We are back for another edition of P360 members of the month! For those of you wondering how we decide on this, our entire staff gets a thread going at the end of every month.  We all nominate individuals and at the end of it, we vote.  This award always feels a bit incomplete because so many members are typically nominated over the course of the month so we are going to start recognizing those names in our Silver Medal section.

Silver Medal

Shannon Gearing, Sam Epsteen, Nik Kafkas, Natalie Leroux-Lindsay, Lindsay Vaught, and Meryl Green all received coaches nominations and discussion, as well. Congratulations, guys!  Your hard work did not go unnoticed.

John Apostolides

John is a regular late evening class member.  He is relatively new, a few months into his membership and has already stuck out for his quiet, dedicated work ethic.  John had a very athletic background prior to the gym, but was relatively new to a lot of the lifts and in a few short months has hit a 5-rep deadlift PR of 345#.

He works hard, asks questions, is engaging to his fellow station partners and is just an all around good guy.

Get to Know John
Age, where are you from?
37, born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland (Charm City). Have you ever seen The Wire? it’s pretty much like that.

What do you do for work (or school)?
I am a plastic & reconstructive surgeon. My office is in Point Loma and I operate mostly at Scripps Memorial La Jolla and Sharp Memorial Hospital. I specialize in complex breast reconstruction for breast cancer patients as well as breast and facial aesthetics and cosmetic body contouring.

What do you do for fun?
Having tea parties and dressing up as a princess…with my two daughters Athena and Bijoux. In a house of my wife, two daughters, and a neutered male dog, I have become one of the girls. Any free time I have I enjoy spending with my wife and kids.

What motivates you each day?
1. My family motivates me to be the best man I can be.
2. Being a doctor motivates me to try and help people, it’s a 24/7, 365 day type of gig.
3. Having grown up playing baseball and collegiate rugby, P360 is my source of comaraderie/teamwork and physical and mental challenge. It’s my 1 hour a day of “me” time and I love it. I am amazed at how friendly, encouraging and awesome all the coaches and members are. It is a very unique place and it feels so good to be a part of it!

Favorite and least favorite exercise?
I have definitely grown to love Clean & Jerks. I find them extremely challenging, but rewarding. Each time I do them I can feel improvement.  My Least Favorite is definitely rowing. Any distance over 100m and I might just pass out!

What’s the most valuable bit of coaching you’ve received at P360?
The reason I love P360 is that every single class I get at least one amazing bit of coaching. Some of the highlights:
Caitlin: “Sniff the Bar” and Overhead Squat technique
Raechel: “Scarecrow” Snatch and hookgrip
Dave: Coached me on my very first day at P360, taught me Split Jerk that day and has been the best Oly Lifting teacher.
Julianne: First Person to help me with my lat and shoulder tightness so I could improve my front rack
Robby: teaching me how to clean up my RKB swings
John: coaching me on my cleans and squats
Matt: helping to improve Box jumps
Pritz: recommending the pretzel crust Little Caesar’s pizza to the P360 muscle class.

What is your most proud achievement at P360 so far?
Being able to do an overhead squat. I seriously thought it was a movement that my body was incapable of doing.

If money was no concern, what would be your dream job?
Photographer for National Geographic

Embarrassing fact most people don’t know?
My right arm is 2 inches shorter than my left due to a surgery on my right shoulder as a teenager. Makes for an interesting split jerk.

Hidden talent most people don’t know?
My grilling skills- I love to barbeque!

If you were an ice cream flavor, what would you be and why?
Mint Chocolate Chip- it’s refreshing, sweet, and filled with tiny nuggets of goodness!!

If you could teleport to any point in the past, where would you go?
Ancient Egypt – I want to know how they had such advanced civilization, technology and knowledge.

Favorite naughty food?
Dim Sum – it’s just a fun eating experience, mmmm gotta love that MSG!

What’s the biggest overall improvement you had made since joining?
My deadlifts went from 225lbs to 400lbs

Famous person you’d most like to have a drink with, and what drink would you buy them?
Leonardo da Vinci – he was a genius in so many fields.  I’d buy him a Whistle Pig Boss Hog Rye Whiskey, (neat) – it’s probably the best whiskey I have ever tasted.

If you could retire and live one place, where would it be?
Greek Islands

Which public figure or celebrity would you like to put in a dunk tank?
The Kardashians. And I’d leave them in there.

You have one song, one movie and one TV show a desert island are they?
Song: Oingo Boingo’s “Dead Man Party” – it’s apropos don’t you think
Movie: The Goonies – its a classic
TV Show: Game of Thrones – I am hooked on that show right now

What is your biggest goal for the rest of 2013?
225 clean and jerk
450 Deadlift

Be sure to congratulate John next time you see him in either the 6 or 7 pm Crown Point class!

Ashley Geary

Ashley has been nominated three months in a row by (by coaches other than her boyfriend) because she just flat out works her butt off.  Always joking and upbeat, sometimes lost in her hilarity and lighthearted approach is her very dedicated work ethic and desire to push herself.  She joined P360 as a complete beginner and has worked her way up to accomplishments that include a 285# deadlift at a 120 lbs. bodyweight, unofficial 2:32 half mile, 195# squat and Level 3 Barbell Club!  She is always trying to do more, writing down goals, pushing herself and holding herself accountable to what she wants to accomplish.

Ashley, far left

Ashley has come a long way since joining and we’re excited to only see that progress continue.

 

Get to Know Ashley

Age, where are you from?
26, Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho

What do you do for work (or school)?
Bar Wench. I went to school for nutritional science and phlebotomy.

What do you do for fun?
I enjoy anything outdoors! Lately I’ve been addicted to showcasing my all-star tennis talents.

What motivates you each day?
I like to think there is no right/wrong way to live your life. That you fill in the pages as you go, and don’t forget to pay attention to the small moments that make great memories….YUCK.

Favorite and least favorite exercise?
Favorite exercises include: Deadlifts, Push-ups, planks, and BURPEES!
Least Favorite: Bench press..Oh and lunges make me wanna die. (Oddly, jerks did not make this list.)

What’s the most valuable bit of coaching you’ve received at P360?
Don’t compare yourself to others. We all have a different machine.

What is your most proud achievement at P360 so far?
Being able to do pull-ups at all. These are a movement I had never even given thought to and didn’t ever care if I could do. It amazes me what the body can do!

If money was no concern, what would be your dream job?
I want to be Sean Penn’s character from ‘The Life of Walter Mitty’. I would sit in nature anytime, anywhere I wanted.

(Stop the presses! This may be the first time ever answers have been the exact same.)

Embarrassing fact most people don’t know?
Here it goes……….When my dad was young he sorta looked like Prince. So when I was little I thought Prince was my dad.  One time when I was six, my put on Purple Rain and I started crying, saying that I missed my dad :(

Hidden talent most people don’t know?
I’m almost completely ambidextrous. I can also point my eyes in separate directions =-P.  I’m AMAZING with directions.  YAY, TALENTS!

If you were an ice cream flavor, what would you be and why?
MMMMMM…Ice Cream.

If you could teleport to any point in the past, where would you go?
I’m fascinated by the prohibition era. A little mystery, some trouble, style, gangsters, less technology, horses. That’s cool!

Favorite naughty food?
I love all naughty food.  DUH.

Wait!  EXCEPT FLAN. WTF and WHY!

What’s the biggest overall improvement you had made since joining?
I’d like to think I’ve made improvements in movements that require a lot of technique. It’s still something that constantly tests me but when you start feeling like a movement is making sense. That’s a great feeling of understanding and achievement.

Famous person you’d most like to have a drink with, and what drink would you buy them?
Me + Christopher Walken drinking Sazeracs in elegant suits, dancing through a hotel lobby.

If you could retire and live one place, where would it be?
I would live in Canada or Alaska in a heart beat. Some land, adventure, less idiot drivers-maybe.

Which public figure or celebrity would you like to put in a dunk tank?
All the women from any Real Housewives shows…and then I’d keep dunking them. OVER AND OVER.

You have one song, one movie and one TV show a desert island are they?
So easy: SONG: Wish you Were here- Pink Floyd

MOVIE: For Love of the Game.

TV SHOW: Walking Dead.

What is your biggest goal for the rest of 2015?
Goal for 2015: to make strong, steady progress (forge ahead) in the movements that don’t come easily to me. To put the necessary work in, and hopefully see the work…Thank you so much, guys!  I thought you sent this to wrong person at first!

Be sure to congratulate your fellow members next time you see them.  There is no award for this honor, other than the good old fashioned feeling of seeing your hard work be noticed :)