I'm not usually someone who writes reviews--mostly because I'm lazy :) but I really felt like I had…read moreto make an exception for Stage 3 Fitness. This isn't your typical fancy gym with flashy equipment and mirrors everywhere. It's something better--it's a supportive, tight-knit community of fitness enthusiasts who show up for each other every day and push through an intense 45-minute to 1-hour session together. The trainers aren't celebrity icons, but that's the best part. They're real, down-to-earth people who are incredibly fit and deeply knowledgeable about what they do. They motivate, guide, and genuinely care about your progress. If you live in or around the area, joining Stage 3 is honestly a no-brainer. I've got a hectic work life, and this place has become my sanctuary. It's the one hour of the day where I can disconnect, challenge myself, and feel grounded. Big thumbs up from me. Couldn't recommend it more.

Had such a fun and challenging workout via my classpass app! Although a little further from where I…read morelive, it was certainly worth the drive to try a new place out. The workout was simple but also dynamic and I really enjoyed the lively upbeat music. Equipment was organized and well spaced out. Would love to come again!

I have always struggled with my weight for as long as I can remember. I have always been told by…read moredoctor's that I was obese, thank you for putting your doctorate to use by telling me something that I saw in the mirror this morning, I digress. Anyhoo, I have to say that the Center of Weight Management and the staff are so kind and professional. From the desk staff to the medical staff. They never make you feel as if you are bothering them, I can't tell you how many times I locked myself out of my patient account and had to have it reset and they did it with a smile every time. I was so ready to finally take this journey and they were all ready to take it with me. They had the nutritionist and physical therapist meet with me individually and it was great! They were just awesome to meet with and made sure I could contact them whenever I needed too. They also have psychologists on staff to help with any issues you might need to talk about but they also teach important courses prior and after your surgery, which is free to patients and a support person. Dr. del Mazo is an amazing surgeon. He makes you feel as if you are his only patient, I know he has many more, but I always felt as if I was his first priority. He visited me in the hospital after surgery and encouraged me to get out of bed and walk, he even challenged me and another patient to a contest ... she won darn it! But it was a great experience all around. There is so much more I could say but my boss is looking at me like i should get back to work. I swear they want me to work for my paycheck! Do yourself a favor, if you decide to take this journey walk with the Center For Weight Management At Gwinnett Medical Center they are the best!

Now that I'm post-op, it's time to spill the boiling hot tea all over the place. The first 6 mos…read more (waiting period due to insurance co.) were brutal. I got put through so many hoops to jump (nutrition visits, fitness eval) and it was a monthly thing for the nutrition visits. I was going through a divorce AND had just graduated from university all in one of those months and forgot I had a nutrition appointment one of those months because it was mentally chaotic for me considering what I was going through. My life had just been turned upside down and now I had to consider moving out and deciding whether to stay in GA for my new career or to get out of state (I chose the latter eventually). Note: I DID mention that I forgot that one appointment!!! So then when I showed up for the following month's appointment, I find out that some rat in the facility cancelled ALL of my upcoming remaining less-than 6 months worth of appointments without my consent and the attitudes of the front desk personnel at the nutrition/dietary center changed to negative and they started treating me like a juvenile delinquent with a lost cause. Mind you, I just graduated with a bachelor's degree and had been awarded for excellence in college. I'm not a mean person and I do value my time as well as others'. Well, long story short the clinic said they couldn't see me again until I talked with Miss Al'Nisa (one of the patient advocates) to resolve the issue for missing September's nutrition appointment. I kid you not, that lady approached me with one heck of a snappy attitude and said "You might as well just give up and start all over again with 6 months because you missed that one appointment." I stood up to her and said "Absolutely not! We are going to work through this." Had I not stood my ground, she would not have given me a form to give to my primary care doc to fill out (btw, that form got filled out easily and life went on just fine). This wasn't the first match I had with Al'Nisa. Some time prior to that day, I kindly (and professionally) asked her about helping me make sure my insurance company would pay for the surgery without them trying to pull a slick one on me in the last minute and refuse to pay for the surgery. Al'Nisa raised that snappy voice of her's again with me and outright refused to help me at all. If you even ask that lady for help, honey you are on your own. She doesn't do anything extra. That attitude of hers is toxic and I am so glad I demanded to have a change with patient advocates. Unfortunately, someone put her up to calling me again and by the attitude over the phone, I knew right away it was that snappy one again. I told her she had no business handling my case anymore. I got switched to Pedro for patient advocate and while he was much better, I guess he got the false rumor I am an idiot or something because he got smart with me on the phone one day and made assumptions and I called him out for it. Little did he know, I am going through a divorce and was in the process of packing up my house and things getting lost in the house because of the drama. Things happen, but that doesn't mean you get smart with me over the phone. Anyway, I made it pretty clear with this clinic I did not appreciate them going behind my back to cancel appointments just because I missed one appointment. Their attitudes toward you will change if you miss one day, so here's my advice to every single pre-op patient considering this clinic: 1. Hold this place accountable. You make sure you get a printout of your appointments for the clinic side (the side where you visit the nurses and surgeons) and the nutrition/dietary side) because if you miss one day, they will wipe out all of your future appointments without any notice to you and they genuinely do not GAF and I'm saying that nicely. You also make sure they did not cancel any of your appointments as well. 2. Go ahead and ask patient advocate for the nutrition/weight log that you give to your primary care provider to document for the month in case you miss one nutrition visit. (life happens, be prepared. Don't let them screw you over. NO you don't have to start all over again. They'll make you think that, but you need to put your foot down and stand up to them and say NO I am not starting over!!!) 3. Ask for Pedro as your advocate and your life will be with less bs attitude problems. He is more likely to work with you. 4. Do attend the pre-op meeting(s) if required for insurance purposes. They aren't painful or brutal. Just grin and bear it. 5. Buy at least 2 bags of Bariatric Advantage protein shake bags from them before your surgery date. They also sell the sample packs that come with a shaker bottle and tote bag, you're welcome! (less then $30) 6. Raj is amazing. If you end up having mental health appts with her, she's fantastic. Even if not required, I would highly recommend you visiting her at least once to talk about eating right and paying attention to your body.

Great personal trainer! Great motivator, great workout sessions, and I started seeing results…read moreshortly after starting. I've heard people say they get energized after a workout. Never had that feeling until now. After my morning training sessions, I feel ready for the day and don't need my morning cup of coffee as desperately as before.

Yancy is passionate about his craft and will definitely help you achieve your fitness goals. I…read morehighly recommend him.

My wife and I visited Open Hand Atlanta to volunteer our time for a couple of hours to prep meals…read more Open Hand provides nutritional meals for those with chronic diseases, such as AIDS/HIV, different forms of cancer, etc. These nutritional meals promote and prolong healthier way of life. Once you arrive and sign in, you'll be taken to a waiting room area, where Open Hand staff gives you a rundown of their history and what their mission is. You also get the rules of the prep room and are gifted a one of a kind hairnet, plastic apron, and men with facial hair gets face masks. No jewelry may be at any time. Rings, necklaces, earrings, facial piercings, watches, etc. can NOT be worn. There are different things that you can do at this space, but I wanted to do meal prep. We washed our hands and grabbed plastic gloves. Keep in mind, the gloves are different sizes. The meal prep was like an assembly line. The meal we prepped was Beef Stroganoff on Noodles with Green Beans. With a scale, the first person weighed the appropriate number for the noodles, the second person weighed the right number of beef stroganoff, and the third person weighed the right number for green beans. There is then a fourth person who wipes off any excess food from around the rim of the food container. This is important so the plastic cover will seal appropriately. It's then put in this contraption that holds multiple containers and a person press seals it and puts it to the side. This is definitely quite a process, but once you get into the flow of it, it becomes easier. Some people make it a challenge against another group to see who can make the most meals. Side note: THIS PLACE IS FREEZING! The ENTIRE BUILDING IS COLD! Bring a jacket or hoody. Overall, this is a great place to come with a group or by yourself and do some charitable services. Fortunately, we came with a large group of my wife's coworkers, so we were able to knock out over 2,500 meals which was awesome! I'd definitely come back.

I volunteered at Open Hand two weeks ago (Saturday, July 22, 2017) and had a lot of fun. I didn't…read moreknow what to expect as far as working conditions, the general environment, and exactly what we would be doing. Would I be in some freezing cold meat locker? Would I be inside an insanely hot warehouse? Would I be breaking my already broken back moving heavy objects around? Would I be doing some mundane task for hours and be bored out of my mind? Fortunately, the answer to all those questions was no. I went with a big group to celebrate someone's birthday (a neat idea). Half of us did meal packing and the other half did market basket packing. I signed up for meal packing. Our meal packing session involved packing meals into bags and portioning food into individual containers (think frozen TV dinners). The food was already cooked and just needed to be heated up to be eaten. Market basket packing involves packing nonperishable foods. In this case, the food wasn't cooked and the recipients would need to cook it themselves. We signed up to work from 1pm to 4pm. Each of us had to register on Open Hand's website. After registering and reserving our spots, we received confirmation emails with information, reminders, and dress code requirements. One of the dress code requirements in my confirmation email said, "Long pants are preferred. Skirts or dresses must be shin length." I wore shorts. When standing, those shorts touched the top of my knees. My girlfriend, who also signed up for meal packing, wore shorts too. Her shorts were shorter. She ended up getting moved to market basket packing because of the length of her shorts. This wasn't a big deal, but the dress code requirements listed in the confirmation email should have been more clear about shorts or simply just said that long pants are required for meal packing. There was at least one other person in our meal packing group with knee-length shorts. When you arrive to Open Hand, the volunteer entrance is clearly marked. Each volunteer must sign in and sign out using a computer just inside the entrance. We arrived right around 1pm, checked in, and were ushered into an orientation room. The orientation was quick, about 10 minutes. A short video about Open Hand was played and then we got some in-person instruction. After that, we were whisked to our volunteer work areas. For meal packing, we had to wear hair nets and aprons. First, we helped prepare bags to place meals in, then we moved into the meal packing work area. This was a cool, clean room with various tables and assembly lines. One group was already sealing TV dinner trays when we arrived. We washed our hands and helped assemble bags with four meals in them: Monday lunch, Monday dinner, Tuesday lunch, and Tuesday dinner with cornbread and condiments (ketchup and mustard). It was pretty easy. Each person was assigned to place one or two items into each bag and pass it down. I was responsible for the ketchup and mustard. After a bag had four meals, cornbread, and condiments, it was tied and placed on a tray which was later stacked and carted off. We assembled 126 of these Monday-Tuesday meal bags. Two of our meal packing group were broken off and sent to the cornbread station where they individually bagged and sealed cornbread. The cornbread was already cooked and cut. After assembling the meal bags, we took a short break in the break room and then were called back into the meal packing room for another job. This time, we had to portion food into TV dinner trays which would later be sealed. This task was harder than the last because we had to handle food directly with our hands (wearing gloves of course) and measure correct portion sizes using scales. We packed 285 meal trays filled with chicken, mushroom risotto, and peas and pearl onions. The hands of the people scooping and portioning out the risotto and peas got tired. I helped a little bit with the peas and organizing and stacking the meal trays on bigger trays, but I mostly was responsible for placing a piece of chicken on top of the risotto. We ended up spending almost our full 3-hour allotment at Open Hand. The market basket packing group ended up finishing early, in under 1.5 hours. Volunteer Services Manager Julie Barwig was the person who oversaw our group. In the meal packing room, Andre led us for the meal bag packing and Shameka led us for the meal tray portioning. Everyone was nice and friendly. I enjoyed the experience so much that I'm now considering signing up to do meal delivery. Open Hand's mission statement: "Open Hand helps people prevent or better manage chronic disease through Comprehensive Nutrition Care, which combines home-delivered meals and nutrition education as a means to reinforce the connection between informed food choices and improved quality of life." The campus is located in the industrial Armour neighborhood of Atlanta near SweetWater Brewing Company and the Armour Yard rail yard on the southern edge of Buckhead.

Before the COVID period I would meet Chris early mornings two days a week at my clubhouse fitness…read morecenter. That worked very well. However since COVID, I set up my basement with a few essential pieces of equipment and a few repurposed items that help me in my workout routine. Now I go downstairs on those mornings, Chris promptly calls through Facebook Live. We then have an efficient workout without leaving my home. Chris Taylor's the workouts to your needs as well as what your body might be telling you. All and all, I need a trainer on my side for accountability and Chris certainly makes me accountable. I give him a big 5 stars.....

Chris is one of the best personal trainers I worked with - he designs workouts based on your goals…read moreand very flexible. I highly recommend Chris for your fitness goals.