TJ Johnston Personal Training Co.

One of the best parts about coaching for as long as I have is the people who become a whole lot more than just clients.

Cath has been part of my gym, my training and my life on and off for years.

She works hard, lights up every room she walks into, and somewhere along the way she just became family.

Having her back training with me in the new studio honestly feels like a bit of a homecoming.

She's also a bit of a shutterbug — which is probably good for the camera-shy trainer who never remembers to take pictures. 😂

So damn good to have you back, Cath.

And apparently... expect more pictures. ❤️

I’ve done Sober September a bunch of times now, and every year I’m reminded why I keep coming back to it.

Summer has a way of making drinking a little more automatic. A drink on the patio, weekends, BBQs, social stuff, it just becomes a little easier and a little more frequent.

September feels like a good time to reset.

I sleep better. I train better. My body feels better. My head feels clearer.

And when the month is over, I usually find I have a better relationship with alcohol because of it.

Nothing dramatic. Just a hard reset that I know is good for me.

30 days. Zero alcohol. Here we go again.

90 years today for this absolute legend.

Pretty damn special getting to celebrate it with him, and even cooler watching my kids get to know the man I've been lucky enough to call Grandpa my whole life.

Happy 90th, Grandpa. ❤️

Some clients are just an absolute blast to coach.

Val was one of them.

Worked her ass off. Brought 100% every session. Never short on attitude 😂 and somehow we always managed to have a ridiculous amount of fun while getting the work done.

I definitely miss having her around the gym.

But she came in with a goal, put in the work, crushed it and moved on to bigger things.

Which, as a coach, is pretty damn cool.

Some days are just harder than others.

No big lesson. No silver lining required.

Just a reminder that even on the hard days, there's still a little light worth holding onto.

I love building custom gym pieces, especially when I can make one thing serve a few different purposes.

But this one came with a lesson.

Halfway through adding to the rack, I realized I'd built part of the original setup wrong.

I could've found a shortcut and made it work.

Instead, I took it apart and started again.

A few hours backwards to ultimately end up further ahead.

Funny how often that applies outside the gym too.

Sometimes the best way forward starts with a step back.

Some of the boys have started chirping me about how often these sunglasses appear on social media.

Which tells me two things:

1. The sunglasses are becoming iconic.
2. The boys are definitely following. 😂

Should my sunglasses have their own account?

Apparently, I'm the designated driver for the slushie crew now.

I've had worse jobs. ❤️