November 2020 Client Spotlight: Michelle Ronan

Q&A With Our Member of the Month: Michelle Ronan

We know you are going to be inspired by our November Spotlight. Most of us know her as Ronan. Michelle has been with us for several years and as you read below, she has many obstacles that she could use as an excuse. She doesn’t just push through those obstacles, she crushes them. Ronan lifts heavier than most men and inspires us all! Not only that, she goes out of her way to support fellow members that she’s training with. We’ve watched her put new members at ease and cheer others on. We are lucky to have her as a part of our No Limits Fitness family. Keep being the awesome beast you are! 


Q: What is your favorite inspirational quote?

A: “You never fail until you stop trying.”- Albert Einstein


Q: What are your personal health and fitness goals?

A: My overarching goal is always better mental and physical health, but more specifically I want to decrease body fat and increase muscle. I want to be strong! 


Q: What ONE thing keeps you most focused and motivated to continue to work hard to reach your goals?

A: I have a chronic medical condition (rheumatoid disease, a/k/a rheumatoid arthritis) that can possibly decrease my life span by 10 years due to cardiovascular disease and respiratory complications. I want to be around a long, long time to love on my kids. Being physically and mentally fit will help me do that. 


Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started with us?

A: I started with No Limits Fitness about six or so years ago when I became fed up with myself and how out of shape I had become. I was overworked and had little motivation because I was tired all of the time. I let work and other life “stuff” get in the way of self-care. I have a thriving psychotherapy practice and I felt like a total hypocrite. I constantly talked to my clients about taking good care of their physical and mental health yet I was allowing mine to fall by the wayside. I also had the RA diagnosis and needed to make better life health choices to help decrease daily pain. I just needed a reboot and No Limits Fitness was that for me. 


Q: How has No Limits Fitness made a difference in your life?

A: I am much healthier overall. Mentally, I feel better because working out at NLF decreases my stress and increases my mental toughness. Physically, I am much stronger overall and I can do things physically now that I’ve never been able to do. 


Q: What kinds of milestones have you accomplished and what specific results have you achieved so far?

A: My body fat decreased and I’ve gained a ton of muscle. I’ve also noticed that my endurance has improved due to the conditioning from bootcamps. I’m achieving personal bests now and it feels phenomenal! I recently deadlifted 315lbs and I felt like a million bucks! I can also jump rope for a few minutes straight now where before I could barely go 20 seconds. That’s only the start and I can’t wait to see what new goals I can achieve here at NLF.  


Q. What was the obstacle that almost prevented you from joining?

 A: Fear. I was out of shape and hadn’t exercised in years. I just knew I would look like an idiot in front of others. I’m so glad I stepped outside of my comfort zone and gave it a shot. It’s been life changing for me. 


Q. What has exceeded your expectations since joining?

A: Honestly, while I am amazed at how much muscle I gained as well as how much I increased cardio endurance, something that has most exceeded my expectations had nothing to do with the physical side. I have been to a lot of gyms in my life and I’ve never felt as supported as I have by Mike and his staff here at NLF. This team just won’t let me quit and they always set me up for success. If I miss time at the gym someone is checking on me and finding out why. Accountability is everywhere here and that alone has saved me from quitting on more than one occasion. NLF is more than a gym, it’s a family. 


Q. What would you say to someone on the fence about making a change & committing to their goals?

A: Come in, sit down with Mike or one of the trainers and learn about what NLF has to offer. Join us for a workout and see how amazing you feel afterwards. That’s all it usually takes. Once people see it’s not as daunting as they first believed they can’t wait to get back in the gym. Every exercise can be modified and results are achievable here if you just stick with it and trust the process. 


Q. What is your “word” for this year? 

A: Tenacious

*persisting in existence; not easily dispelled.


2020 has been so hard for everyone. I feel like my tenacity has helped me get through all the rough patches this year while still meeting personal goals. I’m so happy I didn’t quit when things got tough.


About No Limits

No Limits Fitness provides step-by-step programs to help busy adults get the body they’ve always wanted, without restrictive diets or time-consuming workouts, so they can lead more fulfilling lives. Life is a much better experience in a strong, healthy body!

Recent Posts

By Juan Perez 03 May, 2024
Every year millions of people make the resolution to improve their fitness. It’s not exactly a secret that the majority of these good intentions will quickly turn into empty promises. When you first get started, your excitement and energy are high and it’s easy to feel like you’re in control and that your will power alone will help you through the difficult days ahead. The reality is that you’ll probably have more days when you don’t “feel” like training. This is the reason we preach Standards Over Feelings because we understand how fundamental this is for human behavior. There have been several studies on human behavior that have helped identify the single biggest predictor of success when it comes to long-term consistency with your fitness. It’s not keeping a gym bag ready and with you at all times…although this helps. Setting your gym clothes out the night before is a great idea…but it’s still not the determining factor. Surprisingly it’s not even having an accountability partner. Schedule in advance when and where you’ll do your training. Everything else is simply in support of this habit. Being accountable to someone you don’t want to disappoint is incredibly helpful, but if you haven’t taken that first step, accountability falls short. Having been that accountability piece for hundreds of people, I’ve been ignored and ghosted more times than I can count. Even my sister stopped responding to text messages and phone calls at one point. (I called our mother but apparently you can’t put an adult on restriction). Scheduling in advance WHEN and WHERE you’ll workout is the single most important step to developing consistency with your fitness. This helps you develop integrity with yourself…if you say you’ll do something, that thing gets done. Period. Show up like a boss and bosses don’t cancel. Your training is time on your calendar dedicated to getting better. The workouts on your calendar become non-negotiable. You don’t wake up and see how you “feel” because you already know there will be days you don’t “feel” like it. In advance, you schedule your training where it best fits into your life with your responsibilities. Once you’ve planned your work, you show up and work the plan. If you fail to plan the work, you’re significantly increasing the likelihood of failure. Ask someone that has been remarkably consistent with their fitness if they know when and where they’ll workout.  This has already been decided. Their feelings aren’t involved in the process. If you truly want to be consistent with your fitness, this habit is a must: Schedule in advance when and where you’ll workout.
By Will Matthiessen 19 Apr, 2024
Crunches.  The go-to core exercise for a lot of gym goers. Yet, it’s one of the worst ab exercises you can do. Shocking, I know. You’re probably wondering why it’s one of the worst. Crunches put force on your spine and oftentimes strain on your neck. They force your spine into flexion, which is generally what people are told not to do in order to protect their back. Aside from the pressure it puts on your spine, crunches don’t activate your core muscles to the extent that a lot of other dynamic core exercises do. If your goal is to have sculpted abs like a lifeguard on Baywatch, crunches are not your solution. Aside from the aesthetic aspect, a strong core is important for your body’s balance and stability, posture, and reduction of back pain and other injuries. If you want to develop a rock hard core, here is a list of exercises better than the old fashioned crunches that you can start incorporating into your workouts: The Hard Style Plank Put your forearms on the ground and your arms set shoulder width apart. Your arms should be parallel to your body. Once you’re up in the plank, imagine squeezing your elbows to your knees and your knees to your elbows. Don’t be surprised if you start shaking like a leaf as soon as you create that tension. Dead Bugs Lie on your back with your arms straight up and your hands above your shoulders. Bend your legs at a 90-degree angle with your toes facing up at the ceiling. Imagine pushing your belly button into the ground and keeping your body tight enough to where if someone was pulling on your limbs, you’d be able to resist it. Next extend your right arm and left leg at the same time, without touching the ground. Keep pushing your belly button into the ground to avoid arching your back. The right leg that is still bent should stay completely still while the other leg is in motion. Bring your arm and leg back into the start position and then switch sides. When it comes to Dead Bugs, one of our favorite sayings applies: “Slowly is holy. Faster is disaster.” If you want to increase the intensity, add a kettlebell to the stationary arm. If you want to significantly increase the intensity, press the kettlebell once you’ve reached the fully extended position. Reverse Crunches Lie down flat with your back on the floor and your legs straight down, toes pointed up. Press your lower back into the floor and pull in your belly button as you lift your legs together up off the floor. Push your heels through the ceiling at the top and slowly lower them back to the ground. Fun, right? Double Kettlebell March Hold two heavy kettlebells in the racked position. Pull your belly button to your knees and your knees to your belly button to find max tension in your core. Once you feel that tension, slowly lift one knee up 90 degrees and then switch legs. Hollow Rocks I’ve saved the worst (I mean best) for last. Lay down on the ground with your legs a little bit off of the ground as well as your shoulder blades and head. With arms extended over your head, rock back and forth like a banana rocking back and forth on a counter. Or a see-saw…take your pick. Alright, now that I’ve given you the secret sauce to getting rock hard abs, it’s time to get to work people!
By Juan Perez 05 Apr, 2024
One of the first recommendations you’ll hear for someone wanting to lose weight is to begin by counting calories. Although weighing your food and counting calories does work for some people, the reality is that this approach to weight loss has an astonishingly high failure rate. If this strategy is “based in science”, why does it fail more than 95% of the time? The Top 3 Issues With Counting Calories The number of calories in the foods you eat are estimates. This is where the concept of counting calories being “based in science” can be misleading. The FDA allows companies to use 5 different formulas to estimate calories and a standard deviation up to 20% is acceptable. This means that something listed as 150 calories exists on a range between 120 calories and 180 calories. How ripe is your banana? The ripeness affects caloric availability. The second issue is that as individuals we each absorb a different amount of the calories from the food we consume. Thirdly, Americans are notoriously bad at determining healthy portion sizes. Our super-sized culture has heavily influenced our concept of a normal sized portion. The good news is that there is another way to lose weight without counting calories. The Three Pillars of Nutrition Whether or not you’re a card-carrying member of Camp Calorie Counters, the foundation of your nutrition is built upon three pillars: Food Quality, Food Quantity and Food Timing. Food Quality All calories are not created equal. The popular 100 calorie snack bags do not offer the same nutritional value as 100 calories from fruits or vegetables. When the majority of your meals are composed of minimally processed single ingredient whole foods (lean protein, fruits and vegetables), you’re more likely to get the micronutrients your body needs to thrive. Food Quantity As mentioned earlier, Americans aren’t known for our skills at eyeballing healthy portion sizes. Although using a food scale to determine portion sizes can be helpful, it isn’t always practical. This is the reason we recommend learning to use your hand as a guide to determine portion sizes. You can’t take a food scale with you everywhere you go but you’re always allowed to bring your hands!
Show More
Share by: