Born and raised in LA?
Yea I was born in San Dimas California, raised in Glendora, then off to the Huntington Beach when I turned 18 and haven’t looked back!
When did fitness become important to you?
When I turned 16. I was overweight,depressed and had no confidence. I was forced into the gym by my parents, got me a trainer for a month. Lets just say I got addicted. I went from 220lbs to 145lbs in 4 months. Walked back into my junior year of high school a brand new person. I became more confident and happy with myself. Since that point I never stopped working out and made my real life experiences help me train & relate to my clients.
How long have you been a personal trainer and strength coach?
About 10 years strong now
Give us some keys to keeping your clients focused and motivated…
Well people who know me or have heard of me know that I am the best at what I do. Especially when it comes to motivation. I like to find out what moves or pushes that person. I find it and I repeat things them while we train. I will write out motivating words or phrases on the board and make them read it before,during and after a training session. Little things like this get embedded in the mind. When you believe in yourself, then anything is possible.
What is your training session like?
Well depends on the client. But roughly I always keep them moving. Mixing in traditional movements with functional movements. No workout is the same. Not only do I focus on training the body but also the mind. I have a couple of different techniques I do to mix all that in. At the end of the session I am confident that I gave them a hell of a workout!
What music are you rocking at the gym? We rock whatever the client wants, but someone is always complaining! Haha
Who has been your greatest motivation?
My father, he came from nothing in Guatemala. Was a professional soccer player,moved to the states, became a successful ย realtor/broker. Had the American dream. I lost my father to cancer almost 2 years ago. Hardest thing I have been through. I won’t forget how hard he fought to live. That’s my motivation. Motivates me to keep pressing, to keep living no matter what happens in life.
Favorite movie ever? Goonies! Hahaha
Favorite thing to do when you’re not training clients? Love to get tattooed! But we all know you can’t do that all the time! I love to workout obviously, but also go for runs or bike too. Mostly some boxing or mma too.
Can you give us your Twitter,Facebook,Instagram,Pinterest,blog and/or website handles?
Michael Giovanni Rivera
714 396 9369
Website
Facebook fan page
http://twitter.com/GioTraining
@Giotraining
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/michael-giovanni-rivera/28/593/5b5
