I had a huge responsibility to do better.

“I began my CKO Kickboxing journey as a 250lb mom who needed to regain my health for my little girl and myself. I used to be fit and eat healthy. After I had my little girl, ‘life happened’ and I gained so much weight. Despite my unhealthy habits, I always make certain my little girl eats healthy (green smoothies, raw veggies and fruits, organic, etc). Well, my encouragement came in the form of that same little girl. Kumari, my now 7 year old health guru, constantly told me how much she loves, and how she wants me to be healthy. I wasn’t able to really run around and play with my daughter the way she deserved me to. She would ask me to share her green smoothies with her. She would use the reasons I gave her to eat healthy and direct them at me. In addition to this, my mother survived a hemorrhagic stroke. Witnessing my mother in such a state, I knew I wanted my daughter to see me healthy and not worry, I knew I had to not only teach my daughter to be healthy but also be that example for her, and I had to be healthier for my mother…I had a huge responsibility to do better.

In July 2016 (July 4th weekend), I was looking for a place to start that journey. After much research, I realized kickboxing was a great way to start. That led me to CKO Kickboxing Upper East Side. I spoke with Addy about how to join, number of times to workout each week, etc. He was super patient, super informative, and always available for questions. Well, thanks to the welcoming attitude that Addy exuded, I decided to take my first class. WHOA!!!!!!! I kicked, I sweated, I punched…but I made it through the first class…and I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!!!! Tiffany was really helpful and I signed up a few days later. The members were so nice. The culture at this gym is purely non-judgmental and everyone is super focused. I always said ‘there was no time’ to work out. Well, I began to find the time. Then I started taking double classes. Again, Addy was super encouraging. The trainers: Karissa Young, Codie Payne, Joe Sharp, and Libio Carcasses were super encouraging, noticed my improvements, gave me advice…THEY ARE AMAZING. Their workouts were INTENSE and that’s what I was looking for. I have to digress for a minute and share how amazing these 4 have been on my journey. To have so much knowledge and expertise under one roof is invaluable. Karissa, Codie, and Joe are also actual fighters and their expertise has allowed me to use more of my muscles with each punch and kick. They know so much, and they are always willing to share information. Sooo, after taking 2 classes in a row for a certain amount of months, one day I decided to increase it to 3 classes one day a week (that’s how strong I feel). Well, fast forward from July 6th, 2016 to today, I have lost 90 lbs and have taken over 200 classes at CKO Upper East Side. In about 7.5 months, I have been able to accomplish so much for myself, my little girl, and my mom, and I thank everyone at CKO. I am excited to see how much more improvement I can gain by my 1-year CKO anniversary. I was also recently able to start running for 45 minutes straight. This would not have been possible without the wonderful trainers, the awesome conditioning and strength building I am able to access at CKO. CKO is filled with awesome people who push everyone to do better.”

​- Marsha