Fitness Files: Gerren Liles
Gerren Liles is a celebrity trainer, Master Instructor for Equinox Fitness Clubs and a ReebokONE ELITE Trainer, certified by NASM as a CPT and ACE for Group Fitness. He was the recipient of the 2015 Equinox Group Fitness Excellence for the tri-state region, as well as rated #6 on RateYourBurn.com’s Top 20 NYC Bootcamp/Strength Instructors for 2012.
He has been featured on ABC, Huffington Post, HuffPost Blog, ELLE Mag, Muscle & Fitness Hers, GQ.com, Black Fitness Today, and more. When he's not teaching packed classes or training clients, you can find him sweating hard in the gym and shooting crazy Instagram videos! Naturally, I had to interview Gerren for my Fitness Files series, keep reading to get a boost of fitness motivation!
NMF: Has fitness always been a major part of your life or was there a catalyst/point in your life when you made it more of a focus and priority?
Gerren Liles (GL): I wasn't an athlete, but I was a fitness buff going back to my college days. I was a meathead, if you will, I did bodybuilder type workouts. I didn't eat healthy, I didn't stretch, I did no real cardio. I was muscular, but covered in a lot of fat, peaking at 205lbs at one point.
Receiving a warning that I was pre-diabetic in 2005 caused me to evaluate my workout and diet regiment. I got a trainer, learned how to train smart, saw amazing results, and returned my blood sugar to normal levels. When I opted to switch careers, going into health and wellness was a no brainer for me. Now my workouts are balanced, I incorporate strength, mobility, and flexibility training into my routine, and I'm more mindful of what I eat.
NMF: What are a few of your go-to healthy snacks/drinks that help keep you on the straight and narrow?
GL: My go-to snacks are the Sin-o-Bun from Juice Press, a delicious 100-calorie healthy alternative to sweets and pastries. On occasion, I'll have celery with almond butter, or kale chips.
NMF: At Nadia Murdock Fit our motto is “Train Your Mind, Change Your Body” so we must ask: How do you train your mind and stay motivated?
GL: The biggest thing about training your mind is having the self-awareness to know your strengths and weaknesses, and how to adjust. For example, it's easy for me to eat a healthy meal in general. But certain foods are my kryptonite and I have zero willpower when it comes to them. So I make sure that I'm never in a position to be tempted to cheat. I will NOT teach a class at the gym across my favorite bakery LOL. I will also take a route home that does not let me pass a particular store that has my favorite brand of chips. As I see results and feel motivated to maintain them, it becomes easier to remain disciplined even when I'm in the midst of temptation.
I also surround myself with people who are as driven as I or have reached the level of success and progress that I want to reach, using them as motivation for me to stay focused on my goals.
NMF: How do you change your body? What are your fitness favorites?
GL: My workout routine generally consisted of strength training, HIIT training and running. I'm an avid fan of Spartan races, so performance takes priority over aesthetics. Plyometrics and calisthenics are a big part of my routine as well. For me, being strong is cool, but being athletic and able to move makes for better Instagram videos… haha…
Follow Gerren Liles on IG @GerrenLiles.
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