Steve Joynson

The black and white photo is of Steve at around 13 stone and 4 pounds. The colour shots are at a current weight of 14 stone and 12 pounds, achieved within a few months.

A few words from Steve-

'I have always been into Health and Fitness but was looking to go to the next level in developing my physique. Due to persistent back problems I hit a major stumbling block and was advised to have spinal surgery which I went on to have in April 2008. In hindsight this was a big mistake, but after trying various treatments from Physios, Chiropractors, Osteopaths, etc I felt I`d hit a brick wall yet again and had nowhere else to go. I was told by my consultant I would be back to full health after 6 months post op, but 3 years later I was still experiencing lots of weakness in the hips and lumbar region of my back. Also, I wasn`t able to train anywhere near the capacity I was previously accustomed to, due to movement restrictions and extreme pain. I was told by my doctor to accept a lifetime of back pain and prescription tablets....I wasn`t prepared to accept this!!

In my relentless quest to find good health again I was recommended to Pete. I was already back in training but was focusing primarily on bodyweight and conditioning work, just to maintain a degree of fitness and strength predominantly. I felt hesitant in lifting any significant weight in case of severely aggravating my back. I was pretty well defined, looked in fairly good shape and weighed around 13 stones 4 pounds. But I just felt weak and wanted to get bigger and stronger.

Pete told me right from the beginning that to alleviate my back pain for good and to get bigger and stronger, we would be concentrating on a linear progression strength building programme. At first I was reluctant to undertake this sort of work as it went against the grain of all the previous advice I`d been given in regards to my back rehabilitation. But what a great choice it was to use Pete to help me.

Since starting work with Pete just 14 weeks ago I have seen spectacular results in both my strength and size. I currently weigh 14 stones 12 pounds, and my target weight is going to be 16 stones. Plus I have seen an amazing transformation in my lower back where my problems lay. As I continue to get stronger, purely by the type of work we are doing, the pain seems to be diminishing week by week. This was a chronic 12 year issue for me, and by using Pete`s strategies it has given me the confidence to train with weight again and put me on the path to finally getting my life back on track.

If you are seriously considering adding size to your frame and want to get much stronger, then I would totally recommend Pete to coach you. Below is a summary of my results so far after just over 3 months training. I am still using Pete as it is still work in progress. I commenced training around the beginning of February 2011 and it is now almost June 2011. The results speak for themselves:

Squat: Feb 10th 2011 - 2 x 5 @ 50 kg + 1 x 5 @ 55 kg
Press: Feb 10th 2011 - 5 r m @ 57 .50 kg
Chins: Feb 10th 2011 - 6,5,4 @ 8 kg Kettlebell
Bench: Feb 10th 2011 - 1 x 5 @ 60 kg + 1 x 9 @ 70 kg


Squat: May 26th 2011 - 2 x 5 @ 120 kg + 1 x 6 @ 120 kg
Press: May 26th 2011 - 70 kg x 5
Chins: May 26th 2011 - 16 kg x 6
Bench: May 26th 2011 - 92.50 kg x 5

This is a video of Steve squatting an easy 110kg for 5. His form has come on leaps and bounds in such a short space of time, especially considering the initial issues with mobility.