Testimonials

In the 20 years that I have been involved in the fitness industry, Mark is without doubt the best trainer I have worked with. His theoretical and practical knowledge, dedication, enthusiasm, commitment to his clients and ability to 'think outside the square' make him second to none.
To quote the great Tina Turner, Mark is 'Simply the best'. Train with him and reap the rewards.

- Dr Tom Palfi: NZ Sports Medicine Doctor and Fitness Trainer

If you're looking for a Personal Trainer with great knowledge, motivation and service then Mark is your guy. He certainly is one Personal Trainer that will listen to your needs and give you his best to help you achieve your goals.

Yours Truly,
Brian McFarlane

- Brian McFarlane: Mr New Zealand 2002, NZFBB Judge

Robert Arnott

Having just completed Mark's Body Blueprint 12-week challenge I have decided to share some of my thoughts.   

Motivation
Having recently immigrated to New Zealand I was keen to make new friends and become a success at work, however both came with a price - my weight and health.

After what seemed like forever socializing, DRINKING and eating the wrongs foods I had gained almost 10kgs in just 6 months. Luckily fate was on my side and I met a former pupil of Mark who inspired me to give the 12 week challenge a try. After seeing his results and watching his video of the training and other processes that were involved I decided to make the leap and book an appointment with Mark. Once I realized there was also a financial commitment involved I knew it was now or never so I went for it. After my first session with Mark I felt embarrassed and humiliated at how unfit and how bad I felt. I now had the tools in place as I had made an investment in myself.

Mark put me at ease straight away, didn't judge and gave me the belief and the gentle push I needed to get started. I now had a goal and a direction, the rest was up to yours truly.

Training
Having trained for many years (mainly cardio) I was no stranger to the inside of a gym. I knew what I had to do, I just didn't know how to maximize my time. I have been that person wondering around aimlessly looking for a machine to use wrongly and weakly. Mark gave me an upper and lower body workout to split through the week as well as a cardio programme and ab work which could be increased as my fitness returned.

Weeks 1-3
I decided to do my training in the morning (something I have never done before.) Having done my own research I found it was 3 times more effective than an evening session. I started at 6am and worked out until 7am, this fitted well with Marks program which was based on quality not quantity. I found the first week difficult but was determined to give this a real go. I went every morning for a week, and soon began to feel better. I followed the program as closely as I could and paid particular notice to my improvements in strength and technique. I lost 3.8kgs in my first three weeks!

Weeks 4-6
I found this time to be the hardest and must confess that I did cheat on the odd occasion. I was however determined to stick with the program, although my weight loss was only 2.2kg it was still something and I was heading in the right direction. My second weigh in, although initially disappointed with the results inspired me to train harder, I knew I could improve - I just had to keep with the program. My target was now to reach 90kgs before the next weigh in. Having small goals kept me motivated and although this was not a great weight loss it kept me focused and that was the key.

Weeks 6-9
Having crossed the half way mark I could feel my motivation increasing as my clothing began to fit once again and people started to remark on how well I was looking (all of a sudden) the cheek if only they knew the effort I had put in! Seriously though, I had set my target for 85kgs a total weight loss of 12kg, I still believed this could be achieved. I began to lift heavier free weights than ever before and the cardio sessions became easier, my sprint levels were longer and I was clearly burning a lot more calories than in previous workouts. I believe I was utilizing my time in the gym more efficiently. I had a target before I walked through the door, and some days I met my target others I didn't. The secret for me was to try harder the next day. At my third weigh in I was down another 2.7kgs , nearly 10kgs weight loss, with three weeks still to go I could feel the finish line approaching, and was more determined than ever to meet my target 85kg.

Weeks 9-12    
 I was still motivated and could feel my target was close however I was starting to struggle by overtraining and doing myself more harm than good. I was literally running myself into the ground. I had a couple of days off, watching the food intakes and started over with new energy I had previously lacked. I spent the next 2 ½ weeks training very efficiently and I increased my weights, repetitions and cardio intensity tenfold. I reached my target with less than a week to spare, I continued to train for my final weigh in, and my final weight was 83.5kg a total 14kg weight loss!      

Diet
Although the nutrition plan was challenging I was never that hungry due to the balance of food and the fact that I was eating small meals often. I had never trained on an empty stomach before and I thought this would be impossible but was soon amazed at how easily I could get up and go to the gym.

Typical Day
6am – 7 am:  Train
8.30 am : Protein Shake (home made)
10.30 am : 2x fruit, usually apple or mandarin
12.30 pm : Tuna, cottage cheese, salad or veggies from the night before
2pm : Ryvita crackers, cottage cheese. Snack - some nuts.
5.30pm Stirfry, chicken, or pork
Nothing after this

I soon found that I had much more energy and I was burning calories all day long! The only way I could stick to the routine was to prepare all my meals for the following day the night before - therefore I had no excuses to go to the local baker! Preparing my meals and buying the correct food was one of the keys to my success.

Conclusions 
The Body Blueprint 12 Week Challenge was without doubt one of the hardest challenges I have set myself; however it has also been one of the most rewarding. I have never been so motivated, and my knew found energy has inspired my professional and personal life as well.

I would not have achieved the results without the guidance, expert analysis of my progression and moral support from Mark. I truly believe this programme is for anyone who believes it can’t be done!

- Robert Arnott

Belinda's pics from the 2005 NZFBB National Championships

In January 2005 a friend of mine decided to join the new gym that had recently opened at our local shopping centre. Her goal was to get fit and lose some weight before her 40th Birthday. She convinced me to join the gym with her as she wanted someone to "make her go". I call myself "a runner" as I try to run 3 to 4 times a week for an hour and the previous year had run my first marathon. So felt that I didn't really need the gym but joined anyway to "help out a friend". Once I got started I found I really liked training with weights, I felt stronger and noticed a difference with my running (faster and stronger uphill).

I am the sort of person that needs a goal. With running I always had something I was training for so decided with weight training I also needed a goal, helping out a friend was no longer enough I needed something to work towards. I had read a local newspaper that featured a female bodybuilder (figure competitor) who had recently one a regional competition and I thought to myself I'd like to give that a go before I get to old. It was something I had thought about before but never had the time with 3 kids, a husband and work commitments.

I spoke with the receptionist at the gym her suggested that I approach one of the personal trainers, Mark Woodgate as he had experience with training bodybuilders. So I made an appointment to meet him. I was terrified he was going to tell me I was too old for bodybuilding or that I was the wrong shape, or any number of other things as I have never been very confident about my body. I am very pleased to say that I was wrong, Mark was absolutely fantastic right from our first meeting. He has the sort of personality and manner that immediately puts you at ease with him. I told him about my goal of entering a bodybuilding competition and instead of laughing as I was sure he would, he convinced me that it was an achievable goal. After measuring and recording my stats he designed a programme and nutrition plan to start me on the road to becoming a figure competitor. He also found out the dates for the NZFBB calendar for the year and together we chose a competition date for me which was in July (only six months away).

Over the next six months I met with Mark every six weeks to check my stats and for a new programme. Each programme was designed to sculpt my body to the shape Mark thought the judges would be looking for. He also fine tuned my nutrition plan and provided me with weekly goals. Throughout my training Mark was in constant contact with me through face to face meetings, email and text messages. He was always encouraging and very motivational. He kept a constant check on me to ensure that the training and nutrition weren't getting too much and that I wasn't "losing the plot".

By the time July came around I felt ready for my first competition. The programmes and nutrition plan Mark had designed for me had helped me build muscle in areas it was needed and trimmed away any excess fat I had. He also drilled me on my compulsory poses and choreographed a 60 second routine.

On competition day Mark travelled to Auckland with me where the comp was held and helped me with my preparation. He encouraged me from the audience and took lots of photos so that I would have memories to take home with me. Much to my surprise I won the Over 35 Figure section and it was suggested to me by the judges that I consider changing to Body Building rather than figure as they felt I had the right shape to make the change. Mark agreed with the judges so back to the drawing board he went and designed me a new programme and nutrition plan for me to build enough muscle to compete as a Body Builder in a competition that was a qualifier for Nationals and was only 10 weeks away.

Over those 10 weeks the two of us worked really hard. Mark kept a constant check on my muscle growth and state of mind as the pressure was really on as we had to turn me into a body builder in a very short period of time. There were lots of meetings, texts and emails.

Once again Mark came with me to the next competition and called encouragement from the sidelines. All the hard work paid off and I won the Over 35 Womens Physique section which then qualified me for the New Zealand Nationals which were only a week away. One week of hard training, carb depleting and carb loading later and I was the New Zealand Womens Over 35 National Champion. In 10 months Mark Woodgate had turned a 42 year old mother of three into a Figure and then Bodybuilding competitor.

Mark is dedicated, enthusiastic and very professional. He has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the fitness and health industry. He really cares about his clients and gives them 100%. I really believe that Mark is just as excited about my successes and achievements this year as I am. I would have no hesitation in recommending Mark as a personal trainer to anyone whatever there goals may be.

- Belinda Muller-Jack

Click here to read the magazine article about Belinda's AMAZING success!

Mark Woodgate has been my trainer for more than three years and he has he helped me with my preparation for a dozen contests. These events were strongman and highland games, held all over NZ and a Trans Tasman event in Sydney.

Mark has done a great job of improving my fitness and keeping me motivated. He also improved my lean muscle mass from 96kg up to 103kg, also in this time my deadlift increased to 305kg, with partial deadlifts at 400kg, bench press increased to 180kg, as well as all my secondary lifts increasing in weight and reps.

I recommend Mark as a personal trainer to anyone who wants to achieve outstanding fitness and sporting results.  

- Mick Cottrell

Sundee Strother

When I decided to finally take my weight problem in hand, I weighed in at a whopping 96.1 kg. That’s the kind of weight that would make an All Black proud!

It takes a lot of courage to admit to yourself you have a problem, but for many, many years I lived in denial and refused to accept that my weight had escalated to the point where I no longer liked myself because of my weight. I was sitting on the sideline of life watching everybody else enjoying themselves and having fun, but not me.

Then one day my little girl came home from school crying and said that one of the kids in her class had told her she had a fat mummy. My heart just sank.

After some serious soul searching I decided that if I was going to tackle this problem, I was going to do it head on, and I was going to do it properly. I knew I was going to need help from someone who knew what they were talking about so, I decided to join a gym.

I shopped around, and compared several facilities and their services. As soon as I walked into Les Mills I saw a big billboard advertising the Body for Life Challenge.

It showed several transformation photos of people who had already achieved success with the programme. I was spell bound and riveted. I knew I had come to the right place. I saw that the BFL Challenge was being introduced to Les Mills by one on one personal trainer, Mark Woodgate. I grabbed all the information and went straight home and called Mark.

I liked Mark’s manner immediately, he said he could help me get on the right track to achieving my goal to lose weight and gain life.

He designed a workout programme that suited my abilities at that time. He showed me all the exercises that I would need to do step by step and patiently encouraged me to be consistent and diligent in my workouts. I felt even more encouraged when he would follow up on my progress and show real delight in my weight loss. I felt enthused to continue.

Several more times I enlisted Mark’s help to redesign a program for me to match my newfound strength and capabilities, and each time I was given a workout that gave variety and extended me to increase my strength.

I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to watch the kilos finally fall off and my little muscles start to pop out.

It’s been exactly 12 months since I first started coming to the gym and I’ve lost 30 kilos in total – so far. I am a completely brand new person. I have so much more strength and vitality than I could ever have imagined.

I’m keen to do things and be involved in life, rather than just sit and watch other people do things. I’ve changed my wardrobe three times, I play with my children more, I have a new job that I love – life just couldn’t be better, and all because I decided to lose weight.

If you are thinking about losing weight and starting a fitness regime, I seriously recommend that you contact an expert like Mark Woodgate. He can take all the guesswork out of how to go about doing it. He gave structure to my program and helped me remain focused to my goals.

If I can do it, then anyone can do it – its all a matter of consistency.

- Sundee Strother, Age 37

I would recommend Mark as professional personal trainer to any of my friends or family! Mark trained me for four years and always managed to keep my programmes varied, fun and goal orientated. I was never bored!

He has extensive knowledge in the fields of healthy living and he always managed to strike a good balance between focusing on physical health as well as coaching me to maintain motivation and mental energy.

- Christine Vorster

I have trained with Mark for nearly two years, starting as a novice gym goer. Mark has demonstrated an excellent level of dedication and enthusiasm to his profession, providing me with proven, and the latest techniques, in weight training and cardio exercises, and nutrition. For me the aim was to increase my lean muscle mass. I have gone from 59kg to 65 kg - and yes it has all been muscle!! I highly recommend Mark to prospective customers of all abilities and goals.

- Nigel Brassington

Doug Shewry

I had tried every fad diet imaginable - not to mention the diet pills, and numerous gadgets from those wonderful infomercials. Not surprisingly, none of these approaches worked. When I lost weight, I soon regained it…and more. With Mark's help I have lost 44kgs and 31 cms from the waist in just 6 months - and still going!

Mark is very professional and you can trust him to provide you with information you need to make a lifestyle change- not the "quick fix" mentality promoted by certain media.

- Doug Shewry

The person who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The person who walks alone is likely to find themselves in places no one has ever been.” - BFL 2000 Grand Champion.

I had a go at the Body for Life (BFL) 2000 Challenge, Mark of course prompting/reminding me that the deadline to start was looming and so I relented and entered. Although I wasn’t 100% committed I still saw changes, and not only did I need a new wardrobe, but my attitude changed whereby my perception on life was more positive. I learned a lot about my diet and a phenomenal amount about nutrition.

When the challenge finished, Mark and I set new goals and away I went. However, the motivation started to dwindle - no longer was going to the gym inspiring, exciting or fulfilling. For the next eight months I just “went through the motions”.

I got to the point where I had to do something, I felt terrible, work was getting the better of me and my desire to have abs was moving further from my grasp rather than becoming more attainable!

The next BFL Challenge had kicked off - and perhaps that was what I needed, a quick 12 week programme with short-term goals – it had worked before and this time I really wanted to do it.

A consultation later, measurements taken and an introduction to Mark’s new and improved 12 week programme (similar principals to BFL) and I had a new outlook on training. I decided to take “before” photos so I could see the physical differences and to have a reminder of how I did not want to look.

Now although I write this seemingly indestructible, let me enlighten you, there were obstacles….

1) Social drinking was no more. Even if someone bought me a drink, I had to be strong enough to decline and give it to some one else instead of taking the approach “well one won’t hurt”

2) Eating, cutting out the junk food was no major - I could do that. But convincing myself it was OK to eat more, well that was tough. We are brain washed through the media that quantity and particularly fat is the killer – not so. If you eat the right” foods at the right time of the day, you can eat to your heart’s content – well within reason of course. My only vice when it came to my diet was my love for Gooey Caramel Memphis Meltdowns! I had to give them up. Admittedly I did not give them up entirely; I snuck in the odd one or two!

I’ve come a long way; I achieved my abdominal objective, have a better outlook on life, gained further nutritional knowledge and achieved a placing in the top 2000 BFL contestants, which really amazed me. However, as I am writing this, I realise I have still not reached my full potential. I look at the BFL Grand Champions and wonder what makes them champions? What differentiates them from me? The answer is simple, they gave it their all and I did not. To really want something is very different to just wanting it.

So where to from here? …… well it’s interesting, life is full of challenges both expected and unexpected. Mark and I have set a number of short term-goals working toward my second objective – giving it my all.

Now if you’re reading this, looking for easy answers, then you’re kidding yourself. Transformation is not done with trick mirrors and smoke screens. However, if you’re looking for inspiration, motivation and ideas to help break that “plateau” my advice is to set bite size goals, be realistic; try finding an image (photos/pictures) or person(s) you see regularly at the gym etc that you wish to aspire to - when you look at the image you’re thinking “I want to look like that”. The next step would be to make an appointment with Mark; he’ll help you with both diet and training but he cannot do it for you. To achieve any goal you have to want it first.

Remember it didn’t just happen overnight for me and it won’t just happen for you. In essence, it took me 12 months to achieve my first goal and I am working toward attaining my second goal by Christmas.

- Sue Hagenson

Colleen Paterson

After a 5-year break from being a regular gym junky I decided to rejoin the Gym in November 2001 to try and get in shape for summer.

I made an appointment with Mark and a programme was set in place. What I really liked about Mark's workouts was that they where varied and short, I liked his philosophy on quality rather than quantity. Working full time and raising 2 children meant I didn't have to spend hours at the gym.

After watching some of my friends compete in Body Sculpting I made a decision last year that I would like to make this one of my goals for 2003. Mark varied my programme every 5 weeks and mapped out the progress I would need to make each month to keep me on target.

A year ago I weighed 65kg with a body fat of 26%. On the 5 July 2003 I competed in the North Island Body Building competition I weighed 52Kg with 9.8% body fat. To cap off my goal I won the 0/35 Snr Women's North Island title.

The key to any success you wish to take in life is - dedication, will power - set a goal and tell as many people about your goal so that you won't give up.

- Colleen Paterson

When I was 36 years of age I decided to take up jogging as a form of fitness and exercise. I joined a club and gradually became fit, running 10k events and progressing through to half and full marathons. After ten years of running I decided to have a change of direction and joined a Gym and started using weights and participating in some of the aerobic classes. It probably took about six months to get the feelings of guilt of not running out of my system.

In 1998 I joined Les Mills World of fitness and continued in a weight training programme with a friend as a training partner. He dared me to compete in a body building competition, a challenge which I took up. Alistair Richardson, Personal Trainer took me through to compete in the Central North Island Body Building Championship in 1999 and at the age of 50 came first in the class Master Men Over 50 . A week later I placed second at the New Zealand Nationals in the same class.

Two years later my Personal Trainer Mark Woodgate has taken me through to my latest achievement of third place, based on his `Body Blueprint Programme.’ I was in better shape this time than my previous competitions. Gaining a place in a competition is a real bonus the most important thing for me is achieving a goal, one which becomes more challenging as I get older.

At the time when I was full on into running my weight was around 60kg. Now with Gym work I normally weigh around 74kg, most of the extra being muscle mass. At competition time my weight went to around 71kg as I lost as much body fat as possible.

My goal for the future is to improve on the level I have achieved and to maintain a healthy fit body for as long as I can. My motto is `This body is not going to go down without a fight as I get older.’

- Glen Cornes