I was embarrassed. I could give excuses like, lots of travel and dinners out with clients, long hours at work, quitting smoking, etc., but the truth is I let myself go. I gave up. I spent the next several weeks thinking about that picture and formulating a plan or at least trying to formulate a plan.

One evening I came home from work, picked up the local circular and spotted an ad for LALANNE FITNESS. I had to go three days a week in the early morning right down the street from my home. No more excuses I thought, so I picked up the phone. The voice on the other end said, “Sure, we’re still accepting students. Show up at 6:30am for your weigh-in and we’ll get started right away.” This was the beginning of how CrossFit and The Paleo Diet would change my life forever!



I spent the next six weeks working out with a group of ten men and women and two days on my own. I thought that I was not going to make it that first class. I nearly threw up but I was committed. I had paid my money and put my pride on the line. At the end of I had lost the most weight and inches off my waistline (10 lbs and 3 inches), winning a fitness challenge with Chris LaLanne.

This was only the beginning. The winner of the challenge received a one month membership in the trainer’s gym (http://www.lalannefitness.com). I signed up and never looked back. By the time I hit my 39th birthday in June of 2008 I had lost 17 lbs. In November of the same year I had lost 42lbs. What made this really powerful is that I travel each year to Chicago on Thanksgiving Day. It’s a long trip for me, so I can’t do it with one bag. To avoid any drama at the airport, I weigh my bags at home. My small rolling bag weighed the same as the total amount of weight I had lost. I asked my wife Robin to pick up the bag and she could not. I had been carrying that weight around with me every day for years. The symbolism was incredible.

Today, I run, row, cycle and lift weights regularly. I do full push-ups, kipping pull-ups and can sprint 500M on the rower in one minute thirty seven seconds. I eat more fish, less red meat and more high fiber fruits and vegetables. I have competed in an Indoor Rowing Championship, ridden in a metric century bicycle ride and run the second oldest foot race in America, The Dipsea, turning in 1:41:10 for that race, which was more than 30 minutes faster than the first attempt that I made at it. I turned 40 over the weekend and as of this morning I am 55 lbs. lighter than I was fourteen months ago. I have more energy, a better attitude, a new wardrobe and I am in the best shape of my life.

People that I have known for years but have not seen for some time ask, “Where’s the rest of you?” The secret you ask? The will to change, an exercise program called CrossFit led by Chris LaLanne and The Paleo Diet based on sensible diet made up of lean meats, fresh vegetables, fruits and some nuts.-Chris C.

I wandered into Lalanne's with a friend that was a member and got "sucked" into doing the Saturday morning workout. What an absolute blast. The workout nearly killed me but the most impressive part of this gym is the people. You can train anywhere, but training where they care is rare. The group workout that morning was led by a supremely fit and patient trainer who walked everyone through the basic movements of the workout then (this is rare) walked around during the entire workout helping, encouraging, supporting and re-demonstrating the movements. I've been to nine CrossFit gyms and this is the gold standard. Bravo Chris and Maribel.-Mark

I knew that I could not join another 24 hour fitness or crunch and get any real results. As much as I like to lift and do cardio at a gym there is no way to push yourself like Crossfit. All the teachers here are professional and personable (they know everyone's name). In 5 months of going only 2 days a week, I have seen incredible results. The group atmosphere is fun and inspiring as everyone cheers each other on. This is a very clean, well managed and fun place for overall fitness at any level. Having now been to other Crossfit gyms, I know that this is on of the best in the country as far as quality of instruction and results.-Jaime

I have been coming to LLF for 1 year now and would like to share my experience. But before I do, I'd like to share a bit of history. I just turned 39 and have always been a person who dreaded working out. My old saying used to be "why work-out when you can not work out". I never understood people who would talk about feeling better after working out. I always felt tired and sore, but none of the positive feelings. My friend Dennis had been an LLF member and I saw big improvements in him. I joined last July on the once-a-week membership. This gave me a good introduction, but I felt if I really wanted to improve, I had to increase to 3 x per week. For the first time in my life, I am feeling the positive effects of working out. I am stronger and in better shape than I have been in years. It's taking me a while to see the results as much as I'd like, but this is still new to my body after 38 years of inactivity. Sometimes I can't believe what I've achieved after a work-out. It often think "did I do that"?
My only concern is making sure my form is good, so I don't get hurt. I've had some minor issues, but overall this has been the best exercise of my life and I actually look forward to going which is shocking for me. Thanks for everything guys!-Matt R.

I started at LLF on April 9th of 2009. As a personal trainer myself, I had been doing modified cross-fit workouts and eating paleo on my own since Oct 07. I considered myself in pretty good shape. However, my first workout was the filthy fifty. Holy guacamole! I was completely beat as it took me 47 min to complete it. Now, it's 5 Jun and things are a bit different. When I was doing modified xfit workouts at home, I wasn't going near the level I do at LLF. You've got the clock going, you've got everyone else cranking through the same thing...sometimes, it's a partner workout (very fun even with strangers). It's very motivating. I've learned that my mind will give out long before my body will. That's a very interesting thing to know about oneself. I also changed my diet as according to the zone blocks, I was under eating. That explained why I wasn't putting muscle on previously. I've gained 7lbs and my body fat has stayed at 8%. That's a result I'm happy with. I'm definitely getting stronger and I'm doing it without injury because there is so much focus on the technique. Chris and the trainers there are doing very good work. Thanks for doing Crossfit in SF! -Abraham

I've been at the Brickhouse for going on 10 months now. The journey has been unbelievable to say the least. Since the age of 5, I've been in competitive sports that range all over the board. When my collegiate days ended, so did that hard training I was accustomed too. Then I found Chris LaLanne and Crossfit....

In under a year, I've found myself close to the best shape of my life at the age of 32. I know that in another 6mths I WILL be in the best shape of my life. This is quite an accomplishment considering how I looked when I walked in my first day. Chris and his trainers have taken the Crossfit method and made it their own along with building a community of people that make everyday in the gym a pleasure.

People constantly ask me to explain what it is I do all the time at Lalanne. All I can say is "Do you want results? Just show up."

I've made HUGE gains in strength, flexibility, metabolic conditioning, and mental toughness. Everyday that you walk into Lalanne Fitness is something new and challenging. I've tried dozens of different workout schemes and nothing comes close to what you get here.

If you're an athlete that wants to get better at your sports, you've got the right place. If you're not traditionally an athlete and you'd like to be one, you've got the right place. If you're somewhere in between, you've got the right place.

There's nothing that really compares to the experience. You get far better results in less time and you get to be part of an amazing community of like minded people.-Eric

LaLanne Fitness is the place to be for anyone who is serious about becoming more athletic. In terms of losing weight indefinitely, getting better at your favorite sport, or just becoming the kind of person who people go to for fitness advice, LLF's program is vastly superior to the kind of training you will get at 99% of conventional gyms. What's more, it's accessible and welcoming to anyone, no matter how out of shape you are. Even though we don't believe in socializing while working out, you will make friends here who will stick with you for life.

People trying to lose weight and get in shape have come to this gym and literally within weeks have started seeing the results they've been failing to get for years. Any fitness program should be judged by its ability to get measurable results; by that standard, the CrossFit program at LLF has no peer anywhere.

So what's the catch? Well, it's awfully bleeding hard, which is to be expected considering that you generally get out of an endeavor what you put into it. There's a very low tolerance for whiners, cheaters and slackers...but you wouldn't want to work out with those types anyway, right?-Jake