Jessie G (19/02/2019)

“For the first time in 20 years, I am below 100kg!”

For the first time in 20 years, I am below 100kg! It isn’t through lack of trying over those and more years; I’ve done many different diets, becoming a Gillian McKeith aficionado during her hay day, able to recite passages of Michael Mosely’s Fast Diet, the Healthy Gut book and 800-calorie Sugar Diet; I’ve taken prescribed and non-prescription weight loss medicine numerous times; I’ve tried to regain a love of sport many times, been to gyms in Egypt, Italy, and everywhere else I’ve lived; and even been to a health spa in Germany, where I fasted on water and broth for two weeks plus making the most of exercise classes, swimming and hiking. Each time I was very good at the diet, happy losing weight and being a little extreme, felt great for a while and then crashed out only to get fatter than before.

This time, I started out at a very unhappy 22 stone. I was in a lot of physical pain, at the start of medical elimination-process to diagnosing Fibromyalgia, and too overweight and in pain to walk to the station to get to work. My dad came to visit and begged me to do something, fast to lose some weight so that I was in more of a position to exercise.

So that’s when I started, on 23rd July 2018, diving back into Michael Mosely’s world of 5:2 but with a little extra fast a week.  I found it fairly easy, working better with yes/no to food, rather than eternally questioning. By mid-August, I had already lost 2 stone on diet alone, and my pain had improved a lot. It was then that I saw a gym advertising a 14 day for £14 membership introduction so I jumped in – swimming, trying out tennis (though that was too much for sure), and walking on the treadmill for an hour. I did it and the weight kept moving, another 2 stone down. 

I think that would have been the end of the road – already lasting longer and having more success than on other occasions, I would have got bored of the walking and crashed on the diet. The difference this time is that I have Chloe. I’ve now been training with Chloe for 3 ½ months, and I’ve finally hit a weight that I don’t think I’ve seen since secondary school. We’re nowhere near finished and also, it’s not about weight any more, it’s about eating the right food in order to train and recover, and about getting better and stronger overall.

Lots of things have changed to keep me going through our sessions:

• Chloe very patiently took me off the 5:2 (/4:3) diet and so saved me from crashing. She mentioned it to me as a future event which gave me time to panic and then accept the need for change, and was very supportive through the change. From fairly-recently accepting that I have an eating disorder and recognising my obsessive nature with food, it was very tough, but Chloe was there with reassurance and repeated attempts to encourage relaxing a little.

• Chloe keeps the workouts interesting by changing up the exercises, and as she’s monitoring me and planning, I don’t have to think about what’s best or question what I’m doing. I also don’t have to worry about whether I can do something because if Chloe thinks I can, then I can and will.

• She encouraged me to join classes that I thought wouldn’t be in my ability range, and even attended with me the first time, so now I have HIIT classes and training with her on my higher impact days, and cardio on my in-between days, which is fun and keeps me moving forward. Chloe also tells me to slow down when I need to.

• Chloe has now been introduced to my moodiness, OCD, and autism, and the days when the gym is too busy for me to feel comfortable. She’s very patient!

• When I have Fibro-flares, we take it easier and concentrate on my heart rate rather than measuring against prior workouts, which makes it possible to do a workout I’m proud of when I’m feeling less than 100%.

When I recently had a prolonged time of feeling bad – feeling tired, returned and continued pain, and not seeing progress for some time, which definitely would have been an end-point to a regime previously, I messaged Chloe to say how I was feeling, and she highlighted for me how my feelings were related to stress, which awareness (along with her tip) made me able to get more of a grip. She also joined me in my workout, which showed just how much progress I had made. After a time of seeing less progress, this has really helped my motivation and made me feel I’m back on track, and this week, I managed to return to the HIIT class that I love.

I am so grateful to Chloe, for keeping me going, encouraging me, being an inspiration, making me work hard and showing me what I’m capable of!

Jessie G (updated 02/02/2020)

The most important thing Chloe has said to me recently is ‘You don’t have to run, you get to run’.

Firstly, that sentence in itself is amazing if I consider where I started: I joined the gym in September 2018 because I couldn’t walk from my house, down a hill for 10 minutes, without busting into tears from the pain.

Secondly, it’s the type of phrase that really switches things in my mind. After a month or so struggling to find the piste (let alone being on track), I’ve remembered again why I want to train: not only can I run, but running and training are important forms of self-love, carving out the time to improve my physical self, which helps so much with my mental self.

22 stone, in constant pain and too embarrassed to watch the video of my school because it was impossible not to see myself… I cannot imagine life now if I had continued down that same path! 9 stone down after 18 months of life change, life is great and I would not have got here without you: you showed me how the gym could be fun – when people say it’s boring I tell them circuits is like being in an adult playground; you’ve enabled me to move – yes, I remember not being able to reach the deadlift bar on the floor; you keep me on track when life feels too awful – we include boxing when I’m stressed; you scaffolded my self-belief when in October I thought about entering a half marathon (my family thought it was nuts).

I may not always be able to make leaps and bounds in forward progress but you do keep pushing me forward, being able to train today after enjoying running 13km yesterday is the true proof – it’s a repeat of my longest run from a month ago, but after that time I couldn’t move for 3 days.

I might have told you that I didn’t like you during our session today, and you said I’d thank you at the end – why do you always have to be right?????

Sam M (01/01/2020)

I returned to exercise at start of 2019 following my retirement from a job that left me very inactive throughout the day sitting in my office for hours on end. I was stressed, constantly tired and had put on the pounds weighing in at 68kg.

Initially my gym sessions were often repetitive, performing many of the same cardio based exercises generally in my comfort zone. During this time, Chloe offered me a personal training taster session and since then I have been hooked!

Chloe made me feel at ease and has taught me about different ways to exercise to improve my physical fitness and introduced me to weight training.  My heart rate monitor graph shows a vast jump in personal fitness. Over the weeks, my recovery rate after each cardio training would get shorter and my motivation would increase. Chloe would introduce harder exercises, teaching me style & technique to get the best from each exercise.

I have lost 7kg in weight, my body fat % has come down from 36% to 28% and my muscle mass tone has developed. My physique has changed from being overweight to lean and strong.

With the energy, enthusiasm and commitment that Chloe brings to our sessions, she has helped me not only to achieve a level of fitness I am proud of, but made me feel at ease with my body and helped me gain the confidence to use weight equipment that I would have never used before. Above all, whilst our sessions are challenging physically they are also fun and something that I look forward to.

Jenny H (05/11/2018)

Chloe gets results! Even after a few weeks of PT people were telling me how well I looked. She takes good care of my weak areas (my back, my balance, …) and really works to help me achieve my goals. There has been radical improvements to my running as I have more energy and strength. She makes PT sessions fun and varied and challenges me to improve every week. Above all she’s a great motivator and won’t let me say ‘I can’t do that’ – she will find a way to help me work it out. Really good progress every session!

Sean K (01/01/2020)

Four years ago I was 102kg but when we started this journey together I was down to 82Kg and enjoying my time at the gym. However I was starting to lose focus and the free weight/general strength equipment scared me. We have been working together for well over a year now and, in that time, I have dropped to 80kg and more importantly have noticed a massive change in my body shape and general condition. For the first time since my teens I have little or no back pain; that’s thanks to Chloe’s strengthening work! My muscle mass has also increased and I am starting to see the results, which at 50, is a great achievement. I am also once again enjoying my time at the gym where Chloe’s strength/core work complements my other cardio workouts perfectly. 

Chloe’s quiet determination to push me and the varied nature of the exercises makes each session hard but very rewarding. My personal goals to just increase general fitness levels and not be scared of the free weight equipment are long passed. The ever changing programme, (seemingly constant increase in weights used!), and Chloe’s faith in me mean that new goals have been set to increase muscle definition and overall body shape. I will never be Mr Universe but with Chloe’s help I can be the best I can and, to put it simply, I would not be where I am without her. Long may it continue.

Gaia S (01/02/2020)

“Chloe is intelligent, flexible, respectful and always up to date with the state of the art techniques.”

I started my training journey with Chloe in October 2018. She made me become aware of my personal and fitness goals, and I realised that not only is possible to achieve them but also to maintain them in a sustainable and fun way.

Chloe is intelligent, flexible, respectful and always up to date with the state of the art techniques. She constantly motivates me to improve and she is ready to adapt the training depending on needs. 

I look forward to my sessions which make my busy weeks more pleasant and healthy. I have become stronger, fitter and I have more energy than before.

I hope she stays in Cambridge for as long as I live here…I strongly recommend her as a personal trainer!

Christina F (02/02/2020)

I’ve been having PT sessions with Chloe for around 2 years on and off, with regular weekly sessions for the last 6 months.  Right from the beginning Chloe took time to understand my goals, motivation and lifestyle to help design a programme to suit me.  She incorporates a wide range of activities to my sessions, and is always ready to adapt if I want to focus on a specific area.  I have made great progress recently with increased exercise and a controlled diet, with weight loss of 10kg to reach my goal weight.  I can now really start to see the benefits of my gym sessions, with my overall strength and fitness improving all the time. I have a varied exercise regime and Chloe’s expertise helps me get the best from the gym to complement my other activities.  Her  focus on form and encouragement to try new activities and heavier weights pushes me to achieve much more than I would on my own.  I look forward to my sessions with Chloe and highly recommend her.

Weight at August 2019: 72kg

Weight at February 2020: 62kg

Adam E (02/02/2020)

My PT sessions with Chloe are a really important part of my exercise routine.  I generally have 2 sessions a week, combined with regular spinning and HIIT classes and running.  Chloe pushes me to achieve my goals – over the last 6 months I have increased my exercise and followed a calorie controlled diet to lose weight and improve my overall health, fitness and strength with great success and I am now well below my original target weight/BMI. Chloe listens to an understands my goals and adapts my gym sessions regularly to ensure I’m making progress and pushing myself.  I can highly recommend Chloe – she has excellent knowledge and experience, and I have confidence in her to design sessions that will help me progress.

Weight & BMI at August 2019: 96kg, 31

Weight & BMI at February 2020: 77kg, 24