Final Phase Fat Loss – An Interview with John Romaniello

I’ve known John Romaniello for almost a decade now, and he’s a guy who delivers great content and plenty of humor and entertainment.  Oh, and he also happens to be in pretty good shape.

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EC: You were really active as a writer at T-Nation a few years back, and then took a little hiatus before returning with a vengeance – and some great content – recently.  Where the heck did you go?

JR: Ha! I guess I did kind of fall off the radar there.  I didn’t mean to intentionally withdraw; I wasn’t looking to make a statement.  In fact, I guess in retrospect my abscence was specifically because I didn’t have much to say.  I never wanted to be the type of trainer or writer who rehashed other people’s ideas; rather, I wanted to just gather as much information as I could from as many sources, and formulate my own ideas and theories based on that.  So in my early articles, you’ll see that.

Then…I wouldn’t say I ran out of ideas…it was more that I knew that the only way I could really develop my own theories was to dive in.  And that’s really what I’ve been doing.  I’ve been developing and redeveloping my own strategies and methods of over half a decade, while watching what was going on in the industry from a modest distance and not really making any attempt to re-enter ”the scene.”

At the same time, I was of course working on other stuff. I did some fitness and underwear modeling for a while, and that took some focus; plus, of course, there is my actual training, which takes up most of my time.

EC: You built up a pretty big clientele in that time period, didn’t you?

JR: You could say that. For about the past six years, I’ve built a hugely successful personal training company that works with a lot of athletes, actors, models, etc.

The great thing about working in (and more specifically, right outside of) New York City is the access you have to so many different types of clients.  Add to that the fact that I had been doing the modeling, and I made a lot of good contacts in the industry and was able to work with a lot of clients with very exacting goals.

So, while I haven’t gotten away from my muscle-head roots, I seem to have become a bit of a fat loss specialist–which makes sense, because that is what so many people are after.  I obviously work with a lot of people looking to drop a lot of weight, but in large part, my in person clients are very often those looking for polish their physiques and take it to the next level.

EC: Along those same lines, let’s talk about your new program, Final Phase Fat Loss.  I’ve read it and I like it a lot, but tell our readers about some of the details of it.  How is it different from some of the other stuff out there?

JR:Ah, I’m very excited to talk about this.

Final Phase Fat Loss (FPFL) really represents all the work I’ve put into my evolving theories over the past few years.  It draws from a good number of pre-existing ideas and methods, as well as much of my own original stuff, and blends it in synergistic way that makes the entire program work in an incredibly effective way.

There are a lot of great fat loss programs out there, but none of them really do what FPFL does.

The thing that makes it different from pretty much any program out there is the built in variety.  Now, as you know I’m not generally a fan of anything for its own sake, especially variety; but here, the variety makes everything exponentially more effective.

You see, one of the main facets of my fat loss programs is to include multiple training styles into the programming, usually within the context of a given training week.  Not to use muscle-mag clichés like “keep the body guessing,” but the fact of the matter is that by constantly varying the training stimulus, you just increase the amount of metabolic disturbance and force you body to adapt more quickly.  It’s as simple as that.

And, of course, every fat loss trainer will tell you that.

So, variety is one of the main things that makes Final Phase different.

EC: Got it. What else?

JR: The other thing that makes is that it unique is that it was designed to address a lot of the hormonal reasons for fat storage.  As an example, we know that if you’re insulin resistant, you’re going to store fat in your love handles.  So, given that insulin resistance (and therefore love handle fat) is extremely common, FPFL was designed with that in mind–the workouts (some more than others) are drawn from training styles that elicit certain hormonal responses–or increased production of certain hormone–and helps to combat difficulties like insulin resistance – and in part some of the problems that causes, like chronic love handular fattitude.

Pretty awesome.

The great thing about it is that it’s really intended for a few very specific purposes–it’s called “Final Phase Fat Loss” and that obviously carries certain implications.  We all know someone struggling to lose the last 5-10 pounds; whether it’s a mom trying to get into some pre-baby jeans, a 30-year-old guy looking to see his abs for the first time, or an athlete trying to drop a weight class (in actual fat, not water manipulation).  FPFL addesses those things.

No other fat loss program available specifically addresses the needs of people who are trying to get past that barrier between good and great.  Those programs simply don’t have the components organized the way I do, and aren’t ideal for losing the last bit of fat.

Final Phase fills that gap, and it’s going to help a lot of people do what my models and actors need to do all the time–get into lean, hard, photo-ready shape.

Of course, it’s also a great general fat loss program, and it’s proven itself to be exceptionally valuable for those who are just trying to bust through a fat loss plateau–so there’s that, as well.

EC: Intriguing stuff – and it’s backed by an excellent product that I’ve had a chance to review.  The training sessions are absolutely brutal, and anyone who is up for a challenge (on top of the benefits you already outlined) ought to check it out: Final Phase Fat Loss

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About Eric Cressey 1 Article

Eric Cressey is president and co-founder of Cressey Sports Performance, with facilities located in Hudson, MA and Jupiter, FL.  A highly sought-after coach for healthy and injured athletes alike, Eric has helped athletes at all levels – from youth sports to the professional and Olympic ranks – achieve their highest levels of performance in a variety of sports.  Behind Eric’s expertise, Cressey Sports Performance has rapidly established itself as a go-to high performance facility among Boston athletes – and those that come from across the country and abroad to experience CSP’s cutting-edge methods.  Eric is perhaps best known for his extensive work with baseball players, with more than 100 professional players traveling to train with him each off-season.

Cressey, a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, received his Master’s Degree in Kinesiology with a concentration in Exercise Science through the University of Connecticut Department of Kinesiology, the #1 ranked kinesiology graduate program in the nation. At UCONN, Eric was involved in varsity strength and conditioning and research in the human performance laboratory. Previously, Eric graduated from the University of New England with a double major in Exercise Science and Sports and Fitness Management.

An accomplished author, Cressey has authored over 500 published articles in all.  Eric has published five books and co-created four DVD sets that have been sold in over 60 countries around the world.  Eric has been an invited guest speaker in six countries and over 20 U.S. states. His Master’s thesis, “The effects of 10 weeks of lower-body unstable surface training on markers of athletic performance,” was published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, and Cressey was a co-author for the International Youth Conditioning Association (IYCA) High School Strength and Conditioning Certification. He serves on the advisory boards for both the IYCA and Precision Nutrition, and is a baseball consultant to New Balance. He also served as the strength and conditioning coach to the USA Baseball Under-18 National Team that won the gold medal at the 2015 World Cup in Osaka, Japan.

As a competitive powerlifter, Eric holds several state, national, and world records. A mainstay in the Powerlifting USA Top 100 lifts in his weight class, Cressey is rapidly approaching Elite status with competition bests of 540 squat, 402 bench, 650 deadlift, and 1532 total in the 165-pound weight class.  He is recognized as a coach who can jump, sprint, and lift alongside his best athletes to push them to higher levels – and keep them healthy in the process.

Eric’s writing and his work with athletes have been featured in such local and national publications as Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, ESPN, T-Muscle, Yahoo Sports, The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, Baseball America, The Worcester Telegram, Perform Better, Oxygen, Experience Life, Triathlete Magazine, Collegiate Baseball, Active.com, The Metrowest Daily News, Parents and Kids, and EliteFTS.  In the business world, Eric has worked with several start-up companies as both an angel investor and advisor.

Although prepared in a variety of bodies of knowledge, Cressey specializes in applied kinesiology and biomechanics as they relate to program design and corrective exercise; maximal relative strength development; and athletic performance enhancement. Feel free to contact Eric at ec@ericcressey.com.

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