May 15, 2025 • 36 mins
RED Episode 310 Fit Responder Founder Ted Stern
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RUN EAT DRINK PODCAST Celebrates Police Week with Fit Responder Founder Ted Stern
This week we hear Ted’s story as we celebrate Police Week and our appreciation for law enforcement officers.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hi everyone.
It's Mefka Flezgahi, the BostonMarathon, new York City
Marathon champion and Olympicsilver medalist.
You are listening to the RunEat Drink podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Welcome to the Run Eat Drink podcast.
We feature destination racesfrom across the country and
after the race, we take you on atour of the best local food and
beverage to celebrate.
So whether you are an eliterunner or a back of the packer
like us, you'll know the bestplaces to accomplish, explore
and indulge on your nextRuncation, dana.
(00:42):
The members of the RuncationNation know that you and I hold
your profession in a veryspecial light, and this week,
during Police Week in May, wehave the honor of welcoming a
very special guest, ted Stern,founder of FitRespondercom.
Welcome to our show.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Hey, thanks, Amy, Appreciate you guys having me
for sure.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
Absolutely.
Fitness is important foreverybody.
I personally think that it'sespecially important for first
responders, whether it's police,fire, ems, whatever the case
may be, and there are specificchallenges that are unique to
people in the first responderprofessions.
Very much so in the firstresponder professions, ted, if
you could tell the RuncationNation who you are, where you're
(01:25):
from, what you're drinking, ifanything, and a little bit about
yourself and about FitResponder.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Yes, thank you, dana.
It is coffee, I'm drinkingcoffee.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
We love it.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Gotta have some kind of caffeine.
So the question was who I am,where I come from.
Right, yeah, I'm Ted Stern,originally from Southernifornia.
I grew up in a small towncalled ohai and I didn't always
want to be a cop, I wanted to bea lawyer.
But in college I saw some copshandling business.
They handled this crazy fightin this party area and I loved
(01:58):
watching them tell people whereto go, what to do, and be the
calm sort of protectors during achaotic, crazy situation, and
that actually sparked myinterest.
I'm like I would love to bethat badass that comes in and
handles things when everyone'sscreaming and freaking out.
There was a couch on fire, kidsfighting in the street and all
these cops came, told everyonewhat to do in a really
professional way, and so thatgot me interested.
(02:20):
And then the thought ofcontinuing on paying more school
, going to law school I'm likeman, that sounds bad.
I kind of want to just startworking and making money right
now.
So I applied to a few differentagencies.
My dad and mom were devastatedthat I wanted to be a cop.
Oh, you're going to get killed.
Oh, you should be a smartlawyer.
Why do you want to go be a cop,whatever?
So I did it anyways, and thenthey came around.
(02:42):
Eventually I got hired withVentura County, which is a great
sheriff's office in SouthernCalifornia.
I worked there for 11 years.
I did a bunch of awesomedifferent assignments, grew up a
lot, learned a lot, met a lotof cool people.
That's where I started the FitResponder program as a side gig,
an online fitness programmostly for first responders.
We serve anybody, but we mostlymarket toward first responders
(03:05):
and that blew up.
It got so big, so successful.
I said I need to quit my career.
This is just too amazing, whichwas very difficult for me to do
, but I did.
There's several things inbetween that story.
I had my own fitness comebackstory that helped inspire Fit
Responder, and we live in Utahnow.
I have four kids, my wife and I.
We both quit the lawenforcement career to do Fit
(03:27):
Responder full time.
It's been amazing.
We have over 20 people on myteam now behind the scenes.
It's been cool.
Happy to elaborate on any ofthat.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
I have to laugh the way you backed into law
enforcement is very similar tome.
I was pre-law at college.
I had every intention of goingfrom undergraduate to law school
.
I had a friend who was a policeofficer or sheriff's deputy in
the metro Atlanta area said comeon out with me and do a ride
along.
And I saw what they did and I'mlike, wait a minute, this is
(03:57):
way better than three more yearsof law school and I could get
paid to do this.
I got the bug back thenDisappointed my mom.
Same thing I was academicallyinclined but I did not have the
passion to do three more yearsof school.
So right there with you.
Very similar.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Very similar.
That's funny.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
Yes, Are we listening to your story?
I know it's just like.
Yeah, I have to tell you as aspouse, when he started his
(04:46):
career on nights, you just don'tknow what to expect.
But I am so proud of him and ofeveryone who supports the
community in the way that alllaw enforcement officers do, and
their families that burden thatis taken on inside the family
as well.
Speaker 3 (04:52):
So I say thank you to both of you.
I'm more appreciative of guyslike your husband, everyone else
who's still in the service,still doing the thing.
I still like to think I'mhelping, help my partners, I'm
helping first responders get fitand healthy, so I feel like I'm
still contributing in a way tothat mission, because a lot of
my clients talk about how muchbetter they are at their job
after getting fit and all thethings they're capable of doing.
But I miss it.
It's a cool camaraderie thatcops have with each other and
(05:14):
the teamwork.
I've talked to so many copsaround the country with how
crazy their jobs are and thethings they have to do.
I feel like I had it easy.
I got into some dangeroussituations and obviously it can
be hard.
I'm sure, as Dana, like, thecareer can vary so much across
the country depending on yourassignment.
You could be responding tograndma's smashed flower pot
(05:34):
from a week ago, or five gangshootings in a single shift and
everything in between.
So I'm very thankful andgrateful to first responders
still on the job, for sure.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
You touched on it a little bit when you were talking
about your background and howyou got to the idea for Fit
Responder.
Can you talk about that?
Speaker 3 (05:53):
Yeah, absolutely.
I was a personal trainerpart-time before I became a cop.
It wasn't a huge passion ofmine, but it was enough to make
me feel like I knew everythingthere was to know about fitness.
I became a cop and I wasworking nights working in the
jail, as deputies where I workeddo when you start the career
and I started to getsignificantly overweight and my
interest at the time was mostlylike powerlifting, like being
(06:15):
super strong and big, so Ithought that meant I can eat
anything I want and as much as Iwant.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
So I gained a lot of weight and I think I was around
250 pounds or so.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
I noticed problems like my blood pressure was out
of control.
The nurse at the jail checkedit.
She's like, wow, 160 over ahundred.
You probably should look atthat.
I had no stamina, no cardio.
I felt like crap, didn't likethe way I looked.
I saw some pictures of me inuniform and I hated how that
looked.
So I'm like I need to changethis and it was a big struggle
for me.
I really struggled stayingconsistent.
(06:47):
I would get super serious andget on some strict diet and then
fall off within a week or two.
I got a coach who was helpful insome ways but also sucked in a
lot of ways.
My wife, who was my girlfriendat the time and I don't know how
she stuck with me even though Iwas progressively getting in
worse shape said let me help you.
Why don't you actually listento some tips I have for your
(07:07):
nutrition, for your training?
And I started copying what youdid and listening and it started
changing my body very fast andmade great progress.
And people at work were likeman dude, you got in great shape
.
And how are you able to eatburritos and tacos and get in
good shape, ted and I realizedpeople need help with diet.
They need to realize it's notall or nothing.
You don't have to get sorestrictive.
(07:28):
You don't have to do some faddiet or cut out major food
groups.
Through my own fitness journeyand people seeing how fit, a lot
of people were looking for help.
Hey, ted, what did you do?
So I started helping people atwork.
We got great transformationsout of that A lot of people
getting fit and healthy, losingweight.
That ends up being like walkingbillboards for our business.
People like how did you get fit?
Oh, talk to Ted and Emily.
(07:49):
They have this great program.
Go chat with them.
So that's how it got started.
It got so popular While we wereboth working full-time, we had
full client loads like 30clients each to manage and I'm
like this is crazy.
I got promoted in my career.
I snapped my ankle at work.
I was jump roping, warming upfor an arrest and control class,
(08:11):
snapped my ankle so bad and Iwas so depressed.
My ankle swelling was so bad.
The doctor said go home, lay onthe couch, put your foot up and
don't put it down.
I couldn't work light duty withmy foot up in the air like that
.
So while at home, depressed onmy couch with my foot swollen up
in the air, I was like whydon't I just focus on Fit
Responder, as if this is my job?
(08:32):
I'm going to focus full-time onmy laptop, on my phone.
That showed me how big thingscould get if I worked on it
full-time, if it was my fullpassion.
So that gave me some insight,gave me some thoughts.
Maybe what if I quit my job asa cop?
And I did this like?
I'm making more money doingthis, I'm having more fun, the
(08:55):
people I deal with are all happy, instead of a lot of jerks that
you might deal with as a cop.
So I'm like, babe, should Ieven go back to work now that
I'm healed up?
Maybe I should just quit.
And thankfully she had enoughfaith in me and was proving it
with how much money we weremaking.
She's like you know what?
Fine, let's do it, let's go.
So yeah, I quit.
She quit.
Very scary to do afterinvesting 11 years in that
career.
I had a good reputation and Ipromoted Lots of great
opportunities.
(09:15):
I was passing up, but I know itwas for a better one.
So I've been doing FitResponder full-time since 2021
and it's been amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
So it's interesting to hear you talk about how you
were working out.
You're packing on muscle, butyou're also packing on fat, and
I think that happens quite a lot.
I know some of the challengesthat first responders have are
not unique, but they'remagnified.
Everybody's busy, everybody'slooking for convenience.
If you're wanting to work out,you're trying to get in your
(09:44):
workout where you can, butyou're also trying to eat where
you're able, particularly forfirst responders.
Because of shift work,sometimes your options are very
limited unless you're going tomeal prep and you end up getting
stuck with the only thing open.
My first three years on the job, the only thing open during my
shift was waffle house andcrystal, the little hamburger
(10:09):
joint that has the tinyhamburger sliders.
That was it, unless I wanted toeat from the shelves of a
7-eleven or a circle k.
That was it for night shift inthe stores or some of the worst
possible junk food you could get.
Although I learned, I did learnhow to eat healthy at a Waffle
(10:29):
House.
That's a whole different story.
They can steam your hash brownsand they're just as horrible as
you think they are.
Steamed potatoes and drygrilled chicken breasts.
If you've got to eat at WaffleHouse, you can eat something
relatively clean, but you canonly do that so many times.
So, trying to get the workoutand trying to get the diet
(10:49):
dialed in.
It's hard for everybody in themodern world, but I think that I
think it's magnified for firstresponders.
And then throw in the atrocioussleep schedule, the deleterious
effects of shift work on thebody, it's just magnified for
them.
Has that been your experience?
Speaker 3 (11:07):
Yeah, I like that because I've often said look,
these challenges are similar towhat a lot of careers have, like
odd hours and long hours andshift work and stress, and
you're sedentary most of thetime and your options for food
are crap and you're exhaustedafter your shift and you want to
get home to your family and thelast thing you want to do is go
to a gym for two hours.
I get it.
(11:27):
I've lived that life.
I totally understand thosechallenges A hundred percent.
First responders are some ofthe most obese professions in
America.
You look at the statistics andit obviously is a problem for
performance, for safety on thejob, for health, long-term
success and the quality of lifein the meantime.
But yeah, I dealt with thosesame challenges as well,
(11:48):
especially with having kids.
It's tough to juggle it all.
So I think what I've been ableto do with overcoming my own
struggles, those same challengesnow I've learned sort of the
hacks, if you will, are the bestways to approach those
challenges, and that's how FitResponder really became
successful.
You're going to a gas stationhere's the options to grab there
(12:10):
.
Or you are working nights forthe next five days in a row.
Let's strategize our workoutsso they're quicker and more
efficient.
All these little tweaks havereally added up to success.
It's hard to be perfect, but itis possible to optimize and
have a better approach.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
So if somebody is interested in Fit Responder, can
you talk a bit about how thatworks and what people get out of
it?
Speaker 3 (12:31):
Yeah, sure, there's a lot of ways to find me or
program fitrespondercom.
If you search Fit Responder onGoogle, you can go to my
Instagram.
Some people might not like whatI say.
I'm pretty outspoken andsometimes I just a little
cutthroat, cut to the chase.
But if you want to learn moreabout Fit Responder, you can
check out any of those avenues.
(12:51):
The program includes aone-on-one coaching, a custom
nutrition plan, custom trainingplan and a high amount of
accountability.
There's an internal communityas well.
I have a team of coaches.
I actually found that I wasable to help people better
online coaching than I could asan in-person trainer.
Speaker 1 (13:08):
It's a great phone or mobile device optimized site at
fitrespondercom.
It looks great Okay.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Let me know if you see any problems.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
You were talking about what people get out of Fit
Responder, how it works.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
I've been able to do better online coaching than as
an in-person trainer helpingpeople, because, let's say, I
worked at a gym and as apersonal trainer, I might be
able to meet with a client once,maybe twice a week.
We're going over the workout,any nutrition advice is off the
cuff and then the rest of theweek they're gone.
There's no accountability, nosupport.
With online coaching, not onlydo we have training, but we have
(13:42):
the nutrition aspect.
There's accountability everysingle day.
There's coaching andcommunication available every
single day.
I'm not meeting with a clienton a Tuesday after I saw them
last Thursday and saying how didthe weekend go?
And they're barely able toreally recap accurately what's
happening.
So, online coaching, there'sjust more support and more
accountability.
(14:02):
Which I think is probably thebiggest factor and why coaching
matters is accountability.
And yeah, I was honestly ableto get better results online
coaching.
I could work with more clients.
So I'm like this is just awin-win.
This is what we're doing.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
I think also you can touch more lives and something
positive that came out of thepandemic is being able to touch
more or impact more virtually.
You probably have clients allover the country or
internationally.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
Yeah, yes, I've had clients in Italy, britain,
australia, but mostly US, andall over the US Clients from New
York to California andeverything in between.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
And so of those clients, do you have any stories
that come to mind like reallygreat inspirational
transformation stories thatwould say, yeah, this is why you
do this, this is what gets yougoing.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Oh my gosh, yeah, there's too many to count.
I've been moved to tears manytimes with clients when they
talk about how much their liveshave changed.
When I started this program, mythought was I'm going to help
some people look better in abikini and make some money.
That was my thought.
I didn't realize how muchfitness can impact a life.
I saw how it changed mine.
(15:15):
I got more confident.
I felt better, looked better,blood pressure is better, more
safe and physically capable onthe job.
But I did not think about howit could potentially change
other lives, and there's beenmany amazing stories.
I'll just throw some out there.
I remember a particular woman inlaw enforcement who responded
to a house exploding.
(15:36):
Some gas issue blew up.
She got there first, beforeanyone else, and like a movie,
there was a woman trapped underburning rubble like literally a
movie.
And she ran up and deadliftedthe freaking objects off of this
woman like a movie and draggedher away from the fire.
(15:57):
And she said afterwards there'sno chance I could have done
this four or five months agobefore I got into the program.
I would have failed.
It took every ounce of mystrength to get her out of there
and I did it.
So she saved a life thanks tomy program, thanks to her.
I want to give her the credit.
She took what we taught her anddid it and got in great shape.
I think about a woman who wasover 90 pounds, overweight,
(16:21):
hated working out, absolutelydepressed on a fistful of
medications.
She's lost now 90 pounds.
She moves better, feels better,enjoys working out.
Her medications have been cutdown to just a couple and she's
loving life.
So many examples of people havereclaimed abilities they haven't
had in many years.
(16:42):
They're doing things theyhaven't done in years.
They're checking off bucketlist items that they wanted to.
They're putting on outfits theyhaven't worn in years.
They're taking photos andthey're proud of themselves.
Fitness is and I might bebiased, but I think it's maybe
the most impactful way you canchange your own life.
If you're struggling there,obviously, if you're already
(17:03):
doing well in the fitnesscategory, you might have other
things to work on.
I'd say for most people it'salmost the lowest hanging fruit,
not in the sense of that it'seasy to get in shape, but that
it's the most clear and powerfulway to change lives, to change
mindsets like people's moods,their energy productivity.
The list goes on and on.
So those are a couple ofstories, but honestly, I have
(17:25):
many more of people who gotpromoted because they were able
to pass certain physicalrequirements.
They saved lives, they gotcompliments, they got new dates,
they got new partners.
The opportunities that fitnessopens up is endless.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
I'm sure that you've heard from their family members
too, because as a family memberof a first responder, I can tell
you you're not only afraid, butwhen the stressors impact that
family member that you love tothe point of sending them to the
ER or having them on a fistfulof medication, you're scared and
(18:02):
then you see thattransformation.
I'm sure that you've heard fromfamily members about how moving
and important and just such animpact right.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
Yes, I can recall a text from a proud wife who said
something to the effect of Ted,you turn my husband from
depressed, distant, unmotivated,lazy all the bad attributes to
happy, excited, energetic,loving patient.
I got my husband back and heliterally just lost 60 pounds.
(18:32):
Or the way that people areimpacted mentally is often
understated, because I think wethink of the body and brain as
almost being two separateentities, whereas this is a
machine.
This whole thing we're in as amachine, and if a major part of
it is sick and not being treatedwell, it's inevitably going to
impact the brain's ability toprocess information, produce the
(18:53):
right amount of hormones andproduce the right amount of
happy chemicals.
That puts you in a good mood.
So, yeah, like I said, I didn'tthink much about how much you
could affect people mentallywhen I first started, but yes,
it does, and I have had gratefulspouses and partners.
You know one guy who's joined myprogram.
His final straw was his soncame to him crying, his
(19:14):
six-year-old son.
He's like what's up, son, whyare you crying?
And he's like dad, I'm worried,you're too fat and the bad guys
are going to chase you andthey'll catch you and get you.
That broke him down.
He was so sad to see his son.
His son was just like obviouslyI want to be strong like daddy,
(19:37):
I want to be like daddy andwork out with daddy.
And then the same clientsending me pictures of him
working out with his son and howproud his son was at the end
when he's looks on, I got rid ofmy big belly, like the bad guys
aren't going to get me, andhe's like giving his dad a hug.
What more motivation could youneed?
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, and it's interesting everything you were
describing.
We just went through somethingat my police department where we
are committing to a robustemployee wellness program and
it's not just for policeofficers, center personnel, our
civilian support staff becausewe recognize that we're not the
(20:16):
only ones exposed to the dailymicro doses of trauma that come
with being a first responder.
We are trying to approachwellness from a holistic point
of view.
We're committing to allowingpeople to work out on duty and
to provide a well-appointed gymin the building for them to work
out in.
It's not only allowing it, it'sencouraging it.
(20:38):
Also giving them some downtimeor recovery time between calls
so that they're not just goingfrom the next trauma to the next
trauma, because you can havenights like that.
Depending on if it's a Fridaynight and a full moon, it can
get a little nuts.
The idea that physical fitnessimpacts mental fitness, which
impacts professional performanceas well as home life, is so
(21:02):
simple it seems like ano-brainer, but we forget that
the brain and the body are apart of one integrated system.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Yes, yep, absolutely so what is it?
What's the cost involved, anddo you actually have family
members who come and maybe dotogether?
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Yeah, good question.
So the cost kind of depends onwhat the client's going to do.
We have different lengths ofprograms, different levels of
support.
I got anything from $47programs to multiple hundreds
per month, depending on thegoals, how much support and
accountability and the length ofprogram.
Some people have a lot ofweight to lose.
(21:44):
It's not going to happen inthree months.
But for us we're realistic.
We like to go over it withpeople and say, hey, for your
goals to be achieved we're goingto need this and this and
here's your options.
We'll go over the pricing withpeople and give them some
options there.
Family members join all thetime, like I do.
Spousal discounts it's half offif your spouse joins.
Typically one person joins,they start getting in great
(22:05):
shape and then their partnergoes.
All right, I better do this too.
I'm going to join togetherbecause they've already become
familiar with us, they've seenenough of our testimonials and
our reviews, so they go, let'sdo this together and they join
together.
We love helping couples becauseinevitably you're going to be
doing similar stuff.
You live in the same house,probably you're eating together
a lot, you're going to havesimilar kind of lifestyles and
(22:27):
trips, and it's nice to teachthem principles that they can
execute on together and there issome accountability that you
can have with each other.
Okay, we're both in this, we'repaying for this.
Let's do a good job.
I won't influence you to go eata large pizza with me and have
10 beers.
I love to help couples andspouses.
In the program I've hadfamilies join, the kids too.
(22:48):
It just depends on what kind ofthey want to do and what the
length of program is, and allthat as far as pricing goes.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Now we are the Runny Drink Podcast.
Did you have anybody join andset a goal to complete a race or
a run of any kind that you canrecall?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
All the time, and I love that when somebody sets a
goal that's in the future toprepare for, whether it's a
bodybuilding show or a 5K or a10K or a half marathon or a-.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
All the way up to an ultra, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:15):
Exactly An ultra marathon, right.
I love that goal because italso adds another layer of
accountability.
There's another thing I'veannounced to the world that I
want to do and I'm going to doand I don't want to fail at it.
So it's a little bit of extramotivation there.
Many times people have setgoals and I've gotten many
pictures of them at the finishlines with their medals saying
(23:37):
thanks, I couldn't have donethis without you and your
program.
That's so rewarding.
I've had many people who lookfor a race to complete.
That's one of their major goalsto do and to overcome and they
do it.
It's pretty cool.
It's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
And do you address nutrition, fitness and how do
you handle food and beverage?
How do you customize fordifferent goals or clients?
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Are you focusing on, like, calorie restriction, or
are you doing macros?
What's your approach?
Speaker 3 (24:02):
focusing on, like calorie restriction, or are you
doing macros?
What's your approach?
Great question.
I'm going to say this right now.
This is a true belief I have.
If anyone tells you I have theone method for nutrition and
working out that is the best foreveryone, they are lying or
mistaken.
It has to be custom for theperson, and here's what I mean
by that.
I think there's generalprinciples that make sense.
Let's gravitate more towardwhole food as opposed to ultra
(24:25):
processed food.
Let's eliminate sugar as muchas we can in the diet.
We already consume too muchsugar.
There's principles that makesense across the board.
But at the same time, when weget a client, this describes a
process.
First, we learn about the foodsyou love and gravitate towards.
Often, what are the foods youand your family like?
What are the things you don'tlike?
What are the restaurants inyour area that you have
(24:46):
available at two in the morning?
We customize a meal plan thatgives them options.
We tell them everything likegrocery lists, what to buy, what
to get, what options are betterthan others.
Portion sizes is big, so it isgoing to inevitably impact how
many calories they eat, becausebottom line that matters a lot.
We're not so big on macros.
For me, it's about totalcalories and total protein.
(25:09):
The distribution of fats andcarbohydrates doesn't really
matter at all.
It's just the total caloriesand total protein that someone
consumes, and then we try togive them the right types of
foods and nutrients that'll makethem feel better and have more
energy and fuel their workouts.
So how that looks is our clientwill get a meal plan generally
based on their age, gender,activity level, blah, blah, blah
(25:34):
.
All of that gives us what weneed as far as meal sizes and
everything.
And then if it's like hey, Ihave no time to meal prep Great,
here's 10 options you can runout the door with.
Just grab from your pantry.
I have five minutes to mealprep.
Cool, here's 10 other meals.
That takes five minutes.
Or my wife and I love to cookGreat, here's 20 meals that
might take 30 minutes.
What about when I'm running onthe go and I have no time to
meal prep?
Based on the restaurants inyour area, there's 20 options
(25:56):
you can get from thoserestaurants.
This helps a lot because iteliminates excuses.
There's an option, no matterwhat your circumstances are.
The food is geared toward thefood you like and gravitate
towards.
We eliminate the foods youdon't like, and we take out all
the guesswork.
We make it very simple.
There's no nutrient timing, nofasting windows.
The specificity in a lot ofnutrition plans really
(26:16):
discourages people.
Because I come frombodybuilding, where it's you
have to eat on schedule, yeah,you have a watch?
I had a watch that beeped andtold me it was time to eat my
seventh meal of the day.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Not practical for a cop it's funny you'd say that I
did a very popular workoutprogram back in the very early
part of my career when I waswith my first department and I
was eating five meals a day thatI had to prep and take with me.
I made it through the program,but to sustain that was just
(26:54):
absolutely not something that Icould do as a 22, 23 year old
cop that was trying to get inshape and stay in shape.
I just couldn't eat like that.
That was nuts.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
What you're saying there, dana.
It was an unsustainable diet,as you said, and there's so many
fad diets that may work in theshort term and I'm going to pick
on some keto or paleo or WeightWatchers or Octavia or even
frozen meal prep plans.
They can work, but will thatperson use those principles
taught to them via that processfor the next 20 years?
(27:27):
Probably not.
So.
With my program, I reallystress an emphasis on teaching
routines that you can do for thenext 50 years that are simple,
straightforward.
So at the end of it, you're notweighing or measuring any food,
you're eyeballing everythingyou eat, you're not cutting out
the foods you love, you're justlearning how to manage it and
balance those things within yourdiet.
(27:49):
It's a very realistic approach,and that was always important
for me because I know how oftenpeople gain weight back after
they lose it.
It's all too common, right?
They stick to something for afew months, they're very
motivated, they get progress,but that's not a sustainable
method and they gain the weightback and then, unfortunately,
they don't know any better.
They believe this.
I already know what I'm doing.
(28:09):
I've done it before.
Did you do it in a way thatlasted, though?
No, and there's also importantmethods to consider after you
lose the weight.
There's something called areverse diet, which a lot of
people haven't even heard of.
They don't know what it is, andthe reverse diet helps improve
your metabolism after fat loss.
Most coaches don't know aboutit or even teach it, but it's a
(28:29):
big part of the puzzle to getpeople long-term success.
Speaker 1 (28:33):
I've never heard the term.
Speaker 3 (28:34):
Yes.
So a reverse diet ispopularized by bodybuilders.
Bodybuilders lose a lot of fatfor the show.
They get very lean.
But what happens?
We're almost biologically setup to gain the weight back after
a weight loss period.
If you think about what body fatis, it's the body's emergency
calorie story.
Our ancestors were designed andincentivized by nature to eat
(28:56):
as much as you can when you findthe food, because our ancestors
had food scarcity.
So it's built in our biology tobe like there's food right here
.
Eat all of it, eat as much asyou possibly can to add to your
storage of calories.
That bank, if you will.
That's a survival bank.
So everyone who's overweightnowadays that you've been set up
(29:16):
, unfortunately, by thousands ofyears of your ancestors, who
were incentivized in every wayto eat as much food as possible.
But now we're in an environmentwhere there's an infinite
amount of food.
There's ultra processed food,ultra calorie dense food.
We do way less work than everbefore, we're more sedentary, so
all these things add up to theobesity crisis.
(29:37):
But what happens when you losebody fat?
You are in a calorie deficit,right?
Let's pretend your calorieneeds to maintain your current
weight is 2,500 calories.
Let's say you consume 2,000calories.
So you're at a 500 caloriedeficit.
You lose weight over time withthis diet.
What the body does is it triesto adjust your metabolic needs
(29:57):
to that new calorie count.
So let's say the body wasaccustomed to maintain weight at
2,500 calories.
Now, after time, the body hasadapted the metabolism to
strictly need 2,000 calories.
Because if you're at a caloriedeficit forever, you die.
You eventually run out of thatfat source.
So this is typically when peoplehit plateaus they lose 40
(30:18):
pounds and they're like I'm notlosing any more weight.
That's a problem.
Also, when they stop the dietthey go back to eating 2,500
calories.
Now they're in a surplusbecause the adjusted calorie
needs are now 2,000.
Eating 2,500 calories is nolonger maintenance, it's now a
surplus.
So people often describe wow,now that I've lost the weight, I
feel like I'm not eating a lotmore, I'm just going back to
(30:39):
some normalcy and I'm gainingweight back at a rapid pace.
The reverse diet is you need tocoax the metabolism to burn a
higher amount of calories and toneed more calories.
It's through incrementallyeating more.
Over time it's slowly adding incalories.
It's shifting workouts moretoward muscle building.
Muscle and resistance trainingin general improves the
(31:00):
metabolism.
More muscle requires morecalories.
Right Over time we coax thecalorie needs back up to as high
as we can.
I've had clients.
Let's say they are eating 3000calories.
You start them at 2500 calories.
They lose weight After a periodof time.
We do the reverse diet.
At the end, let's say a yearlater, they're leaner, lighter,
(31:21):
stronger, but eating more thanthey ever did before.
Maybe they're eating 3000calories as a fat guy.
Now they're eating 4,000calories and staying lean and
strong because we've helped themimprove their metabolism
through the process.
Does that make sense?
Speaker 1 (31:38):
That's really pretty cool.
And again, that was a term I'dnever heard before.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
It's like tempering eggs and baking yeah, that's
what I mean or in cooking, sothat you don't have scrambled
eggs where you're supposed tohave a different sauce.
So it makes sense to me thewhole explanation about when
you're at the end and yourbody's gone through all of this
change.
(32:02):
But you think you can go backto the same amount of calories.
This makes sense.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
That's a trap A lot of runners get into.
When you're in training modeand you're doing a lot of
training runs and distance orburning those calories and
eating to make up the energyneed.
When the race is over, ifyou're still eating like you
were when you were training,you're going to pack weight on
runners, but just athletes ingeneral.
Speaker 3 (32:24):
Right, if you're not doing the activity that's
burning a thousand calories aday you can start gaining weight
back.
You can start getting a lot ofweight very quickly.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
Yeah.
So, Ted, you have talked aboutthat you take on family members
of first responders.
You take on first respondersthemselves.
You've talked about someinspirational stories.
You've talked a little bitabout how your program works and
the different opportunities interms of cost.
(32:55):
How can people find out moreabout the program and connect
with you?
Speaker 3 (33:01):
Yeah, I would say the easiest thing you can do.
If you're in research mode andyou're like I don't know if
Ted's legit yet and he might bea scam artist, fine, go to
Google type Fit ResponderReviews.
We have over 360 five-starreviews five-star average rating
on Google.
That's unheard of, becauseusually when people leave
reviews it's because they'reupset.
Think about it.
People expect things to be good, like you go buy something and
(33:23):
it's good.
Most people aren't ready toleave a review and tell everyone
that it was good, like I wantedit to be.
Usually you want to telleveryone if it sucks.
But look at my reviews onGoogle it's five stars.
You go to our website.
You can watch our clienttestimonials.
Listen to what they have to say.
Once you've done enoughresearch which tons of people do
my clients usually go, man,I've been looking at your stuff
for the last three weeks and nowI'm ready.
(33:45):
Go to fitrespondercom.
You can click the apply button.
It leads you to a littlequestionnaire and a free call
the free calls with either me orsomebody on the team.
We assess your goals, what youwant and need, and then we go
over some options.
You can decide if you want tojoin or not.
You can also email me if youhave specific questions.
Like Ted, I have this injury.
Can I still do this?
Email me, ted atfitrespondercom and it will be
(34:07):
me.
I'm happy to reply.
Speaker 2 (34:09):
So, ted, thank you for coming on our show today and
sharing this wonderful resourcewith our community, the
Runcation Nation, and we'll putlinks to everything in our show
notes.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So you're going to be able to find Ted and Fit
Responder.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
We hope to accomplish , explore and indulge with you
really soon.
Speaker 3 (34:30):
Likewise, it was a pleasure being on here.
It was an easy and funconversation.
Hopefully we do get a chance todo this in the future.
Hi everyone.
It's Mefka Flezgahi, the BostonMarathon, new York City
Marathon champion and Olympicsilver medalist.
You are listening to the RunEat Drink podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Welcome to the Run Eat Drink podcast.
We feature destination racesfrom across the country and
after the race, we take you on atour of the best local food and
beverage to celebrate.
So whether you are an eliterunner or a back of the packer
like us, you'll know the bestplaces to accomplish, explore
and indulge on your nextRuncation, dana.
(00:42):
The members of the RuncationNation know that you and I hold
your profession in a veryspecial light, and this week,
during Police Week in May, wehave the honor of welcoming a
very special guest, ted Stern,founder of FitRespondercom.
Welcome to our show.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Hey, thanks, Amy, Appreciate you guys having me
for sure.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
Absolutely.
Fitness is important foreverybody.
I personally think that it'sespecially important for first
responders, whether it's police,fire, ems, whatever the case
may be, and there are specificchallenges that are unique to
people in the first responderprofessions.
Very much so in the firstresponder professions, ted, if
you could tell the RuncationNation who you are, where you're
(01:25):
from, what you're drinking, ifanything, and a little bit about
yourself and about FitResponder.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
Yes, thank you, dana.
It is coffee, I'm drinkingcoffee.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
We love it.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Gotta have some kind of caffeine.
So the question was who I am,where I come from.
Right, yeah, I'm Ted Stern,originally from Southernifornia.
I grew up in a small towncalled ohai and I didn't always
want to be a cop, I wanted to bea lawyer.
But in college I saw some copshandling business.
They handled this crazy fightin this party area and I loved
(01:58):
watching them tell people whereto go, what to do, and be the
calm sort of protectors during achaotic, crazy situation, and
that actually sparked myinterest.
I'm like I would love to bethat badass that comes in and
handles things when everyone'sscreaming and freaking out.
There was a couch on fire, kidsfighting in the street and all
these cops came, told everyonewhat to do in a really
professional way, and so thatgot me interested.
(02:20):
And then the thought ofcontinuing on paying more school
, going to law school I'm likeman, that sounds bad.
I kind of want to just startworking and making money right
now.
So I applied to a few differentagencies.
My dad and mom were devastatedthat I wanted to be a cop.
Oh, you're going to get killed.
Oh, you should be a smartlawyer.
Why do you want to go be a cop,whatever?
So I did it anyways, and thenthey came around.
(02:42):
Eventually I got hired withVentura County, which is a great
sheriff's office in SouthernCalifornia.
I worked there for 11 years.
I did a bunch of awesomedifferent assignments, grew up a
lot, learned a lot, met a lotof cool people.
That's where I started the FitResponder program as a side gig,
an online fitness programmostly for first responders.
We serve anybody, but we mostlymarket toward first responders
(03:05):
and that blew up.
It got so big, so successful.
I said I need to quit my career.
This is just too amazing, whichwas very difficult for me to do
, but I did.
There's several things inbetween that story.
I had my own fitness comebackstory that helped inspire Fit
Responder, and we live in Utahnow.
I have four kids, my wife and I.
We both quit the lawenforcement career to do Fit
(03:27):
Responder full time.
It's been amazing.
We have over 20 people on myteam now behind the scenes.
It's been cool.
Happy to elaborate on any ofthat.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
I have to laugh the way you backed into law
enforcement is very similar tome.
I was pre-law at college.
I had every intention of goingfrom undergraduate to law school
.
I had a friend who was a policeofficer or sheriff's deputy in
the metro Atlanta area said comeon out with me and do a ride
along.
And I saw what they did and I'mlike, wait a minute, this is
(03:57):
way better than three more yearsof law school and I could get
paid to do this.
I got the bug back thenDisappointed my mom.
Same thing I was academicallyinclined but I did not have the
passion to do three more yearsof school.
So right there with you.
Very similar.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
Very similar.
That's funny.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
Yes, Are we listening to your story?
I know it's just like.
Yeah, I have to tell you as aspouse, when he started his
(04:46):
career on nights, you just don'tknow what to expect.
But I am so proud of him and ofeveryone who supports the
community in the way that alllaw enforcement officers do, and
their families that burden thatis taken on inside the family
as well.
Speaker 3 (04:52):
So I say thank you to both of you.
I'm more appreciative of guyslike your husband, everyone else
who's still in the service,still doing the thing.
I still like to think I'mhelping, help my partners, I'm
helping first responders get fitand healthy, so I feel like I'm
still contributing in a way tothat mission, because a lot of
my clients talk about how muchbetter they are at their job
after getting fit and all thethings they're capable of doing.
But I miss it.
It's a cool camaraderie thatcops have with each other and
(05:14):
the teamwork.
I've talked to so many copsaround the country with how
crazy their jobs are and thethings they have to do.
I feel like I had it easy.
I got into some dangeroussituations and obviously it can
be hard.
I'm sure, as Dana, like, thecareer can vary so much across
the country depending on yourassignment.
You could be responding tograndma's smashed flower pot
(05:34):
from a week ago, or five gangshootings in a single shift and
everything in between.
So I'm very thankful andgrateful to first responders
still on the job, for sure.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
You touched on it a little bit when you were talking
about your background and howyou got to the idea for Fit
Responder.
Can you talk about that?
Speaker 3 (05:53):
Yeah, absolutely.
I was a personal trainerpart-time before I became a cop.
It wasn't a huge passion ofmine, but it was enough to make
me feel like I knew everythingthere was to know about fitness.
I became a cop and I wasworking nights working in the
jail, as deputies where I workeddo when you start the career
and I started to getsignificantly overweight and my
interest at the time was mostlylike powerlifting, like being
(06:15):
super strong and big, so Ithought that meant I can eat
anything I want and as much as Iwant.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
So I gained a lot of weight and I think I was around
250 pounds or so.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
I noticed problems like my blood pressure was out
of control.
The nurse at the jail checkedit.
She's like, wow, 160 over ahundred.
You probably should look atthat.
I had no stamina, no cardio.
I felt like crap, didn't likethe way I looked.
I saw some pictures of me inuniform and I hated how that
looked.
So I'm like I need to changethis and it was a big struggle
for me.
I really struggled stayingconsistent.
(06:47):
I would get super serious andget on some strict diet and then
fall off within a week or two.
I got a coach who was helpful insome ways but also sucked in a
lot of ways.
My wife, who was my girlfriendat the time and I don't know how
she stuck with me even though Iwas progressively getting in
worse shape said let me help you.
Why don't you actually listento some tips I have for your
(07:07):
nutrition, for your training?
And I started copying what youdid and listening and it started
changing my body very fast andmade great progress.
And people at work were likeman dude, you got in great shape
.
And how are you able to eatburritos and tacos and get in
good shape, ted and I realizedpeople need help with diet.
They need to realize it's notall or nothing.
You don't have to get sorestrictive.
(07:28):
You don't have to do some faddiet or cut out major food
groups.
Through my own fitness journeyand people seeing how fit, a lot
of people were looking for help.
Hey, ted, what did you do?
So I started helping people atwork.
We got great transformationsout of that A lot of people
getting fit and healthy, losingweight.
That ends up being like walkingbillboards for our business.
People like how did you get fit?
Oh, talk to Ted and Emily.
(07:49):
They have this great program.
Go chat with them.
So that's how it got started.
It got so popular While we wereboth working full-time, we had
full client loads like 30clients each to manage and I'm
like this is crazy.
I got promoted in my career.
I snapped my ankle at work.
I was jump roping, warming upfor an arrest and control class,
(08:11):
snapped my ankle so bad and Iwas so depressed.
My ankle swelling was so bad.
The doctor said go home, lay onthe couch, put your foot up and
don't put it down.
I couldn't work light duty withmy foot up in the air like that
.
So while at home, depressed onmy couch with my foot swollen up
in the air, I was like whydon't I just focus on Fit
Responder, as if this is my job?
(08:32):
I'm going to focus full-time onmy laptop, on my phone.
That showed me how big thingscould get if I worked on it
full-time, if it was my fullpassion.
So that gave me some insight,gave me some thoughts.
Maybe what if I quit my job asa cop?
And I did this like?
I'm making more money doingthis, I'm having more fun, the
(08:55):
people I deal with are all happy, instead of a lot of jerks that
you might deal with as a cop.
So I'm like, babe, should Ieven go back to work now that
I'm healed up?
Maybe I should just quit.
And thankfully she had enoughfaith in me and was proving it
with how much money we weremaking.
She's like you know what?
Fine, let's do it, let's go.
So yeah, I quit.
She quit.
Very scary to do afterinvesting 11 years in that
career.
I had a good reputation and Ipromoted Lots of great
opportunities.
(09:15):
I was passing up, but I know itwas for a better one.
So I've been doing FitResponder full-time since 2021
and it's been amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
So it's interesting to hear you talk about how you
were working out.
You're packing on muscle, butyou're also packing on fat, and
I think that happens quite a lot.
I know some of the challengesthat first responders have are
not unique, but they'remagnified.
Everybody's busy, everybody'slooking for convenience.
If you're wanting to work out,you're trying to get in your
(09:44):
workout where you can, butyou're also trying to eat where
you're able, particularly forfirst responders.
Because of shift work,sometimes your options are very
limited unless you're going tomeal prep and you end up getting
stuck with the only thing open.
My first three years on the job, the only thing open during my
shift was waffle house andcrystal, the little hamburger
(10:09):
joint that has the tinyhamburger sliders.
That was it, unless I wanted toeat from the shelves of a
7-eleven or a circle k.
That was it for night shift inthe stores or some of the worst
possible junk food you could get.
Although I learned, I did learnhow to eat healthy at a Waffle
(10:29):
House.
That's a whole different story.
They can steam your hash brownsand they're just as horrible as
you think they are.
Steamed potatoes and drygrilled chicken breasts.
If you've got to eat at WaffleHouse, you can eat something
relatively clean, but you canonly do that so many times.
So, trying to get the workoutand trying to get the diet
(10:49):
dialed in.
It's hard for everybody in themodern world, but I think that I
think it's magnified for firstresponders.
And then throw in the atrocioussleep schedule, the deleterious
effects of shift work on thebody, it's just magnified for
them.
Has that been your experience?
Speaker 3 (11:07):
Yeah, I like that because I've often said look,
these challenges are similar towhat a lot of careers have, like
odd hours and long hours andshift work and stress, and
you're sedentary most of thetime and your options for food
are crap and you're exhaustedafter your shift and you want to
get home to your family and thelast thing you want to do is go
to a gym for two hours.
I get it.
(11:27):
I've lived that life.
I totally understand thosechallenges A hundred percent.
First responders are some ofthe most obese professions in
America.
You look at the statistics andit obviously is a problem for
performance, for safety on thejob, for health, long-term
success and the quality of lifein the meantime.
But yeah, I dealt with thosesame challenges as well,
(11:48):
especially with having kids.
It's tough to juggle it all.
So I think what I've been ableto do with overcoming my own
struggles, those same challengesnow I've learned sort of the
hacks, if you will, are the bestways to approach those
challenges, and that's how FitResponder really became
successful.
You're going to a gas stationhere's the options to grab there
(12:10):
.
Or you are working nights forthe next five days in a row.
Let's strategize our workoutsso they're quicker and more
efficient.
All these little tweaks havereally added up to success.
It's hard to be perfect, but itis possible to optimize and
have a better approach.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
So if somebody is interested in Fit Responder, can
you talk a bit about how thatworks and what people get out of
it?
Speaker 3 (12:31):
Yeah, sure, there's a lot of ways to find me or
program fitrespondercom.
If you search Fit Responder onGoogle, you can go to my
Instagram.
Some people might not like whatI say.
I'm pretty outspoken andsometimes I just a little
cutthroat, cut to the chase.
But if you want to learn moreabout Fit Responder, you can
check out any of those avenues.
(12:51):
The program includes aone-on-one coaching, a custom
nutrition plan, custom trainingplan and a high amount of
accountability.
There's an internal communityas well.
I have a team of coaches.
I actually found that I wasable to help people better
online coaching than I could asan in-person trainer.
Speaker 1 (13:08):
It's a great phone or mobile device optimized site at
fitrespondercom.
It looks great Okay.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
Let me know if you see any problems.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
You were talking about what people get out of Fit
Responder, how it works.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
I've been able to do better online coaching than as
an in-person trainer helpingpeople, because, let's say, I
worked at a gym and as apersonal trainer, I might be
able to meet with a client once,maybe twice a week.
We're going over the workout,any nutrition advice is off the
cuff and then the rest of theweek they're gone.
There's no accountability, nosupport.
With online coaching, not onlydo we have training, but we have
(13:42):
the nutrition aspect.
There's accountability everysingle day.
There's coaching andcommunication available every
single day.
I'm not meeting with a clienton a Tuesday after I saw them
last Thursday and saying how didthe weekend go?
And they're barely able toreally recap accurately what's
happening.
So, online coaching, there'sjust more support and more
accountability.
(14:02):
Which I think is probably thebiggest factor and why coaching
matters is accountability.
And yeah, I was honestly ableto get better results online
coaching.
I could work with more clients.
So I'm like this is just awin-win.
This is what we're doing.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
I think also you can touch more lives and something
positive that came out of thepandemic is being able to touch
more or impact more virtually.
You probably have clients allover the country or
internationally.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
Yeah, yes, I've had clients in Italy, britain,
australia, but mostly US, andall over the US Clients from New
York to California andeverything in between.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
And so of those clients, do you have any stories
that come to mind like reallygreat inspirational
transformation stories thatwould say, yeah, this is why you
do this, this is what gets yougoing.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Oh my gosh, yeah, there's too many to count.
I've been moved to tears manytimes with clients when they
talk about how much their liveshave changed.
When I started this program, mythought was I'm going to help
some people look better in abikini and make some money.
That was my thought.
I didn't realize how muchfitness can impact a life.
I saw how it changed mine.
(15:15):
I got more confident.
I felt better, looked better,blood pressure is better, more
safe and physically capable onthe job.
But I did not think about howit could potentially change
other lives, and there's beenmany amazing stories.
I'll just throw some out there.
I remember a particular woman inlaw enforcement who responded
to a house exploding.
(15:36):
Some gas issue blew up.
She got there first, beforeanyone else, and like a movie,
there was a woman trapped underburning rubble like literally a
movie.
And she ran up and deadliftedthe freaking objects off of this
woman like a movie and draggedher away from the fire.
(15:57):
And she said afterwards there'sno chance I could have done
this four or five months agobefore I got into the program.
I would have failed.
It took every ounce of mystrength to get her out of there
and I did it.
So she saved a life thanks tomy program, thanks to her.
I want to give her the credit.
She took what we taught her anddid it and got in great shape.
I think about a woman who wasover 90 pounds, overweight,
(16:21):
hated working out, absolutelydepressed on a fistful of
medications.
She's lost now 90 pounds.
She moves better, feels better,enjoys working out.
Her medications have been cutdown to just a couple and she's
loving life.
So many examples of people havereclaimed abilities they haven't
had in many years.
(16:42):
They're doing things theyhaven't done in years.
They're checking off bucketlist items that they wanted to.
They're putting on outfits theyhaven't worn in years.
They're taking photos andthey're proud of themselves.
Fitness is and I might bebiased, but I think it's maybe
the most impactful way you canchange your own life.
If you're struggling there,obviously, if you're already
(17:03):
doing well in the fitnesscategory, you might have other
things to work on.
I'd say for most people it'salmost the lowest hanging fruit,
not in the sense of that it'seasy to get in shape, but that
it's the most clear and powerfulway to change lives, to change
mindsets like people's moods,their energy productivity.
The list goes on and on.
So those are a couple ofstories, but honestly, I have
(17:25):
many more of people who gotpromoted because they were able
to pass certain physicalrequirements.
They saved lives, they gotcompliments, they got new dates,
they got new partners.
The opportunities that fitnessopens up is endless.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
I'm sure that you've heard from their family members
too, because as a family memberof a first responder, I can tell
you you're not only afraid, butwhen the stressors impact that
family member that you love tothe point of sending them to the
ER or having them on a fistfulof medication, you're scared and
(18:02):
then you see thattransformation.
I'm sure that you've heard fromfamily members about how moving
and important and just such animpact right.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
Yes, I can recall a text from a proud wife who said
something to the effect of Ted,you turn my husband from
depressed, distant, unmotivated,lazy all the bad attributes to
happy, excited, energetic,loving patient.
I got my husband back and heliterally just lost 60 pounds.
(18:32):
Or the way that people areimpacted mentally is often
understated, because I think wethink of the body and brain as
almost being two separateentities, whereas this is a
machine.
This whole thing we're in as amachine, and if a major part of
it is sick and not being treatedwell, it's inevitably going to
impact the brain's ability toprocess information, produce the
(18:53):
right amount of hormones andproduce the right amount of
happy chemicals.
That puts you in a good mood.
So, yeah, like I said, I didn'tthink much about how much you
could affect people mentallywhen I first started, but yes,
it does, and I have had gratefulspouses and partners.
You know one guy who's joined myprogram.
His final straw was his soncame to him crying, his
(19:14):
six-year-old son.
He's like what's up, son, whyare you crying?
And he's like dad, I'm worried,you're too fat and the bad guys
are going to chase you andthey'll catch you and get you.
That broke him down.
He was so sad to see his son.
His son was just like obviouslyI want to be strong like daddy,
(19:37):
I want to be like daddy andwork out with daddy.
And then the same clientsending me pictures of him
working out with his son and howproud his son was at the end
when he's looks on, I got rid ofmy big belly, like the bad guys
aren't going to get me, andhe's like giving his dad a hug.
What more motivation could youneed?
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, and it's interesting everything you were
describing.
We just went through somethingat my police department where we
are committing to a robustemployee wellness program and
it's not just for policeofficers, center personnel, our
civilian support staff becausewe recognize that we're not the
(20:16):
only ones exposed to the dailymicro doses of trauma that come
with being a first responder.
We are trying to approachwellness from a holistic point
of view.
We're committing to allowingpeople to work out on duty and
to provide a well-appointed gymin the building for them to work
out in.
It's not only allowing it, it'sencouraging it.
(20:38):
Also giving them some downtimeor recovery time between calls
so that they're not just goingfrom the next trauma to the next
trauma, because you can havenights like that.
Depending on if it's a Fridaynight and a full moon, it can
get a little nuts.
The idea that physical fitnessimpacts mental fitness, which
impacts professional performanceas well as home life, is so
(21:02):
simple it seems like ano-brainer, but we forget that
the brain and the body are apart of one integrated system.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Yes, yep, absolutely so what is it?
What's the cost involved, anddo you actually have family
members who come and maybe dotogether?
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Yeah, good question.
So the cost kind of depends onwhat the client's going to do.
We have different lengths ofprograms, different levels of
support.
I got anything from $47programs to multiple hundreds
per month, depending on thegoals, how much support and
accountability and the length ofprogram.
Some people have a lot ofweight to lose.
(21:44):
It's not going to happen inthree months.
But for us we're realistic.
We like to go over it withpeople and say, hey, for your
goals to be achieved we're goingto need this and this and
here's your options.
We'll go over the pricing withpeople and give them some
options there.
Family members join all thetime, like I do.
Spousal discounts it's half offif your spouse joins.
Typically one person joins,they start getting in great
(22:05):
shape and then their partnergoes.
All right, I better do this too.
I'm going to join togetherbecause they've already become
familiar with us, they've seenenough of our testimonials and
our reviews, so they go, let'sdo this together and they join
together.
We love helping couples becauseinevitably you're going to be
doing similar stuff.
You live in the same house,probably you're eating together
a lot, you're going to havesimilar kind of lifestyles and
(22:27):
trips, and it's nice to teachthem principles that they can
execute on together and there issome accountability that you
can have with each other.
Okay, we're both in this, we'repaying for this.
Let's do a good job.
I won't influence you to go eata large pizza with me and have
10 beers.
I love to help couples andspouses.
In the program I've hadfamilies join, the kids too.
(22:48):
It just depends on what kind ofthey want to do and what the
length of program is, and allthat as far as pricing goes.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Now we are the Runny Drink Podcast.
Did you have anybody join andset a goal to complete a race or
a run of any kind that you canrecall?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
All the time, and I love that when somebody sets a
goal that's in the future toprepare for, whether it's a
bodybuilding show or a 5K or a10K or a half marathon or a-.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
All the way up to an ultra, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:15):
Exactly An ultra marathon, right.
I love that goal because italso adds another layer of
accountability.
There's another thing I'veannounced to the world that I
want to do and I'm going to doand I don't want to fail at it.
So it's a little bit of extramotivation there.
Many times people have setgoals and I've gotten many
pictures of them at the finishlines with their medals saying
(23:37):
thanks, I couldn't have donethis without you and your
program.
That's so rewarding.
I've had many people who lookfor a race to complete.
That's one of their major goalsto do and to overcome and they
do it.
It's pretty cool.
It's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
And do you address nutrition, fitness and how do
you handle food and beverage?
How do you customize fordifferent goals or clients?
Speaker 1 (23:58):
Are you focusing on, like, calorie restriction, or
are you doing macros?
What's your approach?
Speaker 3 (24:02):
focusing on, like calorie restriction, or are you
doing macros?
What's your approach?
Great question.
I'm going to say this right now.
This is a true belief I have.
If anyone tells you I have theone method for nutrition and
working out that is the best foreveryone, they are lying or
mistaken.
It has to be custom for theperson, and here's what I mean
by that.
I think there's generalprinciples that make sense.
Let's gravitate more towardwhole food as opposed to ultra
(24:25):
processed food.
Let's eliminate sugar as muchas we can in the diet.
We already consume too muchsugar.
There's principles that makesense across the board.
But at the same time, when weget a client, this describes a
process.
First, we learn about the foodsyou love and gravitate towards.
Often, what are the foods youand your family like?
What are the things you don'tlike?
What are the restaurants inyour area that you have
(24:46):
available at two in the morning?
We customize a meal plan thatgives them options.
We tell them everything likegrocery lists, what to buy, what
to get, what options are betterthan others.
Portion sizes is big, so it isgoing to inevitably impact how
many calories they eat, becausebottom line that matters a lot.
We're not so big on macros.
For me, it's about totalcalories and total protein.
(25:09):
The distribution of fats andcarbohydrates doesn't really
matter at all.
It's just the total caloriesand total protein that someone
consumes, and then we try togive them the right types of
foods and nutrients that'll makethem feel better and have more
energy and fuel their workouts.
So how that looks is our clientwill get a meal plan generally
based on their age, gender,activity level, blah, blah, blah
(25:34):
.
All of that gives us what weneed as far as meal sizes and
everything.
And then if it's like hey, Ihave no time to meal prep Great,
here's 10 options you can runout the door with.
Just grab from your pantry.
I have five minutes to mealprep.
Cool, here's 10 other meals.
That takes five minutes.
Or my wife and I love to cookGreat, here's 20 meals that
might take 30 minutes.
What about when I'm running onthe go and I have no time to
meal prep?
Based on the restaurants inyour area, there's 20 options
(25:56):
you can get from thoserestaurants.
This helps a lot because iteliminates excuses.
There's an option, no matterwhat your circumstances are.
The food is geared toward thefood you like and gravitate
towards.
We eliminate the foods youdon't like, and we take out all
the guesswork.
We make it very simple.
There's no nutrient timing, nofasting windows.
The specificity in a lot ofnutrition plans really
(26:16):
discourages people.
Because I come frombodybuilding, where it's you
have to eat on schedule, yeah,you have a watch?
I had a watch that beeped andtold me it was time to eat my
seventh meal of the day.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Not practical for a cop it's funny you'd say that I
did a very popular workoutprogram back in the very early
part of my career when I waswith my first department and I
was eating five meals a day thatI had to prep and take with me.
I made it through the program,but to sustain that was just
(26:54):
absolutely not something that Icould do as a 22, 23 year old
cop that was trying to get inshape and stay in shape.
I just couldn't eat like that.
That was nuts.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
What you're saying there, dana.
It was an unsustainable diet,as you said, and there's so many
fad diets that may work in theshort term and I'm going to pick
on some keto or paleo or WeightWatchers or Octavia or even
frozen meal prep plans.
They can work, but will thatperson use those principles
taught to them via that processfor the next 20 years?
(27:27):
Probably not.
So.
With my program, I reallystress an emphasis on teaching
routines that you can do for thenext 50 years that are simple,
straightforward.
So at the end of it, you're notweighing or measuring any food,
you're eyeballing everythingyou eat, you're not cutting out
the foods you love, you're justlearning how to manage it and
balance those things within yourdiet.
(27:49):
It's a very realistic approach,and that was always important
for me because I know how oftenpeople gain weight back after
they lose it.
It's all too common, right?
They stick to something for afew months, they're very
motivated, they get progress,but that's not a sustainable
method and they gain the weightback and then, unfortunately,
they don't know any better.
They believe this.
I already know what I'm doing.
(28:09):
I've done it before.
Did you do it in a way thatlasted, though?
No, and there's also importantmethods to consider after you
lose the weight.
There's something called areverse diet, which a lot of
people haven't even heard of.
They don't know what it is, andthe reverse diet helps improve
your metabolism after fat loss.
Most coaches don't know aboutit or even teach it, but it's a
(28:29):
big part of the puzzle to getpeople long-term success.
Speaker 1 (28:33):
I've never heard the term.
Speaker 3 (28:34):
Yes.
So a reverse diet ispopularized by bodybuilders.
Bodybuilders lose a lot of fatfor the show.
They get very lean.
But what happens?
We're almost biologically setup to gain the weight back after
a weight loss period.
If you think about what body fatis, it's the body's emergency
calorie story.
Our ancestors were designed andincentivized by nature to eat
(28:56):
as much as you can when you findthe food, because our ancestors
had food scarcity.
So it's built in our biology tobe like there's food right here
.
Eat all of it, eat as much asyou possibly can to add to your
storage of calories.
That bank, if you will.
That's a survival bank.
So everyone who's overweightnowadays that you've been set up
(29:16):
, unfortunately, by thousands ofyears of your ancestors, who
were incentivized in every wayto eat as much food as possible.
But now we're in an environmentwhere there's an infinite
amount of food.
There's ultra processed food,ultra calorie dense food.
We do way less work than everbefore, we're more sedentary, so
all these things add up to theobesity crisis.
(29:37):
But what happens when you losebody fat?
You are in a calorie deficit,right?
Let's pretend your calorieneeds to maintain your current
weight is 2,500 calories.
Let's say you consume 2,000calories.
So you're at a 500 caloriedeficit.
You lose weight over time withthis diet.
What the body does is it triesto adjust your metabolic needs
(29:57):
to that new calorie count.
So let's say the body wasaccustomed to maintain weight at
2,500 calories.
Now, after time, the body hasadapted the metabolism to
strictly need 2,000 calories.
Because if you're at a caloriedeficit forever, you die.
You eventually run out of thatfat source.
So this is typically when peoplehit plateaus they lose 40
(30:18):
pounds and they're like I'm notlosing any more weight.
That's a problem.
Also, when they stop the dietthey go back to eating 2,500
calories.
Now they're in a surplusbecause the adjusted calorie
needs are now 2,000.
Eating 2,500 calories is nolonger maintenance, it's now a
surplus.
So people often describe wow,now that I've lost the weight, I
feel like I'm not eating a lotmore, I'm just going back to
(30:39):
some normalcy and I'm gainingweight back at a rapid pace.
The reverse diet is you need tocoax the metabolism to burn a
higher amount of calories and toneed more calories.
It's through incrementallyeating more.
Over time it's slowly adding incalories.
It's shifting workouts moretoward muscle building.
Muscle and resistance trainingin general improves the
(31:00):
metabolism.
More muscle requires morecalories.
Right Over time we coax thecalorie needs back up to as high
as we can.
I've had clients.
Let's say they are eating 3000calories.
You start them at 2500 calories.
They lose weight After a periodof time.
We do the reverse diet.
At the end, let's say a yearlater, they're leaner, lighter,
(31:21):
stronger, but eating more thanthey ever did before.
Maybe they're eating 3000calories as a fat guy.
Now they're eating 4,000calories and staying lean and
strong because we've helped themimprove their metabolism
through the process.
Does that make sense?
Speaker 1 (31:38):
That's really pretty cool.
And again, that was a term I'dnever heard before.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
It's like tempering eggs and baking yeah, that's
what I mean or in cooking, sothat you don't have scrambled
eggs where you're supposed tohave a different sauce.
So it makes sense to me thewhole explanation about when
you're at the end and yourbody's gone through all of this
change.
(32:02):
But you think you can go backto the same amount of calories.
This makes sense.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
That's a trap A lot of runners get into.
When you're in training modeand you're doing a lot of
training runs and distance orburning those calories and
eating to make up the energyneed.
When the race is over, ifyou're still eating like you
were when you were training,you're going to pack weight on
runners, but just athletes ingeneral.
Speaker 3 (32:24):
Right, if you're not doing the activity that's
burning a thousand calories aday you can start gaining weight
back.
You can start getting a lot ofweight very quickly.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
Yeah.
So, Ted, you have talked aboutthat you take on family members
of first responders.
You take on first respondersthemselves.
You've talked about someinspirational stories.
You've talked a little bitabout how your program works and
the different opportunities interms of cost.
(32:55):
How can people find out moreabout the program and connect
with you?
Speaker 3 (33:01):
Yeah, I would say the easiest thing you can do.
If you're in research mode andyou're like I don't know if
Ted's legit yet and he might bea scam artist, fine, go to
Google type Fit ResponderReviews.
We have over 360 five-starreviews five-star average rating
on Google.
That's unheard of, becauseusually when people leave
reviews it's because they'reupset.
Think about it.
People expect things to be good, like you go buy something and
(33:23):
it's good.
Most people aren't ready toleave a review and tell everyone
that it was good, like I wantedit to be.
Usually you want to telleveryone if it sucks.
But look at my reviews onGoogle it's five stars.
You go to our website.
You can watch our clienttestimonials.
Listen to what they have to say.
Once you've done enoughresearch which tons of people do
my clients usually go, man,I've been looking at your stuff
for the last three weeks and nowI'm ready.
(33:45):
Go to fitrespondercom.
You can click the apply button.
It leads you to a littlequestionnaire and a free call
the free calls with either me orsomebody on the team.
We assess your goals, what youwant and need, and then we go
over some options.
You can decide if you want tojoin or not.
You can also email me if youhave specific questions.
Like Ted, I have this injury.
Can I still do this?
Email me, ted atfitrespondercom and it will be
(34:07):
me.
I'm happy to reply.
Speaker 2 (34:09):
So, ted, thank you for coming on our show today and
sharing this wonderful resourcewith our community, the
Runcation Nation, and we'll putlinks to everything in our show
notes.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So you're going to be able to find Ted and Fit
Responder.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
We hope to accomplish , explore and indulge with you
really soon.
Speaker 3 (34:30):
Likewise, it was a pleasure being on here.
It was an easy and funconversation.
Hopefully we do get a chance todo this in the future.
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