AN inspirational Colchester man who underwent a life-changing transformation has said exercise and becoming a personal trainer has stopped him from going down a dark path full of drugs and violence.
George Sampson, 27, from Prettygate, Colchester, is a personal trainer (PT) who runs Sampo Transformation Limited – a business to help men get into top shape.
But prior to starting the business at the age of 22, George had to go through his own transformation, both emotionally and physically.
Ever since his early childhood, George was constantly worried about his weight, explaining how he was “morbidly obese” and that he was bullied at primary school because of it.
He said: “When I was coming of age, I wanted to lose the weight, it was always a dream of mine to get into shape.
“It got to the point I developed a twitch where I was so conscious about my double chin - a few mental health problems arose from my weight.”
He then joined a gym and “tried getting serious” about weight loss but at 18, when studying a BTEC Level three in sport, George said he went through an "identity crisis”.
He says he was a “violent” person who got mixed up with crime, taking and selling drugs – even getting diagnosed with drug-induced psychosis at one point.
George said: “I was involved in alcohol and drugs, I was looking up to the wrong people, I had a mixture of no guidance and no goals, no road, it was only going down a bad path.
“A lot of the people I hung around with were incarcerated or no longer here anymore.
“Something happened, I ended up getting diagnosed with drug psychosis, I gave up all the crime and had to, I had to basically hit rock bottom, but it was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
George sought a new path and decided to do something combining sport and business.
At 19, he achieved a personal training qualification.
George continued to work on himself both physically and mentally and spent the next few years learning about the personal training industry.
After launching his business, Sampo Transformation, he is now dubbed the ‘geezer’s confidence coach’ and has more than 75 clients whom he works with online.
Originally starting working on a one-to-one basis face-to-face, George says working online allows him to support his clients in a more personable way and hold them “accountable every single day” through zoom call catch-ups.
George has also cultivated a community feeling amongst his clients, often training with clients and taking them on holiday, showing them they can "enjoy food" and hit exercise goals at the same time.
He said: “This why I call myself a transformation coach, as it is so much more than just health, it is body, mind, we look at growth, being a man, being career driven, and other qualities.
“I am a massive advocate for men’s mental health, I even run a podcast about mental health called the Geezers podcast.
“I work with these guys. I want to show them they can use their body as a vehicle towards the foundation of success.
“I adapt everything for them, I give an education on nutrition so they can hit their goals and get nice and lean for any occasions
“I take care of their training regime. It’s all built out with videos explaining how to do the exercises.
George added that he is extremely grateful for the life he now leads.
"I owe my whole life to it, this is why I devote my life to my business, my fiancée and stepson," he said.
“I’m buying my first property this week and I have an amazing missus.
“It helped me grow my self-development.”
To find out more about Sampo Transformation, visit sampotransformationcoach.com.
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