I have been an active person for most of my life. This is one of the reasons I became a Personal trainer in 2002. Swimming has been an important part of my life since I was eight years old. I also boxed for 2 – 3 years.

I played 5 years of football in my teens. In my 20’s I did one year of gymnastics, played in a slow pitch league and played racquetball 2-3 times per week for a year. In my 30’s I played water polo one winter. When I was fourteen I bought my first membership to a gym and have worked with weights off and on ever since.

When I was sixteen I completed my PADI open water scuba diving certification. Since that time I have put many ocean and lake dives in and completed my PADI Dive master. I also had the privilege of assisting in training several groups of new scuba divers.

In March of 2007 I did my first sprint triathlon in Lewiston Id, followed by an Olympic distance in Walla Walla, WA in May and in June of 2007 I completed the Ford Ironman in Coeur d'Alene, ID. Since then I have had the honor of helping several people complete their first triathlon.

Strength training or weight bearing exercise will increase your metabolism by up to 50 calories per day for every pound of muscle gained.

When it comes to weight loss, you need to burn 3500 calories to lose one lb of weight. If you gain 5 lbs of muscle you will lose  ½ pound of weight per week sitting in a chair.

A 160 lb individual who participates in a 60 minute circuit class three days per week will burn up to 582 calories per class. So, you lose ½ a pound of weight with the extra 5 lbs of muscle you gained and another ½ pound per week from the three circuit classes.

You are now losing 1 lb per week, and you haven’t even touched your nutrition yet.

Cajun Spiced Pork Chops