Gunnar Peterson

“I usually suggest that people do their steady-state cardio on the days that they're not with me; they really don't need a cardio babysitter. When working with athletes, I try to pair the interval with the exertion patterns of their respective sport.”

“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.”

“Even if you can't do a full real push-up, I'd rather have you do them with a limited range of motion and work up to the perfect pushup then do them on your knees, where you probably won't progress at the rate that you could.”

“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.”

“America wasn't made on blame; it was made on responsibility. Take off the training wheels in life and decide to take responsibility for your actions.”

“There's so much you can do with bodyweight alone. The basics always come up for a reason: sit-ups, planks, push-ups. They'll always give you results. The way to take it up a notch is to compound the basics to work multiple muscle groups at once.”

“Sleep plays an important role in overall well-being and especially in recovery during particularly intense training.”

“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!”

“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!”

“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.”

“Remember that everything you do in the gym makes a difference in the way you live your life outside of the gym. The brownie tastes better when there's no guilt for eating it. Your relationships with other people are more satisfying.”

“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.”

“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.'”

“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.”

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

“People who are at the top have no problem being vulnerable and putting themselves in a position to fail. That's why they have the success that they have.”

“Kellan Gillis was the first celebrity that I worked with - that didn't hurt. Working out after that with Jennifer Lopez was huge in terms of just the platform it gives you. So I think when you get those opportunities, you have to be respectful of them, and you have to try not to just cash out.”

“Protein is key in my opinion. Vegetables are a must. Complex carbohydrates have to be used at the right time. Stay away from processed foods, refined sugars, and fruit juices.”

“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.”

“I think it's good for people sometimes to get out of their own environments - there are less distractions.”