Gema García Marcos

Updated Monday, February 26, 2024-01:51

It has been 10 years since he arrived in Los Angeles (United States) with 800 dollars in his pocket, his degree in Physical Education Sciences and a master's degree in Nutrition.

Today, Diego Calvo from Ávila charges his students "

between 160 and 250 dollars per session

, depending on whether they come to the gym where I usually train or if I am the one who goes to their homes."

Their clientele is very diverse.

"Managers, models, actresses, famous, anonymous people... Even a former candidate for the Presidency of the United States! But, in the end, everyone comes asking for the same thing:

lose weight and gain muscle

."

Regardless of social status or money, we all have the same heartstrings.

"Where many see a celebrity who appears on television, I see a person who, in addition to training, opens up, who

tells me his problems, his worries

... Someone who trusts me because he knows that, to me, privacy is vital.

Their mission, contrary to what one might think, "goes from the

inside out

and starts with knowing which piece is missing to complete the puzzle."

Because one thing is the objective that they set a priori and another is what they are actually looking for.

"An essential part of my work consists of talking in depth with them to find out what they really need beyond the list of wishes with which they come to me, which, in many cases, usually means

loving themselves more

."

Although it may seem paradoxical, "there are many people, with a lot of professional success and with buoyant checking accounts, who

do not achieve something as necessary as feeling comfortable with the image that the mirror returns to them every morning when they get up

."

Many times, "the origin of everything, of this lack of self-esteem and the stress that we suffer, is in an absence of nightly rest."

Because, he continues, "one of the great problems of our era is that, due to stress

, we do not sleep for the time or with the quality that our body needs to recover from daily wear and tear

. This causes our mood to fluctuate like a roller coaster and our stress increases. It is the whiting that bites its tail. Therefore, one of the first steps I take with my pupils is to reduce those stress levels with breathing exercises so that, little by little, instead of four hours will get you to sleep six or seven".

Calvo is clear about it.

"

Stress is killing us

and we don't realize that it also goes against all those aspirations to lose weight or get in shape."

The other pandemic that stalks us is loneliness.

"The city where I live, Los Angeles, is one of the largest in the United States, but

people are extremely lonely

."

Of course, "you see, everywhere,

spectacular bodies

. There the 'bikini operation' lasts practically all year round, because there are many months of sun. There is not as serious an obesity problem as in the rest of the country. California and Miami are two islands in the United States.

What's more, from what he has been able to verify, the problem is just the opposite.

"I meet

clients with a brutal calorie deficit. They only eat once a day

, they have very responsible positions and they lead a frenetic daily activity. And I tell them: 'How do you expect your body to continue functioning if you work?' 13 hours a day and you don't eat?"

Another 'curious' fact is that it is barely cooked.

"

Almost all food is ordered at home

and that is a big problem because, as I tell my clients, you cannot know exactly what a sauce contains, what quality the protein is, etc."

What, in your opinion, is the secret to adherence to exercise?

"For me, the key is to understand the importance of

physical activity as a pillar of health,

along with rest, nutrition and stress control, and to build the habit. You have to set a

sensible and achievable goal

. Don't aspire to "to have the butt or abdomen of a model or actress. That, and being aware that the road will be full of ups and downs, but that it is worth it."