06/25/2024
Our Isophit business story:
By the owners of Isophit Strength Zone Nolan Hill, Imee and Todd Weber:
First I have to go back in time to tell you of my medical struggles, fitness quests, and experience with an absurd amount of exercise modalities, methods, and protocols.
Ever since I can remember as a young kid, I suffered and struggled with health problems including nearly dying!
It wasn’t until 1995 that I was diagnosed with CFS, a severe condition that affects multiple body systems and to which there is no cure or even efficacious treatment.
Exercise is contra-indicated for people with CFS as any type of exertion causes PEM Post Exertion Malaise which is a severe reaction that causes extreme fatigue, brain fog, memory loss, cognitive dysfunction, and many other symptoms and makes even activities of daily living extremely difficult if not impossible.
PEM can last weeks and even months!
2016:
I went to Elevated Learning Academy to become a certified personal trainer.
I successfully graduated from the course.
2017:
Imee and I got married!
2022:
I was diagnosed with significant osteoarthritis!
Despite all my lifelong health problems, I was always extraordinarily passionate and enthusiastic for anything fitness and martial arts related.
My quest was to amalgamate the practical aspects of martial arts and open my own dojo!
Later in life my quest changed to opening up the best fitness facility!
It took me over 30 years of research and experience to finally find what I was looking for that matched all my criteria for opening a unique and unequaled fitness studio!
As a result of my deep passion for fitness and martial arts, I tried many forms of exercise and martial arts over many years.
I also did exhaustive research into many forms of fitness and martial arts!
Some fitness modalities and equipment I tried included, but not limited to:
Pilates (various styles)
Yoga (various styles)
Bullworker
Qigong (various styles)
Dynamic tension (Charles Atlas style)
Dynamic strength (Harry Wong style)
Bodybuilding
Kettlebells
Resistance bands
Total gym
TRX
P90x
Abs of steel
Hundreds of hours on a large outdoor trampoline.
Pretty much every trended fitness video and product promoted in the 80,s, 90,s and 2000’s
Over ten different martial arts.
What were the results of all these various training styles over the years?
Many injuries and frustrating results!
We were never a well off family and my CFS made it impossible for me to work for many years.
It wasn’t until 2011 that I was finally able to start working.
I never was able to get a well paying job and always struggled financially.
Enter post osteoarthritis diagnosis:
I was initially scared to exercise after my diagnosis of osteoarthritis because I didn’t want to cause further damage or to flare up my frequent and sometimes significant joint pain.
In desperation to find exercises I could do, I researched isometric training.
I had experienced isometrics from being obsessed with martial arts (martial artists used isometrics thousands of years ago to increase their health and strength).
During Covid restrictions I was working at a seniors facility. The restrictions meant that the seniors couldn’t leave their floors for fitness classes so I offered to train them on their floor. I went to 5 floors multiple times per week to train the senior residents on all floors.
These seniors age ranges were between 60’s to 95 years old!
The majority of the exercises I led them through were isometrics.
I had great feedback and praise from the seniors for my coaching and the results they experienced!
I knew from experience and education that isometrics are the safest way of training and knew that was what I should focus on.
In my exhaustive research I came across podcasts with Brad Thorpe.
Brad Thorpe is the inventor of Isophit and one of the world’s leading experts and promoters of isometric strength training.
I listened to hundreds of hours of Brad’s podcasts and everything he said made so much sense and was relevant to me!
With the knowledge and motivation gained from listening to Brad’s podcasts, I re-explored isometric strength training with the equipment I had at home (sticks, straps etc.)
I decided to reach out to Brad via social media, and to my surprise, he replied fairly quickly!
After some communication through social media we decided to do a zoom call. We spoke for over 2.5 hours!
That call convinced me and even Imee to purchase ten Isophit strength kits and pay Brad for a business license!
We received our Isophit strength kits during the Kelowna fires and immediately started using Isophit and the 30inThirty programs that we followed along with on YouTube!
I quickly increased my strength by an astounding amount and my joints stopped hurting! No more feeling my osteoarthritis symptoms!
Imee had tried some Beachbody video workouts in the past but was never an avid or consistent exerciser.
Since we got our Isophit strength kits Imee has been more consistent with fitness training than she ever was before in her entire life!
The reason Imee stated why she is consistent with Isophit workouts is that it’s simple and efficient!
The extreme PEM I always experienced from dynamic exercise was dramatically less with isometrics!
It is due to my vast experience, passion and enthusiasm for fitness and for wanting to help others that we decided to open our own Isophit studio!
Even though Imee and I had no capital, we pushed and struggled forward by getting business loans and credit cards!
We ended up spending over $100,000 in renovations for our brand new studio!
In addition to the costs of renovations, we also had to purchase ten Isophit Strength Kits and a business license, as well as a whole bunch of other expenses! Our interest for our loans and credit cards alone are extremely high!
So when people state that we’re expensive, it is very difficult for me to remain calm!
Are there cheaper gyms in Calgary?
Yes, but we’re not a gym!
We’re a boutique fitness studio with instructor led classes.
We can’t compete with the prices of gyms, but they can’t compete with our instructor led programs!
Other fitness studios such as F45, Orange theory, Pilates charge more!
I’m happy to show anyone who disputes that fact with screenshots of their prices in Calgary!
Also, we are the first and only Isophit studio in Calgary! We are the only studio in Calgary exclusively conducting isometric strength training classes!
Isometric strength training using Isophit equipment and protocols get you the results without the risks associated with dynamic exercise and even has unique benefits not equaled with isotonic exercise!
