Weight loss: A team effort
Personal training helped this mother-daughter duo shed over 50 pounds
By Tracy Dye
For Johnnie and Kerri Nussbaum, weight loss has been a team effort. The mother and daughter spent years struggling to lose weight. Johnnie, 55, had developed high blood pressure as a result of her weight, which continued to increase despite medication. Kerrie, 30, said she felt unhappy with her weight but struggled to find the time and motivation to exercise.
Johnnie suggested that Kerrie join her in training with Sabine Evans, an elite personal trainer for Columbia Association at its Columbia Gym in River Hill.
“I had been training with Sabine for a while,” Johnnie said. “But when Kerrie came onboard, we both got really serious.”
So serious in fact, that the two managed to lose a combination of over 50 pounds in as little as four months, with Johnnie losing 29 pounds and Kerrie losing 32.
Evans leads the mother-daughter team in a vigorous routine six days a week that involves circuit training with weights and other equipment, cardio, TRXⓇ suspension training, work with ropes and medicine balls, and cardio. The women also attend a Fit Boxing class taught by Evans twice a week.
If this seems like an intense schedule, it is, but a few different factors keep the Nussbaums’ workouts from feeling like work.
All of CA’s personal trainers perform thorough fitness consultations with clients where they take inventory of things like goal dates, medical history, current level of activity and nutrition. This helps each trainer understand the best route for their clients to take in order to have an effective, safe and fun workout.
“When we’re exercising, we’re working hard, but in between sets we’re also chit-chatting and having a good time,” said Kerrie. “It’s not a chore to come here — we actually enjoy it.”
All of CA’s personal trainers are certified by nationally accredited organizations, with elite trainers having earned additional certifications and at least three years of personal training experience. These skills allow trainers to carefully monitor exercises in a way that ensures injuries will be both prevented and avoided.
“I have a bad ankle and Kerrie has old cheerleading injuries,” said Johnnie. “We’re learning how to work with what we have and not hurt ourselves.”
Another factor the women say contributes to their success is having found support in being each other’s workout partner.
“It really helps to train with someone, because you keep each other honest,” said Johnnie. “You hold each other accountable and it keeps you anchored to your routine.”
“I’ve never been the type of person who will go to the gym on my own,” said Kerrie. “Having a workout partner and a trainer you’re connected with provides that anchor you need to go.”
Paired with a healthy diet, working out with a personal trainer can help you become more confident, build muscle and strength, reduce risk of various diseases, and improve overall wellness.
Along with their dramatic weight loss, the Nussbaums have celebrated small and large victories along the way. Both feel less stressed and more energetic. Johnnie said her blood pressure finally decreased and was told by her doctor that the additional medications they had anticipated prescribing were no longer needed.
“We celebrate all these victories along the way,” Johnnie said. “Every success we’ve had makes the whole process worth it.”
Learn more
Columbia Association offers a variety of group fitness classes and personal training options to help you enhance your overall health and quality of life. Learn more about all of CA’s health and fitness services here. To schedule a free fitness consultation, click here or email Personal.Training@ColumbiaAssociation.org.
