Ep.210: Paying It Forward: ISSA Trainer Charles Gardner

Join Jenny and Registered Dietician Kayla Girgen as they take a journey through nutrition, community building, and the outdoor fitness craze called Rucking. Kayla’s wide range of experience in the fitness and health industry spans more than a decade and she’s got some amazing insights that can help YOU build the community and business that supports clients, meets them where they are, and offers variety that keeps them coming back.kaylagirgenrd.comIG: @kaylagirgenrdSugar + Strength Academy https://kaylagirgenrd.mn.co/

In this episode, Jenny welcomes certified Trainer Charles Gardner to the show to share his experience from getting started at Gold’s Gym to building a solid book of business, consistent clients, and a great reputation some 25 years later! Every personal trainer has a unique journey- hear from one who has weathered the storm and lived to tell the tale!Blogs by Charles: https://www.elitefts.com/author/charles-gardner/www.synergystrength.nethttps://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-gardner-7b981633/IG: @synergyceo_800

Such a great episode today with ISSA student, gold medal-winning pentathlete, fitness studio owner, and nutrition lover Tibor Deme! Jenny and Tibor dive into nutrient density, practical strategies for helping people better understand what’s in their food, and fueling for performance. Be sure to check out the show notes for Tibor’s reading recommendations!Tibor Deme: “I believe it is easier to achieve a healthy lifestyle and prevent diseases, rather than becoming ill and try to take corrective actions.”IG: https://www.instagram.com/lifeboostfit/Website: https://lifeboostfit.com/Reading List:The China Study, PHD T Colin CampbellFood - MD Mark HymanPure, White and Deadly - Nutritionist and Dr. Queen Elisabeth College - John YudkinsWhole - PHD T Colin CampbellUnDo It - MD Dean Ornish and Anne OrnishThe Hungry Brain, PhD J Guyenet StephanPlant-Based Sport Nutrition - PhD D. Enette Larson - MeyerAtomic Habits - James ClearCooking Book - Blue Zone Kitchen by Dan Buettner, Favorite Bean Soup three ways, green and onions, Quick

The research and real talk keep rolling in! Join Jenny and John yet again as they dive into some new revelations on creatine, amino acids, and (love it or not) artificial intelligence. Staying up to date with new information is critical, but so is understanding how, if, and when to apply it!References: Xu C, Bi S, Zhang W, Luo L. The effects of creatine supplementation on cognitive function in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Front Nutr. 2024 Jul 12;11:1424972. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1424972. Erratum in: Front Nutr. 2025 Feb 17;12:1570800. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1570800. PMID: 39070254; PMCID: PMC11275561.Aileen H. Lee, Lucie Orliaguet, Yun-Hee Youm, Rae Maeda, Tamara Dlugos, Yuanjiu Lei, Daniel Coman, Irina Shchukina, Prabhakar Sairam Andhey, Steven R. Smith, Eric Ravussin, Krisztian Stadler, Bandy Chen, Maxim N. Artyomov, Fahmeed Hyder, Tamas L. Horvath, Marc Schneeberger, Yuki Sugiura, Vishwa Deep Dixit. Cysteine depletion triggers adipose tissue thermogenesis and weight loss. Nature Metabolism, 2025; 7 (6): 1204 DOI: 10.1038/s42255-025-01297-8Jeanette A.I. Johnson, Daniel R. Bergman, Heber L. Rocha, David L. Zhou, Eric Cramer, Ian C. Mclean, Yoseph W. Dance, Max Booth, Zachary Nicholas, Tamara Lopez-Vidal, Atul Deshpande, Randy Heiland, Elmar Bucher, Fatemeh Shojaeian, Matthew Dunworth, André Forjaz, Michael Getz, Inês Godet, Furkan Kurtoglu, Melissa Lyman, John Metzcar, Jacob T. Mitchell, Andrew Raddatz, Jacobo Solorzano, Aneequa Sundus, Yafei Wang, David G. DeNardo, Andrew J. Ewald, Daniele M. Gilkes, Luciane T. Kagohara, Ashley L. Kiemen, Elizabeth D. Thompson, Denis Wirtz, Laura D. Wood, Pei-Hsun Wu, Neeha Zaidi, Lei Zheng, Jacquelyn W. Zimmerman, Jude M. Phillip, Elizabeth M. Jaffee, Joe W. Gray, Lisa M. Coussens, Young Hwan Chang, Laura M. Heiser, Genevieve L. Stein-O’Brien, Elana J. Fertig, Paul Macklin. Human interpretable grammar encodes multicellular systems biology models to democratize virtual cell laboratories. Cell, 2025; DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.06.048

In this episode Jenny reconnects with the team at API fitness insurance. You don’t know you need insurance until you NEED it… and by then, it’s too late to get it! Doug and Jim explain the type of insurance a fitness professional may need to carry to protect themselves, their clients, and their business. PLUS, we dive into some real-life examples of when someone needed insurance to cover a situation and some real cohort cases where insurance saved the day!Don't forget to check out this link https://team.apifitness.com/wordpress/ for a special offer from API!

Today, Jenny and Mr. John dig into some new research and more real talk yet again! From optimal resistance training or results to ultraprocessed foods and putting an end to type 1 diabetes, the research is coming in hot! And don;t miss John’s Real Talk about education in the fitness fields- it comes in many shapes and ways! Happy listening!References: 1. Comparable Strength and Hypertrophic Adaptations to Low-Load and High-Load Resistance Exercise Training in Trained Individuals: Many Roads Lead to RomeKristoffer Toldnes Cumming, Ingrid Cecelia Elvatun, Richard Kalenius, Gordan Divljak, Truls Raastad, Niklas Psilander, Oscar Horwath bioRxiv 2025.04.28.650925; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.04.28.6509252. Samuel J. Dicken, Friedrich C. Jassil, Adrian Brown, Monika Kalis, Chloe Stanley, Chaniqua Ranson, Tapiwa Ruwona, Sulmaaz Qamar, Caroline Buck, Ritwika Mallik, Nausheen Hamid, Jonathan M. Bird, Alanna Brown, Benjamin Norton, Claudia A. M. Gandini Wheeler-Kingshott, Mark Hamer, Chris van Tulleken, Kevin D. Hall, Abigail Fisher, Janine Makaronidis, Rachel L. Batterham. Ultraprocessed or minimally processed diets following healthy dietary guidelines on weight and cardiometabolic health: a randomized, crossover trial. Nature Medicine, 2025; DOI: 10.1038/s41591-025-03842-03. Mayo Clinic. "This sugar molecule could stop type 1 diabetes, by fooling the immune system." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/08/250802022917.htm (accessed August 2, 2025).

So, you wanna start a fitness business do ya?Well, this is your episode! Join Jenny and returning guest Doug Katona of American Barbell as we discuss the pros and cons of starting a fitness career in a health club or stepping out on your own! There is so much to know and explore in this industry and they’ll reveal some of the obvious (and not so obvious!) considerations for any fitness professional as you grow and thrive!American Barbell (ISSA Partner) - They are our official equipment and live seminar partner http://www.americanbarbell.com/ISSAGet in contact with Doug! [email protected]

Assessments and Nutrition Coaching- two critical elements a fitness professional should master. However, many personal trainers don't know how to apply all thai information! Join Jenny as she and Dr. J Mike reunite to discuss practical strategies and applications for fitness and movement assessments, nutrition needs, and advanced nutrition strategies for the advanced training client!https://www.instagram.com/drjmike/

In our 17th episode of Research and Real Talk, Jenny brings back John Bauer, now of Lionel University, to discuss the newest and latest. From nutrition to gene editing and burnout to muscle memory- nothing is off the table! Join us down the rabbit hole of the ever-evolving science in fitness and wellness.References:1. TED Radio Hour https://www.npr.org/2025/04/18/g-s1-60989/how-crispr-is-changing-the-way-we-grow-our-food2. Azumi Yoshida, Hironobu Takahashi, Tatsuya Shimizu, Morphology and functionality in biomimetic cultured meat produced from various cellular origins,Biomaterials Advances, Volume 169, 2025, 214179, ISSN 2772-9508https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioadv.2025.2141793. Juha J. Hulmi, Eeli J. Halonen, Adam P. Sharples, Thomas M. O'Connell, Lauri Kuikka, Veli‐Matti Lappi, Kari Salokas, Salla Keskitalo, Markku Varjosalo, Juha P. Ahtiainen. Human skeletal muscle possesses both reversible proteomic signatures and a retained proteomic memory after repeated resistance training. The Journal of Physiology, 2025; DOI: 10.1113/JP288104www.Lionel.edu Lionel University

So many fitness professionals are experts in the body and movement, but are completely lost when it comes to marketing, building a brand for themselves, and even creating a website that is attractive, engaging, and helps their business grow. Join Jenny as she digs into the details behind effective website building, creating a logo that people will never forget, and more with her guest, Jolinda Anderson of Shapes & Colors in Richmond, Virginia. Let’s demystify marketing together! It all comes down to building awareness and this episode is loaded with intel to help YOU invest in yourself and your business the same way you ask your clients to invest in themselves!www.jolinda.comDo you have general marketing questions Jolinda can help with? Schedule some time to pick her brain (for free!) here: https://bit.ly/ShapesColorsMarketingAMA