Wareing’s Gym
Virginia Beach
“With fitness, it’s not necessarily what to do, but knowing what not to do.”
—Jake Wareing
I grew up in the gym and I think everyone grows up with different phases of fitness. I think most everyone starts in a bodybuilding phase. The phases may be different now with CrossFit and some of these other things emerging. After a while your body can’t handle these things and some people get overuse injuries and then you just want to look fit. Recently, I had a few sports injuries and so now I workout to stay healthy more than anything so that my body feels good. I think injuries change people’s perspectives.
My approach now for a daily workout is to work my entire body and do core training. It helps with injuries. I train to live. I believe fitness is motion and motion is life. I work out so I can enjoy things I like to do; surfing, playing with my dog, being with my family. Diet is important, too. You have to eat whole foods—every two to three hours—cutting out processed sugars—and drink water. Six pack abs are made in the kitchen and not the gym.
Anything works if you do it. Create that habit. Stephen Covey calls it the Law of the Farm. Like farming, you have to be patient. You have to feed and fertilize the ground and things grow. Consistency is the key.
Advice for returning from injuries
Learn to listen to your body. It’s about seeking a professional to help. We assess movement patters to evaluate injury risk. It helps to have outside eyes. If something is causing you pain, it’s a sign that you should stop. One of our big things is service. We put service in front of results. We want people to enjoy the process of changing their health. With fitness, it’s not necessarily what to do, but knowing what not to do. Sometimes it’s changing exercises if one is causing you pain.