Connie Gardner, Member
I’ll start out by telling you all why we belong to CHUZE. All three in our household are Chuze members. Over the years, we had, off and on been members of several different gyms in town. They all gave me the same feeling which was “ Hi. Thanks for paying your dues, we don’t know you, we don’t care what your goals are nor how you’re going to meet those goals but please, just keep paying your dues, we like that. ” They all seemed to be dirty, smell like a locker room and my pet peeve is that the pads on the machines were quite frequently all worn out and ripped. None of this seemed appealing nor did it make me want to be there every day.
We came to Chuze in 2013 with no idea what was inside. We lived walking distance from the Oracle location, which was so nice. The first thing that stood out to us was the $10/month membership and the option to be able to bring our son in as a guest. That was FANTASTIC for us! The next thing we realized was how the staff continuously cleans the place. It was vacuumed, wiped down, dusted…all the time. Another nice thing we noticed was there is rarely a piece of equipment out of order at this gym! But the best thing about being at CHUZE is all of you. Everyone knows us and not only do you know our faces you actually know us! The front desk is normally hoppin’ and yet, you still have time to ask us what we did over the holiday or where we’ve been if you haven’t see us in a couple days, you ask me where the guys are if I walk in alone. That’s so nice and refreshing so, keep up the good work!
But the best thing about being at CHUZE is all of you. Everyone knows us and not only do you know our faces you actually know us!
A little bit about my recent journey…
- Never smoked
- Height: 5’ 5.5”
- In December of 2016 I weighed in at a depressing 222 pounds
- Already medicated for Stage II Hypertension
- A plethora of health issues became apparent at an annual visit to the Ophthalmologist that year. She saw a significant decline in my eyesight over the course of the year. She told me she was sending her report to my primary care doc because in her opinion, it wasn’t just age-related decline.
- The first week of January, my doctor uncovers:
- Pre-diabetes : A1C: 6.4, on the verge of full diabetes (which explained the vision decline) – medicated
- Obesity (which was pretty obvious – just hadn’t ever been called THAT before)
- Gastrointestinal reflux disease- medicated
- Fatty Liver disease
- Borderline high cholesterol
- BMI close to 37
- Resting heart rate close to 90
- Stress Incontinence (which I was told could be attributed to childbirth for the last 19 years and always thought
it’s just the way it was for us Moms…)
I will leave that sad story right here for a moment. Let me fast forward all the way to the following week.
I began to realize my weight was actually preventing me from exercise: I couldn’t run because of joint pain. Truth be told, I couldn’t even bend down to tie my running shoes! Too out of breath to hike or even join Jeffrey out on a walk! I couldn’t go out on my road bike as I couldn’t breathe hunched over my handlebars, I wouldn’t go scuba diving because I couldn’t descend in the water without the Dive Master adding an embarrassing amount of weights to my dive belt. Things were quite grim and I knew it.
I began to realize my weight was actually preventing me from exercise: I couldn’t run because of joint pain.
I decided I could either A.) do something OR B.) not live to ever see retirement or grandchildren! I was my own enemy; food choices and lack of exercise. I was only 49 years old, lazy, unmotivated and had obviously been in denial that it was THAT bad. I started to cut back on the carbs and watching the fats. With my family’s support at home in food choices, I began to lose a few pounds and started gaining a little energy back. It was around mid-year that year I thought “why don’t you get Jeffrey and Ralphie into the gym (that you’ve been non-using members of since 2013) and see what happens?” I figured we could all use a little bit of health and secretly and selfishly, I knew that if THEY came with me, it just might help me keep going)! So we did. We started coming in to Chuze Oracle, as a family, sometimes up to 6 days a week and workin’ it. Ralphie started finding his groove with weights and machines. He now trains hard with Jordan 3-4 workouts a week and is seeing visible gains. Jeffrey and I started out on cardio equipment, free weights and the circuit equipment. I’m now doing Jordan’s Small Group HIIT class on Monday nights and he is also busting my butt on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays with strength training personal workouts.
I’m happy to share this update with you now:
- I’m down 73 pounds… weighing in this morning at 149!
- All medical issues are resolved:
- Blood Pressure 110/68
- Prediabetes 5.1 A1C
- Obesity
- Reflux
- Fatty liver
- Cholesterol
- Heartrate 58- 70
- BMI is now 24.4
Some days, it’s tough, I’m tired, work was stinky or just can’t seem to get excited about the workout but SOMEHOW, show up at the gym anyway. This is where I owe it to you all!!! It’s when I hit the door and scan myself in and some random combination of your smiling faces is there to say “Happy Tuesday Connie, have a great workout!” Or someone behind the desk sees me dragging on in and says “hey Connie, git it girl, you’ve got this!” It’s always the little push or
pick-me-up that I need to get it done.
Some days, it’s tough, I’m tired, work was stinky or just can’t seem to get excited about the workout but SOMEHOW, show up at the gym anyway.
I have to admit, it’s been a really long and hard road! I have since tried to maintain a healthy diet with a good exercise plan and it’s working. It feels good, I have energy, I feel more alert, I feel more positive. It’s because of you, my family
and all of you, my CHUZE family that I will continue to succeed. I look so forward to some new gains and moving into the new facility with you.
I know you are all just “doing your jobs” but from the bottom of my heart, I have to thank you all
for being there for me.
Jade Havican, Employee
I joined the Chuze family the summer of 2013, during Garden Grove’s presale. I was fresh out of high school and had no idea of what I wanted to do with my life, nor did I have any energy to figure it out.
I was diagnosed with chronic anxiety and depression at a young age and it really took a toll on my childhood. Fast forwarding through the years and many doctors, therapists, and medications later, I was at an all time low in high school and had completely given up on myself. I struggled to get out of bed, hardly went to school. My mom was very worried about me and wanted me to get a second job literally to keep me busy.
It was right after a new gym opened in our neighborhood and she felt like it was the right place I needed to be, even if I didn’t understand it yet. When I was hired, I thought nothing of it just something I’d do for give or take a year. Never in a million years would I have guessed it would bless me with a family and a second chance at life.
Like I stated, I was at an all time low when I came to Chuze. I had no trust or respect for myself, no goals, nothing. Some days it was even hard for myself to push through. That all quickly changed. I was blessed with a family, people who cared about me more than I even cared about myself. I found myself feeling like I belonged somewhere, and actually enjoyed getting out of the house for once. I found myself making goals that I never thought I could achieve, and had people cheering me on. When I fell back in a hole a few years later, it was Melissa Sowell who talked me into going back to school because she knew I could. To this day its mind blowing to me that one of the company’s founders still reaches out to me just to check in on my mental well being. The days I find the hardest, I find the most support. I’ll never forget the day I was trying my absolute
hardest to hide my pain, thinking my fake smile would work. It was then when the RDO Nate asked me to talk, and just sat with me in the office and just cried with me. I was eventually able to finally pull myself together and go home, and the text I received from him that night will never leave my mind. “We’re family Jade, that’s what family does. “
The people at Chuze taught me to be proud of who I am and made me realize all the hardships I’ve overcame. I’ll forever be thankful for what Chuze has blessed me with, and will always want to give it back. I want to be that person that motivates members to get done what they think they cannot because they’re too tired. To be that person to give a single mom an hour of peace and quiet. A person to be apart of an employees development and cheer them on as they succeed in their goals.