7 Years of Kloska Success – Family, Training, & Community
The name Kloska carries a lot of weight around PowerStrength.
Kyle (class of 2022) and Tim (Class of 2023) were standout football players at West Catholic High School that took their strength and abilities to a whole new level training at PSTS (they both now play football at Army and attend West Point).
Their parents, Rick and Ann, were also achieving great things in their own right at PowerStrength, albeit with much less notoriety.
All 4 of them first stepped foot into PowerStrength late in 2017. First it was the boys, but mom and dad followed soon after.
“I heard about the place, I got Kyle and Tim started and then finally I’m looking around and I asked if there was anything for adults. They said there are – and I probably regretted that from the day I asked,” Rick said with a laugh, “but it’s actually been very fortunate since I’ve started coming here.”
“When my youngest two boys just joined, I didn’t even know they had an adult program,” Ann said. “Rick, had always brought them here. One time he came home and he said, ‘hey, you want to try the adult program?’ I said okay.”
MAKING IT HAPPEN
When they first started at PowerStrength, the Kloska’s had a lot going on. The kids were younger and involved in multiple sports, on top of both of them working. Still, Rick and Ann made sure that their health was paramount.
“I think it’s just like anything else,” Ann said. “It was a priority and you schedule it. I did two evenings a week and they also used to have a Friday noon session and at that time, I wasn’t working Fridays which I am now, but at that time it worked in my life. It has to be a priority like anything else.”
“It just became a priority,” Rick added. “I think we both thought if we’re feeling better physically and it helps mentally, it gives you more energy, kind of bouncing around every place you have to go. From that perspective, we just kind of made it that priority. Trust me, there’s been times that breaking away to be here on time was difficult. The joke around here is ‘It’s Kloska time,’ so we’ll show up about 5 minutes after things start, but we’re here.”
EXERCISING TOGETHER
The kids are older now and life has slowed down some for the Kloska’s, but they still train regularly at PowerStrength. Sometimes in the same session and sometimes not.
“We’ve done some partner exercises,” Ann said, “but a lot of times our schedules don’t coincide where we’re actually in the same session. But we get to go home at night: ‘You’re not gonna believe what I had to do,’ that type of thing. It’s a bond, it’s an accountability factor. When the whole family’s in, it’s just kind of a really neat thing to do.”
Even when they do end up in the same session, most of the time they are working on very different exercises. At PowerStrength, each person has a program specifically tailored for their needs and goals, it is anything but ‘one size fits all.’
“Honestly, I’ve been here for so long, and there’s just a comfort level here,” Ann said. So it doesn’t really matter that much. A lot of times even though we’re in the same session, we’re separate, they might have females in one group and the males in another group. So we’re not necessarily always working out together, anyway.”
“She makes me look bad,” Rick said. “I thought I was competitive, but then I discovered her. I do like training with her. It’s funny because then we can have comparisons and we can have our same complaints about certain exercises, so it’s kind of a nice thing. From a family dynamic it’s fun because we can talk about it. Obviously the kids do some significantly different things than we do, but it’s fun working out with Ann. We’ve got a couple of pictures where we worked out together out there, but I can tell you right now she’s a little more competitive than me but then she gets mad at me because then she sees me trying to push myself a little further than I should, but it’s good, it’s fun. We have a lot of fun with it.”
OVERCOMING FEAR
Even with Kyle and Tim soaring to new heights at PowerStrength, both Rick and Ann had some reservations about how training would work for them.
Ann had always loved to walk, did some running, and had participated in step classes, but she was ready for something different. She had some understandable concerns about trying something she had never done before.
“Feeling uncomfortable with using free weights and dumbbells and lots of different equipment that I’d never used before,” Ann said. “So just kind of feeling a little awkward out of place not knowing what I was doing.”
Ann was put at ease very quickly and soon felt comfortable despite the initial nerves.
“They’re really good at demonstrating everything,” Ann said. “I’m amazed that after almost seven years here, there are still exercises, new exercises that are shown to me. Now they’re usually a variation of something else but I always wonder how they come up with this stuff, and they demonstrate everything. So they’re very good about showing you what to do.”
Rick suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, he has certain limitations that impact what he can and cannot do when training.
“Mentally I thought this is probably stuff I cannot do,” Rick said about PowerStrength. “I’m only so flexible in certain joints, I can only do certain levels of exercises. The best thing about the trainers here is they find ways to work around the areas you’re a little bit weaker in, and they can build you to that spot. So for me, that’s been a great thing. Certain exercises they even have for me because my hips are always a disaster. You’ll have some other folks do certain things and then they have me doing this band exercise where I’m doing something different, but it’s firing the hips. I feel a lot better, it burns, but it’s good. I was concerned, but they have just found ways to train and work above it. I actually have a torn rotator cuff right now. I don’t want to get surgery because I really don’t want to be laid up for a long time and I’ve been making so much gains here, but they’re working around that, they’re training around that.
PowerStrength is renowned for meeting people where they are at. Finding their strengths and weaknesses and designing a program that will get them to where they want to be.
RICK SQUASHES PAIN
Rick has found himself in such a better place when it comes to pain.
“What I noticed when they were training the kids is that it wasn’t just lifting and doing those things. It’s working on your joints, it’s working on different aspects of your body,” he said. “Talking to the guys here I said, if this can help me get rid of certain aches and pains, it’ll be ideal for me. All the other stuff is a bonus but if I can wake up and just have less aches and pains then obviously I’ll feel a lot better and I’ll be more energetic. That’s what it’s been doing.”
An important factor in Rick’s success was nutrition. It is something that PowerStrength coaches focus on with everybody who trains with them. Making a few correct choices allowed Rick to see the results he was looking for.
“There were other things I had to change in my life too,” he said. “The trainers and the folks here are really good because they talk about how you really can’t outwork a bad diet. So I had to make some adjustments there as well, nothing drastic just making smarter decisions. within a few months, I’m feeling a lot better, and the crazy thing is how fast I was gaining so much strength. When I first came here, maybe I could do five push-ups and now I can do 25 push-ups, maybe more, it just depends on the day. The weight I’m able to move today is unbelievable, and that is from just feeling better overall. The joint pain I can honestly tell you it’s still to this day is very minimal, considering I have rheumatoid arthritis. It’s been really good for me from that perspective.”
Good might be an understatement. Rick’s life has been completely different since he began his journey at PowerStrength.
“Honestly, you feel like getting out of bed,” Rick said. “There were times when there was so much pain I just didn’t want to do it. I would pop a couple ibuprofen and not have to deal with it, I really don’t even have to do that anymore, rare occasions. I wake up and I just don’t feel that pain. There were times I had a hard time walking upstairs, or I had to take one step at a time. And now I can move around pretty well compared to what I used to be able to move around. It’s been awesome.”
Rick was not only looking for pain relief from his rheumatoid arthritis, he also had a goal of losing weight at the time of starting to train at PowerStrength.
“When I started I thought if I could just start getting some consistent movement, motion, actions,” Rick said.
With a lot of hard work and focused training, he did manage to drop 50 pounds!
“My percent body fat was ridiculous,” Rick said, “it was in the upper 40s and I had brought it down to the upper 20s, so I was really, really happy with that.”
ANN’S DEDICATION
When Ann began at PowerStrength she had goals in mind.
“Definitely get stronger and probably lose some weight,” she said about her goals. But yeah, I will say I’m probably the strongest I’ve ever been in my life. I’m 55 years old.”
When asked how quickly she started to see herself get stronger, Ann replied:
“Pretty quickly. Yeah, very quickly. Because you’re doing things you’ve never done before and then sore, and it was good though. I would say within the first two to three months I was noticing a definite difference.”
The ability to remain consistent to training is the biggest key to seeing results, Ann has come incredibly far from where shew as when she first walked into PowerStrength.
“Huge difference,” she said. “I can use weights I never thought I would use before and I have different goals too. I remember telling one of the trainers, I don’t need my thighs to look like yours. I just want to be toned and be strong.”
Rick has enjoyed a front row seat for Ann’s journey at PowerStrength, and he could not be more impressed by what he has witnessed.
“She’s had seven children and her focus when she gets here is just tremendous,” Rick said about his wife. “She has physically put herself in a tremendously good spot. People look at her and go ‘holy cow, you’ve had seven kids, oh my gosh.’ So her dedication to it, and I mean she is committed to it, is admirable because it’s just a priority. She loves being here and she loves being around the people that she works out with. If you said ‘hey go to this place and do it,’ it wouldn’t be the same for her. This is the kind of development she likes and she needs and physically, you can see it, she looks incredibly young.”
EXTENDED FAMILY
Ann has tried various types of fitness in her life, she has stayed at PowerStrength far longer than any of the previous stops.
“I think just the personalized training, the ability for them to modify the exercise to you if you’re struggling with an injury, or not even an injury, just whatever level you’re at,” she said about what makes PowerStrength different. “It’s just the ability to use so many different tools, so many different bands, med balls, kettlebells, free weights, just so many things that I never did as part of any other exercise routine.”
“Family. I just love it here. I love the trainers, I love the people I work out with. You just feel bonds and it’s fun to see other people transition too, it’s just great camaraderie.”
As someone who has taken advantage of what PowerStrength has to offer, Ann has advice for others on how to find similar success.
“I would tell them not to be intimidated, that they’re going to give you exercises that you can do, you’re going to work at your own level, work at your own pace, increase as you see fit, as they see fit. Like the sign says on the door – getting here’s the hardest part – once you walk in, you’re welcomed, it feels like family.”
Many that know the Kloska’s train at PowerStrength too Rick encourages anyone that will listen to take action.
“It’s easy to sit back and wait for things to happen for you, but it’s better to take that risk and just see,” Rick said. “So what I’ve told a lot of people that I know and because Tim and Kyle came here, people asked what they were doing. So then they sent their kids here and then all of a sudden they saw Ann and I going here so then they said wow, what are you guys doing? So for me, it’s take the risk. Come here, give it a try. If you don’t like it, it may not be for you. My sister comes here, she loves it and then she was gonna stop, and then she signed up for a little bit more.
It’s one of those things where I think once you start coming here and you meet the trainer’s, you see what the family environment is like, you just kind of get going, so I always say to anyone who’s second guessing or questioning it, at least come give it a try.”
Rick and Ann consider the people at PowerStrength to be like family.
“It’s been a great journey for both of us, truthfully,” Rick said. “This is more than just a place to come work out for us. I mean it really is, we try to support all the events and be at the events because we look at this greater group as a very good family.”
READY FOR A STRONGER, HEALTHIER, MORE ACTIVE LIFESTYLE?
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