speed and endurance without risk of injury. In the past couple of years, I’ve taken up beach volleyball, not exactly a sport for a “boomer” like me. Rhonda trains me with exercises to improve my game--getting up and out of the sand, explosiveness, hitting power…and thanks to her, I can still wear a bikini on the court!

I would never be able to compete with women and men decades younger than myself on the volleyball court if I weren’t in the physical condition that I am after working out with Rhonda these past few years. Her skills and training methods apply to any age group and any level of fitness. My sixteen-year old son also works out with Rhonda to improve his weight training technique and overall sports conditioning. She helped correct mistakes he was making in the gym that over time would lead to injury.

Exercise is a vital part to our overall health. People who don’t exercise suffer the health consequences. But people who don’t exercise correctly also suffer. You need an expert. Rhonda is an expert personal trainer. She offers a level of dedication, organization, and knowledge far superior to other personal trainers. Just when I think I’ve peaked; she takes me to a new level of my personal best. Hiring a personal trainer is an investment in your health and well-being. Rhonda offers huge ROI – return on investment. The older I get the more I realize that health is my most valuable resource. I’m so grateful to have found Rhonda to protect and strengthen that resource.

When I first started going to Rhonda, I was in college. I missed working out as an athlete, so Rhonda helped me train competitively. Ten years later, I can’t imagine my physical and mental health being where it’s at without her. I travel a lot for work so Rhonda helps me stay balanced, have mental clarity, and continue to push myself. She has helped me feel strong as I transition into my 30's and operate at a higher performing level.

I am much over 50 years old (I stopped counting about then, as it is now all about biological age), and started working out for the first time in my life a couple years ago. I played a lot of sports when younger and in combination with genetic gifts from my parents, my body has survived the last 30+ years without working out. It’s a different game after 50 and aging occurs more rapidly. In order to stem that aging tide, I realized that I needed to start moving my body again, like we naturally do when we’re younger. My wife, who is quite a specimen as she has always taken care of her body by working out and eating well, kindly encouraged these thoughts and eased me into a Rhonda introduction.

Rhonda has been a real gift. She brings a real functional knowledge of anatomy, physiology, optimal mechanics of bodily movement and how this varies with age to her training workout of her clients. I am a physician and knew that my joints, etcetera needed quite a bit of TLC and strengthening before they were pushed further. She already knew this and shepherded me through this maze with confidence. Rhonda has a wealth of options for achieving similar workouts of various muscle groups and is constantly varying the workout so that boredom doesn’t set in. I’ve never enjoyed working out, but the morning hour goes by quickly and painlessly.

I still feel young and do love being able to do most things that I used to do including beach volleyball and tossing the football around with our grown kids. I want to be able to do these things as long as I am able. During this recent quarantine and missing Rhonda, I haven’t been working out as much as before, even though we have a home gym in our garage. I need that commitment of our scheduled appointment in the morning and she always greets me with that great, interested, enthusiastic smile.

Wherever mindset you might be coming from, Rhonda will help your body keep up.