There are three things I don’t usually discuss: my age, my dress size and my physical fitness. But today, I’m making an exception. I’m 55. I wear a size 4. As for physical fitness, well, up until three years ago, I didn’t have any.

Yes, I was out of shape and looked it. I wasn’t exactly a poster child for the anti-aging health center that my husband, a vascular surgeon, and I operate in Bradenton.

It’s not like I didn’t know about the importance of staying fit. I’m a registered nurse. I know that after age 30, we lose 8 to 10 pounds of muscle a decade. For people over 50 like me, it gets worse. The less fit we are, the more susceptible we are to a whole range of ills, from bone thinning, hip fractures and diabetes, to cholesterol and blood pressure problems.

It’s also not like I didn’t have good intentions. I mean, I had a gym membership. But here’s the thing: a gym membership really only works if you actually USE it. I never did.

And frankly, who has the time or the interest? Not me. I was busy. I was tired. All that changed on October 11, 2005. That was the day I tried a medically-proven form of fitness training that takes just 20 minutes a week and changed the way I look at exercise forever.

You read that right: 20 minutes a week. It’s done on special physical therapy equipment under the watchful eye of a personal trainer.

Like many people, I didn’t believe it at first. Then I met Virginia Phillips, who operates 20 Minutes to Fitness, the company that brought this form of fitness training to the Sarasota area. She was my age, but had arm muscles that a 25-year-old would kill for.

So I tried it. (The first session was free, so what did I have to lose?) Long story short – I was hooked.

The results? Forget about the health benefits, which are certainly there. I can hit a golf ball further. My knees don’t creak. I feel great. I’ve dropped two dress sizes. (Yes, I wasn’t ALWAYS a size 4.) And how about this: I’ve got actual muscle definition in my arms. Yes, I can go sleeveless!

Here’s the best part – this workout is so safe I can keep doing it for pretty much the rest of my life. And that’s what I intend to do. It’s the smartest money I’ve ever spent.

Against the advice of every friend who appeared to have more than a dozen brain cells, I took an early retirement buyout from my job as a columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch a year or so ago. But what could I do with these golden years to justify throwing in the towel a decade early? I needed GOALS!

The first that sprung to mind is the usual one – getting into a regular exercise routine so I might not drop dead before Social Security kicks in.

How about joining a fitness club? The experts advise us to go to the gym several times a week. But the thought of running thousands of miles on a treadmill to nowhere, lost in a vast, sweaty sea of flat-bellied 30-somethings fills me with inspiration to move quickly to the next goal.

Besides, well-intentioned folks my age who think they can do the physically challenging stuff they did when they were 25 are injuring themselves in record numbers. And now we’re lining up for knee and hip replacements and surgery to repair the damage.

And let’s be clear: it’s not just that running or doing aerobics will rip an old fogey’s knees or back to shreds.

It will also drive us stark raving bananas, and we’ll quit. One time I signed up for an exercise class and never went at all. Fitness centers that require memberships make big, big money off well-intentioned no-shows like me. WHAT REALLY CHANGED MY LIFE. I read an article about a 63-year-old gentleman who, after nine months of a fitness program that involves only one 20-minute strength training session a week, broke par for the first time. In a flash, it all came together – my aging body that once turned heads and now turned stomachs, my passion for golf, my need to exercise regularly or die, my hatred of exercise classes, and well, exercise. But 20 minutes a week of something that even old folks with pain issues can do? So, I went to the 20 Minutes To Fitness studio in Clayton, Mo. There was not one treadmill or stationary bicycle. A Personal Trainer took a detailed health and fitness history and explained the studio’s use of a revolutionary fitness technique known as slow cadence, high intensity strength training.

Especially for people over 40, the key to fitness is replacing lost muscle without damaging fragile joints or ligaments. 20 Minutes To Fitness is a smart, safe way to do just that. A big reason is its highly specialized equipment. Originally developed for spine care and osteoporosis, the machines are calibrated to work specific muscle groups without putting stress on joints, bones and ligaments.

You get your own personal trainer and then there’s the time factor. If someone were to calculate and compare muscles per minute per dollar, 20 Minutes would blow everybody’s doors off. The brief workout takes muscles to failure, which triggers a signal to the body to build new muscle. This rebuilding requires four to six days of rest, similar to the time between starts of a baseball pitcher. During this time the body is using an astounding amount of energy (burning calories) to rebuild muscle. The more calories you burn, the faster you deplete your stored body fat. Blood pressure goes down and bone density is increased. The risk of diabetes is cut. With my trainer at my side, directing and charting every workout, my body was literally transformed. My back pain went away and my strength seemed to increase overnight.

I’m in the best shape of my life and feel like I’ve reversed the aging process. I never dreamed that at 55, I’d hit the ball this far or wear my golf skirts this short. AND, I went from a size 10 to a size 6! Somewhere around here is a teeny, tiny word that says, “advertisement.” I am being compensated for these words. But there’s enough journalist in me that you couldn’t pay me enough to lie. I want to share my success because I think it can be a life-changing experience for many kinds of people – those too busy to exercise, or think they’re too old, or too out of shape, have too many medical problems, or just plain hate exercising.

I have done a lot of things in my life. Played pro football. Won a Super Bowl. Done a TV
show. And now ESPN radio.

But here’s one thing I never thought I’d ever do:work out next to a 68-year-old grandmother.

Her name is Sonja Nelson-Stough, and she is in amazing shape. She and I both work out at 20 Minutes to Fitness, a place that provides a medically based form of fitness training that takes just 20 minutes a week.

But before you start thinking I have joined some sort of geriatric fitness club, let me add this: In all my years in the NFL, I never had a strength-training regimen as tough, or as effective, as this one.

I’ll explain. When I played for the Rams, strength training was a numbers game. We were required to lift a certain amount of weight, a certain number of reps, three times a week. I was spending nine hours a week in a gym, building muscle, but damaging my joints.

But at 20 Minutes to Fitness, the medical approach is completely different. Here, I work out on special physical therapy equipment. Everything we do is in ultra slow motion. My personal coach doesn’t really care how many reps I do, or even how much weight I’m lifting. All she is concerned about is that I achieve muscle failure – that I get to the point where I can’t lift another ounce.

Okay, I may lift a few pounds more than Sonja and most of the other folks here. But muscle failure is muscle failure. As medical research has proven again and again, achieving it is the first step to toward growing stronger and healthier – no matter what your age or physical condition.

The truth is, the 20 Minute to Fitness workout can be fine-tuned for people of any fitness level – from overweight kids, to elite high school athletes, to stay-at-home moms, to time-starved professionals, to 80-year-old grandmas, to former pro athletes like me.

Don’t believe it? You can watch a video of me doing the workout at 20minutestofitness.com, or 101espn.com. Sonja’s there, too! You’ll see what I’m talking about.

To any of you skeptics out there who say you can’t possibly get fit by working out this way for only 20 minutes a week, I have only three words to say: Just try it.

“How 20 Minutes Changed My Life”

Recently, I felt what I feared was a lump in my stomach. So I asked my husband to take a look.

He examined my stomach, poking and prodding like a doctor might. Then, solemnly, he pronounced his diagnosis: “Honey, I think you have… an ab.”

Now I’d HEARD of abs before. I’d even seen pictures. But the thought that one might actually be found somewhere on my body, particularly in the region of my stomach, was beyond my wildest imagination.

This discovery was especially remarkable when you consider that just six months earlier… well, let’s just say my stomach was more flab than ab.

To what do I owe this new found muscle, you ask?

Two Things: A strength training program that has literally changed the way I look at exercise forever, and a nutrition program that helped me shed 45 pounds.

Look, I’ve belonged to health clubs in the past. The problem is, I have a job. I have a family. I have a LIFE. I just don’t have time for a health club, too.

But what I do know now is that I can handle 20 minutes a week!

I’m not kidding. I found a semi-private fitness studio where it’s possible to achieve in one 20-minute session a week what could easily require three hours in the gym. I think that’s why they call it 20 Minutes to Fitness.

20 Minutes a week! You bet I was skeptical at first, but tried it anyway. (The first session was free, after all.)

Let me tell you about it. You work out on special state-of-the-art equipment with a personal trainer by your side the entire time. About 20 minutes later, you’re done with your workout!

And, you can do all this without ever changing into “gym clothes.”

Effective? I’ve dropped three dress sizes and maintained my weight loss, while building my muscle strength.

And yes, I’m very proud of my new ab and how my other newly found muscles make me look in sleeveless shirts. What I didn’t realize was that by working hard to look better, I would also be slowing the aging process and lowering my risk of disease at the same time! If you don’t believe me, just ask your doctor.

So if your looks and your health are important to you and you “just can’t find enough time”, I suggest you give 20 Minutes to Fitness a call.

And who knows, you might just find an ab!

“A year ago, I had an 11 handicap. In my last 10 rounds, it has dropped to a 5.”

“I’m a 63-year-old guy who plays golf three times a week and loves it. But because I have severe rheumatoid arthritis, it’s been a struggle to retain my game from year to year.
Then I started my core PowerPar Program training, hoping it would keep me strong enough that I could still walk 10 years from now.

Nine months later, the difference is remarkable. I broke par for the first time in my life this year. I’m hitting the ball farther and straighter with all of my clubs. Perhaps most importantly, this training program has enabled me to maintain the active lifestyle I want.”

Andy Stoe, Age 63
Brentwood, Missouri
Vice President of Investments
St. Louis-based National Investment Firm
Andy is a member at the Club of Wentzville and the
Links at Dardine, and trains twice a week at 20 Minutes to Par in Clayton.

Look at how my life (and body) has changed!

I mean it. Just look at what 20 Minutes to Fitness has done for me.

At this stage in my life, I never thought I would be putting my picture in a magazine article like this. In fact, the last thing I’ve wanted in recent years is for anyone – myself included – to give my body a second look.
The reason is simple. I was out of shape. I had floppy arms. I did not want to be seen with floppy arms.
Believe me: I knew what it was like to be in shape. Ten years ago, I was a member of the USTA tennis team. I played tennis five days a week. I looked really good.

But things happen. I turned 40. My husband and I had a baby. The baby was beautiful. My body? Not so much. But how does a new mother find time to go to the gym? Even when there’s one right around the corner? Heck, I couldn’t even find time to work out on the equipment we had in our home! I let myself go.
So there I was: unhappy with my body (especially my arms), with little energy and even less time. I knew I had to do something. But my baby needed me. At least that was my story. And I was sticking to it.
Fortunately, my husband, Randy, saw right through me. He came across an article about a woman who sounded like me, with one exception: she’d found a way to get fit in just 20 minutes a week.

She raved about a place called 20 Minutes to Fitness, its medically-based fitness protocol, specialized physical therapy equipment, and the personal coach who changed her life.

No way, I told Randy. It went against everything I have ever read, heard and believed about fitness. Long story short: I am fickle. I tried it. After all, the first session was free.

That was six months ago. Now my friends ask me if I’ve had Botox. Not only are my muscles toned, my skin looks healthier. I have more energy. My clothes fit better.

I’m proud of myself – not only because of the way I look and feel – but because I took charge of my life and my health. I mean… Look At Me!
Give 20 Minutes to Fitness a call. Tell them Ann sent you.

Why turning 62 Rocks!

At age 60, I believed I was a model of good health. I’d been a runner for more than 30 years. I was certified as a Red Cross Water Safety Instructor. I took my vitamins, drank my juice and ate (mostly) healthy food.

But there was one area of my health that I overlooked: my strength and building back the muscles I lost as I aged. Oh, I tried working out in gyms. But I didn’t like the time it took, and I struggled with the equipment. I have bought and sold more home exercise machines than I want to admit.

Honestly, I didn’t think it mattered. I still thought I was healthy. That is, until I attended a health seminar in late 2009, where I learned something astounding. I learned my BMI (that’s a measure of body fat) was way too high. A healthy BMI score is between 20 and 25.

If that wasn’t bad enough, my blood pressure was also high. My bone density was at the low end of normal. And here’s the thing: I was at my lowest weight ever and it was the loss of muscles causing the problems!
So as the New Year approached, I made a resolution. I was finally going to get my muscles back.
My past experiences convinced me that I could not do this alone. That’s why I turned to 20 Minutes to Fitness, a medically-based program that helps you build muscle and get fit in just 20 minutes, once a week.

At 20 Minutes to Fitness, you work out on specialized equipment. Just as importantly, a coach from their fabulous staff stays with you the entire time to make sure you get it right. And when I say fabulous, I mean it. I was a certified International Masters Level Life Coach and have a master’s degree in community counseling. I KNOW a good coach when I see one.

Your 20 Minutes to Fitness coach will guide you through one piece of equipment after another. They cheer you on, keep you safe and challenge your mind and body limits. In fact, I see people of all ages and fitness levels doing this unique training protocol and remember it’s just 20-minutes once a week.

When New Year’s Day 2011 rolled around, I took a look at how far I had come. And guess what? Today my BMI is 20.7, which is almost perfect, and my blood pressure is normal. I have no signs of osteoporosis, and I’m not taking a single prescription. I’m full of energy. In fact, I’m training for the first 10K in my life.

That’s what building strength does for you!

But don’t take my word for it. Give 20 Minutes to Fitness a call and see for yourself. The first session is free. If you do, I think you’ll see why I believe 62 ROCKS.

Putting my health and credibility on the line

As a magazine publisher, credibility means everything to me.

So when ads for 20 Minutes To Fitness first started appearing in Living Out East & On The Bay a few years ago, I was intrigued, and also a little skeptical.

In story after story, 20 Minutes’ clients wrote of incredible results they had experienced there: how their bodies toned up and their weight went down, how they increased their energy and decreased their blood pressure – the list went on and on. And it was all with just one 20-minute workout a week.
Could this really be true, I wondered. Yes, I knew the program was medically based and recommended by doctors. But still, was it possible that something that takes so little time could actually produce such great results? I wanted to believe, and I wanted to try it for myself. But something held me back.
What if it didn’t work? Then what?

While I debated, my own weight crept up, and the pain I was experiencing in my shoulder grew. Plus, the clock was ticking, and I knew what the medical research said about women like me who are over 60. We’re at risk for osteoporosis and other age-related health issues. Unless we do something to build our strength and keep our bones strong, we’ll only grow weaker and frailer, and increase our risk for everything from hip fractures to high cholesterol.

Finally, in October 2008, I bit the 20 Minutes To Fitness bullet. I was shocked at how quickly I saw results. I’ve lost fat in my stomach and other places I never dreamed would ever be flab-free again. This fat has been replaced by muscle, which has increased my ability to burn calories. Within just a few short months, I had dropped from a size 10 pant to a 6 or an 8. My blood pressure is the best it’s ever been in my adult life. My shoulder pain is gone. Perhaps most importantly, I no longer feel like I am on the verge of becoming a frail old woman.

There are many things I love about 20 Minutes To Fitness: the one-on-one, supervised training
I receive, the ease with which I fit the program in my busy schedule, the safe nature of the workout – and so much more. But I think the thing I love most is how it is helping me preserve and protect my body for future use.

Yes, I may be over 60. But I don’t want my age to stop me from thinking and acting young. 20
Minutes To Fitness helps make that possible. In fact, I understand that there are people who continue to work out here and achieve great results well into their late 80s.

Today, 20 Minutes To Fitness is the gift I give myself each week to maintain my health and to slow – perhaps even reverse – the aging process. You see, I don’t mind growing old. I just mind
FEELING old. And thanks to 20 Minutes To Fitness, I feel the youngest I have in years.

Does anyone out there still listen to CDs? If you’re like me, you traded them in long ago for an iPod. It just made sense. And it changed the way I listen to music forever.

I feel the same way about exercise. I could do the typical guy-thing: go to a gym and lift weights. In fact, that’s what I did for more than 20 years, sometimes more than once a day.

But the truth is, I don’t have time for that any more. I have a couple of businesses to run and a wife and two small children to look after. I don’t have time to waste in a gym. And guess what? I don’t need it. Because I’ve found a way to build strength and stay fit in just 20 minutes a week. It has truly been life changing, like my iPod.

I know it’s hard to believe. But executives on both coasts have been doing it for years. For 20 minutes a week, they work out in their Saville Row suits on special physical therapy equipment under the watchful eye of a personal trainer.
Did you get that: 20 minutes a week to achieve what appeared to be 20 hours a week results. I couldn’t believe it. I DIDN’T believe it. But then I tried it. (Hey, the first session was free, so what did I have to lose?)

I went to the place that brought this form of strength training to the St. Louis area. It’s called 20 Minutes to Fitness. They have locations in Chesterfield and Clayton.

After a consultation with a staff physical therapist, I was ready to prove the whole thing a hoax. (Keep in mind I was bench-pressing close to 300 pounds in my basement — when I found time to do it.)

All I can say is “Wow.” When I left, I could barely turn the steering wheel in my car. For the next day or two, I was as sore as I’d ever been after power lifting, and I loved it! Long story short, I was hooked.

So how am I doing? I recently asked my trainer, Chelsea, who monitors my weight and time on each machine. Over the past several months, I’ve seen significant double-digit gains in almost every muscle group. (Chest-press up 54 pounds, leg-press up over 100 pounds!)
I’m telling you: if you’re doing anything else, you’re wasting your time.

The too-good-to-be-true 20 minute workout and the nurse practitioner who swears by it…

Stiletto aerobics. Exercise pills. Miracle abs. I didn’t go to nursing school to be taken in by exercise fads that contradict everything I have ever learned about the body – from my school gym teacher to my nursing education and work experience.

So I was instantly skeptical when I first heard about 20 Minutes to Fitness, a medically-based form of fitness training that claims to take just 20 minutes a week. Sure, the time saving part sounded good – especially for someone like me who is constantly juggling my family and my career. I want to stay in shape, but don’t have time to go to a gym, changing into my work out clothes, waiting on the equipment – it just doesn’t work for me.
But come on. I understand how the body works. While the science behind 20 Minutes to Fitness’ claims may be real, but let’s be realistic, no one can really build their strength in just 20 minutes a week. Can they? The medical researcher in me wanted to find out. Fortunately, my introductory session was free. I like free. So what did I have to lose except, well, maybe 20 pounds?

The first person I met when I entered 20 Minutes to Fitness was a certified personal trainer with a load of experience. At our first meeting, she asked a lot of questions, answered all of mine, and she especially wanted to understand my personal goals. I told her all about my crazy work schedule, my “on-call” schedule
and four children, my desire to lose weight and rid myself of the nagging lower back pain that flares up every time I deliver a baby. Also, I confessed to her I was totally unconvinced this workout would do half of what it promised. She just smiled and said that they hear that a lot. After we talked, my trainer spent the next 20 minutes working with me one-on-one on special physical therapy equipment. She carefully explained how each piece of equipment focused on the specific muscles being used. She made sure I was correctly positioned on each piece of equipment so I was able to receive the full benefit of the workout while staying safe. Afterwards, I felt exhausted – but great. In the days that followed, something kept nagging at me. Maybe that first experience was just beginner’s luck. Maybe I was letting the “science” behind the workout cloud my senses. Maybe I should just give it a few more weeks. And I’m glad I did.

Three years later, I’m still training at 20 Minutes to Fitness, but am no longer skeptical. Within the first three months, I had increased my strength by more than 25% – a fact confirmed by my trainer’s careful record-keeping and progress reviews. Since then, my core has continued to grow stronger. My balance, flexibility and range of motion are also better. That back pain I spoke of earlier – it’s gone!

Those extra 20 pounds I was carrying when I started? They’re gone, too. 20 Minutes to Fitness, in short, has exceeded my expectations beyond belief. The fact that my trainer works with me one-on-one, is patient with me, keeps me safe and always answers all of my questions is just the icing on the cake! So, yes, 20 Minutes to Fitness works for me. Will it work for you? There’s only one way to find out. Did I mention that your first session is free?

I am a practicing physician (OBGYN) here in Lakewood Ranch and know the importance of staying healthy. But that’s not the only reason I am a client at 20 Minutes to Fitness. I am also a golfer.

The specialized strength training at 20 Minutes to Fitness has definitely improved my game. Not only has my distance increased, but I am now more flexible and have far more endurance than ever before. That’s not all. Before 20 Minutes to Fitness, I always suffered from back pain after my golf game. Now, there is none!

I have to admit that I came for my first consultation with 20 Minutes to Fitness with some serious skepticism. Having assumed that fitness required massive time commitments (which I didn’t have), my body and my health slipped into a bad situation for someone entering their mid 40′s. At 210 pounds, a large percentage of that being fat, I was beginning to display signs of diabetes.

Now at 6 months, along with some recommended nutrition modifications, I have lost 25 pounds with substantial gains in muscle mass and a significant body transformation. I truly feel that you have given me the tools to literally save my life. My flexibility and energy have increased and my blood sugar is now under control – with no medications! I see the strength increase in many unexpected ways: getting up off the floor, climbing stairs, playing with my daughters and even just bending over. And, my wife tells me it is like hugging a different man. She’s right, I am a different man thanks to 20 Minutes to Fitness.

I am a believer in 20 Minutes to Fitness!

My past experience at exercising was going to the gym three days a week for 2 hours each day. The gym was crowded, noisy with chatter, music pounding too loudly, and TV’s flashing. It was not a pleasant experience at all. During this time, I experienced no results in spite of my hard work. After the second injury, I decided that there must be a better way.

How about joining a fitness club? The experts advise us to go to the gym several times a week. But the thought of running thousands of miles on a treadmill to nowhere, lost in a vast, sweaty sea of flat-bellied 30-somethings fills me with inspiration to move quickly to the next goal.

I had read about 20 Minutes several times but did not take the plunge until a trip overseas emphatically showed me that I had lost a great deal of muscle and strength. So I made the call!

I am so happy with my results which happened so quickly! My posture is better, my body more defined and I actually can SEE my muscles……. This is a miracle! I feel better and look better in my clothes. I hope that this exercise program plus my healthy diet will help delay aging and age related health problems.

Their certified trainers and specialized equipment have not only improved my overall strength, but have specifically focused on those factors that directly affect my playing polo: