Studio SWEAT onDemand’s trainer Brian has always been involved in the world of sports. As a master motivator who can make anyone sweat, Brian always make you sore and craving for more! If you’re looking for a fat torching workout, some baseball statistics, or even to watch Brian spin, he’s your guy, but what else is Brian all about?

1. What is your idea of perfect bliss?

It may be a cliché, but I really love just hangin’ out at home with my family – especially during this time of year. Although ESPN is on constant rotation in my house, during football season Sunday’s are reserved for football and football only. And not just one or two games… we’re talking ALL of them. Now, we do have a bit of a split household. My wife is a Seahawks fan – like a diehard, lifelong Seahawks fan! Being from Massachusetts, I am a New England Patriots fan. Before any of the haters start hatin’, I’ve been a fan since I was born and what people forget is that they were TERRIBLE for a long, long, time, so we have to enjoy this ride while it lasts! (Even though to be honest, us Pats fans can be a tad obnoxious :)). So that’s my bliss. Family, Football and Super Bowl Titles!

P.S. Or a killer live comedy show!!!

2. What historical figure do you most identify with?

My answer will always be my mother. She raised us in my hometown of Worcester, MA – although it’s pronounced “Wustah” (which makes perfect sense to me but somehow others think it’s a strange way to say it).  It’s a very blue-collar place, hardworking and tough, with deep roots and filled with lots of “mom and pop” pizza shops and the best breakfast diners on the planet. It also has sort of a “code” that everyone lives by and it’s really all about loyalty, which brings me back to my Mom.

She is “wicked” smart. She graduated from high school early and could have gone off to college. Instead, she stayed and raised her four kids while working hard every day, (sometimes holding 2-3 jobs at a time), supported her parents and tried to provide for a better life for my siblings and I. If that wasn’t enough, she always took in friends of ours who needed a place to stay. I honestly can’t count how many kids stayed with us for weeks, sometimes months at a time. Even though we didn’t have a lot, she was always willing to share what we did have.

My mom’s decision to stay, and in some sense remain loyal to her roots, allowed all four of her children to go off and graduate from college when prior to that nobody in our family ever had! I mean, how cool is that? If it wasn’t for my mother, I wouldn’t have found that confidence to leave everything I ever knew, all that was familiar to me and create a pretty amazing life. She will forever be my role model. 

3. If you had one superpower, what would it be?

Time travel, but I wouldn’t use it for traditional purposes. Some people would maybe go back to try and change some things, but I wouldn’t do that. Everything truly does happen for a reason and I wouldn’t want to mess with the universe by changing one thing, which may have a ripple effect and impact my life today. Nope, I would go back for one reason – just to kick my own ass! Although I have learned from mistakes and poor decisions I have made, it’d be nice to give myself a few words of advice at those times that I was struggling. And, if that didn’t work, maybe give myself a lil’ bit of a whoopin’! Sadly, this is just a dream, but what I can do to just keep tryin’ to be a better version of myself, in life and as a Studio SWEAT trainer.

4. What’s your favorite kind of music and why?

As an instructor in my Studio SWEAT classes, you learn to appreciate all music, especially in regards to the beat and rhythm. No matter where or what I’m listening to, I always relate music back to crazy jumps or moves that I can incorporate on the bike. At heart though I am alternative/rock guy. I love a certain sound that has a combo of a little bit of punk, ska and rock. My wife knows the “sound” so well that she will hear a song and immediately send it to me and know that I’m gonna like it. I also like some older stuff. For instance, I love “A Change is Gonna Come” by Sam Cooke. The song is 50 years old and honestly, as good today as the day it was released. Listen to it and pay attention to how much patience and restraint he has. It’s so powerful without letting loose with that “belt it out” moment. An absolute classic.

 5. Which words or phrases do you overuse the most?

I’m not sure I have one today, but growing up it was “wicked”, which kind of means “very”. My family and friends from home still use it all the time! Honestly, spend a few days in my hometown and you’ll hear it in virtually every sentence (lots of times with an “f-bomb” inserted right after it :)).

Now, I can tell you my favorite word is “suede”. It’s just a cool word and it sounds like it’s so much bigger than one syllable. I know that’s random, but I just love that word.

6. Describe the workout that you have designed that you love the most.

I cook at lot at home and while I keep it pretty traditional, one thing I have seen on cooking shows is “deconstructed” dishes. If a chef deconstructs a simple dish like chicken parmesan, they may have the chicken on one part of the plate, the cheese in a bowl on the side, the tomato sauce and breading in random drops on the plate. The idea is that you take the pieces of the dish and reconstruct them to put it back together.

I used this concept in my Studio SWEAT classes, to come up with the “Deconstructed Man Maker”. Each “Man Maker” rep consists of a squat thrust, push-up, a row per side and a curl/shoulder press… so instead of doing the entire move all at once, I break it down and separate each move by 45-second increments, turning it into a three-minute drill! It’s a great finisher to a workout!

7. Which talent would you most like to have?

My dream was to be the center fielder for the Boston Red Sox, so I wish I had major-league level baseball talent. Growing up in baseball-crazy Worcester, I played through high school, American Legion and for one year in college. But, baseball is one of those sports where at some point, no matter how bad you want it and how hard you work, you either have the talent to keep playin’ or you don’t. I love the game and wish I could have played for a living, but the only way I was getting to be in center field at Fenway was to buy a ticket in the Bleachers!

8. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

If I could change one thing about myself, it would be to have unruffled self-confidence. There are some aspects of my life where I’m very confident. I’ve done presentations in front of thousands of people at work without a hitch. In fact, I kinda get pumped up about it! Day to day though I can doubt myself and be my harshest critic. I’ve been told I don’t speak up enough and ya know what, it’s pretty much true. I’m a pretty lucky guy though because I have a great family and some pretty awesome friends. I also have a wife who has my back and truly believes in me, sometimes more than I believe in myself. That’s not so bad, right? So the question was what one thing “could” I change. I’m lucky in that I have a great life and environment to actually make that change!