David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
By David Smith
Sometimes a lot of things need to go wrong so we can truly grasp our reality and better prepare ourselves for the future. My experience at the 2015 EuroGames in Stockholm was the culmination that sent me on a hard reality check. While I will spare you the initial details of the whole event, needless to say it was disappointing. The event itself, the organizers, the competition, the experience but most importantly I was disappointed in myself. For the first time in a long time I didn’t feel like a serious athlete, I had to sit down and really think about all that I was doing. Did my goals matter? Would I ever have a chance to become an elite, competition swimmer? Would I ever be taken seriously or is this all I can ever expect from competition? It certainly didn’t feel like it and I begun to have serious doubts about my goals and myself.
Of course the following few months didn’t help things either. My coach decided to retire and I injured my shoulder during a dryland training session. My entire support base had disappeared and with that so did my motivation. I didn’t know what to do anymore, the last thing I wanted to do was get into a pool and I became scared of turning back into the sad, depressed, fat kid I was after I graduated high school. I didn’t want to be that person but I felt like that’s who I was turning into.
I tried to keep myself going. Attending swim practices with a local Master’s swim team but that only made things worse. The attitude of Master’s is “It’s Master’s, who cares?” and thus felt like the swim practices were a total joke because the people there didn’t really care about improving and growing stronger as an athlete. As the year-end approached the stress of everything happening started to give me heart palpitations and thus I truly knew something was wrong. However I also knew what I needed to do.
I didn’t want to become the person I was 8 years ago, sitting depressed and eating cake while watching the Olympics wishing I was something more. I didn’t want that so I wasn’t going to let myself become that person. I had helped organized the swimming competition at the Sin City Shootout which was quickly approaching and I knew that might just be the kick in the butt I needed to get moving again. It was also too help redeem my experience after a disastrous EuroGames. After the New Year I felt like a resolutionary, coming to the pool to get fit again but the difference is that I wasn’t going to stop after a month or two. I didn’t rush into things and just focused on the little things every day, showing up and getting some quality swimming. Every week I increased my yardage and overall intensity of each session.
After the Sin City Shootout I wasn’t too pleased with my swim times because I knew I hadn’t trained much leading up to it. I also wasn’t too pleased with how I looked since I had put on a couple pounds during my “break” so I was eager to shed that as well. I didn’t think about anything else except for the day to day work of simply showing up and swimming. Most of my practices are self coached but I also decided to give the Master’s another chance and with that I started to find my place within the team. Sure the attitude is still the same but I chose to rise above it and just focused on what I wanted to accomplish. Having been about 12 weeks since I got back in the pool I am feeling like my old, athletic self again! Before I knew it I had registered for nationals and am suddenly getting ready to compete again! I have definitely found my groove again and I couldn’t be happier.
David Smith is an exercise professional, athlete, blogger and owner
of Stonewall Fitness. He is a certified personal trainer and holds a
Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and Nutrition. He is an active
athlete and Gay Games medalist training and competing in triathlon and
swimming. He is passionate about bringing the LGBT community together
through exercise and fitness. Help support David with his athletic
endeavors! Visit www.gofundme.com/bttrflyr and Read more here..
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
By David Smith
My freshman year of high school I had an encounter with a senior I will never forget. I had joined the marching band that summer and spent the first of 4 summers training and practicing as a member of marching band. As the school year went underway we were preparing for our first band competition. I was excited and as a freshman, perhaps a bit naive but for the first time in my life I really felt like I was apart of something, however that didn’t last very long.
As we were warming up and preparing our equipment for the competition, one of the more popular upper classman had randomly come up to me and casually said, “The world would be better off if you had just killed yourself.” I was left stunned. I wasn’t depressed or in any kind of negative mindset. I was just your over enthusiastic, high school freshman kid excited to be at my first ever band competition. Inevitably I broke down crying and couldn’t understand how someone could be such a bully and say something so mean. Especially someone I never really talked to or even knew.
There I was in my band uniform, by my instrument, sitting down and crying, to the notice of some of the parents and even our director who came up to comfort me. By that point my enthusiasm and focus for the competition was gone. Later on, under pressure he had come up and apologized to me. I accepted it and moved on, regaining my focus for our show and forgetting that it had happened. Except that I didn’t and for the rest of the time I was in band with this individual I never really talked to him or went out of my way to interact with him. I didn’t care anymore and perhaps that even set the stage for the rest of my 4-year marching band career in high school.
That incident was so long ago and I ask myself, why does it matter now? I was most certainly a naive kid then and maybe I am now. I’ve always felt socially awkward and really struggled to find my place fitting in. I never had any problem standing out however, and not always in a good way.
I’ve made no secret of my goal to one day compete at the Olympic Games. Is it a long shot? Sure, but I one thing is certain is that I am not afraid to try. I have encountered my fair share of bullies and in general people that would just pass me off as irrelevant because I didn’t matter in their grand scheme of the social status. I most certainly felt rejected but it had never stopped me from achieving what I set out to do and just as quickly as I was rejected, I found my place in a community I really did belong.
Motivation comes from many places and for me one place I draw motivation from is those bullies and irrelevant people. I don’t have anything to prove to anybody, but I do see myself as being able to rise above these people and showing the world that I do matter, I belong and most importantly that the world would not be better off if I were dead.
#FitwithPRIDE David Smith is an exercise professional, athlete, blogger and owner of Stonewall Fitness. He is a certified personal trainer and holds a Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and Nutrition. He is an active athlete and Gay Games medalist training and competing in triathlon and swimming. He is passionate about bringing the LGBT community together through exercise and fitness. Help support David with his athletic endeavors! Visit www.gofundme.com/bttrflyr and Read more here..
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
By David Smith
As an exercise professional and an athlete, I spend a lot of time at gyms, probably too much time. A lot of gyms are different, from the people, classes, machines, staff, everything but one thing has been relatively consistent. People texting. We’ve all been there, we’re in our zone and ready to pump out another set, but we’re stuck waiting for a piece of equipment because the other person is off in texting world. It can be frustrating to say the least. However we’ve all been on the other side too. Just a quick text, Facebook check in or even looking up how to use the machine, in between sets.
During my time at the gym I had noticed one day that everybody on the floor, about 4-5 people we’re all looking down at their phone and it inspired me to do a little observational research. I decided to measure the amount of time people spend texting versus the time they spent working out. This isn’t a scientific study by any means but it was still interesting to look into. I chose a subject who had picked up the phone consecutively at least two times in between sets. I started the timer from the moment they finished their set to the start of the next set, in addition to timing the set itself.
The sample I took was random, with no preference toward any particular race, gender, size or anything else. I only focused on people who were lifting weights or doing body weight exercises. The exercises people were performing were endurance (high reps, low weight) and strength (low reps/ high weight).
The results concluded that people spend a lot more time texting on their phones than they do exercising. Even on some people up to 3-4x as much time. Based on the American College of Sports Medicine recommendations, the recommended rest time in between sets for endurance training (1-2 minutes), strength training (2-3 minutes) and power (3-5 minutes) people we’re often exceeding these rest times on their phone.
That is a lot of time at the gym being wasted while on the phone. That time could be better spent alternating exercises with a different muscle group, alternating a power or strength exercise with an endurance exercise, adding more core work in or simply grabbing a drink of water.
As a trainer I don’t spend time on my phone when I am training clients because it shows to them that I am not serious or engaged in their training and thus disconnected from their goals. As an athlete myself, I feel the same about my own training. Spending time on the phone means I am not focusing on what is most important to me at that moment, my training. Whether it’s focusing on proper technique, the next exercise or just being in the zone. Exercise can be a release to help you disconnect from the stresses of the world and release your own demons in a healthy and productive way. Now I could go on about the negative effects of texting, but that’s like telling a smoker that smoking causes cancer or that excessive sugar consumption leads to diabetes, which is relevant yes but it’s right in one ear and out the other.
I often ask myself, “What is most important to me right now?” and when I am in a training session, the most important thing for me is my goals and doing what I need to do to accomplish them. Spending time texting on the phone is not as important to me as putting in the work I need to in order to accomplish my long-term goal of competing at the Olympic Games. This is my reason why I texting and Facebook takes a back seat during training.
However not everybody is that serious when it comes to exercise, for many it’s simply recreational. Everybody has different goals, passions and motivations but it’s always good to focus on what’s important to you right now and not let simple distractions disrupt you from pursing your passions. What are some ways we can reduce the temptation of texting at the gym?
• Put your phone in your locker or your car. Keep it tucked away and away from the area that you’re working out.
• Put your phone on Airplane mode. I use my phone to play music and it’s hard to put it into and get it out of my arm sleeve. Airplane mode ensures that I won’t be tempted to check it and all messages coming in will have to wait when I’m done.
• Design your workout program to alternate exercises and muscle groups. It’s known as a compound set and it’s when you do an exercise for one muscle group and while it rests you perform another exercise for the opposite muscle group.
• A good example would be a Chest Press working your Pectoralis Major immediately followed by a Lat Pull Down working your Latisimus Dorsi. Or a Bicep Curl immediately followed by a Tricep Dip.
• Circuit training is another excellent way to make your program more efficient. Similar to a compound set however it is not specific to muscle groups. It is simply combining a group of exercises that you perform immediately one after another in a circuit.
I suggest you alternate upper body, lower body and core exercises so you can still ensure each muscle group gets a decent amount of rest.
• Your imagination is the only limit. You can combine exercises and types of exercises (cardio, weights, core etc) in any way you like.
If there’s a particular area of the body you don’t like to train, add one of those exercises to the circuit and it’ll feel easier to get the work done.By taking advantage of some of these suggestions, you can easily complete your 60-minute workout in much less time, giving you freedom to add more to your routine (such as stretching and foam rolling) or even getting home a bit earlier.
One of my clients likes to say that our training session is like recess for her, because it gets her out of her work zone and allows her to engage in something else, it’s a way for her to disconnect and destress. In a way she finds it fun (although she probably won’t tell you that!) and as a result she has seen significant increases in strength, balance, endurance, agility and even has lost weight.
There’s no reason why you can’t see progress toward accomplishing your goals if you’re willing to put down the phone and focus on what’s most important to you at that moment.
#FitwithPRIDE
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness.
Smith specializes in
exercise, nutrition and wellness programs for the GLBT community and
leads a variety of different programs, including group fitness classes,
personal training, athletic conditioning programs, educational seminars
and workshops.
His passion lies in promoting the physical, mental and
social benefits of exercise and healthy diet to the community by
breaking down the barriers often associated with a healthy lifestyle to
make it accessible for everybody.
David Smith, the owner of Stonewall Fitness,
holds a degree in exercise science from Metropolitan State University
of Denver, several fitness certifications including ACSM Personal
Trainer and Group Fitness. 
