Suzanne M. Testimonial

1. How has your life changed since training with me? What results are you most proud of?

 

I’ve been training with Cayden for 2.5 years, and I am thrilled with this results!  As a woman over 55, my initial goals were to work on strength and balance, and I’ve experienced marked improvement in both.  I am proud that I have developed a routine of strength training 3x/week and stuck with it regardless of what is going on in my life (including with a broken foot!).  My overall health has improved, not only in terms of strength and balance, but also in terms of stamina.  I am particularly proud of progressive accomplishments, such as reaching my current personal bests of being able to goblet squat 60 lbs, leg press 240 lbs, hip-thrust 210 lbs, and single-arm row 50 lbs – with more progress to come!

 

2. How would you describe training with me to someone who’s never done it before?

 

I’ve done both in-person and virtual training with Cayden, and I’d say that he is a great mix of professional and fun.  He is professional in his approach to physical fitness, taking the time to identify your goals and the path for you to achieve them, and educating you along the way.  At the same time, he also is fun to work with.  He has a great sense of humor and can lighten the mood when you are working hard.  He also listens carefully, and asks questions about how things are going – whether you are training in person or virtually.  If things aren’t working for you, he finds alternative ways of achieving your goals.  

 

3. What would you say makes my training style or program stand out from others you’ve tried or seen?

 

There are several things that I think makes Cayden stand out as a trainer.  One is his educational approach.  Cayden doesn’t just train, but he teaches as he trains.  He explains the underlying musculature and processes that are at work with the exercise, and provides the why we are doing what we do and why it works.  Second is his ability to balance encouragement with listening.  Cayden both pushes you to keep working and progressing, but also listens when you have concerns or even exercises that you particularly dislike.  He finds a different way of advancing your goals while making it enjoyable.  Third is his “full person” approach.  Cayden focuses on overall health, including sleep, nutrition, hydration, and recovery time, which helps you see training as one piece of the overall health puzzle.  He isn’t a trainer that only focuses on the strength training and sees that as the answer to everything.

 

4. What’s something unexpected you’ve learned or gained through this experience?

 

Before training with Cayden, I was intimidated to work out with weights in a gym; I felt like I didn’t belong there, and was particularly nervous about working out with free weights. Through Cayden, I gained confidence in myself.  At the gym, I use equipment I never imagined being able to master, and am excited to keep developing new skills.  I also learned the importance of having a person guiding my progress and ensuring that I am pushing at the right levels.  In all honesty, my initial goal was to work with a trainer for a couple of months to learn enough that I could move forward on my own.  However, I think if I had gone that route, I would probably have hurt myself by pushing too hard on some things, and not challenged myself enough on others – and I never would have moved on to equipment such as the trap bar and plate-loaded hip thrust machine.  

 

5. What’s something would you say to someone who’s thinking about starting training with me but isn’t quite sure yet?

 

For anyone considering training with Cayden, I’d say jump in!  Be prepared to share information about your goals and what works/doesn’t work for you, so that Cayden can develop a plan for you.  Ask a lot of questions, because you’ll learn even more along the way.