Fit as a fiddle
No matter how unfit you are, there is a man who reckons he can get your body in tune
AT OVER six feet tall, you literally have to look up to Dave Metcalf. If you are one of his clients, the chances are that you will also end up looking up to him in a metaphorical sense for he is the man who has the power to change your body shape and raise you to a level of fitness previously only dreamed about.
Dave works as a qualified Premier Fitness trainer at the Aphrodite Hills Retreat. So how did he get into a career of specialised body management? “At school I was into every sport going, always out, either playing hockey, football, tennis. The same happened when I went to university; I played loads of sports but, sadly, lost the plot when it came to studying so I left and literally went off to join the circus.
“I’d always been fascinated by the skills of the acrobats and jugglers so after a time at the circus school in Sheffield, I became a catcher for the trapeze artists”.
Dave spent many a contemplative hour hanging upside down on a slim trapeze hundreds of metres above the ground and, after a few months, realised that a career in sports was something he could be good at. A friend then introduced him to the Premier Fitness course.
The question I had to ask was ‘could he dramatically improve the fitness level of any person even if they had been allergic to exercise all their life?’ “Yes,” was his immediate response. “The way we conduct our personal training is to asses the person and his, or her, existing fitness levels. Then it’s a case of tailoring a programme to suit that person’s individual needs, working with them to help achieve their goal. It might not always be easy, but, I have trained to a very good level of fitness a man who was originally 20stone. I have also specialised in older people and was involved in helping them achieve a higher level of mobility, which enormously improved their life style from sedentary to gently active.
“Basically give me a person for three months and by working together I will be able to dramatically change, for the better, their overall fitness levels. Of course there is a science to the whole thing and its based on a huge mix of elements, including diet, and, unlike regular gym work outs where the client can find the place very impersonal, prescribed and even intimidating, here it’s more effective due to the sheer motivation and discipline provided through the personal relationship one has with the trainer. My clients are never bored by the same weekly routine as each session is different, with one day concentrating on cardio vascular work outs, while the next it could be improving flexibility.
“We can also assess the level of fitness and prove that one’s heart is actually working with you to be as fit as you can be and results in a longer and more pleasant life.” But it is not only adults who deserve his attention. “An eight-year-old child who was seriously overweight and his mother wanted him to get into sports but without the initial embarrassment of being exposed to a mocking pier group so for one year I coached him privately, got his weight down and, for the first time in his life, he was picked for the team. That, to me, is what’s so satisfying about my job; giving people the chance to improve and to reinforce the old adage ‘whatever your goal is, you can make it’”.
Seven questions
What car do you drive?
A silver Mitsubishi mirage
Describe your perfect weekend
In the Troodos, with my fiancée, snowboarding/skiing
Assuming you believe in reincarnation, who or what would you come back as?
Morrissey when he played in the Smiths
What is your greatest fear?
Rats
What is your earliest memory?
Getting my photograph taken on my first day at infants school
What did you have for breakfast?
Cereal and chopped banana
What was the last item of clothing you bought?
A long-sleeved Diesel top
