My name’s Renato Alves, I’m 35 years old and like many other Free Athletes, I found Freeletics on YouTube while searching for tips to get fit again.
When I was a teenager, I used to practice kung-fu for five years and gymnastics for three, plus do swimming and play football. I was never a fan of the traditional gym full of fancy equipment – I tried it but I found it boring. However, as I grew older, I started smoking and drinking so I left my sports and physical activities behind me for 16 year. That is, until I found Freeletics.
I downloaded the app, decided to quit smoking, started eating clean and healthily and I did my first workout. It was Metis and it took me around 28 minutes to finish it. My journey was extremely hard, especially as I’ve been smoking for so many years. I couldn’t breathe properly during the workouts and had to take several breaks during the first eight or ten weeks.
I’ve lost 17kg on this journey (I went from 90kg to 73kg), but I have to be honest and tell you that I considered giving up many, many times. I used to think “why am I doing this to myself? I’ve lost 10kg already, I don’t need it anymore.” But I was stronger than my mind, which was trying to play this game with me, so I kept going.
Freeletics and I were love at first sight. It reminded me of my kung-fu and gymnastics days when I used to train without any machines or fancy equipment. Well, here I am today in my 81st week of Freeletics.
Physically, I feel way better now than when I was 20 years old, not to mention the mental strength Freeletics has also given me. I would like to thank all the Freeletics crew for this great app, which is not just an app – it is a way of living, I’ll keep training with Freeletics until my body gets too old to keep going, that’s for sure!!
