Client Spotlight: Arun Putta!
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Arun before his muscle journey (on the left), and more recently - jacked.
Hard work always pays off, and sometimes the results surprise even seasoned trainers. T
TFN client, Arun Putta, has steadily developed his physique so much during his months training with Max that other staff have done double-takes when they’ve seen him recently! Arun has sculpted serious muscle and piled on strength, see for yourself and read about how he gets it DONE.
TFN: How long have you been working with your coach, Max Berkheimer? Why did you start working together?
AP: I have been working with Max since October 2018. I started after a lot of research online about strength training and how it helps in building muscle/size and looked for a place near me. TFN popped up and had great reviews. After meeting Max, I was certain that he would be a perfect coach for me because of the passion he had while explaining to me about various movements that will help me pack muscle and build strength. I am glad I took the plunge.
TFN: How has your physique, strength, and/or mindset changed since you started?
Buildin’ that upper back
AP: My primary objective was to build size and change the aesthetics of my body. After having tried various forms of fitness trainings, I can with conviction say Compound exercises have given me spectacular results. As for strength, I have overcome a mental plateau that I had of not going beyond a certain number. The mind is now more content and disciplined.
TFN: How many days a week do you exercise?
AP: I workout 4 days a week.
TFN: Life gets busy and people miss workouts, what's your strategy to stay on track?
AP: Thankfully I have a schedule that doesn’t require me to be at work at a certain time. But if I am traveling I try to make sure I workout at any local gym.
TFN: How has addressing your nutrition gotten you further toward your goals?
AP: I have seen a remarkable improvement thus far. I can say nutrition was always a top priority for me. I was great at cutting but had no clue how to get big or the nutrition required to get big. With the “G.O.M.A.D” and high calorie diet, I have seen tremendous improvement in strength and overall size and can see myself getting better. Also, my coach Max had me log my meals for the first few months to see what I was consuming and gave this feedback accordingly.
TFN: On a scale of 1 to 10, how hard do you work during your workouts
AP: 9/10. It would be 10/10 after I have achieved my goals.
TFN: What is your favorite exercise?
AP: I enjoy both Deadlift and Overhead Press. If I have to pick one, I would go with Deadlift.
TFN: What’s your #1 piece of advice to someone who wants to make significant fitness progress?
AP: One has to be prepared mentally and physically to start any fitness program. It’s easy to start, what’s challenging is staying consistent, making compromises, enduring challenges, and most importantly finishing strong. It's important to have a disciplined mind and being able to see the big picture of what you want to be and how you want to look.
Coach’s Perspective: Max Berkheimer
TFN: Max, what kind of physical changes has Arun made so far and what do you think accounts for his fantastic progress?
MB: I think the pictures above speak for themselves, he has been able to put on considerable muscle mass since we’ve started working together. In regards to how he has gotten here, Arun has done a number of things consistently right. First, he came in as a beginner to strength training. Because of this, as we have developed his technique on the squat, deadlift, bench, and beyond he has been able to grow his strength at a very fast rate. For example, he was able to add approximately 150 pounds to his deadlift in six months. Arun also does not miss workouts. A 3x/week client from the beginning, if he couldn’t make a regularly scheduled session we would always find another day to meet. Now he has added a fourth day of training on his own.
From the beginning we took his nutrition seriously. Because he wanted to gain weight and add muscle I stressed eating a high amount of protein and calories each day to complement his training routine. As he got used to eating significantly more, you could see the body change begin to occur. Along with his big change in nutrition, Arun does a great job of keeping stress levels down while sleeping 8-10 hours a night. This has allowed him to continuously adapt and progress on an ever more difficult training routine.
In short, Arun’s dedication and consistency to the things that are important (a solid training program, nutrition, and recovery) has been the key to the progress that he has seen. It’s quite a pleasure to work with him and to watch his goals becoming a reality!