I was lucky enough to have a session with Ross Meyer of Real Health earlier this week. Ross is a personal trainer and health coach, but he goes so far beyond your average personal trainer it feel strange to call him one.
When I think of a personal trainer, the stereotype of a big chain gym trainer comes to mind, the “buff” guy or gal who runs people semi-mindlessly through a circuit of gym machines (my apologies to all the quality personal trainers out there, I recognize this is a bad stereotype). Ross doesn’t do anything like this. I half expected to be told to do this exercise or machine and then do that one, but our session was completely different. Ross started by getting a history of my physical injuries (thankfully few and far between) and then asking about my goals (continued pain free movement and the ability to continue to do all the activities of daily living like picking my son up and carrying groceries, etc.). He then put me through a functional movement screen, which is a series of exercises designed to demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses. We found, not unsurprisingly that I had poor hip mobilityand instability in my lumbar spine both secondary to sitting at a desk much of the day. Ross then put me through a basic serious of exercises slowing them down, cutting the weight and focusing on good form. It was honestly like yoga using weights. At the end of the session the difference in my posture was easy to see in the mirror.
My goal is to connect with other practitioners who are not only good at what they do, but have a passion for it. It can’t just be a job, it must be a calling. After spending some time working and then chatting with Ross it’s clear to me how much he loves his work. I felt, not only that I had gotten a workout (with its own benefits), but that I had actually done something even greater to improve my health by balancing out my posture.
If this sounds interesting to you, or you are looking for a personal trainer that focuses on bringing balance and symmetry back to your movement patterns and body, I highly recommend Ross. He can be reached at (206) 790-5171 or ross@realhealthseattle.com. He tells me his website www.realhealthseattle.com is being reworked and will be up in running in a few weeks.
And just to be clear, I have no financial relation with Ross whatsoever, and I get no compensation of any kind by making this post.
What are your thoughts? Have you used a personal trainer? We’d love to hear about it, share your thoughts in the comment section below.