High Expectations, by Matthew Romans

At my core, I am an optimist and believe in the power of positive thinking. Generally speaking, most successful people don't become that way by accident. If you visualize it, you can achieve it. Unfortunately, many people wittingly or unwittingly limit themselves by being fearful or thinking negatively. Negative thinking limits creativity, stifles one's progress, and causes people to act as their own worst enemy. I believe that if I expect great things from myself and from others, that will help to instill a positive belief in the people that I encounter. I encourage people to have high expectations, particularly about things in which they have the power to change.

I recently read the book Think on These Things by John C. Maxwell. Mr. Maxwell is a renowned author, speaker, and pastor who has written numerous books on various aspects of leadership, and he has outstanding insights into the nature of human behavior and what makes people successful. He says "Too many people fail to realize that their expectation measures the height of their future possibilities. It's impossible to achieve success without expecting it." This illustrates perfectly the importance of having high expectations.

Total Results instructors have very high standards; some might say we are a bit obsessive, but I suppose that could be interpreted as a matter of semantics. The point is that we expect a lot from ourselves and strive for perfection, but understand that is an unreachable standard. I often go over a client's chart after their workout and look at notations I have made in order to see how I could have instructed that session more effectively.

Our clients are successful people from a variety of different professions and are no strangers to achievement. Many of them are extremely competitive and push themselves very hard during their workouts. They inspire us to be at our best and bring our "A" game for every session. With every client, we are incredibly strict about exercise form and speed of movement, and this enhances safety as well as the effectiveness of the exercise stimulus. We do not expect every workout to be a personal best, but we do have high expectations that you will give your best possible effort if we provide the necessary guidance.

The concept of high expectations holds true in the design of our equipment and exercise approach. Ken Hutchins created our exercise protocol because he believed that there was a way to improve upon Nautilus principles. Two seconds lifting and four seconds lowering the weight seemed way too dangerous for many people. He wanted to find a way to standardize the weight training methodology of the Nautilus Osteoporosis Study so that the test subjects could improve bone mineral density without incurring injury. Ken had high expectations of himself that it could be done, through trial and error. This was also true with equipment design. After refining the exercise speed of movement and turnaround technique, he realized there were limitations with traditional weight training equipment. A self-taught engineer, Ken went through numerous machine prototypes before developing the machines in our studio that are made by MedX and Super Slow Systems. In fact, the process is ongoing; Ken has continued to tinker with equipment design because he believes he can still improve upon what he knows and what he has accomplished. High expectations are a way of life for him, and we are fortunate to be able to bear the fruits of his labor and imagination.

The Total Results attention to detail is one thing that sets us apart from the rest of the industry. It is important to us to read constantly and work to further educate and better ourselves because we want to continue to exceed our own expectations. We believe wholeheartedly in the concept, and we believe in our clients and their ability to succeed and reach their full potential. High expectations are encouraged, and negative thinking is strongly discouraged. As Henry Ford once said, "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right."