THE GIRL FROM FINLAND

When Stephanie first walked into my office and sat down for our first meeting, I instantly knew she was my kind of rock chick.

She had actually initially contacted me from Finland to ask about training at The Forge (I am constantly amazed at how famous we are becoming).

And, as we talked about her goals and aspirations, I realized that underneath all the tattoos and piercings, was an amazingly sweet girl, eager to listen and learn, and ready to improve upon what she already knew.

The kind of person who is ready to face her personal limits and push them out of the way, in order to grow into the best version of herself she could possibly be.

No BS, no attitude, no ego, hungry for education…and damn, she loves rock too!

What else could a coach ask for?

So, I took her under my wing for two weeks.

Pushed her a little bit. (You know, just a bit…)

Asked her to believe in me as much as I believed in her. Even if she was a little afraid to do it.

And she just kicked ass (though she will probably say I was kicking hers).

It’s honestly amazing what a relationship like that can achieve in two weeks.

Stephanie, I LOVED coaching you.

You have heart and you have guts.

I set them up and you knocked them down with everything you got.

We have done some amazing things in these two weeks.

It has been an absolute pleasure having you at The Forge.

I don’t think your training is ever going to be the same from now on.

Looking forward to seeing you again soon. Already missing you.

God Bless!

WHAT SHE SAID

We asked Stephanie to tell us what she thought of her time at The Forge and she promptly wrote us an email.

Here is what she said.

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“Stepping into The BodyForge is like stepping into another world.

Training with Don while on my annual vacation in Gozo, was something unbelievable and pretty damn crazy. I was visiting my parents for two weeks and since I was already training in Finland, I didn’t want to let it all go to waste and sit on my ass, be lazy, eat qassatat and pastizzi (those are the local delicacies and damn, they just get you) and just get fat and ruin everything I accomplished so far.

So before arriving I got in contact with Don, and we had a meeting immediately upon my arrival (and this meeting showed me right away this was the best decision I could have made as regards my holiday training).

Then Don took me in for the short time I was here and became my coach and my guide.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect from him at first – yeah he’s a big guy and I was sure he trained like a beast but I wasn’t ready for the kind of extreme care and attention to detail I’d be getting from him.

And boy, did he kick my ass!

He pushed me beyond my limits and yelled at me when I felt close to giving out or when I did something incorrectly (especially when my body started to get tired) but it was never in an intimidating or fearful way. I actually felt I was being paid the highest attention. Don never left me alone or made me feel ignored or ignorant for one second. He really managed to bring out the best in me.

Don has this ability to make you feel at ease and completely safe, as well as somehow turning you into this machine, doing things you never believed you could have done before.

In fact, I was amazed at how much he believed in me and how well he could gauge my abilities, and, because of that, the yelling and all, I was always able to squeeze out one more rep or two and correct myself each time with his guidance.

And it wasn’t only him who helped me and showed me the proper way. All the people I’ve met while attending The Body Forge were kind, patient and just awesome! The atmosphere when training with Don and the guys was fun, full of laughter and jokes when taking a rest but once we picked up training again it was serious business but that is to be expected.

At the end of the day it was definitely a great experience and hopefully its one I can do again when I come for my next vacation! One thing I do know for sure is that I’m heading back to Finland with the sound of his voice echoing in my ears, encouraging me to new accomplishments.

Thank you so much for everything Don! These are workouts to remember. :D”