I am so blessed that Paul Hovan is not only my trainer and competition prep coach, but also my amazing boyfriend. His positivity, dedication, excellent work ethic, reliability, and, of course, good looks, attracted me to him. He has helped me progress to the woman I had always dreamed of, not only with my physique, but an increase in my confidence and a happier outlook on life. This is my transformation story:
After high school and into my early to mid-twenties, I was part of the Fifty-State Marathon Club and eventually fulfilled my dreams of becoming the youngest female to run a marathon in all fifty states. Looking back, I had little muscle tone with a typical thin runners build, yet still felt insecure if asked to get into a bikini. In 2013, a friend of mine had participated in a bikini portion of a body building competition and convinced me to train for one.
At first, I was shocked at the amount of food and water I had to eat and drink. I was convinced I was going to gain weight, but every week my body fat kept declining. To my surprise, my skin, attitude, and outlook on life was improving. After three months of hard work, I placed fifth.
Earlier this year, I met Paul. He was prepping for a competition that he’d be doing in June and I decided to join him in prepping for the same show, which would be my second one. Paul customized my program for me and my body, just like he does with all of his other athletes. I followed a flexible dieting approach where Paul would just give me macros to follow and then I would eat whatever foods I wanted everyday. I never felt deprived because I loved every meal I was eating! We didn’t do any last week magic formulas that I asked him about; he didn’t have me cut my water, cut out sodium, load potassium, take any diuretics, cut my carbs, and all of the other things you hear most people doing in the final week. He told me he didn’t believe in any of that and that there is no research backing any of that up. He must’ve been right, because I ended up winning my class and taking 1st out of 12 girls!
I learned so much about nutrition and training. For example, Paul tells me to lift as heavy as I can while ensuring I maintain proper form. I was always afraid of bulking up if I did that, but I learned that this will not happen to females since we do not have enough testosterone for this to occur.
To my surprise, I lost even more body fat when he increased my calories and cut down my cardio. The week before the show is always the most stressful for me, but Paul has a certain way of making me feel at ease. Any question I would have, he always would have a thorough answer.
If you are looking to compete or even make a transformation, I highly recommend Paul as your trainer and coach. He has a tremendous amount of researched-based knowledge, credentials, education, and is a body builder himself. I feel it is important to have a trainer to guide you not only with the workouts and nutrition plan, but someone who also motivates you and is there to help you through the tough times mentally.
Thank you so much for being there every step of the way, Paul. I love you!!
Beverly, United States