Josh Gilchrist was born into an active family. In high school, he was always playing a team sport, always on the go. When he started college, he traded in team sports for outdoor sports, like rock-climbing and snowboarding. By junior year, he had to shift focus to his business degree. In order to maintain his fitness, he started going to the gym. Three days after graduation from West Virginia University, he moved to Pittsburgh to start his career.
His first job out of school was unfulfilling. “It was a bad job. The only thing that kept me sane was going for a run.” At the same time, he started training his best friend at the gym. Suddenly, something clicked, and Josh found his path. He realized he could combine his passion for helping others with his love of fitness and his degree in marketing. He took a job in sales at LA Fitness, where he has developed a successful career ever since.
Josh helps people every day by evaluating their fitness goals and getting to the reason behind each individual’s desire for change. “I absolutely love interacting with people and helping them to evaluate and accomplish their goals.” Josh helps his clients connect emotionally to a fitness goal to promote a sense of self-worth and motivate long-lasting change from within. “It’s about creating the ultimate YOU. It goes beyond looking good. It’s about improving quality of life.”
Josh’s Fitness Advice
Keep yourself active. Try to reserve at least 15 minutes every morning before breakfast for some
form of physical activity. Doing three repetitions of twenty pushups and twenty-five crunches, followed by fifty jumping jacks every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, go for a run to wake up your body. It sets the pace for the rest of the day.
Food for Thought
“It’s important to eat something one hour after waking up and continue eating small meals through the day. Your metabolism is like a camp fire. It burns hotter and faster if you put smaller sticks on it. Big logs slow it down.”
Uh Oh. What about Thanksgiving day? “Start the day off with a light breakfast, high in protein and fiber, and have a smaller lunch, like a protein bar. You don’t want to be starving for the main event. When the turkey hits the table, take a look at the whole spread before filling your plate. That way you can plan your meal, paying attention to portion size. Then you won’t feel guilty about having that piece of pumpkin pie. You deserve it!”
