Quotes from Gunnar Peterson

I don t have a scale; I'm not big on measurements. Until a person looks in the mirror and is happy with themselves, you have not reached your fitness goals.

I really like battle ropes. They're so versatile; you can get a terrific workout doing a ton of different exercises with them. My clients like them because they're a good way to get aggression out, too. Had a bad day? Take it out on the ropes!

Researchers found that sharing your workout results - whether it's through actually being friends on a specific app or calling friends to tell them how you did, even posting your results on a social platform - usually pushes people to work even harder.

I have nothing against tricep kickbacks, but I'd rather have you do a skater's lunge with a kickback and get a lower body workout.

If you were inactive due to an injury or a surgery, then common sense rules the day when inching closer to the area that was hurt. That is very different from inactivity due to being ill. After illness, be aware of how taxing your workout is cardiovascularly and err on the side of less.

Make it a joint effort. Doing a workout with a partner or trainer can motivate you to reach your goals.

Hydration is everything. Think of this: your muscles are 70-plus percent water - how are you not drinking water during a workout? I get the whole, 'Let's challenge ourselves; let's do that prison, tough guy thing,' but at the end of the day, you're underperforming.

Work is in the word 'workout.' But I try to put some levity to it because you've got to want to come back.

The Gunnar Challenge offers new workouts every day, a meal plan and daily 'verbal vitamins,' which are a motivational video or workout tip. The thing that really makes the program work is the forum, where Challengers can communicate with each other and with me.

Home workouts are great, but if you can get out, that's even better. If you tell yourself you're going to go do planks in the spare bedroom, you might get interrupted and not get your workout in.

I'm a firm believer in trying to make something that might not be considered fun by a lot of people fun. And hopefully, that makes the person have a positive association with it, and they want to come back.

Use music to motivate you. If I had to pick one song to work out to on repeat, it would be Prince's 'Let's Go Crazy.'

People tend to shy away from rotation with resistance because they think they're going to get hurt. Like, 'If I move in that motion with that weight, I'm going to pull my back.' But you're not.

Try not to make every eating transgression at once. When I go out, I won't ever do both dessert and drinks. Just pick one.

Not to sound corny, but if life is a sport, if you're moving to dive on a fumble or pick up a basketball in transition or pivoting to grab your toddler so he doesn't fall into a pool... those are real life movements.

Constant deprivation is no way to live. Don't always skip the delicious stuff for raw carrots and brown rice.

Try training on an empty stomach, if it is just this kind of resistance training workout, so that your body fat is sacrificed as a fuel source. Then, immediately post-workout, make sure you take in all three of your macronutrients.

There are 800 some muscles, 200 some bones. Your body works in three planes of motion: arms, legs - pentadactyl limbs. That's what we're working with.

You should be doing something for your body every day. One day it could be a high-intensity class, and the next, it could be as simple as a 20-minute walk with the dog.

My mom - when I complained about my weight, she asked me if I wanted to keep complaining or do something about it. Then she took me to Weight Watchers when I was 10 years old, meetings and all!

If you're always trying to do a good job, then something good is going to come from it.

The thought of being active in my kid's lives motivates me.

Protein helps your insulin levels not spike and helps you not store your food as fat.

Combination movements will give you the most bang for your buck.