Testimonials
Real people real results! Check out what our community has to say about training at Groundwork Athletics.
“I’ve been seeing Kate for both nutrition and personal training since late October 2020. I first started working out with trainers on and off in 2008 in preparation for my wedding. When I first started out I was given some really bad nutrition advice that kept me overweight. I’d basically been starving my body for 13 years. Kate helped me “fix” my metabolism and clean up my diet. When I think of how I used to eat before meeting with her weekly I shake my head. But she doesn’t expect me to eat kale and chicken constantly and understands how having an occasional treat keeps me sane. She understands the emotional impact that carrying extra weight can have. If I had a trainer who had never felt the same feelings that extra weight causes it would be a lot harder to listen to her advice. She’s been there and she gets it.
She’s also helped me build muscle through training and feel strong in every way. I still have a long way to go in regard to losing weight but I know I’m not doing it alone because she’s also a great cheerleader. She’s invested in seeing me reach my goals and she motivates me to push myself in my workouts and see how much more I can do.”
~ Tracy Thomas
“Ale is an exceptional and inspiring trainer who understands your needs and goals and creates very effective programs.
She has changed my attitude towards consistency and the importance of fitness to my physical and mental health. I have never felt better or stronger! I continue to see physical changes that I never thought were possible, and love that she continues to challenge me to keep making progress. She is both compassionate and no BS – a winning combo”
~ Karen R.
“In November of 2020, I was roughly 6 months in to my workout regimen at GWA. One day, my wife Tracey said ‘You’re doing a nutrition consultation with Kate after one of your workouts.’ I didn’t know Kate, didn’t know what day this was happening, so I just said ‘Ok?’ I met Kate, we talked about my Type 2 diabetes and my addiction to Popsicles and I told her we’ll give this a test run for a few months and see how it goes. Seven months later, I am proud to say she has kept me as a client of hers, and she has been amazing as far as helping me stay on track with my nutritional goals and improving my eating habits. I’ll be the first to admit that it is not easy to put up with me. But with her resilience, she has helped me lower my blood sugars to levels I have not seen since I was diagnosed 12 years ago. She calls me out on the bad stuff I tend to ingest at times, and I totally need that. She has done wonders for my wife as her personal trainer and nutrition coach as well and has helped us both tremendously…so much in fact that I’ve referred her to my daughter Megan for nutritional coaching while she attends college in Texas. She is helping my whole family stay healthy, and as a husband and father to the two most important ladies in my life, I feel fortunate to have Kate in our corner.”
~ Scott Thomas
“When I got back into training, I wanted to find a gym that felt welcoming, had knowledgeable trainers, and helped me feel motivated and inspired to get strong. The environment and people at Groundworks did all of that! I loved working with Kate — she really listened to what my goals were and worked with me to create a training plan to achieve them. She was professional and friendly, had great communication and energy, and I trusted her completely. If I hadn’t moved away, I’d still be working out with Kate and picking her brain about nutrition every week!”
~ Rebecca Courson
“I first joined Groundworks last November because I wanted a change. I was in a rut that I couldn’t quite shake myself out of. I wanted a change to my overall mental and physical health and a constant push to challenge myself. Mitchell was my first personal trainer that I’ve had, and I was his first client at GWA. Because there were a lot of “firsts” I was apprehensive if this was the right choice. I was mistaken.
A few weeks into training with Mitchell, I was getting frustrated at myself. I was feeling defeated and constantly putting myself down (a frequent habit of mine). When I wanted to just give up, Mitchell kept pushing me. Eventually all that pushing started to sink in that it would take time before I got to where I wanted to be, and if I wanted to get there, I had to work hard for it. Mitchell and I kept our 2 days a week over lunch through the Winter/Spring. We also quickly developed a rapport fairly quickly over our love of comics, movies and music. It made coming to GWA much easier because of our dynamic.
By the time Spring had arrived, so had my achievements. I was constantly enthusiastic to come every week and see what challenge I could pit against myself. Because Mitchell hadn’t given up on me, it was clear that I couldn’t either. I was lifting heavier than I ever had before. My form and technique had improved considerably. My patience for myself also grew. And my self-esteem had returned again.
By the time the 7 month mark rolled around, I had now seen a visible difference in not only my body, but my mental health. I was feeling more accomplished and proud of myself to sticking by GWA and for constantly coming in to challenge myself every week, even when there were days I didn’t. Mitchell has been such a role model for me and his constant push, patience has been felt from day 1. I really appreciate his attentiveness to my overall well being, form, and his ability to track to my progress by pushing me out of my comfort zones. Because of all that I am now in a better place mentally, physically and finally found my stride in lifting.
A massive thank you to Mitchell and GWA for offering a program that suits my needs and is built around a community of people that love to challenge themselves.”
~ Michael K
“My first experience with Groundwork Athletics started in early 2018, with our long time family friend Christine inviting my wife and I along to a “Client Appreciation Night” at GWA. There were coolers of beer, wine, etc. and lots of people mingling, and based on my Business Development background and years of networking, this was right in my wheel house. Christine introduced me to Donny MacQuarrie and within minutes, we became best friends like in the movie Stepbrothers. I told him I needed to “get rid of all of this”, pointing to my belly area. I’m a type 2 diabetic, I was 47 at the time, and my dadbod was glowing and definitely showing. We have a similar sense of humour so it was easy to slowly work my way back into working out again. Unfortunately, with all of the progress I made, I had to stop working out at GWA due to work commitments for about a year or so. Fast forward to March 2020 when the pandemic hit. We went on lockdown, I quit all of my vices (the worst ones at least), lost 25 lbs. and decided in May of 2020 I was ready to rejoin the Swole Patrol and have been working out (now 3 days a week) with Donny ever since.
Donny is not just a trainer to me, I consider him a close friend. When my father died in September of 2019, I wasn’t training with him at the time, but he was there for me regardless, and I’ll always appreciate that. If you’ve ever had any sort of athletic, competitive background in your life, Donny is the guy for you. I’m a glutton for punishment with laughter attached so it works out great for me. Our usual M.O. is talking about sports and silly movies. Whether you have a good sense of humour or not, he’ll bring the laughter and a “Can Do Attitude” and make your hour of torture somewhat fun! I love the results I’ve gotten thus far and look forward to a long and loving partnership with Donny and Groundwork Athletics.”
~ Scott Thomas
