At a time when most are still snuggled in bed, tucked under a cozy blanket, and wishing their alarm clock forgets to ring them out of dreamland, eight women are up and ready to go, eager to tackle their workouts at M2 Fitness in Kailua-Kona.
At a time when most are still snuggled in bed, tucked under a cozy blanket, and wishing their alarm clock forgets to ring them out of dreamland, eight women are up and ready to go, eager to tackle their workouts at M2 Fitness in Kailua-Kona.
And it’s darn early – as in 5:30 a.m. early. But what motivates these women to walk through the front door is knowing there’s no better time to hit it hard and get it done, making fitness a part of their everyday routine.
“If I didn’t do it at this time, then it wouldn’t happen,” Donna Payesko said. “I look forward to coming here. The worse part is the transition from my head on the pillow to my feet on the floor. But once that happens then I’m good to go.”
Joanna Sokolow added; “I have two kids and a full time job so there’s no other time. When I come in I feel sleepy and groggy. But when I leave I feel sweaty, happy, and feel like I have more energy to do things I couldn’t do before. So it is worth getting up early and working out with Mary.”
Mary Mullahey, who is an exercise physiologist, certified strength and conditioning specialist, and owner of M2 Fitness, opened her fitness center in the Pottery Terrace location in 2011 to offer a comfortable setting for weight lifting, TRX, yoga, stretching, aerobic training, Pilates, and with a primary focus on personal training sessions.
“I found a need in Kona, a place to go for personal training and that wasn’t your big gyms in Kona,” Mullahey said. “After working as a personal trainer in Kona for five years I had a lot of clients that told me that they didn’t like that environment of a big gym. And other smaller boutique gyms were geared for only women. So I thought Kona just needed a good strength-training studio that are geared for people that are more serious in working out. It’s functional fitness.”
Then a year ago, Mullahey, along with Tessa Sandberg, another personal trainer at M2 Fitness, found that a group of eight women had common goals to reduce stress from their full-time jobs and to stay toned as their ages ranged from the late 30s to 50s.
Mullahey and Sandberg combined their expertise to help these women work toward their goals through 30-minute circuit training sessions focusing on strength and muscle endurance. The response? A boost in overall energy levels and mental stamina with a renewed sense of motivation and commitment to improving their health.
“Before I started, the idea of having a personal trainer was a bit intimidating,” Catherine Gibson said. “I just thought it would be someone screaming at me while I’m suffering on the treadmill. But it’s not like that. Mary will just start at the level you’re at and work with you. So it’s a very comfortable environment but also a very good challenge.”
Gibson added that she needed accountability, as she wasn’t self-motivated to exercise at the end of a long day of work on her own.
“Just knowing that Mary and a few others are here a few times a week helps me to get up and it’s a lot easier than motivating myself,” she said. “All I have to do is just show up.”
Wendy DeWeese, a 2008 Kona IRONMAN World Championship finisher, said she initially started with Mullahey to train for her first IRONMAN race.
“That was then, but now I workout and try to be consistent just to stay healthy,” DeWeese said. “I feel a lot better during the whole day – I’m more awake, more productive. I just feel good about myself. And if you feel good about yourself, you will do better in your everyday life.”
For Sheri Lawson, being committed to her early morning workouts with Sandberg materialized into an 82-pound weight loss that began just over a year ago.
“I started on my own by trying to change my diet, and did a little walking and running and actually lost 25-30 pounds,” she said. “But then I hit a plateau and my friend was coming to M2 Fitness so I thought to tag along. At that time I was only doing cardio. So I needed to find a way to add strength training while being affordable.”
Lawson said she began doing strength training sessions with Sandberg every morning before work and ran 5-days a week afterwards. She also focused on her nutrition – eliminating processed foods while eating frequently and keeping her meals balanced. The result was motivating.
“Doing strength training jumped everything up hard core,” Lawson said. “It was a catalyst to really getting a lot of weight off quickly. Right now I’m about 129 – 130 pounds. I originally had a goal of 120-125 but I think that might make me a little too skinny. My focus right now is getting stronger by building and toning my muscles rather than being skinny.”
Sandberg, who continues to work closely with Lawson, believes that success comes from being smart about your workout during the time that you have.
“So if you have a half an hour take advantage of it,” Sandberg said. “Get in, kick your butt, and make sure to keep it really smart. By keeping it really smart you don’t have to do a bunch of time. You could spend two hours a day working out and not getting the results that you want. You end up fatiguing your body in a way that it’s not meant to be fatigued. And that’s not being smart about your workout.”
Sandberg added that nutrition is key to achieving your workout goals.
“Without having your nutrition in place, you will only get 2 percent of the benefits,” she said. “Nutrition is 90 percent of our issue. So if you can fit your nutrition in, you will get the ultimate result. And I’ve seen people not get the results that they want because their nutrition is not there.”
All of the women agree that a 30-minute workout session is doable for just about anyone and can be easily incorporated into a busy schedule. It’s about making fitness happen and making it a part of your lifestyle, as the health benefits are immeasurable.
For Mullahey, it’s all about helping people to make a lifestyle change.
“The reward for me is when I see a client make health and fitness a priority in general. Seeing someone develop positive habits and it doesn’t have to be about results. It’s seeing that mindset change in someone and have them start to enjoy fitness. Working out doesn’t have to be a chore. To change someone’s complete outlook on what it means to be healthy is probably the most rewarding.”
For more information on M2 Fitness visit m2fitness.org.