Short version:  Dynamic is amazing, the trainers are skilled and welcoming, this place changed my life.

Much longer version:  I used to be an athlete and competitive equestrian.  ACL replacement, desk job and five years later, my muscle tone, energy and strength were pretty much gone, replaced by a body best described as "doughy".  I got engaged and joined a gym, as brides do, hired a personal trainer and nutritionist, and followed their instructions to the letter. I ate only what I was supposed to, hit the gym at least two hours every day, hours of my life I can never get back, just meandering on a treadmill, or endless light weight reps on the machines.  Six months later I had not only gained weight, but added inches.  I was devastated.

The following years only added to the problem.  I became depressed, my passion for life in general was non existent, I had health issues that doctors ignored because every symptom was just buried under "Lose weight, that will help", and paid $25 a month to a gym to ease my conscience that, in theory, I could be working out if I only had the time.  Occasionally, I would attempt the gym, only to be discouraged by people who were obviously more fit than I was, trainers who didn't expect much, if anything, from me, and the overall environment felt cold and alienating.  I had well and truly given up.

Poking around on Reddit, I came across an article that talked about how people have it backwards, instead of losing weight via cardio, then moving to strength training, they should start with strength training.  The stress on the joints from additional pounds is much less, building up your muscle tone allows you to burn more calories at rest, and in general is much healthier than the traditional method.  Maybe it was just the frame of mind I was in, maybe it was desperation, grasping at straws, perhaps it was the phase of the moon in retrograde, I don't know, all I know is I thought I'd try this.  

I reached out to Matt about the women's class, and found out due to a trip, I'd miss a majority of the class.  I decided to meet with him anyway, to see if my knee issues would even allow me to work out, since I was unfamiliar with strength training.  After the consult, in a totally up front and non-skeezy way, he told me I'd do best with custom training.  I said "Sounds good" and left.  I wasn't expecting much, just more failure in a different and much more costly fashion.  

My first training session, Matt was open and friendly, uplifting without being cloying, and kept making conversation even after I inadvertently insulted his love for country music.  He made sure to check in with how I was feeling throughout the custom workout he put together.  I felt attended to and taken care of, right to the point he noticed I looked kind of green and I went to the bathroom to puke water for ten minutes.  Because I hadn't eaten (no eat = be skinny, right?  RIGHT?!?!?!), we called it a day, I was fed Luna Bars and went back two days later to try again.  And again.  And again.

I met Renee and Kurtis, I coveted Renee's arms pretty aggressively.  I have a love/grump relationship with Kurtis, he's fantastic, but he’s always the one who says “Hey you’re getting really good at that.  Lets make it harder!”  These people knew my name, they asked what I had to eat the minute I came in, their encouragement is because they care about me being a better me, not because they just want my gym fee.  They know who I am and what drives me, when I'm sabotaging myself and when I can handle more.

After only a week, there was a difference.  I know, I sound like a crazy person, but it’s true.  I can't wait to go to the gym, I WANT to be the best version of me, I have energy, I want to do things, go places.  After a month, I see a difference in my legs and booty, back fat rolls are completely gone.  I'm strong and want to do all the things, and everyone can see the change, change that wouldn't have happened without the people at DSC.  

Dynamic gave me my life back.