Willy Latzo and wife Ramona in workout attire
By Marcia E Gawecki
Willy Latzo, the 4-time Mixed Marshall Arts (MMA) Champion who now owns Idyllwild Fitness Center, isn’t going to take off his shirt.
Not now, and not this summer.
“You’ll always see me in workout sweats,” Willy said, as he was handing out flyers. “If you want to see my abs, come to one of my fights.”
OK, that just crushed my perceptions of bodybuilders, boxers and MMA champs.
Go to Venice Beach and all the bodybuilders have their shirts off. They want you to see their muscles. They want you to ooh and ahh, and maybe touch them. It’s all part of the game. Even California’s former governor showed off his sculpted abs for the media.
Willy is not going to show you his, but his wife will.
In the flyer promoting free classes with the $40 membership, Willy points to photos of his wife, Ramona, in a tank top working on her biceps.
“It’s OK for Ramona to show off her muscles because she’s a woman,” Willy explained. “But men get jealous of each other.”
OK, so Willy, who owns a fitness center, where showing off a muscular body would be an asset, is being coy. Or is he being sly as a fox?
“Even outside, you’ll always see me in sweats,” he said.
Guess it’s like the old Poker rule: “Always have more than you’re showing.”
Or just let others sing your praises.
Willy is never going to take off his shirt
Jeffrey Taylor, from Green Cafe Internet, has been working out with Willy for the past two months. He’s lost about 25 pounds, mostly from sweating from Willy’s workouts. He said that he’s not trying to build muscle, but wants a cardiovascular workout.
“I’m not seeing much improvement,” Willy told Jeffrey recently. “So I’m going to double your workouts.”
Jeffrey began to sweat. Up until now, the workouts have been challenging. They included hanging from ceiling straps, while pulling his legs up to his chest. Professional gymnasts only did those kind of feats.
Now Jeffrey is building endurance by running on a Stair Master.
“During our regular workouts, I climbed 104 flights of stairs,” Jeffrey said. “That’s like going to the top of the Empire State Building.”
A younger weight lifter at Idyllwild Fitness collapsed after walking 50 flights on the Stair Master. Jeffrey didn’t miss a beat.
“I told him that I could do double that,” he said. “I must be building endurance. I’m twice his age.”
To further build endurance, Jeffrey takes the Tuesday Salsa Cardio workouts.
“Jeffrey doesn’t like the new instructor,” Willy teased. “She makes him work!”
“You might like the Salsa Cardio or the Yoga classes,” Willy said to me. “But forget about Boot Camp or even the Kids MMA. They’re all taught by me, and they’re too tough for you right now.”
Why would I bother? He’s not going to take his shirt off.
Ramona is the only lucky one. Perhaps she can slip me a photo sometime?
Idyllwild Fitness Center, 54423 Village Center Drive (below Mountain Harvest Market in Strawberry Plaza). Call (951) 659-5000. Monthly memberships, including classes, are only $40. Drop-in day rate: $15. Hours: Monday – Friday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m – 4 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Copyright 2012 Idyllwild Me. All rights reserved.
Published on: Apr 26, 2012 @ 0:09
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