CHAMPIONS

I entered my first figure competition as a stepping stone toward my goal of optimum health and wellness. After a few quick jaunts across the stage over the course of two years, I quickly realized that the path of industry standards was not going to lead to my destination. I felt myself teetering between what I wanted to achieve and what I was told to do to achieve it. I knew my health took precedence over any celebrity or accolade promised in the sport, and winning at all cost would never become my motto.

Alan was recommended to me by my friend — and his former client. After my first conversation with Alan, I felt a huge sense of comfort with his methodologies. His practicality and ability to marry research with experience quickly turned my apprehension into a love of the game. I felt myself nodding in agreement throughout the course of our conversation, and was thankful to finally find a nutritional expert who whole-heartedly held a stake in my best interest.

Upon receiving my plan, I was amazed at my options. I ate a wide variety of whole foods throughout my preparation, which always left me full without any cravings. I wasn’t asked to give up foods that I truly enjoyed and was offered much freedom when choosing my meals. As I strived toward the stage once more, I achieved results both in physique and strength that I never thought possible. Often the dietary standards that I neglectfully followed before held hands with low energy and muscle loss in the final stages of my preparation. This wasn’t so when working with Alan. My energy remained constantly high, my lifts consistently heavy, and my muscles always full.

In addition, I entered my competition weighing only five pounds less than when I started with Alan, but my body composition had completely transformed. I easily gained several pounds of muscle while melting away an even greater amount of fat. I graced the stage flaunting noticeable muscle maturity and fullness, rather than appear gaunt and underfed, which is often expected the day of a show.

I continue to follow Alan’s nutritional guidance in my everyday living, as he provides the tools to achieve results beyond the stage. My physique continually improves in my off season, and my strength is ever-increasing.

– Kellie Davis, fitness author and model, natural figure competitor, mom, and funniest person alive!

At Elite Performance Management we are committed to providing beneficial outcomes to our clients in terms of their athletic performance. I have relied on Alan Aragon’s professional expertise for a number of clients across a diverse range of professional sports. Most recently Alan has provided off-season and on-season nutritional programs to my client, Derek Fisher, who won three NBA National Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Under Alan’s program, Derek, who averages just five to six percent body fat, gained seven pounds of lean mass over a three month period this summer. Alan’s nutrition programs are simple, easy to manage and right on target. I would recommend that anyone who is interested in achieving a fitness goal should incorporate Alan’s nutrition expertise into their program. – Tom Vachét, BSN, CRRN, CPT

Being an athlete, I am aware of supplying enough calories to perform, but could never find a balance of understanding what to cut out in order to lose weight. Thanks to Alan, my performance level has increased all while decreasing bodyfat. I have also noticed how fueling before, during, and after workouts plays a huge part in my recovery.

– Maria Garcia, Olympic Speedskater

Having a full time job as well as trying to be a decent dad and husband leaves me with only around 10 hours a week of training time available. With that time, I have focused on racing competitively with my fixed gear bike at the Encino, ADT, and San Diego Velodromes. When your training time is limited, you have to train smarter. Nutrition at my age (47) is key in order to recover from fatigue quickly and race at my best. With Alan’s advice on nutrition for both pre and post training workouts as well as race day I have been able to achieve the following:

2004: California/Nevada, First Place State Sprint Champion

2005: California/Nevada, First Place State Sprint Champion

2006: California/Nevada, Second Place State Sprint Champion

2006: Qualified for Elite Nationals by placing second in both the Keirin and Match Sprints during the Encino Velodrome Championship event.

In addition, within the Master’s field (40+ years of age) I regularly place top 3 in the overall standings. I really appreciate all the advice you have provided in helping me achieve my goals to date and for those I have not achieved…..yet.

– Steven Cohen

In working with Alan, I learned so much about dietary components, portion control and food timing that just can’t be instilled by college texts, though I’ve taken courses on nutrition in the past. He worked with me one-on-one, developing a truly individualized program which he adjusted as my needs changed.

Alan is never judgmental, and I always felt comfortable telling him the truth about what I ACTUALLY ate, as opposed to what I thought he wanted to hear. His open, easy attitude really puts you at ease, even when dealing with issues which are personal or embarassing. His diet expertise is unparalleled, and has taught me how to gain independence with properly managing my intake to maintain my results.

There is a ton of misinformation out there, but Alan provides solid, realistic nutritional guidance which is backed by real research, not just the latest fad diet book. His courses, literature, and personal guidance have been a huge factor in my success in fitness.

– Erin Edkins-Ludert, NASM-CPT, PhD candidate, astrophysics

Alan Aragon has been a key piece in helping me maintain and improve my weight. Even as professional athletes, we sometimes are unsure what benefits us or not. But, with Alan’s nutritionally balanced diet, he geared me in the right direction towards becoming a better athlete.

– Alex Acker, Detroit Pistons

After competing in my first figure competition, my body was so deprived after months of extreme dieting that I was unable to gain any type of control over my eating. After several weeks of unhealthy eating, I feared that I was developing a serious eating disorder. I simply could not stop eating! In desperation I started researching nutrition and contest prep on the internet. I was impressed with everything I read about Alan Aragon and loved his approach to nutrition.

I had two goals that I needed to meet in a relatively short period of time. One was to compete again and the second was to learn about nutrition so that I could bring my body back to a healthy state. I not only met those goals, but by working with Alan I far exceeded any expectations that I had. Alan has completely changed the way I think about nutrition and taught me that preparing for a competition can actually be a fun and enjoyable journey. Not only did Alan give me more food to eat, but he also encouraged me to eat foods that the bodybuilding word traditionally considers “forbidden” during contest prep. He removed the vast array of supplements that I thought were critical to losing body fat and convinced me to let my body function on its own. I even had cheat meals up until the very last week of my contest and ate fruit throughout the journey – even on show day.

My energy level was high, my mood was upbeat and positive, and I was able to lift heavy weights with no noticeable drop in my strength or endurance throughout the entire prep. It was such a relief not to experience the extreme cravings, or live in fear that I would snap and binge eat toward the end of my contest prep! My body was nutritionally balanced and I felt strong and content. Alan was always quick to respond to any questions I had and took the time to call me regularly to check on my progress. His words of encouragement were priceless!

I am now two weeks post contest and feel amazing! My weight is adjusting back to a healthy level and my body is responding kindly. I haven’t had the water retention and bloating this time around and had no trouble going right back to a healthy eating pattern. My contest prep diet from Alan was so generous that I am basically following the same diet, only eating larger quantities with a few more special treats snuck in here and there! Hiring Alan was one of the best things I have ever done for myself! He has taught me sound nutritional guidelines that I will use for the rest of my life. Thank you Alan!! You are absolutely the BEST!

– Sherri Wellborn, ass-whooper of figure competitors half her age

Working with Alan has been an absolute pleasure. He was extremely helpful in creating a plan specific to my needs and adjusting it accordingly to help me reach my end goal. I was finally able to combine the hard work of my training with the brilliance of Alan’s nutritional plan to achieve the right body weight for me. His knowledge about nutrition is the best i’ve ever come across and I would recommend him to anyone with a desire to increase in their performance.

– Dinos Stamoulis, professional hockey player, Springfield Falcons

As a fitness instructor trying to break into the world of fitness competition, I was lucky enough to meet Alan. I approached him with many questions about proper nutrition as it related to my goals in the fitness world. Alan and I worked together on the best plan that helped me achieve my desired results.

– Lisa Brinton, Fitness instructor, figure competitor, mom

Alan’s vast knowledge of the principles of dieting is second to none. He can explain it all in simple layman’s terms, which makes him an incredibly effective teacher and speaker. You have to check this guy out. When it comes to nutrition, Alan is the MAN!

– Dan Fine, CPFT, Mr. Southern California, World Gym Superheavyweight & Overall Champion

As a competitive tennis player, Alan has helped me achieve my nutritional goals of becoming leaner without the loss of muscle mass. His program was easy to follow and allowed me to live my life while getting closer to the physique I desired. His method allowed me to lose body fat while maintaining the muscle needed to stay tough on the tennis court. Any questions I may have about supplementation before, during, and after competition I seek the answer from Alan. With his knowledge, I have definitely improved my performance and have gained a winning edge.

As a personal trainer, I feel absolutely comfortable sending all my clients who need assistance with nutrition to Alan Aragon. Whether they need help with weight loss, lowering their cholesterol, athletic performance, or weight gain, Alan is the man with the answer. His easy-going attitude and understanding nature allow for the best results.

– Angie Ritter, USPTR Tennis Professional

Alan is not only my nutritionist, but a very dear friend. His scientific knowledge has been invaluable. Over the course of 3 years, I’ve gained over 30 lbs of muscle while reducing my bodyfat from 15% to 7%. At a bodyweight of 185, I’ve pulled a 600 lb deadlift, squatted 405 for 6 strict reps, benched 365 for 6 strict reps, and had a blast entering my first bodybuilding contest. Alan has helped me stay focused on my athletic goals while keeping the right perspective on the important things in life. A true friend and mentor, you couldn’t ask for more.

– Jonathan Cocco, multi-sport athlete

I have tried many fad diets and false starts with exercise programs over the years to counter weight gains. While these diets produced limited results, the weight would always return. I believe I have found the one person in Alan Aragon that could bring about a permanent change. Alan has produced dramatic results during the past year, helping me cut my bodyfat nearly in half while gaining lean mass, and greatly accelerating my post-operative recovery. I would highly recommend Alan to anyone who is serious about a life-changing experience.

– Dave Heller, double heart transplant recipient

Alan is one of the sharpest guys in the nutrition and training world – and brings the unique perspective of being a fully fledged science geek (the kind who won’t utter a syllable without a reference) and a practitioner – with real clients. That’s rare in this industry – typically there are science guys (who are VERY smart) but don’t work with anyone in the real world – and practitioners – who are too busy actually training people to get much research done. Alan bridges the gap.

– Alwyn Cosgrove, internationally recognized author and strength & conditioning coach