MEET JOHN
John G
The Flight School Instructor who added improved his Mile Run (9:15 to 7:00) Decreased body fat 4% and increased his Clean (185 to 215) by becoming a Garage Gym Athlete.
Success story
Quick wins
About John
John Greaves III is the founder of Garage Gym Life Media, a brand dedicated to promoting the home workout lifestyle. John has been working out from home since 2000 when he left his job with a local fitness center. Having never had a gym membership, John decided to start exercising in his loft bedroom with a pair of 70lb dumbbells and a wooden box for a makeshift bench. Nearly two decades later, John is on his fourth home gym, this one in a two-car garage at the home he shares with his wife, Naomi, in Northwest Georgia. Above all, home gym ownership has allowed John to be thoroughly present throughout the process of guiding their children through adolescence and into adulthood.
HOW HE USED GARAGE GYM ATHLETE
"Because of what I do, I'm constantly fielding questions about how to get started either in home gym ownership or creating a sustainable fitness routine. 'The Garage Gym Athlete' has become one of the no-brainer recommendations to anyone with a public safety or military background looking to hang on to or reclaim their ability to do."
Results
John's athletic accomplishments include: Silver medal at 2000 International Kickboxing Federation Nationals John’s best lifts on the platform in a single powerlifting meet are 425/325/551 (192.5/147.5/250) with best gym lifts of 465/350/565 and a best three mile run time of 21:48. No longer restricting himself to bro sessions or training for powerlifting, John considers himself a physical culturist, on a spiritual quest to honor his Savior through developing the body he’s been given using the methods of the old time lifters from the 1970s and before. His best lifts in the old time lifts are: Steinborn Lift: 345lbs x 3 Arthur Lift: 225lbs Scott Lift: 235lbs 3 Barbell Side Press: 95lbs x 1 Zercher Lift: 315lbs x 3
I love the intensity and block training method. It leaves a no-bull approach that allows you to get the work in and focus intently for the allotted amount of time.
— Pat Romero
The full story
Listen to the interview
John G: the interview
“MY MENTAL TOUGHNESS HAS IMPROVED DRASTICALLY!”
“The Garage Gym Athlete community is a micro example of the interconnected, intangible bonds shared by everyone worldwide who has ever trained at home. The stories shared by members of this community would be easily understandable and relatable to both world record holding grip athletes Jerome Bloom and Riccardo Magni, powerlifting multiple record holders Kimberly Walford and Dennis Cornelius or weightlifting legends Paul Anderson and John Grimek.
“What all of these men and women from yesterday and today have in common with the Garage Gym Athlete community, is they all chose to own their training space as opposed to renting treadmill time at a Globo Gym.
Old time strongmen like George Hackenschmidt believed you should not train to soreness, instead gradually increasing you strength through volume and miniscule increases in load. Along with accomplishments like finally lifting a 45 plate by the hub, John seeks to improve his quality of life."
In the seven days leading up to this interview, John's training included pistol squats, a 32kg KB Rack Walk, 155lb Barbell Squat Jumps, 32kg Single KB Floor Press, 225lb Incline Bench Press, 32kg KB Swings, a 325lb Steinborn Lift, a PR 315lb Zercher Lift, from the floor, 185lb floor presses, 100lb slosh pipe carries, 300ft sled drags, heavy T-Bar Rows, 70lb Barbell Side Press, Dumbbell Kelso Shrugs with 80lbs per hand, 185lb Arthur Lift, a PR 505lb Yoke Walk after back squatting 405lbs for an easy beltless single and a PR 318lb Double Overhand 16 inch Axle Deadlift.
His biggest takeaway was experiencing zero soreness even after days when he hit PRs meaning he was able to still be present for family obligations.
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