Testimonials

My name is Irina Yusufova.  I am an Aesthetician at The Spa @ Ballantyne, a wife and a mother of a two beautiful children. I had a goal to get in a better shape and try to compete  in a bodybuilding show in the figure division. Thanks to Candi I was able  to achieve this goal and my dream. Candi planned my 3 month diet, training program and strategy for discipline. She stuck by me every step of the way answering  all my questions about the show and how to plan for it. She made the process very easy and lots of fun. From purchasing my shoes to painting my body with Dream Tan she showed me that besides a rigorous schedule of work outs much more is demanded and knowledge known. I participated at the 2009 INBF show in High Point and achieved  5th place in the Novice Figure Competition. It was a lot of fun and I’m very grateful to Candi for all of her wonderful guidance and getting me hooked on a great new hobby! Thank you Candi! Because of you I have gained so much knowledge and still look up to you for more advice to this day.
Irina Yusufova- Charlotte, NC Natural Atlantic Coast INBF Figure Competitor 2009

After my decision to do a bodybuilding show I began looking for a professional to help me with my posing.  My gym buddy, Dave Waldman who competes on a regular basis introduced me to Candi Acuff at our gym about 3 weeks out from my first show.  I made the decision to start training with her on posing and began with her right away.  We met 7 times within those next weeks.  She spent around 10 hours perfecting my look by critiquing each individual pose she had taught me through photos, videos and mirror imaging of her instruction.  Her help was very valuable since I did not know the correct way to do most of the poses. Because of her judging experience she was able to advise me on the best poses for showing my body to the judges and prompted me as to what to include for my final routine to music.  Because of her instruction and my follow through I was able to produce a winning result!  I am glad that I was able to train with Candi or the end result may not have been the 2nd place winner! Thanks again Candi,  I will see you again soon. 

Jason Chilcot – Charlotte, NC –  2009 NPC  Mid Atlantic Carolina Classic  Jr. Heavy Weight Division 2nd Place

There is no way I can express my appreciation for Candi Acuff in just a paragraph or two. I know Candi on several different levels. The first experience I had with Candi is when I started doing figure competitions. One day she approached me and told me that I wasn’t reaching my fullest potential by doing figure competitions and that I needed to do bodybuilding. After a few days of going back and forth in my head as to if I really wanted to do bodybuilding I decided, what the heck!! Let’s just say I haven’t turned back since. With her guidance I did my first competition and did very well. Since then the sky has been the limit. Thanks Candi! Also, I have seen first hand what she has done with others and how she has impacted the lives of many. To be a personal trainer (I know because I am one) you have to reach people on all levels. She does just that. You will never meet another person that has so much compassion for people and fitness. I am blessed to know Candi, and truly cherish our friendship. She is someone I can say, I would like to walk in her footsteps. God Bless Candi in her journeys, because God blessed me when He brought her to me.

Shannon Maxwell-Charlotte, NC
2009 Iron Eagle Bodybuilding Show/Middle Weight Winner/Overall Winner-ProCard Winner

In 1998 I was diagnosed with breast cancer and as a way of coping with the diagnosis and the loss of 3 family members that same year I developed emotional eating habits that over the next 2 years added 40 pounds to my body. Up until that time I was able to maintain a healthy weight range.

Eight years later in the summer of 2006 I was taking medication for high blood pressure and would wake up each morning with severe back pain and weighed 185 pounds. I had reached the point where I began searching for a way to end the cycle of losing the same 10 pounds over and over again. I searched for a trainer who would stick with me and encourage me to work towards making changes in my unhealthy eating choices and provide me with the knowledge I needed to maintain a healthy weight range. That’s when I met Candi and began training with her.

I knew I needed someone to push me towards my goal and would not give up on me. It wasn’t easy. I’d slip up over and over again. What Candi taught me in those weak moments was not to give up or to beat myself up over it but to keep plugging at it. She would say “one day the light will come on” and I’d be able to do all of this on my own in order to maintain a healthy weight.

After losing 30 pounds I realized I wanted to learn what every exercise did for the body and what foods affected my body and how. With Candi’s encouragement to go for it I decided to compete in my first natural bodybuilding competition at the age of 51. Through my bodybuilding training experience with Candi I learned what I needed to know about food and exercise and 2 weeks shy of one year from the time I met Candi I lost another 30 for a total of 60 pounds!

From the skills I already possessed as a former competitive cheer coach and what I learned from Candi, I realized I should and could become a certified fitness trainer so that I could share the knowledge I had obtained through my journey to coach women through their personal journey in achieving a healthier lifestyle.

Candi was a great motivator, educator and then became a great mentor for me as I obtained my fitness certification. Since competing in Natural Bodybuilding in 2007 I’ve walked 60 miles in the Susan G. Komen Three Day event, did a half marathon in NYC, and am currently training for an Adventure Race.

Thank you Candi for not giving up on me so I wouldn’t give up on myself!

Jeanne Puckett- Charlotte, NC

My name is Jerod Cymbalisty. I am a personal trainer in the Charlotte area. I wanted to take a moment to express the wonderful benefits and success I havehad with Candi Acuff and and her Bodybuilding/Posing expertise.

The critique on training and posing that I had received from Candi put me in a area in which I thought was to good to be true. With Candi’s structure, guidance and experience she helped me not only to place in my middleweight class, but exceeded my own expectation to WIN and win BIG. I firmly know that without the posing, breathing and building of stamina that accent my bodies visual characteristics the results would of been not as they were.

So many things can be learned from the people we meet, but finding the right people makes the difference, Candi and her expertise are definitely the “right people”.

Thank You Candi!

Jerod Cymbalisty-Charlotte, NC
2009 Metrolina Mens Novice Middleweight/ Overall Novice Winner

In 2002 I decided it was time for a change. It seemed as though I kept making wrong decisions and had to live with the consequences. Depression had set in, and my exercise habits were affected greatly. I had just begun working in the health club industry in an administrative position. Unfortunately, I did not really look the part. I am 5′9″ and was weighing in at 292lbs. My body fat percentages were around 30%. I decided that I needed to make a change for myself to get back on the right track. I wanted to lose some weight and become healthier. I had been working out and had a basic understanding of proper techniques in lifting. However, I was not seeing any real changes in my body composition. As you can imagine it was difficult to get started, and even more difficult to stay motivated.

I had the opportunity to meet Candi previously at the gym where I worked, but she had moved on to another facility. At any rate we were neighbors and soon became friends. I knew she had made great strides with her own fitness goals and had participated in many bodybuilding competitions. I decided to ask her opinion of my diet and exercise plan. I began reporting in to Candi in August and continued to work closely with her until November. Up until that point my goal had only been to lose weight and tone up. We noticed some drastic changes in my physique, so we then decided to adapt my goals.

Candi encouraged me to sign up for a bodybuilding competition the following April in High Point, North Carolina. She really helped me to understand about the chemical composition and effects of the foods that we put into our bodies, and that we are literally what we eat. With amended changes in my diet and constant monitoring of my workout regime we saw even more incredible changes. My whole world began changing, mostly due to the fact that I gained more confidence in myself and was able to climb out of my depression.

When I stepped onto that stage in April of 2003, my body fat composition was down to 7% and I weighed 173lbs. I had lost 23% body fat and 119 pounds. My friends and family were very supportive, but most who I hadn’t seen for a while could not believe the change in me. Candi really guided me along the path to make a life altering change in my health, and I appreciate her more than she knows.

Jason Gusler – Roanoke, VA

As we all know, when our bodies are in shape, we feel better on the inside as well as the out. After experiencing motherhood, I was shocked to see the changes in my body and how quickly the scale rose…I was at an unbelievable 180 lbs after giving birth and feared that would be my destiny. And I truly believe had it not been for Candi’s guidance, my weight and self-perception would have remained unchanged. But she helped through it by teaching me about nutrition, motivating me to work my muscles, and convincing me that I COULD lose the weight. She’s such an inspiration, so full of charisma and has a passion for fitness! And I knew what she said was true because I’veseen withmy own eyes the transformation she’s made with her body. So thank you Candi for helping me rediscover my confidence, and for getting me back into my “pre-pregnancy size 4 jeans”!

Stephanie Hodges-Roanoke, VA

 

Candi has been an inspiration to me since we met 8 years ago when she was training for her first bodybuilding show.  She has an uncanny way of motivating people just by her positive attitude and genuine concern for others.

She has never let lifes problems “take her down” and consistently encourages me to become the best I can be. When the bad days come I can hear her…”Honey, tomorrow you just get up and thank God for a new day and you get back on that wheel and take another spin!”

No matter where in the world she is we have Facebook, email, cell phones and she has the ability to still motivate me just by her words and the ability of seeing her

smile on Natualbodypt.com everyday.   She truly wants people to be healthy and happy and has the experience to show us how to achieve it.

Vanessa Goad – Salem, Va.

When I was born in 1957 with double club feet no one thought I would ever walk correctly much less turn out to be a great athlete. Over the years of corrective shoes and casts I came out alright.  I was always a good player throughout the sandlot and turned out to be a star baseball player in college.  After college I played for 16 years on traveling softball teams all over the country.

In 1998 my life came crashing down.  Minor knee surgery set off blood clots that went up my leg through my heart and into my lungs.  Doctors told me that there was no hope….I was dying.  I was sent to UVA where surgeons told me there was little hope and I would probably not wake up from the surgery they were going to try.  After surgery and weeks on a ventilator I was sent home on oxygen for life.  They said I would never be able to do anything physical again. I was 41 at the time.

After a few months of doing nothing I started going to the gym dragging around a 17 pound oxygen tank pulled on wheels.  I started just picking up weight lifting bars and doing machines with the pins pulled out and gradually added weight.

About that time that’s when lightning struck!  I saw this girl working out.  She looked to be in good shape but a different kind of shape- better than you normally see in a gym.  I approached her and asked her “what’s up with this look you have?”  Even though she was busy training she stopped and started talking to me like she was a disciple of the bodybuilding gods!  In 5 minutes I had a fire in me that after a lifetime of being an athlete there was a sport I could possibly compete in.

I was the opposite of most.  I needed to pack on pounds.  She encouraged me to read a certain book to learn about food.  When I first met her I weighed 153 pounds, now I am at 175 with solid looking good pounds!  I have competed in 5 bodybuilding shows.  I placed high in one, won my division in 3 and the overall in one, all dragging my oxygen on stage to do it. I am now 52 and enjoying my life again winning!

By the way the girl who put me back in the game was Candi Nichols Acuff!  Thanks to her we put the doctors’ diagnosis to shame!

Mike Lumsden- Roanoke, VA

All references available for contact.