There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded.

-Mark Twain

We made it! To say the first year has been amazing, well that would be an understatement. Through the ups and downs, through the training highs and lows, and through the hustle and bustle of life and getting caught up with adult responsibilities, Pure Health as pushed through and flourished!

I have posted about it before, but I still look back and think how blessed I am. To go from a personal training gig, to a garage gym for some of my clients, to mentioning a dream of owning a gym to a chiropractor with the same dream (who would later become my business partner), to a phone call from said chiropractor that a space had opened up, to 3 weeks later signing a lease and ordering equipment, to opening the doors to many athletes (some who have been with us the whole time and others who have met their goals and gone their own way), to now, what we refer to as our #phpfamily!

That being said, let me tell you about our #phpfamily:

It is dysfunctional; we bicker, we fight, there are some tears, and even some just raw temper tantrums. However, these are far outweighed by the joyful smiles and giggles that come from the many good lifts. It is outweighed by the 80’s pop we practice our rhythmic gymnastics routines to (keep a look out for PHP in the Olympic Games here in the next 8 years). It is outweighed by the general respect and attention we give to each and every athlete going for that “white whale” lift, that max attempt, or maybe just struggling through a set of 10 and just needs a good ol’ fashion yell session to get them jacked up. Basically, it is family in every sense of the word, and I could not be more happy or proud of what the gym has become (nor did I ever imagine it would take on this amazing form).

It boils down to this, Jeremiah and I had a dream to open up a gym full of dedicated athletes, and in turn these amazing individuals have given so much more than that back. For example:

• There is not a single athlete in our gym that has not increased a lift by less than 40lbs
• We have two amazing female power lifters, that in their first year of lifting, have made it to both nationals and soon to be worlds
• We have competitive athletes that span from the age of 13 all the way to 60 years old, all competing and improving in every way they can!
• We have weightlifters, cross fitters, power lifters, strongman, high school athletes, and general fitness enthusiasts all coming together under one roof (getting along, although there is occasional mockery) with the sole goal of improving in their sport!

Not only that, but the fact that because these athletes put their trust in our programming we have been able to do so many fun and amazing things in order to create our brand and expand our knowledge:

• We have our own coffee brand, Rise and Grind, made by a local coffee roaster (Heartland Roasters!)
• We have our own 14oz coffee mugs for said custom blend
• We have been able to learn from some of the best coaches, that span from powerlifting, to weight lifting, to corrective exercise (Coach Travis Mash of Mash Elite, Coach Zach Greenwald of Strength Ratio, and Coach Zach Schluender, former OTC Resident Athlete)
• We will soon be travelling to Ukraine to learn from Gold-medalist Weight lifters and the Philippines to learn more Yoga/Mobility
• We have outreached to the community to extend our reach to the youth in order to grow the sports we love

So, you see, to say this first year was a success, well it is a true understatement. I cannot begin to thank each and everyone person that has helped me and the gym along this path. I am truly blessed and amazed at all the wonderful individuals that allow me into their lives and put trust in my abilities to help them along the path they have chosen for themselves, because you see, even if you are the coach with the best programming skills in the world, it means nothing if no athlete is willing to take it and show the capabilities of it.

So here is to the first year, here is to the continued success at the gym, here is to all the state records we own, to all the PR’s we crush, to the fantastic time we have training and grinding through the “impossible,” and to the overall #fitfam we have created!