Personal Change Prompts Wyckoff Trainer's Shift in Exercise Philosophy

If Wyckoff Personal Trainer Charlie Remiggio could give one message to locals who want to lose weight or maintain a healthy lifestyle, he says it would be to keep up a doable, appropriate work-out schedule. 

Remiggio, who opened CR Fitness in the township four years ago, says his own personal experiences with health issues have inspired him to form a new fitness philosophy. In the spirit of Small Business Saturday, Patch sat down with Remiggio to find out more about this local merchant.

How did you get into personal training?

I’ve always loved fitness, but initially I had a corporate job. At my job, there was no health focus at all. There would literally be bagels and doughnuts for the taking everyday. It’s just not the focus there, and I decided I wanted to help people and pursue my love of fitness. So, I started personal training at gyms, moved up to manager. I started nine years ago, and I opened this facility four years ago. 

Why did you come to Wyckoff?

I live in Wayne, and a lot of my personal training clients were in this area. It was centrally located, and a great space.

How has your fitness philosophy evolved over the past four years?

I used to do boot camps. They are hard, and a lot of people can do that, but they really aren’t right for everyone. Boot camps are popular, but I am not in the business of beating people up.

Instead, I developed a group personal training class, and a weight loss class. The classes have exercises that are appropriate for people. Everybody has different issues. If you have knee problems, you don’t want to be working out too hard and doing something that could really damage your knee. 

In addition to the exercising, there’s a component of healthy eating. I really try to guide people, and teach them how to eat. It’s not a quick fix, and it’s more than just buying items from the “lowfat section” at the supermarket.

What prompted the change?

I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome a few years ago, and I just couldn’t work out the way I used to. I’ve done so much research about what I was going through, I’ve changed my diet completely, I’ve adjusted my workout routines, I’ve gone through it first hand. I just love helping people and I like to look at everyone’s situation on an individual basis, the same way I looked at my situation and made changes to feel better.

How has it been going?

Really well. I started the new classes about four months ago, and I’m looking to add more. People have really been responding to this idea.