How many times have you started the new year with a resolution to get fit? We’ve all been there.
But the fact is, getting in shape can be a daunting prospect.
One solution is to hire a personal trainer. Working with a fitness specialist in the comfort of your own home helps you bypass the anxiety of a busy gym, and gives you the opportunity to get fit on your own terms.
Meet these North Fork-based trainers who will come to you.
MICHAEL CARROZZA
MY FITNESS JOURNEY I grew up playing soccer. After high school and college, I was going to Ultimate Fitness in Riverhead and they needed help at the counter. While still being involved in fitness, [my boss] told me I was really good at this stuff. I ended up getting certified and taking courses. I focused on biology and dove into the world of training and getting my hands dirty. I started reading everything under the sun and realized that not everyone in the gym is like me. I realized I needed to unthink what I know about exercise and relearn it for the general population.
MY FITNESS PHILOSOPHY Most people don’t know how to move well. How can I get you to be more efficient and effective as a human? Whether it be in your daily job or elsewhere, if I get you to move well, you’ll move more often. I don’t want you to rely on me for your fitness. I want you to use me as a way to empower yourself to end up being able to do more stuff outside, raking the yard without getting tired, hanging out with your kids, that kind of stuff. It’s about getting people back to being more human.
SERVICES I do in-home personal training, as well as outdoors. I’ll do remote training for people who don’t need in-home training, but need someone to coach them. I want you to know that there’s someone in your back pocket. I’ll be your biggest cheerleader. I also have a private space in Riverhead.
TAYLOR DIEPOLD
MY FITNESS JOURNEY Throughout high school I swam and played lacrosse. But in my junior year, I was addicted to opiates. Addiction ruled my life for about five years. Getting into recovery, getting clean and sober, allowed me to embrace my health. And there was something about it — I always felt good. I noticed all these positive things and felt them in my life. I applied to Lululemon, which was a shining light in the wellness industry, and my community with all these women began to grow.
MY FITNESS PHILOSOPHY Fitness, to me, is about whatever my client wants it to be. And that changes. After two weeks, it changes. All of a sudden, they want to do a triathlon! Of course having a goal motivates them, but my approach is about transformation. It’s about the transition of that transformation. I also use neuroscience and I use physiology to help people understand that they are part of a human collective. As a yoga and fitness instructor I try to get people to move. And of course, it all starts with the breath.
SERVICES I travel with weights. I teach yoga, meditation and science-based breathwork. I’m in the water a lot. It’s a lot of body weight, it’s functional movement, range of motion. I’m big on functional mobility.
NICOLETTE GEBHARDT
MY FITNESS JOURNEY I was working in television for “The Dr. Oz Show.” TV was my major and I wanted to be a writer. I played college volleyball and was always athletic, but I also wanted to be in a creative environment. The job was very stressful. It was very demanding, very hectic and I loved it. But every day when I left work, I would run. I was hitting the gym hard because it was a de-stressor. I loved telling people what I did and that shifted my gears. I really like helping people. People would ask me for fitness advice and that shifted my passion.
MY FITNESS PHILOSOPHY I consider everyone athletic. I think we’re all athletes and that our inner voice tells us otherwise. I’m focused on strength, resistance, circuit and cross training, but it’s also focused on what people want. If someone wants to run a marathon, we’re gonna be doing more cardio than strength training. It’s catered to what their needs are. Personal training is all scaled to the client.
SERVICES I will load up my car and bring the gym to you. I also offer virtual classes through Zoom. I offer this mind, body, soul core experience with my clients where we really dig deep and very real with them and very transparent. And I try to be as relatable as possible with my clients.
GREG TRENT
MY FITNESS JOURNEY I played football for Riverhead High School. My coach, Don Nelson, started getting me into working out. I would lift, bench press, things like that. I went to a junior college for football. Next thing you know, I had a baby girl. Everybody would come up to me at the gym asking me questions about fitness. I went to Dowling College — this is 16 years ago — and was hired at a gym when I got my certification.
MY FITNESS PHILOSOPHY I always under-train my clients until I get to know their capabilities. Then I’ll start pushing buttons. A lot of trainers think if you give a hard workout, that’s what it’s about. For me, that’s not it. It’s about building clients’ confidence, making them understand that they can do anything they want once they put their brain to it. So my thing is all about the brain and muscle, connecting them two together.
SERVICES When I go to people’s homes, I work with free weights and functional training. I try to include TRX, dumbbell work, resistance bands. I’m also a TPI [Titleist Performance Institute] instructor. Golf is so different from any other sport, so I took TPI to learn about understanding the golf swing and understand the mechanics of the body.
