Client testimonial
Renada Sparks
As I approached my fortieth birthday I realized that I had gained a considerable amount of weight, after being relatively small all my life.
That was even after giving birth to five children, which is my greatest accomplishment ever! The older I got the more inactive my lifestyle had become and before I knew it I had gained roughly twenty pounds over a two year period. I had gone from a size 6 to a size 10 and tipped the scales at 150 lbs. I had had enough!
In January 2009 I made a resolution to do something about it. I would not accept the fate of so many Americans that constantly battle with obesity and the diseases that often result from it. I joined a training facility near my home, “House of Payne Personal Training,” and started taking boot camp classes at 6:00 AM. Joe, my instructor, now likes to joke that he remembers how on my first day of class I was covered from head to toe in a blue sweat suit sprawled out on the floor after just 5 minutes of class (claiming…?). I could not take one a minute more. I had no idea how out of shape I was, but I quickly found out!
Joe began talking to me about setting goals to make my weight loss more measureable and even encouraged me to compete in a figure competition. He described it as a fitness beauty pageant. Of course, I did not take him seriously. I just wanted to get back in shape. I had never been interested in bodybuilding, but after awhile with Joe’s constant support, I finally agreed. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. As a divorced mother of five with a full-time and part-time job, how was I going to add one more thing to my plate? Between maintaining the diet and the rigorous workouts, it was as if I had taken another part time job. How would I do this? Dave, my trainer, put me through my workouts every morning at 6:00 AM.
When I wanted to quit or life got too tough, he hung in there with me and told me I had come too far to stop now. Rachel and Steve, the owners of the training facility, constantly stayed on me about my diet and reminded me that I would be on stage basically naked with a host of beautiful fit women and I wanted to look better than them. There were sprints up Stone Mountain and hours of posing practice. It was a long, hard road, but the payoff was immense and extremely sweet! Thank you House of Payne trainers’, you have changed my life forever.
After six months of training I lost 25 pounds, six inches off of my waist and 5 inches off of my hips. I am now a size 4 and have more energy than I have had in years. It’s hard to remember the last time I felt this good.
On October 3, 2009, I took 3rd Place in the Novice Figure Tall category of the Supernatural Bodybuilding and Fitness Competition. This is by far the 2nd best thing I have ever done. I now know I can accomplish anything!