fit20 Exeter's Tobias Repper wins UWCB charity fight, advocating strength training

"Fit 20 Exeter's training builds endurance for any sport and especially when it comes to boxing or martial arts," says Tobias Repper, who is one of the studio's personal trainers. Tobias recently defeated his opponent, 'the Manc Menace' after three two-minute rounds and says there is nothing like fit20 to help sportspeople excel in their chosen discipline.

In fact, fit20 Exeter has seen some pretty good results when it comes to fit20 and boxing / martial arts. Last November amateur boxer, Garry Kearley won a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) charity event after being trained in the Honiton Road studio. Now Tobias has done fit20 proud at a recent UWCB charity fight in Marsh Barton watched by 1,000 people.

Ultra White Collar Boxing (UWCB) is an opportunity for sportspeople to raise money for charity.  With 277,176 figters to date, it has raised a combined £29 million for good causes.

Tobias, who is lives in Torquay is one of the newest members to the local fit20 team and is already making his mark. “I had a session with Tobias and can’t recommend him highly enough,” said Smith Paul. “Another great trainer added to Team fit20 Exeter.”

Ann says, “He is a lovely chap. Very helpful and encouraging. A great asset to the fit20 team!”

Tobias, who attended Torquay Boys Grammar School and Exeter College has a Level 3 qualification in Personal Training and comes from a background in martial arts, sports massage treatments and class instruction. We asked him several questions about his fitness journey and how fit20 has made a difference in his life, career and sport.

Nothing like fit20 anywhere

 

Have you always been interested in fitness?

“Yes! As a boy I went swimming every day before school. Then as a teenager I realised I was underweight and needed to start going to the gym to put on some muscle. I’ve been a fitness fanatic ever since. However, now that I’ve discovered fit20, I realise less time can be spent doing strength training and more time fine-tuning my boxing skills.

How did you come to fit20?

“I was looking for a personal training position and got to talking to Duncan Attwood. He gave me a demo session and I thought, ‘This is pretty good, there’s nothing like this anywhere!”

So, you come from a regular gym background and now you discover you can get fit in 20 minutes a week. Weren’t you sceptical about this?

“Not really, because I noticed that fit20 Exeter was so well supported and I thought, ‘It can’t be this busy if it doesn’t work! I need to see what fit20 is all about.”  

Since then, you’ve been through the fit20 Academy and qualified as a trainer. How do you now explain this unique method to your gym buddies?

“Well, the best way to experience fit20 is by taking advantage of a free trial session. I am amazed at how fit20 reduces training down to the exact, minimum amount required each week to keep fit. In comparison conventional gym training sessions are overblown, workouts are too long, not intense enough and the results are too slow.

“At fit20 we provide an intense full body work out in the shortest time according to a science-based method that delivers results. In each session one’s muscles are taken to point of failure and they grow back stronger.”

What does point of failure mean?

This is when your muscles physically cannot lift anything further. This is achieved precisely through our cutting-edge equipment, in a very controlled way. Your body responds to this stimulus and your muscles take a week to recover before your next session.

fit20 and boxing

So back to boxing, when did your boxing / martial arts journey start?

“I became interested in self-defence as a teenager and started to look at different combat sports. I found a place in Torquay that offers various types of boxing under one roof, so I decided to try them all, from regular boxing to Thai boxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and freestyle wrestling.”

And how does fit 20 and boxing / martial arts go together?

“Whatever your sports discipline is, the strength you get from fit20 is a game changer.  Anyone can benefit. The youngest person I train is 13 and the oldest is in her nineties. When it comes to fit20 and boxing or any other sport, our training helps massively in building endurance.

“It also helps you develop a better mindset. Because as you come into the studio each week to train your muscles to absolute failure, you push yourself to the point where you cannot push any harder because it is physically impossible.

“So, whatever sport you are doing, it becomes easier. This was certainly the case with my recent fight, where everything just sort of came together.”

Do you think that having a personal coach helps?

“100 per cent. I don't think fit20 training would be possible without a personal trainer. We ensure our clients get their posture perfectly correct so the right muscle groups are targeted. We also keep them going through each exercise, motiving them to achieve extra reps and move towards heavier weights. It’s amazing how helpful it can be to have someone telling you that you are on your last rep and you can make it, if you just keep going.”

Tobias will soon transfer to a new fit20 studio opening up in Devon.  Can you tell us more about that? 

“I'm really excited about the new studio,” he says. “I can’t wait to get in stuck in there and help more people get fit and find the endurance they need to excel as athletes.”

Congratulations to Tobias on winning his fight. He simply took everything in his stride and wasn’t bothered by the 1000-strong crowd. “It all happened quicker than I expected,” he says, “after all the training I feel I could have gone to eight rounds, much more than three at any rate!”

More about Tobias and fit20

Is there a particular client who you have seen benefit from the training?

“A lady I see each week is doing really well. She has completed 30 sessions and her results are going through the roof. Her whole body has improved and she has also lost weight. fit20 is great for people of all ages, both men and women, and can help all kinds of health problems.”

Including osteoporosis?

“Definitely because all of the exercises are low impact. There are only five exercises and they are all done on resistance machines using sensors to ensure they are completed in a controlled manner that is both slow and safe.  This is perfect for someone with osteoporosis or related conditions.”

It's low dosage but high intensity. Isn’t that a contradiction?

“No, the low dosage is that it is only 20 minutes a week. However, it’s the highest intensity training within that time. Of all the methods available, fit20 has the highest intensity. If the training is done correctly, it is pretty much impossible to beat it. Plus, motivational messages come up on the monitors to encourage you and when you do really well you get fireworks!”

Give an example of one of the messages?

“One of them is ‘Strength training improves your mental health.’ And it does so massively because of the endorphins released. You feel really good afterwards!”

And every now and then you get fireworks?

“There's three parts to the score. Tempo, Rhythm, and Range. If you improve on one or all of these aspects, fireworks appear on the display. However, the scores aren't the most important thing. It’s more about the amount of muscle failure that makes the difference.

“Anything above 80 is good as that means we can start adding more reps or increasing the weight. This is what delivers the phenomenal progress one can expect at fit20 with gains of up to 50 percent in the first year.”

Whether you come from a golfing background like Pete Eggleston who is the Studio Manager at fit20 Exeter; or you are a football enthusiast like Kam Malski (another local fit20 trainer) this unique method can make the world of difference.  It has certainly helped Tobias with his boxing.  Click to experience a fit20 taster session for free.