Elmore McConnell Personal Fitness Trainer (Interview)

Juicy Peach: How do you connect with your clients? Are there certain techniques that you use?

Elmore: Basically I connect with them by asking questions in order to find out their history and find out what’s going on in their lives in order to find out the reason that they do want to get into shape. Once I find out the reason I’m able to connect because chances are I’ve met other people just like them. What happens is a lot of clients think that they’re the only ones who’s going through what they’re going through right now.

 Juicy Peach: What advice can you give someone who’s on a weight loss journey but wants to give up?

 Elmore: The thing is don’t think about how far you have to go, think about how far you have come so far. So what you want to be able to do is use the small victories that you have in order to motivate you because it’s all about momentum. So if you did a great job eating today and you didn’t cheat or fall off on what you were trying to do, use that as motivation because it is about small victories in order to get victory. Just like small hills will equal a large mountain.

Juicy Peach: Speaking of motivation what motivates you to continue your personal fitness?

Elmore: Basically coming from the background that I came of course from being an  African American well where I’m from in Alabama we just called ourselves black. I come from a family who is used to eating fried chicken 3 or 4 times a day or eating fried foods period, a lot of drinks whether its alcohol, of course smoking and different things like that. So I come from an unhealthy background. My dad had lung cancer and also he’s born in 1925 so he started smoking cigarettes at a young age, he was 11. So watching those things coming up as a kid and watching my dad leave because of health issues. Also my grandparents leaving because of health issues it motivated me to want to be able to help others. Because I know if I’m able to help others than I’m able to help myself and keep myself motivated.

Juicy Peach: What is your daily diet?

Elmore: On a daily I main fix things like chicken and fish and also I love to do things as far as clean eating. The simplest way to remember that is to always eat fresh fruits and vegetables. So never buy anything that’s in a box or a can. Not even a bag for that matter unless it’s vegetables, sometimes you can go with the frozen vegetables but its best to stick to the fresh fruits and vegetables and also anything as far as sea food , chicken, and fish.

 Juicy Peach: I saw the Youtube video when you were talking about the growing trend of type 2 diabetes within the African American community but I wanted to ask you what workout advice is helpful for those who are missing legs?

Elmore: It really would vary depending on the person because I actually have a best friend who is a amputate and he has of course the leg on a trample leg. So he has one of those so it really depends on if the person has the leg or not but they’re mobile. From there we can do workouts as far as squats and things like that but they can also use a stationary bike.  So it’s really up to them and their emotional limitations that they have. If they have none then that’s awesome. You can also do an ergometer and it’s almost like a bike except you’re using your arms. Its different exercises that you can do but always advise people to see a professional physician first and then they can seek the guidance of a personal trainer.

Juicy Peach: Have you ever considered having your own shoe design? Is there a certain shoe that you know that’s better than others for weight loss?

Elmore: I never thought about a shoe design but typically what I would prescribe to a person who is type 2 is to find shoes that are comfortable. You don’t want to get any shoes that are hard and tough on your feet. There are some Nikes I think they are Pegasus. It’s very soft so it really depends on the person and also if they are up in age they may have fluid on their leg and their ankles look swollen so it really depends on their feet and also their current level of fitness.

Juicy Peach: Just from looking at pictures of your body in my eyes everything seems perfect. Do you feel that you have personal work to do on yourself?

Elmore: I do and that’s the thing that you should always do is always look for things to better yourself and go through phases where you say I want to rebuild. Allow yourself to rest and rebuild and that’s going to allow you to reach un measurable goals.

 Juicy Peach: Since the blog is called The Juicy Expressions I do have a juicy question for you. As someone who is deep into fitness could you see yourself dating someone who is not into fitness?

Elmore: I can and I have. I have dated people from Alabama and my mom and my grandma and auntie is very big. So now they live a healthy lifestyle but their sizes for them they are considered not what you see the typical women on the magazines. Yes I have dated women who are out of the fitness world. Let’s just say I like my women big. I wouldn’t date skinny women.

Juicy Peach: Is there anything that you would like your fans to know?

 Elmore: Just know that right now it’s easy to connect with me so feel free to contact through social media on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. You can follow me @wetrainatlanta. You can hit me up and I will answer back within 24hours or less.