San Francisco, CA
At first glance, you’d never think that Charlie Reid was your former fat-kid. If you ask him what motivated him to lose the extra pounds, he’ll tell you about his chubby childhood.
It all started at birth. You see, Charlie was born as a fraternal twin, and as a kid, his brother was the skinny one while he was the fat one.
So when push came to shove, Charlie made the decision to trim the excess fat. He began with a simple high school gym membership, and after losing more than 50 pounds in one year, Charlie was motivated to change his life completely.
He then pursued a bachelors of science in kinesiology from San Diego State University. He concentrated on competitive strength athletics and worked as an intern in the strength and conditioning department. His passion as an undergrad led him to train and compete in Olympic-style weightlifting, kettlebell sport, and strongman competitions.
He then shifted gears after graduating college, and started working as a postural therapist at the Egoscue Method: an exercise therapy clinic where a client’s posture is evaluated and a custom list of exercises is given to help them manage their own pain and movement limitations. This completely changed his method of training. Charlie is now a proponent of combining functional fitness training with alignment principles that help the body get stronger and more fit, while reducing the risk of injury.
What is functional training you might ask? He says, “It’s the absolute opposite of the body building style of training – it’s actually training full, total body movement and core strengthening techniques. The movements then translate to your everyday functions. It is also more effective for fat loss and improving athletic performance because you aren’t sitting on a machine and pushing levers. You have to use your whole body in a coordinated effort, which means you burn more calories and get stronger in a way that will carry over to life and sport” And why? “[Because] the body doesn’t work in isolation so I don’t train the body like that.”
This is what sets him apart from other personal trainers. He’s very particular and very keen on alignment, and using alignment and body awareness to keep people healthy. He doesn’t treat pain but he teaches people how to move better, and thus, he’s able to teach them how to avoid injuring themselves or habitually getting into cycles of chronic pain.
However, if you’re thinking that Charlie will take it easy on you, know that he will still push you and that he helps you come to the realization that you’re doing it all on your own and that he only helps with guidance through the process.
He uses a coaching style that teaches you how to set more manageable goals to keep yourself consistent and keep you moving forward. He sets up actionable steps that will help you maintain your ways throughout your life with very manageable methods.
Favorite Exercise
The Turkish Get-up (check it out here)
This exercise seems crazy, and from the outside looking in you might ask, “what muscle does that work?!” The answer of course is that it works your entire body. It also has a cool name! The Turkish Get-up strengthens your entire body in one movement, from fingers to toes, every muscle in your body gets a workout. The other reason Charlie likes this exercise is that many of his clients get paralyzed with too many exercise choices or make up excuses each day to not get a good workout in. The solution is to keep things simple and manageable. Try doing Turkish Get-ups for 10 minutes straight and you’ll get a great full body workout that will make you sweat, get you stronger, and more flexible! Charlie believes that the job of a good coach is to make exercise work with someone’s life and, in a city like San Francisco where everybody leads incredibly overbooked and stressed out lives, we don’t have all day to exercise. Quick and effective workouts are often the solution to this problem. Try doing Turkish Get-ups or any other full body exercise for 10 minutes and watch the pounds come off.
Recommended Dietary Needs
Whole food-based multivitamins and fish oil-And if you’re vegan, consider taking flax seed oil, chia seeds, or anything with a high omega-3 fat content. These supplements not only help boost your metabolism and help with cardiovascular health, but they have also been shown to help with mood and motivation, which is certainly a plus.
Favorite Pastimes
Playing as a session bassist in local bands and competing in the Highland Games -That’s right, Charlie celebrates his Scottish and Celtic culture and heritage by testing his strength in the caber toss. Charlie says, “You basically pick up a log, run with it and throw it.”That’s pretty intense if you ask me.
Favorite Quote
“Just show up”
By just making it a point to do something everyday, whatever it is, really means the most in making a change. The best exercise is the one that you do and do consistently. People often do not reach their goals because they do not break down their goals in actionable and manageable steps. They will often try to bite off more than they can chew, go full force into it and burn out within 2-4 weeks, only to gain back all the weight or backslide on their progress. The key is to show up and do something everyday even if it’s only 10 minutes a day. Something everyday is better than nothing. In the words of General George S. Patton, “a good plan executed today is better than a perfect plan executed tomorrow”.
What the People Are Saying
Katy J. says, “I am a strength and conditioning coach in SF and I’ve watched Charlie for nearly a year, working with clients from every walk of life. His focused, creative approach is engaging and the level of care he provides is phenomenal! He has charisma, patience, and determination. I can’t help but note that at the end of every session, his people leave sweaty and smiling.
Charlie is a tremendously valuable resource in the saturated fitness industry. Simply put; Charlie is a shining star.”
Cory C. says, “What sets Charlie apart in the world of personal training is vast experience in many different types of exercise and exercise therapy and his ability to connect with you individually in a way that supports sustained change in life habits and lifestyle.
Charlie has all the basics of personal training mastered, but he adds his background in biomechanics and postural therapy to provide a unique blend of butt kicking, pound shredding workouts with measurable gains to functional flexibility and strength.
He is able to audit your unique physical abilities and then he works with you over the course of each session to improve function and strength in problem areas. Exercises/stretches you do with Charlie can have magic infomercial-like effects. I never thought I’d be able to touch my toes, since my hands only went down to my mid-shin at best, until Charlie explained it was an issue with my hip flexors rather than my hamstrings which is what everyone always tells you to work on. Several hundred inch worms, v-ups and RDLs later I can touch the floor.
Charlie makes you feel comfortable with your own abilities and then pushes you to get better in a manner that is never judgmental. I look forward to my sessions with Charlie even though I know they are going to be tough because he is a great guy to be around and I know the results will be tangible and rewarding.
If you’re looking for someone other than your usual meat-head PT, Charlie is your guy.”
So if you’re thinking about getting into shape, do yourself a favor and go see Charlie, especially if you’re ready to take the commitment and make some positive life changes!
Oh, and just in case you were wondering… His twin brother is now the one out of shape… oh, the irony!
In your service,
-Dalia
P.S. Check out Charlie’s Opez profile for yourself!
