Working out with Tory Tolson is fun.  He will joke with you that it is “Woozy Wednesday…”  (How is that motivating???)  He seems generally serious but will quietly rock out to whatever pop song (old or new), or show you pictures of his latest giant snowman creation (see picture above).  You won’t catch him ever being boastful, but this guy has a list of certifications that’s longer than my grocery list, he teaches some nearby at Anne Arundel Community College (how does he squeeze that in??), and he possesses a Masters in Exercise Science.  And most importantly he does an amazing job of sizing up what people need, preventing injuries and enhancing performance, maximizing time within your workout such that you hit several muscle groups, often in new interesting ways…building strength and building overall “functional fitness.”

The other day, after frostbiting (sailing in the winter) in Lasers, I compared notes a little bit with Leo Boucher, our local junior sailing all-star.  Leo recently began working out with Tory too.  We were chatting about the exercises that Tory weaves into the mix, like doing bench press with some weights attached to the bar via resistance bands.  Most active movements in sailing are seldom like you find with your standard piece of gym equipment; exercise has to be dynamic.  As Leo put it, “He works on the minor little things so the big things come together.”  I asked Tory the other day,” how do you learn all these exercises?… conferences?”  He acknowledged that he frequently attends continuing education, but that he tries all of these exercises himself….sometimes “making it up” to isolate certain muscle groups.  He constantly refines his craft.

But enough about Tory, let’s talk about me 😉  In the few months I’ve been working out with Tory, I’ve been reaching new heights.  Not only have I lost weight, put on muscle, and improved endurance, I’ve also “rediscovered my glutes,” tapping into muscle groups for safe efficient exercise, and I’m doing multiple reps squatting more than my body weight, and improving my bench all the time (these are not the only metrics of fitness, but they are fun ones to improve).

Stay tuned for more blogs delineating more own journey into re-becoming an athlete…