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.”

The standard side-lying dumbbell external rotation primarily overloads the middle of the range of motion. If you use a resistance tube, it shifts the overload to the end of the range. But what about the start of the range? That’s where these two variations come in. I learned the Buchberger External Rotation from renowned shoulder…

I’ve always tried to avoid problems. If a glass is near the edge of a table, I move it. If a parking spot is too tight, I find another one. But the other day, I had an epiphany—maybe avoiding problems isn’t always the best strategy. In fact, having a few challenges might actually help with…

In strength training, it’s wise to work up to a peak load over several workouts, then drop down a bit at the end before starting a new program. While a deload at the end of a routine can help prepare (or more accurately, repair) the body for the next phase, lowering intensity in the middle…

Some people have black hair, some have blonde hair, and some have no hair. Some are tall, some are short. Some have dark skin, some have light skin. Some are bow-legged, others are knock-kneed. While the hardware may look different, the operating software (OS) is quite similar among us. The human body has built-in survival…

You know the golden rule: The more you learn, the more you earn! My career took off when I started attending seminars and conferences. Early on, I made it a point to attend one or two nearly every month. Not only did this equip me with the tools and confidence I needed to succeed, but…

You won’t find a better exercise for building the lower body than the squat. However, that doesn’t mean squats should be the only tool in your toolbox! Recently, single-leg training has been championed as a suitable alternative to bilateral squatting, with split squat and lunge variations being the go-to choices for folks seeking a break…

Usually, a problem on the outside of the body reflects a problem on the inside. Whenever a skin issue occurs, one of the first areas to address is digestive health. The lining of the gut is often considered the body’s “second skin.” It acts as a barrier, allowing nutrients in while keeping foreign particles out….

Resisting certain foods can be incredibly challenging, and once you give in to temptation, stopping after just one bite feels nearly impossible. Here’s why.

Food can have a dramatic effect on testosterone. Soy, for example, can soak up testosterone like a sponge. It increases levels of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), which binds to testosterone and renders it inactive. The isoflavones in soy also bind strongly to androgen receptors, blocking free testosterone and even inducing estrogen-like effects in the body….

In the presentation below, I introduce a fresh approach to structuring strength training programs: The Alternating Conjugate Periodization Model. This method optimizes strength development by strategically alternating training variables to prevent plateaus and maximize progress. I think you’ll find it interesting—take a look. For a deeper dive into periodization strategies, check out page 101 of…