The Problem

I approached Brian with a difficult issue. I had injured my shoulder two months earlier and I was seeking professional help with creating a new workout plan. Before I injured my shoulder I was working out five to six days a week and each day had a designated muscle group to workout. After the injury I found that I was very limited when I worked out my shoulder, chest and back. Almost all of the exercise I knew for those muscle groups were causing me pain. I could not do any form of pressing and benching. I then met with a sports medicine doctor to have my shoulder checked out. The doctor informed me that I was experiencing pain in the shoulder due to a condition called distal clavicle osteolysis. With this knowledge of my shoulder’s condition I approached Brian at the gym.

Starting Personal Training 

In the first consultation with Brian, I explained my limitations due to the shoulder. He paid extra attention to what I could do based on the doctor's recommendations. He took an initial assessment of my abilities and asked me what my short term and long term goals were.  My long term goals are to continue to increase strength and muscle mass. At 140lbs I was hoping to get to 150lbs. In addition to adapting my lifting, Brian encouraged me to make small daily dietary changes that were easily incorporated into my routine.

Getting Stronger

As I would go though the workouts I could see myself get stronger and my limitations become fewer and fewer. For instance, at the beginning I was struggling do to a standard push up without pain. Brian emphasized form and would modify exercises so that I could work my way up to doing standard push ups and much more.  Whenever I found a new exercise painful to do Brian would quickly give me a substitute and/or modification. Today I am able to do push ups with ease and they are a staple on my chest workouts.

Progress and Muscle Gain

I recently achieved my first goal of gaining 10 pounds in about 12 weeks  and it is evident that my shoulders and back are more muscular. My weight continues to increase and I have been steadily getting stronger in my big movements like the back squat, pressing, and rowing. Working out is one of my passions, and being injured was incredible difficult. I could not have gotten to where I am today with out the guidance and training from Brian. He is a wonderful personal trainer and friend. He excels at his job and goes the extra mile for his clients. Working with him for the past few months has been a pleasure and some of the most rewarding times in the gym for me. I look forward to continue to work with him in the future.