July 19, 2018 | by Jeremy Meyer | Body Transformations,
Phil deals with depression, anxiety and anger issues with strength and conditioning workouts.
Following our Strength and conditioning workouts, Phil lost 11% body fat.
When Phil moved to Hong Kong from Minnesota he struggled with the culture change.
He had suffered from depression and anxiety his whole life.
Being depressed and lonely in a new environment put a lot of stress on his marriage.
Phil had positive experiences with regular physical fitness training in Hong Kong in the past. He had no strength and conditioning workout experience but had been told that regular strength training could help him with his mental issues.
Phil wanted to find someone that could offer specialised strength and conditioning workouts.
Being in his 50’s, he sought a trainer who was experienced with designing exercise programs for someone more mature and who would understand his requirements.
After 6 months of training, he became a different person both physically and emotionally. He is happier and calmer and tells me his depression and anxiety symptoms have gone.
After 6 months of training at RAW, Phil achieved the following results:
Gained 5kg’s of muscle and lost 5kg’s of fat.
Went from 25% to 13% body fat.
Started with no strength training experience. At 78kg bodyweight he can now:
Deadlift 140 kg’s
Squat 110kg’s
Bench press 70kg’s
Performs 10 perfect chin-ups.
He feels he has cured his depression, anxiety and anger issues.
I recently sat down with him and asked him a few questions about his journey:
Why did you seek a personal trainer?
My whole life I have suffered from anxiety and depression. I also have some issues with anger and an addictive personality. For many years, when I had a bad day, I used junk food and alcohol to make me feel better. When we moved to Hong Kong, I did not know anyone. My wife was away for 2-3 weeks at a time. I felt lonely and even more depressed. This really put stress on our relationship. I was at the point where I considered going on medication in order to try to save our marriage.
What was your first impression during your initial meeting at RAW?
Jeremy, the owner, spent over 1 hour with me. He was not pushy and took the time to listen. He wanted to know detailed information about my lifestyle. He asked about how much sleep I was getting, wanted to know if I had any digestive issues or underlying health issues. He took the time to find out exactly what I was trying to accomplish from training. he made me comfortable and I was able to open up right away.
How is your RAW trainer different from previous trainers you have worked with?
I had worked with trainers in the past but had little experience with strength and conditioning workout training. My trainer used a slow and steady progression approach with me. He is highly focused on technique. His number one priority was to build my confidence and make me feel comfortable in the weight room.
I had a few setbacks during my journey. I had bad days and sometimes fell back into bad dietary habits. I came in to train some days and was angry at the world. My trainer was not judgemental or negative. He always focused on the positive and helped change my mindset during those bad days.
Changing my lifestyle and building my body over the last year gave me the confidence and mental fortitude to handle bad days. I still have ups and downs but I feel stable and mentally strong now. For that, I am thankful to RAW Personal Training.
Get in touch and start your journey to a healthier, happier and leaner version of yourself.