Train Like Pro Athlete In Raleigh

Maren Piefer's job at Velocity Sports Performance in Raleigh is to get them back in shape, and she is more than qualified.

"Ten years of gymnastics, seven years of diving, volleyball, track and field, softball," she said.

Piefer also has college degrees in kinesiology, exercise science and psychology.

"We're giving that expertise to coach and train the general population," Piefer said.

Her clients start with a goal. Lisa Dubner said she wants to reduce her high cholesterol while Mandy Mays wants to do a triathlon. Both say the workouts are different from anything they have done before.

"It's fun. It's different. Every day you come in and it's not the same routine," Mays said.

"You're doing sprints. You're working with ladders. You're working with doing side-to-side movements," Dubner said.

"It's not an aerobics class where you have music going, and you have to keep up to the music. You just go at your own pace. You push yourself, based on your own intensity level," Piefer said.

Safety is key. Piefer's routines strengthen muscles to make injuries less likely. Most just want to lose weight and look fit, but they may discover an added benefit.

"Just by the nature of the exercises, you're going to improve as an athlete as well," Piefer said.

Piefer also works with her clients to make changes in their diet to help meet their goals.