Total Gym

TOTAL GYM INSIDER QUOTE

“Each of us are our own greatest inhibitor. And, at the end of the day, if you just get out of your own way and let things come to you, it’s amazing what will come to you. ”

- Laird Hamilton, champion surfer

TUESDAY TESTIMONIAL: WORKING OUT ON TOTAL GYM SAVED MY LIFE

When James Driver, now 49-years-old, decided to buy a Total Gym, little did he know it would be the best decision of his life – a lifesaving one in fact – but not for the reasons you might think.

Read about James’ harrowing tale and find out how he attributes his workouts on Total Gym to saving his life:

“My name is James Driver and this is a testimony to how working out on a Total Gym actually saved my life – literally.  I am now 43 years old and a year ago I was looking into buying some home fitness equipment.  I had narrowed my search to a free weight system and a Total Gym.  The costs were comparable, but after viewing a video on the Total Gym I decided it would offer me the best work out.

For almost a year I have been working out faithfully on the total gym.  I knew I had more strength and flexibility than I had achieved working out at a gym on free weights and machines.  I now know that the total gym workouts actually prepared me to handle a life and death situation far more than free weight system could ever do.

On June 26, 2006 my church group, comprised of 18 adult and youth, entered the Ocoee River (Class 3 and 4 rapids) for a whitewater adventure. I had been white watering before and was looking forward to another river experience.

In the midst of a rainstorm, we headed down river. I was sitting in the right front and the very first rapid we hit sucked my section of the boat down and then popped up leaving me airborne. I did not panic since I… knew what I had to do. With my feet faced down-river I went toes and nose up in the air.”

I was going along OK even though my backside was beat by every rock down the river. Then things turned suddenly bad at a large rock with a strong hydraulic. This part of the river literally sucked my feet to the bottom and as I went through the rapid, my right ankle became entangled in a loose end of rope that was attached to the rock.

My body continued down the river but the rope had firmly wrapped around my ankle and violently twisted me around so that I was facing the rush of water. Unable to breath, I placed my loose foot under a rock at the bottom of the river and turned my body so that my face pointed down river.

The rush of water was so strong it forced my head into the water and I was submerged.

I am 6’1” and I was barely able to get my head out of the water. Using my free foot and the free end of the rope that was floating next to me, I was able to keep my head above water and push against the current.

People were quickly working to free me. I was in a difficult location with little accessibility. Several times rescuers were swept past me as they attempted to reach me. I began to see the panic in my rescuers’ eyes and I realized I was in trouble. Later, they told me that 20 minutes had passed without any success.

Looking back, I can see how the Total Gym workouts gave me the strength to hang on while my rescuers figured out a way to save me. Specifically, the Total Gym exercises that gave me the muscle strength and flexibility that no free weight or machine system could give me were:

1. Twister [torso rotation]:  This allowed my lower abdominals and upper and lower back to be able to twist and stabilize myself in the water against the current.
2. Seated Row and Seated High Pull: Allowed me to develop the muscles that pushed against the water (upper back and rear shoulders).
3. Butterfly and Biceps Butterfly [lat pull down or triceps pushdown].  These muscles were the ones that I needed most as I pulled myself out of the water using the same motion I used working on the Total Gym.

These exercises cannot be duplicated [on other] weight machines. Plus, I had the added bonus of the cardio workout that Total Gym gives. I definitely had to have the muscle strength and cardio combination to withstand the constant pressure of the water.

Finally, a rescuer reached me and cut the rope. I was now once again free floating through the rapids. I am not sure how far I went before eventually making it to the shore.  I was exhausted and I was told that hypothermia was setting in.

My rafting guide looked at me and said that in over 13 years on the river, she had never seen anything that scared her more.  I [was beat up] with obvious loss of body heat.

I’m not sure how much longer I would’ve been able to remain above the water, but I do know this—a year of working on Total Gym, and the specific exercises I’ve been using, gave me the strength to stay above water until my rescuers could reach me.

Total Gym and the exercises only it provides, saved my life.”

Story submitted by James Driver, Frankfort, KY

Edited by permission, for length only.

“BACK IN THE SADDLE” WITH TOTAL GYM FOUNDER TOM CAMPANARO

When I tell people I had a total ankle replacement, the first reaction is, “I didn’t know they did that.” Knees and Hips are common, but ankles – that’s new!

After a motor cycle accident when I was 16, a broken leg that was just set with traction and a cast, (now steel pins would have made the alignment perfect) and all the sports, plyometrics and heavy weight lifting I’ve done, my left ankle had had enough! It was gone.

Four years ago the doctors said just get it fused, but I wanted full mobility – I am an active guy after all. So, I figured, why not an ankle joint replacement? However, ankle joint replacements were then very new and did not have a lot of success.

Pre-op. Getting ready to go into surgery.

After doing the research I found the STAR system out of Scandinavia, (Scandinavia Total Ankle Replacement). Although the medical technology had been used for over 25 years in Scandinavia, the STAR took nine years to receive FDA approval for use in the US, finally getting the go-ahead in 2009. I found Dr. Clanton at the Steadman Clinic in Vail Colorado, he was one of the doctors who took the STAR system through the FDA process.

Off Joy and I went to Vail on May 12th for my ankle replacement surgery on the 17th. The results were instant and awesome, that is until I got an infection in the surgical wound.

So it was back to surgery (twice) to clean it out. Fortunately, the infection was not in the joint, (if it had been they would have had to take the replacement hardware out!), so this was only a two week set back.

Now, nine weeks “post-op”, I’m onto rehab (yes on the Total Gym), and my physical therapist says it’s looking really good. And while I won’t be running, jumping, biking, snowboarding, or playing golf any time soon, I’m walking with no pain and no limp (be it at a slow pace).

Total Gym Insider Quote

“You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”

- Michael Jordan, former NBA star and Basketball Hall of Fame inductee

FITNESS PSYCH – A HEALTHIER YOU

Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D.

When it comes to creating a healthier you, there are many things you can do to improve your lifestyle, and as a result your health. But did you know that weight loss is at the top of the list?

Sure diet, sedentary lifestyle and genetics are primary causes of overweight and obesity, but much of it is in your control. Even a modest reduction in weight for many of the approximately 75% of Americans who are overweight or obese will reduce risk factors for serious illnesses.

As owners of a Total Gym, you’ve already taken an important step in promoting a healthy lifestyle. You know the advantages of having the convenience of a complete full-body workout within immediate reach. Reducing calories and exercising for a minimum of 150 minutes each week is the simplest approach to weight control and instant accessibility to the Total Gym in your bedroom, family room, basement, garage—even outside—makes it more likely you are taking those important steps to become a healthier you.

Exercising for at least an hour a day, eating a low-fat/low-calorie diet, having a sensible breakfast every day, weighing yourself regularly and eating the same diet on weekends as you do during the week are essential steps for anyone who has lost significant weight and wants to keep it off.

Lifestyle change encompasses more than just diet and exercise though. The major categories you can control, according to the LEARN Program for Weight Control, include:

Attitude

• Develop smart weight loss goals that you can accomplish

• Get rid of any “it’s all or nothing” type of thinking, otherwise a lapse will become a relapse

• Don’t equate your weight with your self-esteem

• Be sure you dump your erroneous thinking about yourself, your weight and what you “can” and “can’t” do about it

Relationships

• Find support in others and be clear about the kind of help you’d like from those close to you

• Being part of a weight loss group, working out on the Total Gym with family and friends, even with a Total Gym DVD, allows you to stay motivated and share your triumphs and strategize solutions if you face any lapses.

Nutrition

• Forget pop diets—they are short-lived

• Portion control, count calories, and eat with moderation in your approach to food

• Stay with an individualized, systematic

• Keep a journal. Recording your body weight, counting calories, and general self-monitoring have been shown to be of significant benefit.plan (WeightWatchers is rated # 1 by US News and World Report)

• Survey the entire buffet before serving yourself has been shown to lead to putting less on your plate

Exercise

• Set achievable, realistic exercise goals

• Deal with emotional barriers to exercise

• Be sure you continue adding increased activity levels to your daily lifestyle

• Start with small steps at first, of course—on your Total Gym, set the glide board at a comfortable level and progress slowly

But wait, there’s more. Of course self-care involves proper diet and exercise. But what are you doing to increase your mastery of stress, to improve your overall relationships, to provide for yourself financially? These are also important to overall health.

Your work-life balance, the amount and type of play in which you engage and key environmental factors you can control are also essential elements of overall self-care. Let’s not forget about having a clear purpose in life, healthy doses of self-esteem and a spiritual foundation as well.

Exercise has been demonstrated over and over again to serve as the central foundation for overall life wellness. Think of wellness as the integration of each of the areas above—mental, social, emotional, spiritual and physical. These are the areas that will expand your life’s potential and impact how you feel about your life and your ability to function effectively and cope positively, optimistically and constructively, day to day.

Follow Dr. Mantell on Twitter @FitnessPsych

Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D., earned his doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania after completing his M.S. degree in clinical psychology at Hahnemnann Medical College where he wrote his thesis on the psychological aspects of obesity. He coaches world-class athletes and fitness enthusaists for performance enhancement. He is Senior Consultant for Behavioral Sciences for ACE, on the faculty of the Equinox Fitness Training Institute, a national Community Ambassador for Experience Life Magazine’s health initiative and for FitFluentials, appears weekly on San Diego’s CW channel 6, is a consultant to Les Mills International, writes for IHRSA, is a member of the Sports Medicine Team at the Sporting Club of San Diego and the La Jolla Sports Club specializing in fitness psychology, writes the “San Diego Fitness Psychology” column and “San Diego Life Coach Examiner.” He is also a writer and consultant to the Total Gym company. Dr. Mantell has written two best-selling books and appears regularly on radio and TV.

INSPIRED STORIES FROM TOTAL GYM USERS

In honor of  National Physical Fitness and Sports Month we are featuring the shared success stories of Total Gym users in order to  help  promote awareness of the value of physical activity and healthy eating habits in the pursuit of a happier, healthier lifestyle.

We encourage you to share your personal stories of success with us in the hope that you will help inspire others to follow your example and make physical activity a part of their daily life as well.

Today, we’d like to say Congratulations to Linda Suddith on her path to improved fitness!

I really love my Total Gym. I have lost almost 30 pounds and have gone from size 3x to 18-20. I wish I had all the wasted money spent on diets, pills, gadgets etc! I never joined a gym because I knew it would be a waste of money. But I decided to give Total Gym a try and use it regularly and see what happened. First week – lost 5lbs. took measurements-kept working. I have a bad back and the exercises and machine were so easy to use-30 days went by-10 lbs lost and a total of 3 1/2 inches lost total! I was hooked- when I started I could not take stairs normally or get up from my knees-now I can-oh – and I am 60!  Started at 220 lbs. -aiming for 150 lbs. by June.

-          Linda Suddith

Keep up the good work Linda!

Inspired Stories From Total Gym Users

Did you know May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month?

To honor this celebration and to help  promote awareness of the value of physical activity and healthy eating habits in the pursuit of a happier, healthier lifestyle we’re recognizing YOU - our Total Gym users.

We encourage you to share your personal stories of success with us in the hope that you will help inspire others to follow your example and make physical activity a part of their daily life as well.

Our first success story come by way of Total Gym fitness guru and blogger, Amanda Lynn Mayhew-Hare, who shared the following Total Gym user testimonial:

Amanda,

I wanted to write you a quick letter to let you know how you have inspired me to get back into fitness and take back my health. A very good friend of mine began her fitness journey last year and introduced me to your website and blog and I was immediately hooked!! I must say that you are one dedicated and very inspiring woman!! It wasn’t long afterwards that I became aware of your love of the total gym, and how you incorporate it into your daily fitness routine. I had purchased a total gym years ago….many years ago in fact. I believe it was the original, or one of the earliest versions anyway, it was the total gym 1000. You inspired me to dig mine out of storage and I began using it again everyday and loving it again the way I once did!! Quickly I learned that there were newer versions of this wonderful machine as I had seen on your website, and I found myself ordering the total gym XLS. Lets just say I LOVE IT!! I recieved all of the attachments that come with this machine and love everyone of them…..I am completely hooked and use it every single day!! I haven’t felt this good in a very long time!! I was injured quite badly 11 years ago in a car accident and fractured my spine and had a long recovery process and developed chronic back pain and found it difficult to workout. This machine is fantastic in the sense that it is so easy on my body, fluid in the motions, along with the stretching of the muscles you are working, it is very easy and pain-free for me to workout and get in shape. I cannot thank you enough Amanda, for your inspiration and ongoing support and encouragement. You have helped to bring fitness and health back into my life and for that I am so very grateful!! You have lit the fire in me once again and you can be sure I will keep it burning thanks to the total gym!! Thanks so much,and take care….Melissa.

Congratulations to Melissa! We here at Total Gym are proud of you! Keep up the good work!