Dave Szymkowicz: Personal Trainer To Women

Dave Szymkowicz believes that women have put others before them and now it’s their turn. He shows them that getting fit doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

In the personal health and fitness industry, the average burnout rate is three years. I like a personal trainer who has been around, good listener, not pushy, sensitive, patient, and understands your goals. Dave Szymkowicz is a prime example of someone who is sensitive to women.

Dave Szymkowicz is passionate about health and fitness. As a kid, he played hockey in the winter and soccer in the summer. In the fall of 2005, David Szymkowicz fell in love with running and that led him to his passion for exercising. David focuses on women and helps them achieve their fitness goals and making it enjoyable at the same time. David Szymkowicz has been in customer service for more than two decades and helps his clients lose unwanted fat and celebrate small victories.

Dave, welcome to my blog, please tell me a little about yourself?

Certified & Insured trainer coming in 10 years. I have always been an active person with Hockey and Soccer, but it wasn’t until I lost fatback in 2005. After that, I got hooked on learning about how I can help others transform their body and feel great.

Women over 40 who want to lose 40. I love that caption. Talk to me about this program?

Women over 40 who want to lose that unwanted extra fat are my niche. It’s funny because my aunt and cousin told me that I would relate to older women ( I am 35 now) because I am like a son. I am pleasant to be around and love to have fun. See I am only 5’2 and not very bulky, there is no real threat or intimidation. For years, women have put others before them and now it’s their turn. I help show them that getting fit, doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

Magazines are full of getting abs in six weeks, lose these many pounds in six weeks. Is this more of a marketing gimmick or realistic?

This is all a gimmick and unrealistic goals for both men and women. These magazines play on the emotions of the consumers and do a very good job. If it were that easy wouldn’t we all be in the best shape of our lives? There is no real trick to getting fit. Time + effort = results. Clients come to me all the time and it’s hard, to be honest with someone who is paying you. That being said, they are paying for the expertise, and not lies.

Losing weight is a combination of weight training and food. How important is food and the whole psychological and emotional part of the mind in this process?

Food = comfort. When you are sad, you eat, when you are stressed, you eat. Even when we are happy WE EAT. I use to think that it was 50% food and 50% exercise. I now say it is 100% on each side. Food is fuel, weight training helps BURN calories and gives you muscle (not the big bulky ones that we all think we will get from training 2 times per week) Carbs have a bad name and I try to inform my clients that there is good carbs (complex) and bad carbs (simple) and if we consume more of the good and less of the bad, we are doing great. Without going into great detail, we need to find our TDEE and BMR and those show us how many calories we should be consuming and how many to lose weight. Calories burned vs calories consumed = fat loss.

What is unique about you and why should my audience want you as their personal trainer?

It’s my approach to the whole fitness world, I believe that it is OK to eat cake, cookies, and wings. Yes, I said it, I preach about portion and moderation control. I bring fun and stories to our sessions with a nonjudgemental view. In an industry that produces trainers like a factory, the burn rate of trainers (especially In-Home) is 1-2 years. I have been doing this since 2010. You want results, you come to me.

You focus on women in your business. Any reason for this and why?

I enjoy showing women that they CAN do something. I always hear that they have tried in the past and never got fit, and I take great pride in showing them that they CAN.

 I like the fact that you offer online and video training. How does that work? What if someone is not the most technology-friendly person?

Online/Video training is great because it removes a lot of the barriers that sometimes arise when I sit with clients. Time and money. Online training IS different than video training. Online training is a weekly emailed out program that is ONLY for the specific client (no copy cat programs). The client gets an excel sheet with a video link of me doing the exercises with an explanation of it. The sheet also has reps and sets. These sessions can happen at ANY time of the day without me even being there, this is great for people who have the motivation, but lack the programming. Video training is still 1 on 1 training, but not In-home. We use either Zoom, Skype, Facetime, or another program to do a video session. This is great for people who lack motivation and need structure. This is also cost-effective than In-Home 1 on 1 training.

Give me three pieces of advice on eating food?

1. Moderation/Portion control is KEY
2. Try to eat a balanced meal (proteins, carbs, fats/veggies)
3. Don’t have a bad relationship with food.

What techniques do you use to motivate the people you train and why?

I lead by example, I train myself daily, as well as eat a variety of foods which includes the “bad” stuff. I try to get clients to celebrate the small steps which will lead them to greater goals in the long run.