Empower Gym

In 2011, I (Lee) overheard a trainer tell a large Polynesian man (180kg+) that he had to run at least 20min a day in order to lose weight.

Over the next few days, I watched this guy slay it out on the treadmill. You could almost hear his joints screaming in pain because of the immense amount of pressure and jolting.

3 weeks later, he never came back. I assume he gave up because it was too difficult and harsh on his body. And he probably believed that he’d be stuck this way for the rest of his life.

That witness affected me deeply, because I saw how genuine and desperate this man was to lose weight. I also saw how incorrect and dangerous this trainers advice was. But then I also realised how ignorant the general public is, and how easily we fall for whatever we’re told or what ‘looks cool.’

It was that experience that made me want to find and provide simple, honest, and legitimate solutions for fat loss.

For the remainder of 2011 and all of 2012, I used my body as a test dummy for all sorts of diets, trainings, and fat loss approaches. I’ve tried some crazy pills, various supplements, all sorts of eating styles – Aitkens, Keto, Vegetarian/Vegan, Leangains, etc. I even looked into a type of clothing that had something to do with magnetic fat burning?!

Much of this stuff worked, but I was looking for something that worked the simplest and was the most sustainable. I believe the best diet is the one you can sustain.

At the end of 2012, I compiled the best of what I tried, and set-up my own fat loss service to help others lose weight. This was all before I become a Personal Trainer. I was just a regular gym goer then, who later got very passionate about it, and wanted to be more intentional with helping others achieve it.