CHANGING THE WORLD, ONE BODY AT A TIME!
It’s never too late to be what you might’ve been — George Elliot
Hi, I’m Lloyd Blake and my passion and purpose is to empower YOU to take control of your health and fitness!
My mother always said, “Lloyd, you need to be the change you want to see in the world,” and, “if you can’t change the whole world, at least make a dent in your corner.”Mother DOES know best!! and it’s from these foundational life lessons, I’ve arrived at my destiny and I can honestly say, my passion is changing the world, one body at a time!
WHO AM I?
Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be. — Emerson
By now you might be wondering who is Lloyd Blake and what qualifies him to help me achieve my health and fitness goals?
I am affectionately known to many as “Coach Blake”. I’ve been involved with physical fitness and sports my entire life. I hold degrees in Health Science, Education, and Business Management and am certified with the International Sports and Sciences Association.One of the most important things to know about me: I was told I would never succeed as an athlete! I am smaller in stature, I was slower, less coordinated and in general not athletically gifted. What changed? My mentality. The recipe to success has three key ingredients: goal setting, hard work and commitment. If I’m honest, sports wasn’t the only arena where I was deterred by those in my life. I am dyslexic and I was told I shouldn’t consider college as a viable option, but I set a goal, worked hard and was committed to seeing myself through the challenges until I reached success.
It might be evident by looking through my site, and it’s certainly no secret, I love weight lifting/training and my bodybuilding career spans many years. While it isn’t a secret, I am sometimes reluctant to share my bodybuilding background due to the negative associations people sometimes make with bodybuilding i.e., “gym rats, meatheads, dumb jocks” and exhibiting personality traits of “narcissism, arrogance and self-centeredness” and the assumed usage of any number of synthetic products to enhance and achieve growth goals.
When people see my career in bodybuilding, I’d like them to focus less on their preconceived notions or prior associations and more on who I am as an individual and how I’ve been able to translate my knowledge of the art and science of physical fitness into a beautiful, natural journey of mental and physical health and fitness by providing myself challenges and achieving set goals. Some of my accolades include: the Vermont State Lightweight Champion, New England Lightweight Champion and Bronze medalist at the United States National “Mr. USA Championship”.
Sports have always been a big part of my life. I was a Semi-Pro soccer player for the San Diego Soccers and have coached multiple levels of soccer players after moving to Vermont. In the late 80’s and 90’s, I played for and transitioned to coaching at Johnson State College. During my time as coach, Johnson State enjoyed being the highest ranked national soccer program. During my time coaching the Milton High School Varsity Soccer Team, our players took the state championship in 1988-1989. Additionally, I’ve coached for many years at Vermont’s largest and most successful soccer school and camp, The Vermont Soccer School.
While I love coaching soccer, I have also enjoyed success as Tennis Instructor at the nation’s number one family ski resort, Smugglers Notch and was the Head trainer at multiple fitness centers here in the Champlain Valley. Most recently, I’ve obtained my 4th degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and have competed and won numerous medals at regional competitions in the VTRA Martial Arts circuit.
I love coaching! What I love about coaching is helping individuals and teams achieve what they didn’t think was possible at the onset. While accomplishing what seemed to be impossible is fantastic, my ultimate satisfaction is imparting knowledge through training, which translates outside of the gym into practical wisdom for life.
Physical fitness has been a lifelong pursuit for me and coaching is something I am equally passionate about, so it might not surprise you to learn that in 2006, I opened my own gym and began coaching individuals and small groups to reach their health and fitness goals. Today, Blake Fitness is growing by leaps and bounds with the goal of developing a wellness center and using digital tools to help individuals, teams, coaches and all those who like me won’t be told they can’t and will set a goal, work hard and commit to the process … become healthy and fit without losing quality or personal coaching and support. Read more about Blake Fitness’ Philosophy and Services or contact us!