Our Male Athlete of the Month for April is Norman Jaeger aka NORM!!! Norm is SUPER FIT at FIFTY, and loves to challenge himself daily in our 710 FTX class. Norm has been at FitTown Jupiter for over 4 years and has given his best to over 650 workouts! He’s always incredibly attentive to cues
and works hard to get the technique correct. We talk about being a light in our community at FitTown and Norm is definitely a light to all who know him. He’s attracted upwards of 8+ new members to FitTown since he joined, including his two adult kids, Ben and Hanna. Thank you Norm and the Jaeger family for being a part of our FitTown Family!
1. Tell us a little about yourself.
People often ask me where I am from. It’s a bit of a tough question to answer for a missionary kid who moved all over. I have lived in Japan, Germany, and all over the USA. California, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, New Jersey, and of course Florida. Grew up speaking 3 languages and have had quite a multicultural experience which has had a huge impact on my life. I have a number of friends who were already members at FitTown who had been talking about it with me for years. I decided to join at a season when I realized my son Ben needed a healthy outlet in his teen years. My initial intent was to go with him for a few months to get him started and then to quit. Although Ben did not stick with it very long I was hooked.
I have a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology and have been a Licensed Mental Health Counselor for 21 years and am in private practice in Jupiter. A large part of my work is relationship counseling as well as working older teens and adults. I have been married to my wife Audrey for 26 years and have two kids Hanna who’s 23 and Ben who is 20. Hanna is now married and Ben is rarely home between work and girlfriend, therefore we are nearly empty nesters and are making the most of it and enjoying ourselves.
2. What’s something about you that others may not know about you? Any special talents, hobbies, or interests?
I am an avid Fisherman and surfer and enjoy anything related to the water. I love camping and travel and anything that involves spending time with family and friends. As far as something others don’t know about me, I can sing the song, God Is So Good in 4 languages, English, German, Japanese and Bengali 🙂
3. Were you into sports/fitness growing up? What was your fitness background before FitTown?
I played soccer from my childhood on through my Freshman year of High School and then switched to lacrosse for the remainder of my High School career. In college, I mainly just surfed and played some beach volleyball.
In my 30’s I developed a number of significant back problems and found that core strengthening was the only solution that worked for me. I started slowly with the P90X program which I did at home consistently for a number of years prior to coming to FitTown. Primarily it is my core group of friends that brought me in to FitTown. Patrick Bordner, Rob Gresham and Shawn Sebastian were amongst those that influenced my decision.
4. What positive physical progress would you like to brag on about yourself?
I have experienced various ups and downs physically since being at FitTown, mostly ups though. I have been able to lower my chronically high blood pressure and have learned some very fun skills such as double unders as well as kipping and butterfly pull-ups. I would say that my cardio endurance has definitely increased. I don’t know that I look all that different however my wife might tell you that there is now a lot more junk in my trunk (in a good way) :). Probably because I am no longer skipping leg day.
5. Any special mottos or habits you’ve found since being at FitTown?
I love the motto of “Just Show Up”, because there are many days that I just don’t feel like it and can think of a million excuses not to go to the gym, however by the end of the workout I am always glad I did.
6. Our new mindset focus word is PATIENCE. Can you talk about patience in your life?
Patience has always been a struggle. Like many, I have always been challenged with delaying gratification. It has been a lifelong journey to be patient. The way it plays itself out in the gym for me is in a tendency to often go out too hot on workouts that require pacing or event starting slow and building. I have had some recent successes in this department but am still in process. When I fall short I do my best to extend myself grace knowing that tomorrow is always a new day.
7. Do you have any memorable moments/workouts at FitTown that you’d like to share?
Probably the most memorable times for me have been when I have had the chance to work out with my kids, Hanna and Ben. In 2018, Hanna and I competed in the Deadly Duo. That has to be one of my favorite experiences. We had such a great time and talk about it to this day.
8. What advice do you have for the person who’s hesitant about starting a fitness program like this?
Just do it! start slow, do what you can and progress little by little. You will be amazed where it will lead you. I had a psychiatrist say to me once that there is no pill they can prescribe a patient for their mood that is as effective as a good exercise program.
9. What do you love most about FitTown Jupiter?
I love the well-planned programing, the coaching as well as the positive attitude and professionalism of all the coaches. I have found the community at FitTown also to be a vital element that fosters such a great sense of belonging.
