SIT-DOWN: RACHEL LASSETER

Oh Rachel...where do I start. She loves wine, animals, steak, food as a whole, dirty memes, other people's babies, and power cleans. Hates sandbags :) 

Rachel is married to one of Travis's long time clients, Ryan. They were married not long after we opened TCS. After the honeymoon Ryan said "hey my wife might want to start working out so I am sending her up here to you." These are my favorite- I never know if the dude is telling his wife to come, kindly suggesting to start working out, or who knows. But once I met Rachel- I knew for sure Ryan was not telling this chick anything! HA! LIFT was definitely her decision.

Rachel was working out and seeing zero results. Dealing with a long time injury and frustrated she decided it was time to make a move. 

We started out with a month of personal training sessions to get her going and used to the way things work. She is naturally mobile and when I said "squat" she just went ass to grass...and that's when every coach is like YESSSS. She picked up things pretty easily...minus the name of equipment/movements which was pretty entertaining.  Every move we did was new to her. A lot of women would have been pretty intimidated and not come back, but Rachel just kept coming back for more and results came quickly. 

Rachel started off squatting the barbell. That 35lb bar kicked her little ass all over the gym. Today her max is 125 and really that looked a bit easy. She has gotten incredibly strong, and just keeps improving on everything. 

There has only been a couple of workouts where I thought she might punch me. Usually that somehow involves a sandbag. But she has a great internal voice that tells her to keep going and she always finishes. That is a quality that sets her apart from others. 

I love seeing her name on the roster because I know she will be walking up with big sunglasses and a smile soon...and everyone else is happy too because she is a team player in class, and such a great happy person!

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SIT-DOWN: KYLE L

Kyle is relatively new to TCS, but has already made a huge impact at the gym with his positive attitude, sense of humor and hard work. Not to mention, he's got some of the best hair in the gym - and he knows it. Hahaha.

I really can't say enough about Kyle's work ethic. From day one, Kyle has always brought his best effort, regardless of what his shift may have looked like or whether or not their new baby girl, Iona, slept like shit. This consistent effort has obviously resulted in some real progress(#gainZ) for Kyle. He's become stronger and more mentally and physically capable to do hard work. But honestly, the thing I'm most proud of Kyle for is his vastly improved ability to find proper positions while lifting. In the beginning, this was a huge hurdle. We had to essentially start from square one and rebuild his lifting technique, which is very difficult, but he never let ego get in the way and never stopped working at it, which has paid off BIG for him! 

This type of mentality is exactly why Kyle makes TCS a better place. He's here to get better, even if it means slowing down, swallowing his pride, and putting in the time and effort to do it the right way - even it may not be the easy way.

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SIT-DOWN: ALLISON

Allison has been with me for years. Hundreds of workouts, happy hours, events, job changes, everything.  Like many of the LIFT girls we see each other more times a week than friends or sometimes family. I notice hair changes, body changes, personality changes, stress, sadness and happiness. Allison and I have seen all of these with each other over the years. 

Recently she came to me after some major life changes wanting to start a new nutrition plan. I always suggest Renaissance Periodization first. If you are willing to count, measure and surrender to the process, RP is for you. After a short chat she was on board and ready to go!

Months later many people in the gym have noticed the changes. She is squatting more, pressing more, and overall a better athlete. Yes, a lot of this is contributed to making the nutrition change. The rest is your attitude, ambition, drive, and determination in the gym. It's all about the implementation. She took all the information and decided it was time to make a change. 

In the past Allison was okay being the smallest and lifting the lightest weights. That's how it went. Then she wanted more, and as a coach I was so excited to see her take this step. She shows up four to five times a week ready to rock. No complaining, just doing. 

Other people in the gym have noticed how strong she has gotten....because she is catching up with them! I could not be more proud of this chick. She decided she wanted to make progress. Goals, plan, workout, nutrition....SUCCESS. How can that be better planned out?

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KATRINA!

Katrina joined LIFT months ago from a figure background, looking for something different. Jen knew she would be a perfect fit for TCS and LIFT when she jumped up to the pull up bar and knocked out six strict pull ups and then said " I don't know how to kip." Jen love having her in class and the energy she brings. She is always upbeat, ready to roll and works hard.

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While I grew up playing soccer, it wasn’t until I graduated from college that I committed myself to fitness. At first, my biggest motivation was literally “to look hot”. I wanted to look like the girls in Oxygen magazine and eventually compete in physique competitions. I joined Gold’s Gym, hired a trainer, and began the bodybuilder lifestyle. I was able to put on enough muscle that I could then diet down for my first bikini show.

My prep started 16 weeks out from the competition. I had 1 hour of lifting and 2 hours of walking/stairclimbing nearly every day, while eating less than 1200cals and 60 grams of carbs. And while the physical aspect sounds tough, it was the mental beating that was far more torturous. There were other girls at my gym training for the same show, and I couldn’t help but size them up and mentally tear them down. However, the person I tore down the most was myself. Every day my flaws were pointed out to me “so that I could win”. Do you know how many rear delt flies I’ve done in my life??? Every day I felt like I was ready to crack, and I finally reached my breaking point 4 weeks out from the competition.

Once the dieting was officially over, I went on the Holy Grail of Binges. WichWich, Coal Vines, Moonshine buffet, How Do You Roll, Magnolia’s Cafe, JuiceLand and Alamo Drafthouse- all in the first 24 hours. I gained 8lbs in the first week, and stopped weighing myself once I hit 15. I continued this way for 2 months before promising to start over. And then I tore my ACL.

And now we have reached the lowest of low. Overweight, one-legged, and overall depressed- I had no idea how I was going to pull myself up out of this hole. As luck would have it, I became friends with a fellow Gold’s go-er who had witnessed my roller coaster. Instead of pointing out my flaws, he focused on my milestones, showed me what a 30-minute circuit can do versus a 90-minute lift session, and held me accountable for all the extra scoops of chocolate peanut butter I had been eating. Not only did he help me at a crucial time, he is the one who introduced me to LIFT for women.

To compare my experience at LIFT to everything prior would just be unfair. But I am going to anyways :) Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could work out with females and NOT side-eye them. But when you start working out with the LIFT women, the support and motivation is truly overwhelming (not gonna lie, Calland and Tina intimated the shit out of me on Day 1). I have come to terms that I will not be as strong or fast or dynamic as some of the others, but I’ll always be sure to try as hard as them. And that is what LIFT is about. Not lift weighting - lifting each other up. What started out as a mission to look good in a bikini, I ended up finding true strength inside and out thanks to the TCS community.