Australia’s Certified Turbulence Trainer Manny Laris
Today I want to welcome the first Certified Turbulence Trainer from Australia, Manuel Laris.
As you’ll discover, Manny plays a big role in the fitness industry down in Sydney, Australia, where not only does he train dozens of clients, but he also helps teach and spread the fitness mission with Australian personal trainers.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: Manny, great to hear from you, and thanks for being a part of the Turbulence Training 1 Million Mission. Let’s start by having you tell us a little bit about yourself and your training experience.
MANNY LARIS: My name is Manny Laris and I’m a Strength and Conditioning Coach in Sydney, Australia. I run a women’s only bootcamp, a corporate wellness program, an online coaching program and I am also employed as a mentor and assessor for the Australian Institute of Personal Trainers.
My specialty is rapid fat-loss and lean muscle building through a fusion of ‘old school’ training methods with cutting edge fat-loss science. I’ve always found that my core values were aligned with the Turbulence Training system and that’s why I jumped at the first opportunity to become a certified TT trainer. Since then, my clients have been getting extraordinary results.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: Very cool. What got you into the fitness world, and specifically the expertise of body transformations?
MANNY LARIS: Since I was a kid, I have witnessed the extent of yo-yo dieting, fad diets, emotional eating and fat loss gimmicks and the physical and emotional impact they have had on women, especially my own mum. She tried all the popular diets and latest gizmos but nothing seemed to work so she decided to get a trainer.
Unfortunately her trainer’s approach to fat loss was out-dated and ineffective. A typical session would involve 30 minutes of treadmill work followed by several sets of ‘cutting exercises’ and endless crunches. It wasn’t long before she gave that up and was sucked back into her old habits.
I knew from an early age it all stemmed from a lack of understanding and social support. As soon as I reached my teens, my quest for answers began. I joined the gym when I was 13, and began studying the human anatomy at 14. By the time I was 15 I was heavily involved in bodybuilding and martial arts.
Since I was a kid, I have always had a deep and burning desire to not only transform my Mum’s life but to also help transform the lives of other men and women so they too can enjoy a better quality of life with their loved ones.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: That’s a powerful story, and I’m sure there are a lot of people in Sydney who are glad you chose fitness as your career. So tell us about one of your best success stories. What were the 3 biggest factors to their success?
MANNY LARIS: A few years back when I was a trainer working for a major health club chain, I started training this guy who had a history of smoking, alcoholism and was just completely out of shape. At the time that I met him, that health club chain I worked for were hosting a 12 week body transformation contest and a week had already passed.
Well I could see this guy was really serious about changing his life and I knew that with his determination and my burning passion to help him succeed, we could achieve some awesome results together. Since a week had already passed, we decided to enter the contest for the fun of it.
All I can say is that by the end of the challenge, he looked incredible. His transformation was so radical that he won the state title and ranked second in the nation for the best male transformation. Since then he actually went on to become a personal trainer and he is now making a difference in other peoples lives. I’m super proud of him!
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: You should be. That’s amazing.
MANNY LARIS: During those 11 weeks, I found the 3 key factors to his success were:
1. The shift in mindset. By teaching him the benefits of adopting a healthy lifestyle and setting specific process and outcome goals from the outset, we triggered a burning desire within him for change. And that’s where I believe all successful journeys start.
2. Simple nutrition. The crazy thing about his transformation was that we never had to put him on a strict diet. It was simply a matter of cutting out all the processed crap from his diet and replacing these with healthy alternatives. He also learned to listen to his body which meant he didn’t have to eat every 2-3 hours if he wasn’t hungry. By following that simple plan, the fat literally melted off.
3. Applying the minimum effective dose. When it came to his training, our sessions never went over 30 minutes. We focused a lot on non-competing strength training supersets and compound training which helped reduce total workout time and resulted in rapid changes.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: Classic TT principles. Speaking of TT, what are your favorite methods and exercises from the TT system? Any favorite workouts?
MANNY LARIS: I’m a big fan of non-competing supersets as it significantly reduces total workout time and maximises results.
I enjoy the TT 15minute express workouts as it uses maximum intensity in minimal time. It’s how I normally like to train.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: What type of nutrition plan do you and your clients follow? And what is one simple but little known nutrition tip you can give TT readers?
MANNY LARIS: Stick with organic foods. It’s not only healthier for your insides, but it’ll help you reach your fat loss goals a lot sooner.
One quick tip would be to listen to your body. For example, if you’re not hungry, don’t force yourself to eat because the ‘experts’ say you have to eat every 2-3 hours to speed up your metabolism. Follow the TT Simple Nutrition system and you can’t go wrong.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: Awesome stuff. I’m really impressed by everything you’ve accomplished so far. How can clients get ahold of you if they want to train TT style with you?
MANNY LARIS: Sure there’s www.powergirlfitcamp.com, which is my Sydney Bootcamp site where we only use TT methods and as you can see on the homepage, this stuff works. And there’s also my personal blog www.timecrunchabs.com filled with time efficient fat loss workouts and lifestyle tips for busy people on the go.
CRAIG BALLANTYNE: Perfect, thanks so much Manny. Any final words of wisdom you want to pass along to TT readers?
MANNY LARIS: Absolutely. No matter what happens on your journey to becoming a better you, never give up and keep moving forward. You’ll get there sooner than you think!
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Thanks again to Manny Laris, our first Certified Turbulence Trainer from Australia, a master Transformation specialist. Dang, that was an amazing story about his client’s success.
So happy to have passionate fitness experts like Manny as part of the Turbulence Training Certification 1 Million Mission.
Stay strong,
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Certified Turbulence Trainer