Pure Health & Fitness Studio To Open In Wesley Chapel

In her 22-year career as a personal trainer, Samantha Taylor says she has helped 4,000 local women meet their health and fitness goals. Her plan is to increase that number to 10,000 by the year 2020, and the next phase of this growth already is under way, with the opening of Samantha’s second location of her Pure Health & Fitness Studios, across the street from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC) on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.

But, this business is not just a “numbers game” for Samantha. Each of these 10,000 total women is someone whose body has been — or will be — transformed and their lifestyles completely changed.

“When I meet them, women are often sad and depressed, and don’t have much energy,” Samantha explains. “But, I know where I can take them.”

She does this through a system she has developed over her years of professional training and experience, using her personal story of transformation to motivate others to work towards a life of health and wellness. “We are a private studio for women,” Samantha says. “This is not a gym, but a community where women experience accountability and support.”

At 17, Samantha first met her future husband Drew, a bodybuilder who convinced her to begin working out with him.

“I loved what it did for my body, and I could see the results,” she recalls. This led her to become an International Fitness Professional Association-certified personal trainer, and she eventually became the highest-producing trainer in all of Lifestyles Fitness, out of more than 2,000 trainers nationwide. However, Samantha says she still struggled with emotional eating and binging. “As a trainer, I gained 20 pounds,” she says. “It was embarrassing.” 

She says she knew she needed to change, and began to seek spiritual answers. As she read the Bible, she began to look at food and her body differently, and eventually was able to overcome her issues.

 “I wanted to open a place for women that’s not a gym,” says Samantha, who notes that she began her business 12 years ago and has upgraded her facilities by moving several times. About a year ago, she purchased a unique, resort-like, lakeside building in Land O’Lakes, off of S.R. 54 on Knights Ave. (just west of Collier Pkwy.). She expects this site to be her company’s flagship location for the foreseeable future, and its success has set the foundation for opening her new location in Wesley Chapel.

At either Pure Health & Fitness location, women can choose one-on-one or group personal training, or a membership for Pure Health’s FitBody Boot Camp. Here’s how these options work:

To get started with Pure Health & Fitness Studios personal training, each woman meets individually with Samantha for a Body Transformation Analysis — a completely free, no-obligation consultation to determine a fitness program that will be completely customized based on each woman’s individual goals. Samantha says that this is the most personal and private option. In addition to personal training sessions, each client also meets with an assigned results coach monthly, to be sure they’re progressing at the proper rate. 

FitBody Boot Camp membership is another available option. Women who choose this group fitness option start off with a consultation. Then, clients attend regular or beginner FitBody Boot Camp classes, which vary in cardiovascular intensity levels. The beginner classes allow clients to ease into the more intense regular class. Several classes are offered every day, and you choose three or more times each week to attend. Attendance is tracked, and you’ll do monthly weigh-ins and body fat testing, so you can be sure you’re always making progress towards meeting your goal.

“We expect change, and you should, too,” explains Samantha.

All of Pure Health’s programs include an eating plan and recipes, including no-sugar treats such as chocolate peanut butter cups. She emphasizes that her program is not a diet, but a lifestyle change, so that your changes become lifelong habits. “Our eating plans are not just for weight loss, but are based in science and chemistry, to balance the body and help prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.”

She says that with diets, women are often hungry, tired and have lots of cravings. She guarantees that with her eating plan, you won’t be hungry, you’ll have more energy and won’t have cravings. To sign up for some of Samantha’s favorite recipes, go to PureHealthStudios.com/GetRecipes.

At both locations, chef-led cooking classes are offered weekly. They are open to the public, although they often fill up quickly. To attend the cooking classes at the Wesley Chapel location, call the studio at 377-3739.

Why Pure Health & Fitness?

“For many women, their weight affects every area of their lives,” says Samantha. “They’re not happy, they feel they’re treated differently, and it can be debilitating.”

Although she helps women of every age, Samantha says many of her clients are in their 50s and 60s. 

“Women in this age group are starting to see bad health habits catch up with them,” she says. “They are seeing consequences and need to make a change for the future.” She explains they are often inspired by before-and-after pictures they see in local advertising, including pictures of Chris Williams, a former client of Samantha’s who is now a personal trainer herself.

Chris says she became a client of Samantha’s in 2007. “I had been gaining a few pounds a year for several years and couldn’t seem to get it off,” she recalls. She began training in March and had lost 55 pounds by that October. “And I’ve kept that weight off for seven years,” Chris says. 

Once Chris reached her goal weight, she continued to train because she wanted to see other changes in her body, such as toning, firming and muscle building. After several months of this training, she began to work with Samantha to learn how to be a personal trainer. 

“I was so happy with what I’d achieved that I wanted to help other women achieve the same thing,” Chris says. She became certified as a personal trainer by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) and has been on Samantha’s team ever since, helping other women achieve their goals. 

“Having a good trainer gives you someone to be accountable to,” Chris explains. “They’re training you to do exercises, but also helping you with eating, how you’re feeling and can tweak what you’re doing to get the best results. The most important thing is that you’re not alone. It can be really hard to reach your goal weight when you’re doing it by yourself.”

Samantha adds, “I have a great staff (which includes Chris and nine other personal trainers). It can be hard to find a good personal trainer, but I have a truly amazing team. They are spectacular, not only in their training abilities, but also in their people skills. Our trainers are compassionate, but they don’t accept excuses.” 

She says many of her trainers have more than 10 years of experience, and they are always bringing something new to the workouts. “Even with all of my experience, they keep doing things I’ve never seen before,” Samantha says, adding that this helps keep women from getting bored, and helps their bodies respond to their workouts.

Samantha says that, because she meets with each client individually, she can pair each woman with the specific trainer who is the best fit for her. “Our personal trainers are not there to just count reps,” says Samantha. “They are your cheerleader, motivator and accountability partner. Truly, the hardest part is showing up.” Samantha recounts Barbara’s story.  Barbara (left) started at 340 pounds and lost 190, and said that in any other program, she would have given up when she hit a plateau. “But you didn’t let me quit,” Barbara told Samantha.

Wesley Chapel Grand Opening!

The new Wesley Chapel studio held a well-attended open house on January 2-3, and already has enrolled 70 members. Many of these members signed up after seeing Samantha’s ad right here in the Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News. The studio also will host a Grand Opening celebration in February (although the date had not yet been determined as we went to press with this issue). The event will be open to the public and will feature a giveaway of great prizes, including a free cruise for two and six months of free personal training. Everyone is invited to check out the new Pure Health facility on BBD, meet the trainers, and enjoy delicious complementary snacks.

Pure Health & Fitness Studios’ new location is at 2653 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Suite 205 (second floor), just north of the Shops at Wiregrass Mall and across the street from FHWC. To sign up for a Body Transformation Analysis, visit PureHealthStudios.com/consult, or call 377-3739. Also, see the ad on page 22 of this issue for more information.