Client of The Month: November 2024

Client of The Month: November 2024

Winner: Coleman Kline!

Coleman is winning client of the month for November because of his hard work and dedication that led him to setting multiple PR’s and qualifying for Teen Nationals in 2025 for Powerlifting. Coleman was at a slight disadvantage because he broke his hand a couple months before the competition which threw off his ability to train optimally. The injury didn’t stop him from doing all that he could though. He continued to squat and use his legs as much as possible. When he was allowed to start using his hand again he eased back into both benching and deadlifting. As a result he hit the following numbers:

Back Squat: 155 kg (10kg+ PR) - 341 lbs

Bench Press: 87.5 kg (Red lighted on 95 kg because of minor feet movement)

Deadlift: 185 kg - 407 lbs

Total: 422.5 kg at a weight class of under 82.5 kg - over 50 kg more than he needed to qualify for Teen Nationals in 2025.

Please Check Our IG @becomebettersppt to see videos of his lifts.

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Client of the Month: October 2024

Christian Kyung

Christian Kyung is being nominated for client of the month again (and automatically chosen as the winner this time) because he asked us coaches about a million times the last few months, so we felt obligated from how much energy he has exhausted asking us about it... 

Just Kidding...

Originally, Christian was nominated for being a very hard worker ever since he stepped foot into the gym.  Limited on time with getting into the gym because of the medical work he does, Christian is always 100% ready to get after it!  All of Christians hard training has led him to a great accomplishment becoming ATA Martial Arts 2024 State Champion of Pennsylvania!  His State Titles are in Traditional Forms and Traditional Sparring.

Since his last nomination, Christian just recently became a National Champion in Combat Sparring, National Silver Medalist in Traditional Forms and a National Bronze Medalist in Traditional Sparring.  At the same time, Joyce (Christian's Wife) was also a National Champion in Traditional Forms!  Joyce has also been training with us once per week on Friday's to improve her overall ability in Taekwondo! Christian + Joyce are both a great example of how your training can directly help with your goals outside of the gym. (Joyce does not want to be client of the month).

Below are Christians gym accomplishments:

Back Squat: 85k

Bench Press: 84k

TB Deadlift: 137k

Congrats on your Taekwondo Championships and now your Client of the Month Victory!

P.S. If Christian does not finish his 200 burpees he owes the coaches from leaving his laptop out at the gym (twice), then this award will be retracted.

September 2024

Client of The Month: September 2024

The Winner:

George Briggs:

George has also been training with Coach Dan for many many years. He first started Coach Dan was teaching Olympic Weightlifting classes at a CrossFit gym in Finleyville back in 2015. George has always had the itch to Become Better. He is always working to improve his form while trying to get stronger and stronger. Being 70 years old doesn’t mean anything to him and will never use it as an excuse. George currently has goals of deadlifting 300 lbs, TB DL 400 lbs, squat 200 lbs and bench 180 lbs.

He currently has hit:

Deadlift: 120k (264 lbs)

Back Squat: 65k (145lb) for 4x4 while improving his depth

Bench: 63k (140lb) for 4x4

George was also a recipient of the Big Blue Award in this years Summer Olympics.

*George Briggs just turned 71 a few days ago

The Other Nominees:

Chris Dattallo:

When it comes to Becoming Better over a long period of time, Chris Dattolo is the prime example! Chris has been training with us from almost the beginning (coming up on 10 years).  Chris is always a happy face wanting to keep up with sports on all levels.  He has seen so many of our athletes start at a young age and grow to high school and college level, always wanting to keep up with how they are doing along the way.  Chris consistently trains 3 days a week, getting stronger and stronger as he goes along and is a sneaky performer when it comes to each summer olympics!

Below are some of his accolades:

180k Trap Bar Deadlift

113k Pause Bench Press

150k Back Squat

Heidi Calhoun

Positive attitude, cheerful, resilient, determined.  These are a few of the adjectives that describe Heidi Calhoun.  Heidi has been a client of Become Better for many years now and many of you may have seen her smiling face around the gym.

Every time I see Heidi she greets me with a cheerful grin.  She's also been one of our most consistent clients over the years despite dealing with various injuries that would temporary set her back.  She never let those injuries deter her however.  After receiving PT, she's right back in the gym asking for modified workouts.  She never complains and is always willing to try something new, even if she needs to modify it.  Lately she's been doing very will with her back, neck and shoulder and has been extremely consistent with workouts coming twice a week and sometimes twice a day when she participates in Nicole's Dance Fitness class...And she works hard, you can see it in the sweat equity she puts in.

Heidi has lost up to 70 lbs since she started her fitness journey. The weight lost was largely before joining BB, but her continued training has led to even further body composition changes which led her to getting a tummy tuck earlier this year.

Despite being overlooked in the Olympic draft, Heidi has been one of the best sleeper picks for the past couple of years.  She finishes way above where she was picked in points and has finished in the top several spots for core exercises. 

These are just a few of the ways that Heidi has Become Better over the years and I don't think she's going to stop any time soon  

August 2024

Client of The Month: August 2024

Coaches Pick (no voting)

The Winner: MATT MICHAELs

Matt has been chosen unanimously to win client of the month for August 2024 after his narrow loss for client of the month in July (1 vote) and his narrow loss in the 2024 Become Better Fitness Olympics (25 Points). Matt has been at the gym with us for just over 2 years now after his daughter Cari, convinced him to join. Since then he has also recruited his wife, Jen Michaels (Client of the month winner from June 2024 and 3rd place finisher in the Olympics), to join the gym and has been one of our most dedicated clients. We have nominated him for this award twice already, but he went up against some tough competition and was unable to pull out the victory. Since we could easily justify nominating him any/every month we decided to skip the voting this time.

Matt finished second (1st for guys) in the Become Better Fitness Olympics this past summer, with the smallest loss possible of only 25 Points to previous client of the month winner of April 2024, Alex Sepcic. He also was the most competitive against the coaches this year. He beat Coach Dan in 5 out of the 10 events (Bench, Row, 2 mile, BW Squat, chin-up hold) and he beat Coach Anthony and Coach Joey in every event except the sprint and only Coach Anthony in the 6 inches event.

Here are his full results of each event.

• Won Bench, BBB, Seated Row, Dart Game - First time someone won 4 events

• 2nd in chin-up hold and 6 inches - losing at the last hour

• 3rd in BW Squat

• 6th in 2 mile

• 8th in Jerk

• 18th in Sprint

• Missed only 25 points of participation - Sled

Since being at the gym, he has also set many PR’s in nearly all exercises. He has also taken the time to continue to learn the Olympic lifts. Matt brings a great attitude to the gym. He’s always working hard and helping others do the same. He enjoys the friendly competition for the extra push that helps him and others Become Better.

July 2024

Client of The Month: July 2024

The Winner is:

Wendy McDonald!

Wendy just recently completed her 1st full Ironman. For those that don't know, an Ironman consists of a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike and a 26.2 mile run.  Wendy has been doing triathlons for almost 20 years. She started with half Ironmans in. 2023 knowing she wanted to do that full this summer.  She spent 18 long months in total training for the Full. 

Thru all of this, she still made time at least once a week to continue her strength training here at the gym.  She even has been participating in the Become Better Summer Olympics!  Even though some days I could see how tired she was.

When race day came, it took her 16 long hours to complete, but she finished!  That was her goal going into it, just to prove to herself she could finish.

Congratulations Wendy!

The other Nominees:

Matt Michaels - Losing by 1 vote

This is Matt’s second nomination for client of the month, his first was in February 2023. As a reminder, Matt was a former collegiate swimmer who has kept up with a regular workout routine into his early 50’s and joined us a couple of years ago after his daught, Cari, had trained with us for a couple years prior. Matt’s Wife, Jen also just won client of the month for June.

Today, Matt is being nominated for his unbelievable performance in the Olympics thus far. He currently has the most total points of any individual including Coach Dan. He is currently winning 3 events and in second place in 2 events where he is only behind Coach Dan. With the extreme variance in types of events this year I would not have though winning 5 events would be possible for anyone.

• Here are his current numbers:

  • Winning Events:

    • Bench Press Combine: 47 Reps

    • Seated Row: 15.27 seconds

    • Dart Game: 14,825 (only behind Coach Dan)

    • 6 inches: 8:07

    • BBB Circuit: 93 (only behind Coach Dan)

  • Other Events:

    • Chin-up Hold: 1:19 (5th Place)

    • 2 Mile Run: 14:08 (3rd Place)

    • Body Weight Squat: 47 seconds (3rd Place)

    • Split Jerk: 86 KG (8th Place)

    • Sprint: 3.04 - Not currently placing.

Matt also brings a great attitude to the gym. He’s always working hard and helping others do the same. He enjoys the friendly competition for the extra push that helps him Become Better.

Patrick Scherurell

Pat has recently joined us at Become Better without much gym training experience.  Pat had previously done calisthenics and plenty of biking so a lot of movements in the gym were brand new.  Pat has adjusted quickly and has really found such a liking to learning so many new exercises that he now works out 3 times a week.   He has been learning many barbell movements and has liked them so much he recently purchased some new powerlifting shoes!   You can catch Pat in the afternoons Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Pat now has goals of reaching Bodyweight in all of his lifts, here are his accolades so far

Bench : 40k

Squat : 47k

TB DL : 100k

June 2024

Client of the month: June 2024

Winner: Jen Michaels

Jen finally joined the gym back in December after her husband and daughter finally convinced her to join. Her daughter, Cari is a volleyball player at Mt. Lebanon and has been training with us for over 3 years, and her husband, Matt has also been training with us for 2 years.

As a former collegiate swimmer, Jen wasn’t foreign to the weight room, but it had been some time before participating in organized training. Jen has worked her way back to TB Deadlifting over 200 lbs (95 kg x 3), back squatting 55 kg x 4, and Benching 55 kg x 3.

Jen has also shown a strong start to this summers fitness Olympics:

4th in Seated Row

9th in Bench Press -> Now 5th

7th in Darts

3rd in 6 inches (4:54 time) -> Now 1st with 9:33

5th in Chin-up Hold

Graydon Schaum

Graydon is in high school going into his senior year and really enjoys putting in the work it takes to Become Better.  Graydon enjoys playing basketball daily with his friends or trying to improve his golf game at local south hills golf courses.  He typically does his workouts in the evening and always has a smile on his face.  Some of his goals are to improve his jump so that he can dunk on his friends and also improve his golf game to be the best of all his friends.  In the gym, Graydon's favorite goal is to improve his deadlift.  He typically likes to workout after his basketball sessions with his friends so be on the lookout for Graydon in the evenings!

Graydon's Gym Accomplishments:

Deadlift : 135k

Bench Press: 70k for 10 Reps

Back Squat: 70k 

Currently top 5 in the Sled Pull (he loves doing this olympic event)

Matt Gillespie

Matt Gillespie hasn't been at the gym long, but he has already acclimated himself well to the gym community.  Very new to weightlifting, he was predominantly a runner and golfer before, he has made great progress already.  

in his first ever BB Summer Olympics Matt is currently in 1st place for the 6 inch hold and for almost the entire month of June, Matt held on to the number one spot for the Chin-up hang (now in 2nd place). He is also very close to being top 10 for the sprint time.  Matt Also set a Bench Press PR of the Combine Event.  As I mentioned, he was very much a beginner and has now gotten to 2 reps at 60k.  A 44lb increase for beginning only a short time ago at 40k. Matt is nearly in the top 10 overall despite not completing a few events yet. He was drafted in the 13th round and is using that as motivation and making a very strong push for sleeper pick of the year.

He's also been a good addition to the gym community.  He's a good sport about everything and is always willing to participate in any activities such as the BB After Dark Party a couple weeks ago.

May 2024

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the Month: May 2024

And the Winner is…

Bill Labovitz

Bill Labovitz has been a member here at Become Better for a little over a year now and since joining, he has been a friendly face around the gym.  If you're here in the morning or on Saturdays, you've surely come across Bill.  He'll go out of his way to say hello and strike up a conversation with you.  Those of you that do know Bill no that no topic is off limits! But he speaks to everyone fairly and respectfully no matter if your opinion differs from his. 

Bill has been extremely dedicated since joining, rarely missing and always wanting to learn and be challenged. After not being happy with his health, he has really transformed his body over the past few years.  He recently completed his first City of Pittsburgh HALF MARATHON while being in his mid-50s.  It is never too late to make a positive change to your health and body and Bill is a shining example of that. 

For Bill's dedication, friendly attitude around the gym and for finishing his first Half Marathon I nominate Bill for Client of the Month for May

Bill also owns a law firm, so if you’re in legal trouble… Give him a call.

The other Nominees:

Christian Kyung

Christian Kyung is being nominated for client of the month because he asked us coaches about a million times the last few months so we felt obligated from how much energy he has exhausted asking us and talking about it...  Just Kidding... Christian has been a very hard worker ever since he stepped foot into the gym.  Limited on time with getting into the gym because of the medical work he does, Christian is always 100% ready to get after it!  All of Christians hard training has led him to a great accomplishment becoming ATA Martial Arts 2024 State Champion of Pennsylvania!  His State Titles are in Traditional Forms and Traditional Sparring.  Christian will be competing at districts in June in order for a bid to Worlds in 2025! Christian is a great example of how your training can directly help with your goals outside of the gym.

Christian also has referred his mother-in-law who joined the gym and would like everyone to know he gets credit for that.

Below are Christians gym accomplishments:

Back Squat: 85k

Bench Press: 84k

TB Deadlift: 137k

Shelby/Drew

This is a joint nomination as Shelby and Drew are getting married this June and have both been very consistent and hard working clients. Shelby has been training with us a Become Better for a little over a year now. Shelby came to us with the goals of getting into shape for her wedding. During her time training, Shelby has not only got herself into shape for her wedding but has improved her strength and brought along her future husband (Drew) to train with us as well. Shelby’s schedule get a little chaotic at times, but that never stops her from getting her workouts in. Sometimes we might see her 4 days in a row when she couldn’t make it during the week. When Drew started this year we have had to work around a lot of old injuries from different sports. These never stopped him from pushing himself to Become Better though. Drew has been extra consistent the last few months coming in 4 days/week.

Shelby’s Gym Accomplishments

TB DL: 75 kg

Conventional DL: 65 kg

Back Squat: 45 kg

Drew’s Gym Accomplishments

Bench Press: 90 kg x 8

Chin-ups: 36 kg x 2

Their wedding is coming up real soon and when you see them next in the gym they will be a newlywed couple so please congratulate them when you see them!

April 2024

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of The Month: April 2024

Winner: Alex Sepcic

In April, Alex competed in her first powerlifting meet. She went 9/9 and set PR’s in all three lifts:

• Back Squat: 140 kg

• Bench Press: 75 kg

• Deadlift: 150 kg

• Total: 365 kg - Also a Gym Record.

At only 18 years old, this total also places her in the top 50 results in the nation for her age and weight class in the last few years.

Alex is also one of the most dedicated clients we have. She travels the furthest of any client coming from North of the city which can take a full hour many days.

Alex has brought a lot of positive energy to the gym ever since joining us. You can find her cheering on her teammates AND opponents in the upcoming Summer Olympics where she will attempt to finish 1st again for the women and battle for the overall first place too.

When not in the gym, Alex loves to be outside in nature. She also plays Ultimate Frisbee for fun and was an all state volleyball player (Libero) at North Catholic High School. She graduates this year and will be heading to Michigan State University to study Environmental Engineering and French.

Sorry, I couldn’t get the other videos to load. Check out IG page for the other videos

@Becomebettersppt

March 2024

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the Month: March 2024

The Winner is: Ed Talarico!

Ed Talarico is the unanimous winner of client of the month for March 2024. On March 23rd, Ed had the most important day of his career at Become Better. He had to marry Coach Dan and Nicole. Despite being his first time as an officiant, he had no problem getting us through the ceremony.

Ed is one of the most popular clients at the gym and another reason why it wouldn’t be fair to nominate anyone else this month. Ed has been one of the most consistent clients we’ve had since his start all the way back in 2014 at LA Fitness. Ed comes three times/week, rarely cancels, and has worked through and around multiple surgeries including a heart attack a few years back.

Ed has also helped a lot of newer clients become better acquainted with the gym and comfortable being at a new place. He also has helped us install and fix multiple devices over the years such as the broken garage door, sound system in the new and old gym, many clocks, cardio equipment, and a whole lot more. He was also the first person who helped me pursue a new facility. Most of you don’t know that Ed and I had gone and looked at many places starting ~7 years ago. It was a long process to finally find the gym we are in now and Ed was the first to believe in me and help me accomplish that dream.

As great of a supporter that Ed has been, he is also winning this month because of all the fitness accomplishments he has had. At 65 years old, he has been in the top 10 overall of all three summer Olympics we have had. He has won the following events: Deadhang, Sled Push Distance, Ball Slam Interval Challenge, Wheelbarrow, Plank (including beating me), another sled Push for time, Plate Squeeze, and sandbag run. That’s 8 events he has won. I’m not sure if anyone else has even won 5.

In the month of March, he has been able to still Bench over 65 kg for 4 reps and Pick-up over 250 lbs for reps. This is all despite having to go through multiple injuries that have set him back at times. These injuries don’t stop him though and instead he chooses to Become Better every single week. Ed is as close to a perfect client as we can get. He’s consistent, works hard, pushes himself and others to become better, and helps create the atmosphere that has helped us succeed over the last 10 years.

Thank you for marrying Nicole and I. Thank you for being a great client. Thank you for being a great friend.

February 2024

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training:

Client of The Month: February 2024

And the Winner is…

Emily Garcia!

Read Below for why she was nominated

Emily has become a great friend to myself and Nicole, but that’s not why she has been nominated this month. Emily was also originally an LA Fitness client starting in 2014. Although she has been in and out of the gym a couple times over 10 years, she and her husband Jorge have been very consistent for years now. In February, Emily has set new personal best lifts for 2 reps in the Bench Press (42 kg), Back Squat (75 kg), and 3 reps Deadlift (97 kg - 100 kg coming Sunday).

Emily is one of the most talkative clients we have at the gym. Sometimes this means her and others don’t finish their workout for quite some time, but it also means that when new clients come into the gym she is one of the first to welcome them and make them feel comfortable in the gym. Emily has also helped us a lot in the gym when we remodeled the facility and need little things done (although not as much as Jorge , so maybe I should nominate him instead…).

We are very thankful to have Emily apart of our gym!

The Nominees:

Marian Gregg

Marian has been one of the longest tenured clients with us at Become Better.  Marian, who was previously referred by a of client of LA Fitness, joined with Become Better in 2014, making this year her 10th anniversary with us.  Marian has participated in many forms of fitness and exercises such as group classes but has always stuck with us! She has never missed more than a week or so at one time outside of the shut Downs. Marian always enters the gym with enthusiasm, a big smile and ready to cheer on her fellow ladies who workout at the same time as her.  Marian has recently found a love with lifting barbells and heavier weights than she has ever done before.  These movements are important for bone density relating to osteopenia/osteoporosis, balance/stability and overall strength.  This is not just important for her but for every single person as we age.

Lisa Ryan

Lisa is a relatively new client, but since joining she has been one of the most consistent and hardest working clients we've worked with. Despite having some shoulder and foot limitations she always wants to try things to see if she can do them. Instead of complaining about her discomfort and refusing to do certain exercises, she asks how we can adapt or slightly modify so that she can work through it and become better.

Lisa comes in 3 days a week and puts in 100 percent effort. The only thing that has kept her from missing any appointments so far have been some illnesses.  Otherwise she's been a model of consistency.  Lisa has gained a lot strength and improved body composition since joining, which are her two biggest goals.

Lisa loves to cook and loves to interior decorate.  You can often find her cooking up a delicious meal for her son, or decorating and cleaning his house on the weekends.  He sure is lucky to have such a good mom.  She is also very friendly and pleasant with all the other members of the gym.  She adds a great element to our facility! 

January 2024

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the Month: January 2024

The Winner Is:

Daryl Criss

Read her accomplishments below

Daryl, the daughter of Jean Criss, the winner of the client of the month in September 2023, originally joined the gym with her mom after her husband and son had already joined back in 2016(?). Originally, Daryl worked directly with Coach Dan (as everyone did back then) and needed a lot of guidance (not as much as Jeane who you may remember would try to plank by using her head). Now, Daryl is very confident in her abilities to perform any of the exercises on her workouts at the gym with much less guidance.

Although her goals have never been to lift more and more weight, she has come a long way from using 15 lb DB’s for a chest press, planking for 47 seconds, and deadlifting only a 50 lb DB.

Daryl can now do the following weights for multiple reps with relative ease (despite what her RPE’s may say):

Deadlift 72kg

Bench Press 27kg

Back Squat 45kg

Trapbar Deadlift 75kg

Daryl’s goals have always been more practical. At one point she wrote a review on being able to take heavy bags of trash out much easier than before and better than the big “strong” men in her office. She now plays a lot of paddle tennis and pickle ball and trains to stay strong and in shape for that. In January, Daryl has increased her sessions per week to 4 times and rarely ever misses a workout.

Daryl and her husband David have also helped Dan and Become Better with countless projects over the years. They have helped us Become Better just as much as we have helped them.

The Runner-ups:

Kyle Tanzcos (Tacos):

Tacos is still very new to our gym. He joined at the very beginning of December with a main goal of jumping higher and staying injury free while playing volleyball as he gets older. Although he wasn’t super unfamiliar with the weight room, he wasn’t used to our type of training and has started his journey on learning how to brace and do every exercise the right way. Most of his increases in weight since starting will be seen as relatively modest from a numbers standpoint as it’s been only a short amount of time, but every lift has been moving up in weight while his form keeps getting better and better. He also recently hit his max touch jump with only a 2 step approach instead of a full approach.

Kyle’s main reason for being nominated this month is mainly due to his positive attitude and energy that he has brought to the gym ever since starting. He quickly introduced himself and made friends with other clients of ours. During the Winter Olympics he helped lead his team to first place (2nd including Coach Dan’s team). He did an event nearly every time he was in and improved a lot from the beginning. He also encouraged other clients who weren’t on his team. This type of positive energy greatly enhances our gym and helps us trainers do our jobs even better too.

Leslie Bazzano

Leslie Bazzano has been one of Become Better's longer tenured clients training with us for 6 (I'm not sure if that's correct) years.  Leslie has seen many come and go through her time and herself has had to take time off here and there.  Leslie has had to undergo knee replacement surgery recently but despite that she has made her way back to Become Better and has been consistently training multiple times a week.  Her spirit is always there and you can count on her to cheer you on in the gym! Leslie is also always good to bring us delicious lunch snacks or a quick bite of fruit! 

Leslie through her time has gone from doing light dumbbell workouts to lifting all the bars and trap bar deadlifting well over 100lbs.

Gym accomplishments:

Trapbar: 65kg(143lbs)

Bench: 30kg (66lbs)

Overhead Press: 20kg (44lbs)

December 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the Month: December 2023

Joe Decker

As our oldest current client, Joe is unanimously winning client of the month for December 2023. In December, Joe turned 90 years old! Even at this age he makes it to the gym EVERY Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He always comes in with a positive attitude and he won't let us take it easy on him.  He enjoys pushing himself and often begs us do push-ups or add more weight to an exercise.  Anytime he's asked about an exercise he always replies with "oh it's good!". Joe also loves to joke around. He’s not afraid to poke fun at Coach Dan or take the jokes that come right back at him.

The only thing that has kept Joe away from the gym was a cancer diagnosis earlier in the year which has fortunately been treated and hasn’t been an issue for the rest of the year. Joe will always end his session by telling us that he loves us and can't express how much he appreciates us helping him.  We are very happy that Joe has already signed up for all of 2024. We not only love working with him, but his presence also brings other clients a lot of joy being around him. And of course, he is an unbelievable role model for all of us as we get older.

November 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the Month: November 2023

The Winner is… Bowen Kwolek!

Bowen, who is 12 years old, began training with us this past summer.  Bowen came in looking to improve his overall health and learn how to lift weights safely.  Bowen was a hit with the Become Better night crowd and is now known by most when he comes to workout.  Bowen loves to chat about anime shows and video games.  Despite all his chatting, Bowen loves to lift weights. One of Bowen’s biggest goals when starting to workout was to hold his plank for more than 30 seconds. He is now doing multiple sets for 45 seconds.

Here are some of his other accomplishments since the summer:

TB DL: 40kg

BB Press: 15k

Bench Press: 20kg

The other Nominees:

Mike Toepp

Mike has been a great addition to the gym since he joined about a year and a half ago.  Many of you that come in the morning know Mike.  Mike is friendly with everyone at the gym, Joking around, encouraging people and bringing a positive vibe to the gym.  

Mike is always willing to try any exercises that come his way.  Despite having some injuries and a minor surgery over the past year, he has shown great commitment, always willing to reschedule or adapt his workouts so that he doesn't have to miss any.  Recently he even increased to 3 days a week in order to reach his goals faster.  Mike has made excellent strength and endurance improvements since starting at the gym.

Outside of the gym he pushes himself to walk 3-4 miles a day.  I'm very happy with and proud of Mike for his effort and commitment to improve his health.

For these reasons I nominate Mike for client of the month

Jeff Bondy

As of November 5th, Jeff has been a part of our gym for 7 years. Jeff first joined because he needed help getting in shape and losing weight while working around a host of old sport injuries. Those injuries have required him to get more operations than I can even remember and he now is over half bionic. The important thing is though that these injuries never stopped Jeff from coming back. After each and everyone, he came back as soon as he was cleared from PT so that he could get back on track to become better. November wasn’t Jeff’s best month due to work obligations. Even still, he NEVER canceled a session without rescheduling for the next day. It can be easy to get busy and vanish for whole weeks at a time. Jeff has done the opposite. Jeff became busy, but that didn’t stop him from trying to get each and every workout in. Because of his dedication during this busy time, and for his dedication for the last 7 years, Jeff is a nominee for Client of the Month for November. Thank you for always bringing positive energy to the gym and helping us BECOME BETTER too. Jeff is also turning 69 years old in January and is a part of a small group of people who we believe are nearing 1000 total training sessions with us.

October 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

CLIENT OF THE MONTH: October 2023

And the Winner is…

Dom Cortes

Dom has been training with us at Become Better for about 5 months now. Dom is a high school baseball player at Upper St. Clair.  Dom, too young to drive, has been able to make it to the gym 4-5 times a week.  Through his time with us, Dom has been able to make great progress.  He was a high competitor during the summer olympics and has been able to become better and stronger with his lifting every single day.  

Here are some of his achievements so far:

5 Bodyweight Chin Ups

120k Trap Bar Deadlift for 4 reps

75k Back Squat for 4 sets of 3 reps

60kg Bench Press for 4 sets of 4 reps

Approach Jump Height 9'8.5'' (Dom is under 5'7'' and is a 2.5inch improvement)

The other Nominees…

Mary Horak

Quiet, consistent, pleasant and reliable. These are some of the adjectives to describe Mary's demeanor and attitude toward her fitness regime.  Mary joined the gym over 5 years ago with a goal of just getting in a little better shape to run a Tough Mudder race with her friend.  Since then, she has been one of our longest and most committed clients.

Some of you may not know Mary, as she comes in the evening and quietly goes about her workout. She never complains (and believe me, I've given her some really challenging, i.e. shitty, stuff to do).  She'll usually just make a frowny face, but then does it anyway. 
She has gone from a newbie that had only had done some exercise classes, to a gym veteran.  She is now able to complete bodyweight Pull-ups, she can do many bodyweight push-ups in a row, she reached a squat PR at last summer's olympics with 65k (143lbs).  Mary is now comfortable and can navigate any weight room.

Mary has also been committed and consistent, which is why he has seen so much improvement.  The only times she ever really needs to miss an appointment is when the FDA comes to her lab for a surprise inspection (which she absolutely loves! *cough* sarcasm *cough*).  Yes, that right, I forgot to mention when she's not in the gym, Mary is trying to help us all be healthier and make the world a better place as a Director at the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center.  

For her commitment, positive attitude and great progress so far, I nominate Mary for client of the Month

Maddie Carroll

Maddie is a middle school volleyball player at Peters Township. During October she was in the middle of her volleyball season, but still managed to make it to the gym every week. When she came in she worked hard so she continue to become better and never asked to modify or lighten anything even though she may have been tired from practicing every day. Her hard work paid off this month by receiving and offer for the top 14U team at the best volleyball club in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Elite (the club we also work for, no bias).

Recent Accomplishments:

9’3.5 touch with only a partial approach (~3 inch improvement).

TB Deadlifting near 200 lbs

~10 kg improvement to her bench press

~20 kg improvement to her back squat

~30 kg improvement to her Deadlift

Making the top 14U team at Pitt Elite (14 Elite).

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September 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of The Month: September 2023

And the winner is…

Jeane Criss

Jeane is one of our oldest clients (84 years old) and also one of the longest tenured clients we have at Become Better. She joined ~7 years ago with her daughter after her grandson and son in law first joined about a year prior.

My most memorable moment when she first started was she tried to hold a plank by supporting her body with her head to help her arms. Obviously I stopped this immediately, but then she was unable to hold the plank for more than a few seconds. Besides this, Jeane mostly started by doing what most 77 year olds would do with deadlifting 20 lbs, pressing small weights, and maybe pushing the sled with some assistance. 

After 7 years of consistent effort and an open mind to try new exercises, Jeane is now one of the biggest bad asses in the gym. In September, she accidently lifted 50 kg (110 lbs) for 3 sets of 13 reps. Just before September she also completed a weighted plank with 10 kg on her back for a full 60 seconds. She also doesn’t have any problem pushing a sled (by herself, with weight) or getting on any of the cardio machines and going for 8-10 minutes of intervals. Although her goals aren’t necessarily to lift more and more weight, her improvements from where she started is a perfect example of how it’s never too late to get started on your health and fitness. Jeane Criss is a role model and who everyone says they want to be like when they get to her age.

The Other Nominees…

Brandon Hanson

September 2023 marks 10 years of training for Brandon Hanson (with some breaks due to college). 10 years ago, Brandon was 6’5, 150 lbs, and very average at volleyball. Today, he stands 6’6, over 200 lbs, and one of the best middles (a volleyball position) in all of Pittsburgh proven by his play for the “professional” team, the Pittsburgh Surge. All thanks to Coach Dan and his training. Maybe a little credit should be due to his dedication over the years to do everything in his power to Become Better. Even after all of this time, in September he PR’d his standing vertical. Over the last year he has also added a solid 10+ kg to his back squat and 20+ kg to his deadlift putting him at 125 kg (275 lb) and 160 kg (352 lb) respectively. He is also now able to do over 10 chin-ups and Bench almost his body weight (still not very good). Brandon also does a great job of supporting the business by owning 20+ apparel items of Become Better. His support has brought in 2 previous Client of the Month nominees/winners (Sandy Hanson, and Steve Jordan). Thank you for all of your support, but mostly, you’re welcome.

P.S. It’s White Shirt Wednesday, not Redsday.

Disclaimer: Brandon is Coach Dan’s best friend and these remarks, although true, were meant to be comical.

Jen Hartman

Jen Hartman finally started training with us at Become Better after almost 2 years of persuasion from us and her husband and Client of the month winner from March, Kerry… Jen, who is a runner at heart, has made some great accomplishments in the gym. She came to us barely able to do 1 push up and hit a PR of 12 this last month! Jen also hit a PR for her Trap Bar Deadlift at 105kg (also 10%+ improvement from previous Olympics) actually she went way over because she is bad at gym math… Jen also improved easily on her 1 rep pause bench (28k) along with her 1 rep max squat (56k) and Conventional Deadlift (70kg).

August 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of The Month: August 2023

And the Winner is…

Aaron Morgan

Aaron started his journey with Become Better 4 Years ago.  Aaron originally only joined to get his son to start working out, but has now become a gym regular opposed to only running like he used to. Aaron has participated in all 3 gym olympic years, finishing in the top 10 amongst males in every year. Despite losing out to 2 high school kids in the run/bike, Aaron hit some pretty big PRs in August and the rest of Summer. 

Here are some of his accomplishments:

Squat PR : 115kg Box Squat

9 Chin Ups

Improvements from 2022:

TB DL at 132kg, just shy of 300lbs

Power Clean: 61kg

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Don’t forget the runner-ups…

Shawna Rodgers

Since joining the gym in October of 2021, she has been the model of consistency.  She's been consistent through some knee pain, a slap tear in her shoulder and even days when she's tired or not feeling 100%, only rarely missing a session due to illness or visiting family back in Ohio.  

This past summer, despite feeling apprehensive about it, she signed up for the Become Better Summer Olympics and I think she surprised herself and did things she probably thought she never could do. She hit a PR in her squat at 85kg, placed in the top 10 on the plate squeeze and completed ALL of the events with a positive "I'm-gonna-do-this" attitude.  She was also one of the top point scorers in the Ball Slam participation and pushed others to complete their events as well.

She said herself, since joining Become Better, this is the longest she has ever stuck with a fitness program.  Now she has aspirations of competing in a powerlifting meet (this Novemeber).  Something I'm sure she NEVER imagined when she first started.  As long as her shoulder stays healthy, we'll get her there.

Please also read Shawna’s Client Spotlight Article here that she wrote back in June :)

Jon Steele

Jon is coming up on his 1 year anniversary here at Become Better and he has come a long way from where he started.  From the very start, Jon exhibited a positive attitude and a willingness to commit to an exercise program.  He was excited for the challenge and did not shy away from difficult exercises.

His commitment and consistency paid off over the Summer Olympics where he hit some personal bests.  He hit a surprising 125k (275lbs) on the back squat while previously rating 100k at 3 reps an RPE of 9.  Which made me (Coach Anthony) question whether I could trust his ratings going forward; gotta push him harder I guess ;-). This is also a long way from the 5 reps he did at 33 kg his first month of training which was also rated an 8 RPE.

He also showed a determination to work on his weaknesses.  Planks are very hard for Jon, but he battled hard and was able to make it to a 15k weighted plank.  He was determined to make the top ten for the rower game and would often voluntarily play the game, sometimes multiple times in a day.  He made the top 10 with a 12250 score.

Jon also was the star of the first ever become better after dark games in late July. He was a dominant force at flip cup, stack cup, and beer ball

For his commitment, positive attitude and willingness to take on a challenge, Jon is a nominee for client of the month/summer.

July 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of The Month: July 2023

Sandy Hanson!

Due to the massive amount of work that Sandy Hanson has done for us at Become Better, she has been voted by the coaches as client of the month for July 2023. Outside of making all of the great prizes for the Olympics, she also set a lot of PR’s over the month and whole summer:

Here is what she has accomplished:

• 41 kg pause bench (8 kg improvement) - nearly 30%

• 1.5 inch jump improvement

• 83 kg TB DL improvement

• 85k DL - just miss of 91 kg (200 lb)

• 100 pull down

• Back Squatted 60 kg

• 30 kg weighted plank for 60s couldn’t do a normal plank that long at the start

• And just in general, Stepped outside of her comfort zone ever since joining the gym two years ago.

June 2023

Become Better Sport Performance and Personal Training

Client of the month: June 2023

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And The WInner is: Jenna Nymick!

See below for why Jenna deserves this award this month

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Jenna Nymick:

Jenna has been a client ever since her Junior year of high school. As a former high school and collegiate volleyball player, Jenna’s goals were always related to her performance on the court. Now that her collegiate career has come to an end she still has still been able to find the motivation to work hard and Become Better in the gym. Even though she has her first full time job this summer, Jenna makes sure to leave at least 3 hours of her night free 3-4 days/week to come to Become Better to workout and tell us a couple stories about her day. In June, Jenna hit a number of PR’s:

• 100 kg Back Squat

• 46 kg (101 lb Hang Power Snatch)

• 67 kg Power Clean - also a 10% improvement for bonus points

• 14335 Rower Dart game score which no one is close to.

• This score also highlights her determination and extra work that she has been willing to put in so she can Become Better at the game over the Summer.

Gracie Gonzalez:

Last year Gracie Gonzalez suffered a shoulder injury which forced her to quit volleyball and seriously limited her weight room performance. After a lot of hard work with a PT, she was just cleared to return to normal physical activity recently. She has returned to swimming (her primary sport), which she has not been allowed to participate in for over a year now, an impressive feat in itself. Despite her injury however Gracie has continued to make improvements in the weight room. Until recently Gracie was disallowed to perform overhead movements to preserve her shoulder; this month she performed her first banded chin-ups with a red and green band. Last year her olympic trap bar was 111kg, and just this past month she set a new 3 rep PR at 122 kg, 10% improvement from last summer. Given how she has responded to the adversity she has faced with this past year and how it didn’t stop her from trying to make progress in other areas of her strength and fitness, I believe she deserves recognition as a client of the month nominee.

Ben Avon:

Ben Avon has been training with Become Better for over 7 years. His wife, Liz Avon, was an original client od Coach Dan’s during his short tenure at LA Fitness. Soon after, Liz convinced Ben to also train with Become Better and to make it their date night every week. Even though Ben and Liz have missed time here and there because of his duties as a father and husband, Ben and Liz have been part of the Become Better family ever since.

Anyone who has met Ben knows he has one of the best gym spirits any place could ask for.   He is always the first to motivate and cheer on others as they also do their best to Become Better. Ben has had his own gym ups and downs with nagging football injuries and missing some time being a great father/husband, but his spirit to Become Better is always there!  It was also just his birthday, so send your birthday wishes his way!  For these reasons, along with his gym accolades listed below, Ben Avon is nominated as client of the month:

Ben's Gym Accolades:

• 140k/308lb Back Squat.. when Coach Joey first started writing Ben's workouts, he was unable to perform a squat any heavier than a light dumbbell without major pain so hitting a 140 kg back squat is great progress.

• 500lb Deadlift

• 130k Bench Press

May 2023

Client of the Month: May 2023

And the winner is…

Steve Jordan!

Congrats Steve! If you haven’t yet, please read why he was nominated below

Nominees:

Liz Carr:

One of Become Betters longest clients. Liz has hit many gym PRs and recently turned her goal of being able to do one chin up into hitting a 4 rep PR. In May she did the Pittsburgh half marathon. Technically she did not PR her half marathon pace because Pittsburgh is a very hilly and hard race, but she was only 2 seconds slower per mile off of that pace. This placed her 37th out of nearly 900 people for women in her age range.

Liz first reluctantly entered Become Better thanks to her Brother Elliot way back in 2015 (I think). She was as novice as can be and only came in 1 day/week. After getting into a routine and realizing the benefits she increased to 2 times/week and has hardly missed since then. 2x/week is a really good goal for those that run as much as she does to make sure you keep your body strong and capable of withstanding the impact of all those foot contact.

Here are some of her recent gym PRs: 

4 Rep Chin Up PR

95 kg Deadlift PR - over 200 lbs for the first time

115 kg x 3 Trap Bar Deadlift - over 250 lbs

74 kg back squat 

Steve Jordan

Steve has been in the gym for only 6 months, but has been very consistent and always works hard to get his workout done. He takes all of coach Dan’s constructive criticism in stride and uses it to become better. The smile on his face and supportive attitude is a prime example of the atmosphere we have tried to create here.

Smiling and having a good time isn’t enough to get nominated for this award though. Steve also recently deadlifting 140 kg (308 lbs) after barely starting at 100 kg just a few months prior. Steve has also Back squatted 90 kg, just under 200 lbs, for an easy double. Steve is also trying to get back into volleyball shape and has increased his vertical almost 3 inches since starting.

All-in-all, even though Steve has only been around for a relatively short amount of time compared to most, he has worked very hard to become better. He’s a model client and I look forward to continuing to see his progress during the Summer Olympics this year.

Francesca/Sue

This will be our first double nominee for Client of the Month since they train together 3 days/week. When coming to us for the first time, Francesca was as fresh a gym goer as they come.  Francesca had not stepped foot into a gym and had some of the concerns that many do when stepping into a new situation.  What's it going to be like? Are they going to beat me up? One of her first questions to us was "what type of clothes should I wear to work out?" This is how new she was coming into the gym. She then began her journey with Become Better Training with our previous trainer, Nik.  That was ~5 years ago (sorry i’m bad with exact dates)... Since then, Francesca has been training 3 days/week (unless she is traveling the world that week) and come a long way with her fitness. We started out with many bodyweight exercises, bands, and small dumbells. Now she asks to use the bar for more weight or to make things harder in general. She has also been helpful in calling us out for things that we could improve in our gym which is always appreciated as we too out trying to Become Better.

Recently she has also had her longtime friend, Sue, join her for those 3 days/week that she trains.  Sue also has been recently trying to push her weights too and is never afraid to try something new. Together they make quite the quippy duo with their quick one liners and sense of humor between them and with us. Although the weights they lift may not be monumental, I think it’s prudent to mention that Francesca has no problem pressing 25 lb dumbells or picking up 50 kg (110 lbs) for multiple sets and reps. For many this may not seem like much, but from where it all started I am very proud of their progress and very happy they are apart of our gym :).  

April 2023

Client of the Month - April 2023 Winner:

Jen Smith

Congratulations Jen! Please read below for why she and the rest of the clients were nominated in April

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Client of the Month - April 2023 Nominees

Jen Smith

Jen Smith achieved two massive PR's (including a gym record) at the Powerlifting meet at the beginning of the month.  She back squatted 135 kg, which is 297 pounds. She made this lift look so easy that we wish we had another attempt to push her over the 300 lb club. Later in the meet she then deadlifted 145 kg (319 lbs), that is the most of any female lifter at our gym ever!  

Not only did she achieve these amazing lifts, she has done it all while training for the 5k with her son Jovian and 1 mile with her other son Deklan, then a relay on Sunday for another 5 miles. During all of this she was also learning the Olympic Weightlifting movements, as well as juggling traveling with work, taking care of two kids, and battling through knee issues.  Through all of this she has still been one of our most consistent clients. Every day wasn’t perfect. Many workouts were done fatigued which caused a lot of frustration and even the occasional tear. Training and working out in general can be a huge mental battle too, especially when you get to the level Jenn Smith has reached. However, her will to BECOME BETTER drove her through these hurdles and stress to achieve some truly remarkable results this month. She is the perfect example to keep in mind when you’re not feeling up to training, especially when it’s a mental issue, to keep pushing through because at the end of the workout you’re going to feel a lot better, and at the end of the training cycle you’re going to be proud of the results you obtained.

Jen will be running the half marathon tomorrow and we wish her the best in that. She will then start up her heavier lifting training again in hopes to later this year, or early next year qualify for Nationals in the Master’s division. 

Debra Rocca

Debra at 61 years old has been a Become Better client for almost 2 years now.  Deb came in with a goal of weight loss, specifically looking to lose about 15 pounds.  Deb started out coming twice a week but switched over to 3 times a week during the new year.  She attributed that switching to 3 times a week has further increased her ability to hit her goals and beyond.  Deb is being nominated because she not only hit her goal but as of April 2023 she has lost 26 pounds during her Become Better journey.

Deb Rocca Highlights @ Become Better

• Hit original weight loss goal of 15 pounds and now has new ones set

• 200lb Trap Bar Deadlift

• 90lb 1 Rep Bench Press

Abby Yates

Since she started at the gym last year Abby Yates (14 years old) has been steadily improving as an athlete. In the month of April Abby set a PR on her deadlift at 60kg (and for 4 reps too),  which is double the weight from her first attempt at deadlifting one year ago (for 2 reps) and well over her actual body weight. She is also now able to do 3 chin-ups on her own opposed to doing 3 with the help of the Green band (medium strength). To showcase some of her athletic improvements she has also gone from touching 8’1” to 8’6.5.” Although unquantifiable, we know she has continued to improve her performance on the field during her lacrosse season, where she is a consistently dangerous scoring threat. Abby is a joy for us to work with every week. I’ve personally never seen her come in with anything besides a smile on her face. She is also a very self motivated individual and rarely needs to be reminded to keep pushing through because she’s already doing just that. We look forward to continuing to see Abby improve in the weight room, and more importantly, on the field.