James P.

$102/hour

Experience 4 years

Location San Francisco, CA

My fitness journey began in 2002 due to a back injury. I didn't want to have back problems for the rest of my life, so I joined a gym to get stronger. After a few months I began taking Kung Fu and later on, Kickboxing. I did those for a combined 11 years. I continued to weight train on the side, but slowly my focus began to drift more and more into strength and conditioning. I decided to turn my passion into my career and acquired my personal training certification. While training clients, I've continued my own growth as an athlete and started practicing the Olympic lifts and training in Crossfit. I enjoy the challenge this provides, both physically and mentally. I look forward to passing on the knowledge that I've gained, both through formal study and personal experience.

Trainer Certifications (1)

American Counsil on Exercise

What to Expect

I like to focus on compound weightlifting movements (squat, deadlift, pull-up, bent over rows, bench press, overhead press) that work the large muscles of the body and get the biggest response. These movements will build muscle that will burn calories, make you strong, and improve your body composition. If any of the movements are unfamiliar, we will take the time to get the technique and move forward safely. We will also substitute exercises where necessary due to injury, mobility issues or physical limitations, but try to address these issues to make improvements. We will also include circuit training using smaller, weighted movements along with body-weight exercises at a high pace to get your heart rate up. These exercises will be used to help improve the larger movements and work your muscular and cardiovascular endurance. For those interested, we can also use boxing/kickboxing to work on this. To finish off, we will do an exercise or two to address your core and then stretch to help cool down and improve flexibility. If there are any mobility, flexibility, or stability issues, we will work on those in the warm-up. This way we can address them, but still move forward and get in a proper workout. All that being said, this is all about you. If you really want to improve your maximal strength, we'll focus on that. If you're more concerned about your muscular and cardiovascular endurance, that will be our focus. We will adjust according to your particular goals and needs. I like to think of personal training as a partnership. We will use my expertise and experience to address your wants and achieve your goals. I believe in an open line of communication, both ways. Talk to me and let me know your thoughts and concerns throughout the whole process. Text or email whenever you have questions and I'll do the same to check on your recovery after workouts. For you to succeed as the client and I as the trainer, we need to work together. Hopefully, along the way, you're satisfied and we both will have learned something.

Client Success Story

(Review from client) "About me: When I started I was hardly able to do one proper push up, hadn't ever even touched a barbell and wouldn't have known what bulgarian split squats are. Now I deadlift roughly 155 lbs (I don't even know what my one rep max is, this weight is for 5 x 7), I do proper push ups and have a love hate relationship with bulgarian split squats. About him: He's few in words, kind, smart and has this unmistakable ability to know what your body is capable of - even when you yourself think there's no way you'd be able to do that (whatever "that" might be). He pushes you to challenge yourself and suddenly you just notice "Goodness, look how far I've come!". Unfortunately I couldn't keep having him as my face-to-face PT, as now I live on the other side of this wee planet. Shucks, as I do miss training with him. Highly recommend!" Jenny T.