Opened my inbox as usual this morning to see what Mr. E. Postman delivered today.

I get loads of emails every day from different people on many colourful subjects (with some even straying outside health and fitness).

That also includes those mails promising me a bigger wingwang and those telling me I will get $50 million from someone I have never heard of if I get in touch – yeah, right!.

Oh, I also get the usual hate mail and the unsubscribes – which is still pretty cool in my book.

That’s because for every disgruntled munchkin I get, I am in turn getting a ton of other people that are eager to listen and learn from what I have to say.

So, if you don’t like it, you can just beat it (as old Jacko would have said).

And then, there are the special emails.

Like the one I got this morning from Geoffrey.

I love getting emails like this and I love sharing them with you guys too.

Absolutely makes my day.

It’s the reason why I am still coaching and LOVIN’ IT after 25 years.

The magic and sheer joy in them is just…WOOHOO!!!

 

WHERE IT ALL STARTS

OK, hold up before I share the email.

A little bit of background info on this particular narrative.

It started out just like any other BodyForge story.

Someone is unhappy with who they have become and wants to make a change.

So they visit a gym, thinking that there might be some magic potion there that fixes every problem they have (there isn’t – where’s that damn druid Getafix when you need him?).

A few exercises here and there and voilà – ready for the red carpet.

Unfortunately, it never is that simple.

Getting someone to transform themselves is as much of an art form as it is a science.

Training alone is not enough.

You need to listen to someone’s heart and mind and bring harmony there before you can bring physical harmony.

A lot of facilities will never bother with that – their ideal client is just an open wallet.

And a lot of people are too wrapped up in their own version of events to defy their own self-imposed limits.

But you don’t need to be any form or shape of a traditional “champion” to win this one.

Geoff is a normal person, just like anyone else.

In fact, if truth be told, with his presenting history, he had the odds stacked against him.

The difference being that while most people will be too complacent to roll up their sleeves and get the work done, this man was ready to give it a shot – whatever it takes.

And we take on someone like that like a duck to water.

These people are champions without knowing it – all they need is someone to walk the way with them.

 

THE WAY OF THE FORGE

So, back to our story.

Geoffrey walked into The BodyForge less than a year ago looking a little much the worse for wear.

Believing he was beyond his prime and that his best years were behind him.

As we sat down and talked about his life story, his problems and his aspirations, I realized there was a lot we could do for him to improve his quality of life.

He was pretty unsure about joining another “gym” at that point – at 65 years of age, and with multiple medical issues, he thought he would stand out like sore thumb.

Plus, all the other gyms didn’t really pay attention to him anyway.

He was just a client there – an “older” client.

So, that’s what he would be here too.

Well, at least, that’s what HE imagined.

So, the first thing to do was to set him straight.

I explained to him how there was nothing “gym-like” about The Forge.

We are nothing like your typical box facility.

We are Life Performance Connoisseurs – an exclusive fitness facility where we cater for each and every one of our members on an individual and very personal manner.

Here, we are not interested in jamming our facility with as many people as we can.

We go for quality, not quantity.

And that means that we are able to take care of our members as completely as they need to be taken care of.

And that is the reason why all of our clients succeed.

Their goals are our goals.

Their wins are our wins.

We want them to be the best they can be.

But that’s not the only reason we are unique.

We are also as unconventional as it gets.

We don’t do fads.

We don’t do cookie cutter classes.

We do what works.

That’s why you can walk in here on any given day and see an 84 year old doing a leg press and bicep curls and calf raises.

And looking like he was 50…and feeling like he was 30.

That’s why you’ll walk in here and find 40 year old Mums with 2 or more kids looking hotter than your average 20 year old female.

Because we don’t follow trends.

We put our noses to the grindstone and get the damn work done.

And it shows.

So, I explained The BodyForge way of life to Geoff.

And he felt good enough about it to give it a shot.

 

10 MONTHS LATER

Today, this guy is hitting the Re-Invention program 3 times a week.

He is breaking his own personal records almost every time he steps in here.

And, not content at just keeping up with our younger clients, he also considers it his duty to keep them on their toes.

His bloodwork is normal for the first time in decades.

He is feeling as good as when he was in his twenties.

Compared to the man who first stepped in here, he now has a spring in his step, a confidence in his poise and sheer determination in his eye.

Now that’s what I call AWESOME!

Some people collect money, belongings, cars, fancy clothes and jewellery.

I collect the magic of people’s smiles when they realize how amazing they really are.

Thank you Geoffrey.

I am honoured to have played a part in your Re-Invention.

Now buckle up – we still have some remarkable things to do, you and I.

 

 

THE EMAIL

Last, but not least, here is the email Geoff just sent me.

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Dear Donatello,

I joined your Re-Invention programme last July. I will be 65 years old next week and have a history of diabetes, artery blockage in both legs, an irregular heart beat and a few other problems.

Over the last six years, I have spent around a whole year (on and off) in hospitals undergoing serious surgical interventions.

I have also been through a whole year of physiotherapy to get mobility back in my legs.

Adding to all this, I also was severely overweight (I hate the word “obese”).

When I started your programme I had a lot of misgivings and wondered who was I kidding joining a gym which relied heavily on resistance training.

However, thanks to your encouragement and help, I thought it would be worth giving it a try.

Session after session I started getting surprised about how much I was achieving.

I am now actually enjoying the training because I started believing again that I can “achieve”!

I feel much better physically and psychologically. Physically I feel stronger and, more importantly, the blood pressure and sugar levels are well under control and all the blood tests have become encouraging. Psychologically, I am looking forward with optimism in the knowledge that my quality of life is improving.

Even my doctor can’t believe it!

Apart from the above, I have found both you and your father Toni, very understanding but, at the same time, encouraging me to better performances.

I consider both of you not just as my coaches, but also true friends.

I feel very much at home at The BodyForge – something I never thought I would say about any gym.

Thank you for everything.

Geoffrey

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Rock on, old boy!

 

 

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