ΑΛΛΑΖΟΝΤΑΣ ΣΤΑ 46!

Ο Jono μένει πια μόνιμα στην Αθήνα. Στα 46 του αποφάσισε να “επενδύσει” 12 εβδομάδες από τη ζωή του για να δυναμώσει & να αποκτήσει το καλύτερο σώμα που είχε ποτέ!

Τα λόγια του παρακάτω, περιγράφουν όλο το “ταξίδι” του, τα συναισθήματά του, την εμπειρία που έζησε.

” I have just finished the 12 Week Physique programme in Athens, aka Paul Mc Ilroy’s Amazing 12 (or 12 week physique); the gold standard programme for achieving the maximum change in body aesthetics and strength in 12 weeks, and wow, what a journey and what results!

Βefore I started I hadn’t heard of this, I had done no weight lifting or gym work at all, but I had been training kettlebells in Antonis’s gym in Athens for the past 3 months and a friend from England, who knew Antonis, had mentioned that he knew Antonis trained this and it was supposed to be the aforementioned ‘gold standard’. So a little googling and chatting with Antonis and I thought, why not?

I don’t think I was in particularly bad shape for a 46-year-old, I had some belly and chest fat, but I liked hiking and cycling so I think I was OK for my age. I also enjoyed Kettlebell training, and whilst not being especially strong, was OK at that, but I’d never done weight training – deadlifts, bench presses, etc. So I started out on fairly mild weights, and, of course, expected to progress a bit, and certainly expected to lose some body fat as I’d seen previous results, but I had no idea how much weight I’d soon be lifting and how my body shape would totally change!

Τhe programme was simple, hill sprints and runs in the morning, weights, alternating muscle groups on different days, followed by killer HIIT circuits each afternoon, Monday to Friday. There was also an easy to follow diet, very strict and generally low carb, high protein and 6 meals a day (quite a lot to eat!), with a very welcomed cheat meal on Sundays. Lots of water and lots of sleep. Antonis made this very simple to follow, even in Engish for me, and Antonis and Kostas were there every training session to help with the reps, push when needed and generally support, explaining when I was doing well and when it was perfectly normal to have tired days. Their support on these days was a huge part of my success, it was so new to me, I had no way of knowing how hard to push and what to expect from myself, but with them there all the way I felt fully supported and that I was giving my best in terms of the programme.

The programme is very clever as it’s not just ‘push your hardest at everything’, Antonis explained at the start that that approach wouldn’t get the best results, and my muscles will burn out to fast. Though be warned, there are plenty of times you do push your hardest and you certainly feel these!

As you are going through the weeks, it’s strange, you sort of don’t feel like you are getting much progress as you are always pressing/listing/etc just enough to get to the end of the reps without totally burn out but with nothing left in the tank. But then you look back through your charts and realise just how much the weights have gone up. Real ‘wow’ moments as you clearly see that you are lifting so much more than a few weeks ago with the same amount of effort!

It’s similar with your body transformation, it’s so gradual you hardly notice the change, but when Antonis took a photo of me after week four and sent it to me together with my start picture I was truly shocked at how my body shape had changed in just four weeks, and these were the starting (easy) weeks!

The gym itself was great, a hugely welcoming bunch of people, always giving encouragement and a huge plus that there were people from the previous 12-week run happy to chat about it. In fact, the gym itself was also definitely a huge part of why I enjoyed the programme so much, it really is so friendly and welcoming and there is no feeling that you need to already be at a superman level to workout there.

So, was it all plain sailing? Well, it is 12 weeks of strict diet and constant training so there were times when it got tough, Wednesdays when I really fancied a pizza, and lots of mornings when I wished I could stay in bed rather than repeatedly run up a hill! But generally, due to the constant support for Antonis and the camaraderie from Sakis who I trained with, I pushed through those, and suddenly I was at week 12!

As you can see from the photos, my body shape is amazing, and I have never been anywhere near this strong. Plus I have tones of energy and a general diet plan that I like (not forgetting the cheat days!) and am sure I’ll follow ongoing. I really am blown away by what I have achieved in just 12 weeks and how I feel today. What a journey and what amazing results!

I’m also proud of myself, other than 5 days in the UK, I turned up for each session, ran every day, and stuck to the diet (I think I only cheated by eating a tiny bit of chocolate twice during the 12 weeks), did my best at each session (yes, I did have days I was very tired) and I now have the result! I really, really am super happy. It was an amazing experience. Antonis was an amazing trainer and always on hand, I have made new friends from the other participants, I look and feel the best I ever did, and I am super strong. Amazing certainly is the word!!! “

Jono