About John Paul

John Paul Catanzaro, BSc Kin, CSEP-CEP, CSEP-HPS, is a CSEP Clinical Exercise Physiologist and a CSEP High Performance Specialist with a Specialized Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and Health Science. He owns and operates a private training facility in Richmond Hill, Ontario. In 1996, John Paul opened a personal training studio at his home in Toronto, Ontario. With vision and passion, the business quickly grew and the word got out: “If you want to get in shape, go see this guy!” Now located in Richmond Hill, Ontario, the business boasts a state-of-the-art training facility and a waiting list of clients. John Paul founded The Catanzaro Group in 2004 with divisions in fitness, nutrition, supplements, lifestyle, seminars, and publishing. In 2010, Catanzaro Supplements was introduced, a new line of nutritional supplements with the objective of providing high quality supplements in a convenient form at an affordable rate. Over the years, John Paul has appeared on television and has written articles for several publications, including American Academy of Health and Fitness (AAHF) Gamut eJournal, Bodybuilding.com, Bodybuilding Italia, canfitpro Magazine, Coaching One-On-One, Dolfzine, FitCommerce, Fitness Business Canada, Fitness Professional Online, Fitness Trainer, Flare, grrlAthlete.com, Intense Fitness, Men’s Health, Mercola.com, MuscleMag International, Olympian’s News, Personal Trainer Development Center, Personal Training on the Net, Planet Muscle, Quest For Advanced Condition, SelfGrowth.com, SpotMeBro.com, Testosterone (aka T-Mag.com and T-Nation.com), TheGymLifestyle.com and Wannabebig.com. His newsletters are informative and entertaining, and he has provided reviews for numerous publications, including the inaugural edition of Sport First Aid in Canada. John Paul has authored six books, The Elite Trainer (2011), Mass Explosion (2013), The Business of Personal Training (2014), The Warm-Up (2016), Lean and Mean (2017), and Invincible (2022), and has released two DVDs, Stretching for Strengthening (2003) and Warm-Up to Strength Training (2005), which have sold copies worldwide, featured in several magazines, and been endorsed by industry-leading experts. John Paul has also released four webinars, Strength Training Parameters and Program Design (2013), Body Composition Strategies (2013), The Business of Personal Training (2014), and Injury Prevention Strategies for Aging Athletes (2016), providing the latest cutting-edge information to fitness professionals. Throughout his career, John Paul has consulted for various corporations. He’s worked with law enforcement personnel and has contributed to the Toronto Police Service health and wellness program. John Paul has worked with bodybuilders, fitness models, athletes, and coaches ranging from amateur ranks to national-level caliber. John Paul is one of the premier trainers in Canada. Building a reputation for getting his clients in top shape quickly, his expertise has not gone unnoticed by other health practitioners who attend his private studio regularly for instruction. John Paul has attracted the attention of various fitness-related organizations seeking lectures and workshops. The list includes canfitpro, Certified Professional Trainers Network, Granite Club, Masters Swimming Canada, Ontario Kinesiology Association, Ontario Society for Health and Fitness, Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club, and more. Those who experience his presentations have dubbed him “the man with an encyclopedic mind.”

Research can provide golden information to health and fitness professionals. If you’re a personal trainer, here are some recent findings to help you stay ahead of the pack: Resistance Exercise is Effective for Cancer Patients Resistance exercise is effective to increase lower-limb muscular strength, increase lean body mass, and decrease body fat in cancer patients…

Inducing body composition changes in a beginner is easy. Clean up their eating habits, get them exercising, and the body will start to change fairly quickly. Heck, a beginner just has to look at a barbell and they’ll start to grow some muscle! Things get a bit more challenging with advanced trainees, but with the…

If I asked what the most popular set/rep scheme in strength training is, most people would respond with 3 sets of 10 reps. It seems to be the universal training prescription — but where does it come from? The concept stems from a 1948 paper by Dr. Thomas DeLorme and Dr. Arthur Watkins, where they…

As a Clinical Exercise Physiologist, my role is to promote health and fitness — not to manage disease. That’s the job of medical doctors, who, for the most part, manage disease by suppressing symptoms with drugs. But it’s not the symptoms you should focus on — it’s the cause. If you truly want to cure…

On January 1, 2016, I posted the first blog entry of the year — and here we are today, twelve months and almost 100 posts later! Our readership has grown considerably over the past year, and the number of newsletter subscribers and social media followers has steadily increased as well. Thank you for all your…

If your goal is to build muscle, you better make sure you have enough vitamin D in your body. One of the primary functions of vitamin D is muscle growth. Believe it or not, taking a shower every day can actually lead to a vitamin D deficiency — which may result in muscle loss, weakness,…

One simple way to gauge testosterone status in males is often referred to as the “morning wood” test. If you’re not waking up under a tent first thing in the morning, your testosterone levels may not be optimal. Of course, this isn’t a foolproof measure. Your sleep cycle can affect it. Testosterone spikes during REM…

Not long ago, I shared the inspiring story of my client Arzhang — a man who overcame a horrific fall in December 2013 and, through relentless hard work, built an impressive level of muscular strength and leg hypertrophy. If you missed his story, check it out here:Climbing to New Heights: An Inspirational Story Recently, Arzhang…

The Problem… Watch this eye-opening video: The Solution… Two simple but powerful steps can make a world of difference:→ Increase physical activity→ Improve dietary habits Increase Physical Activity Get your kids moving more and sitting less! Here are some helpful resources: Improve Dietary Habits Good nutrition is key. Check out these kid-friendly meal ideas: Take-Home…

Charles Poliquin did the world a huge favor when he introduced the concept of having meat and nuts for breakfast. It’s one of the most effective nutritional strategies you can use — for both adults and children. The challenge? Most kids aren’t exactly excited to eat chicken breasts, pork chops, or steak first thing in…