NBC Films at Next Level

 

On August 4th, NBC came to Next Level to film a segment of its show, 1st Look, which is an Emmy-winning weekly lifestyle show. For this particular segment, NBC was doing a feature on New York Giants punter, Steve Weatherford, at his location of choice—Next Level!  It was an exciting day for all of us! 

 

Camera crews followed Steve and 1st Look host, Audrina Patridge, around Next Level, as Steve demonstrated some parts of his training routine.  Audrina tried some of the various workouts, including lifting barbells and using the TRX.  Steve also showed Audrina his punting technique as they practiced punting in the field behind Next Level!

 

Bill and PJ, as well as owner Donald Shauger, even got mic’d up!  They were interviewed about Steve and his training routine, so be sure to look for them when the episode airs around the time of the 2015 Super Bowl.  

 

 

Donation of Smoke Detectors to Town of Morristown

 

On the same day of the NBC shoot, we also teamed up with Steve Weatherford to donate 250 smoke detectors to the Town of Morristown.  The idea for the donation came after an article appeared in The Star-Ledger about a family of six tragically killed in a house fire on Father’s Day.  Upon learning that the family didn’t have a single smoke detector in the house to protect them, we teamed up with Weatherford to purchase smoke detectors in their memory and to help supply the smoke detectors to local families in need.  

 

On August 4th, we presented the smoke detectors to Fire Chief Robert Flanagan of the Morristown Fire Bureau.  The Bureau intends to distribute them in one of a few ways.  Families sometimes will reach out to the Bureau directly to inquire about smoke detectors if they cannot afford to purchase them.  Also, Fire Inspectors out in the field take note of locations lacking fire detectors. 

 

According to Heather Bendel of the Fire Bureau, so far, the Bureau has had a few inquiries from homeowners requesting smoke detectors.  Additionally, the Bureau provided 100 of the smoke detectors last week for churches in "the hollow" area of Morristown.  We are thrilled to see them being put to good use!

 

 

NLT Thanks CVS for Healthy Living Initiatives

 

As an organization, we were happy to learn of CVS’ official decision to remove all remaining tobacco products from its stores.  As individuals who hope to encourage healthy habits and help our clients to keep their bodies in peak physical condition, we were fully in support of CVS’ measures to promote healthier lifestyle choices.  We sent an Edible Arrangements fruit basket to the Randolph CVS as a small thank-you to the company!

 

 

NLT Welcomes Thomas Barrett

 

This summer, Next Level Training welcomed a new full-time trainer, Thomas Barrett!  Thomas is a National Council for Certified Personal Trainers (NCCPT) Certified Personal Trainer.  Thomas has a degree in Exercise Science from the County College of Morris and is currently finishing up his Bachelor’s Degree in Health and Exercise Science from The College of New Jersey.  Prior to joining Next Level, Thomas trained a plethora of sport-specific athletes, such as a US youth national soccer team member; a US collegiate rugby player; college basketball and soccer players; and high school tennis, football, basketball, and soccer players. 

 

“He’s very knowledgeable and knows exercise inside and out,” said Bill.  “He’s adapted well to this environment and is great with the younger age groups.  He brings a wealth of knowledge of various sports to Next Level.  He also brings a new dynamic to our speed training.”

 

When he was 18 years old, Thomas actually set the International Powerlifting Association’s world record in the bench press for an amateur in the 18-19 year old division, 123 lb. weight class.  Although the record was broken the following year in Russia, it was a tremendous accomplishment for Thomas to have held a world record for a year!

 

Thomas played varsity soccer for both County College of Morris and The College of New Jersey, the latter of which is a Division III school.  He was both a varsity soccer and varsity basketball player in high school.  He has coached various recreational teams and youth groups in soccer, basketball, and volleyball.

 

“Thomas brings with him a strong knowledge of training athletes both in strength and speed,” said PJ.  “He really excels in teaching foot speed drills, which translate to the playing surface in any sport.”

 

We are excited to have Thomas as part of our Next Level team!

 

 

Part-Time Summer Trainers

 

We were joined this summer with a great group of trainers!  We thank them all for their contributions to Next Level this summer. 

 

Nick McKaba

University of Scranton

 

Bill:  “We have a lot of crossover hockey and lacrosse players.  With Nick being a Scranton D3 Lacrosse player, he helped with our multiple-sport athletes. He’s an exercise major, so he brought a wealth of strength-training knowledge.”

 

PJ:  “Nick brought energy and enthusiasm each day.  His lacrosse background and schooling allowed him to easily train athletes of all ages.  We look forward to having him back next summer.”

 

Andrew Koslov

Rutgers University

 

Bill:  “Kos has been a part of NL since its inception.  His work ethic and knowledge is always a benefit to the kids.  His work ethic is unbelievable.  He also has great speed and conditioning workouts.”

 

PJ:  “Andrew is an extremely hard worker with a passion for health and wellness.  Andrew is pre-med and has a great understanding of how to train and to treat the body of an athlete.”

 

Alex Velischek

Missouri Mavericks (CHL)

 

Bill:  “Alex is a pro hockey player.  He brought experience on how to train hard enough to play at a higher level.  His knowledge of the game is a great asset to our hockey-specific training.  He was also great at getting kids motivated for workouts.”

 

PJ:   “Veli was a great addition to the Next Level staff.  His playing experience and personality motivated all of the athletes he worked with.  Having a person with his knowledge and skills made it very exciting for our athletes, especially those doing hockey-specific training.”

 

 

CPR/AED Training

 

This summer, our trainers and staff members had a biennial refresher course to maintain their CPR and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) certifications.  You’re in good hands!

 

 

Mennen Camp

 

This summer, Next Level Training provided training three days per week to skaters at “Camp Mennen,” Mennen Arena’s summer figure skating camp.  Our trainers worked with over 110 skaters on off-ice conditioning.  One day per week was devoted to plyometrics in order to build speed and power, while the other two days per week focused on strength building, core work, and flexibility training. 

 

 

Kinnelon Camp

 

During the last week of August, Next Level also did dryland training at the Kinnelon Colts Hockey Fall Tune-Up Camp.  This was Next Level’s third year providing off-ice training for the camp, which was held at Twin Oaks Arena.  Our trainers held two training sessions per day and worked with various Kinnelon teams during the camp, which ran from August 25th through August 28th.

 

 

Personal Training

 

We had a great summer with our personal training clients!  We welcomed several new personal training clients to Next Level during the past few months, and they are now working diligently with Bill.  Each client is working towards his or her goals. 

 

Our Goal Incentive Program has proven successful for our personal training clients.  For those who do not know about our Goal Incentive Program, clients meet with trainers to come up with specific fitness goals and then get rewarded with a free session every time they reach their personal benchmarks.  So far, 100% percent of the goals set by our clients have been hit!  This is an extraordinary accomplishment, and we are truly proud of everyone.  In fact, one of our clients has reached FIVE of her personal training goals thus far!  If you commit to us, we’ll commit to you, your health, and your goals. 

 

 

Early Morning Boot Camp

 

In May, we gave everyone an inside look at one of our early morning boot camps.  In case you missed it, three participants in that boot camp began a weight loss contest among themselves and have seen amazing results to date.  Check out the article and video about their camp if you haven't already!

 

The group has continued to work hard throughout the summer.  The boot camp has picked up momentum and gained additional members.  The three members of the boot camp who started the weight loss contest didn’t stop after the first weigh-in on May 21st.  They are holding another weigh-in on September 17th, and they even got a fourth member to join the contest and weigh-in challenge!

 

 

Fall Boot Camps

With interest so high in our early morning boot camps, we will be starting another morning boot camp.  If you are interested, please call 973-590-2800 and speak to Bill.

 

 

This Fall’s D1, D3, Tier I Junior, and Professional Athletes

 

We wish the best of luck this upcoming year to some of our athletes who will be playing at either the D1, D3, Tier 1 Junior, or Professional levels during the fall!  The following athletes trained with us at Next Level this summer and will be playing at the following levels: 

 

D1/D3

Ryan Gomez – Assumption College

John Biacco – Yale University

Tommy Muratore – College of the Holy Cross

Mike Ambrosia – Princeton University

Michele Meggiolaro – Manhattanville College

Haley LaFontaine – Middlebury College

 

Tier I Junior

Tommy Grant – Bay State USPHL Premier

Josh Melnick – Youngstown USHL

Christian Sherman – Portland USPHL Premier

Jake Paganelli – Bloomington USHL

Grant Jozefek – Lincoln USHL

Matt Liebers – Connecticut Junior Rangers USPHL Premier

Andrew Callahan – PAL Junior Islanders USPHL Premier

 

Professional

Alex Velischek – Missouri Mavericks (CHL)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Alexandra Gakos, Next Level Training