Gelato, Coffee, Sorbet, Cheesecake, Pizza and Paul Scott
Written by Kim McLaughlin
Point Loma member, Paul Scott, is one of the rock stars of our community and an amazing, consistent, friendly face at the 9am group class. After moving to San Diego from New Hampshire a little over a year ago, he realized that being an active person year-round is something of a must in this city. As a result, he started looking for a fun way to get in shape.
According to Paul, he had tried everything in the past from the very expensive personal training to the boring monotony of treadmill runs during lunch breaks at work. Nothing seemed to do it for him. He deciding to take the advice of his manager at work, he googled “CrossFit” hoping that it would be a hybrid of the types of training he had done in the past. Lucky for us, the closest gym to his home that popped up was Invictus Point Loma. One fateful email to Jen and he was scheduled for a consultation that would change his life (and ours!) for the better.
I recently interviewed Paul so we could get to know him a little better and, of course, his answers did not disappoint:
Kim: You’ve been at Invictus a little less than a year, Paul. How has it been so far?
Paul: I think this has been a really good experience for me and it was exactly what I was seeking. I get enough “personal trainer” type attention to learn new movements with expert help, do lots of different things to keep it interesting and love being challenged by the other folks in the coaching sessions. Of course, you are terrific and every coach I’ve worked with has been really excellent. I love the coaches and feel you guys are so expert at what you do I feel like I’m in really good hands. You are all so good at explaining the movements and telling me exactly how I will try to cheat on those movements! I also REALLY like the camaraderie of the folks who attend my favorite 9am session. They are so great at cheering everyone on.
Kim: What is your favorite type of workout?
Paul: I really like those “chipper” workouts where you chip away at a ridiculous number of reps until you finish. At the beginning, I always am skeptical I’ll get through it…by the middle of the workout I get a second wind and at the end I look back and feel great about what I can achieve. I always feel like the coaching staff gets 25% more out of me than I could ever do by myself!
Kim: What are your activities outside of the gym?
Paul: I’m really enjoying this great weather here so I try to get outside as much as possible after work. I take the dogs out for walks, read outside, get to the beach, sail and do stand-up paddleboarding. I’m thinking about trying beach volleyball and would love to get involved with some hiking!
I’ll also say that I love to cook and pumpkin cheesecake is at the top of the list. I’ve also worked for twenty years to perfect my grilled pizza technique. Did I mention I also do sorbets? Lemon, tangerine and raspberry are my favorites. In addition, I roast my own coffee beans and I make a mean coffee or hazelnut gelato.
A friend of mine recently moved from her home and she gave me a piano so I’m trying to learn to play that as well. My specialty is Camptown Races…..Do Dah. *laughs*
Kim: What do you miss most about New Hampshire? What’s your favorite part of San Diego?
Paul: Undoubtedly, I miss the Fall weather with beautiful sunny days, crisp nights, leaf peeping (a great New England sport), fresh apple pie and a celebration of fall in general. There’s no place better (for me) than New England this time of year. As far as San Diego, the biggest thing for me is the weather (I can wear shorts all year…how great is that!?!?!). I love being able to enjoy the outdoors all year round (who wants to scrape ice off the windshield in January?). There is so much to do in San Diego and so much going on all the time.
Kim: If you walked out of the gym tomorrow and found a lottery ticket worth $10 million what would you do with the money?
Paul: I’d keep enough to pay for my house, stock up on dog food and give most of it away (who wants to pay taxes on $10 million?). I am so fortunate in life to have a good job, great partner and two terrific dogs that I can’t imagine what else I’d do!
Kim: If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
Paul: I’d want to be able to fly because it would be so great to see this world from a bird’s eye perspective (and skip traffic, parking snafus etc.). When I was a young kid I was always fascinated with superman’s ability to fly. I’d run around in a cape pretending to fly and my mom was always petrified that I’d jump out a window.
Author’s Note: Paul is one of the sweetest and hardest working members of our community. He uses every moment that he is in the gym to better himself and put a smile on others faces. The “no excuses” attitude and his ability to set goals for himself and achieve those goals makes him a joy to have here every day. When Paul is NOT in the gym due to work obligations or travel, he is definitely missed.
Thanks for sharing a little insight into your life, Paul, and thanks for making the Invictus community a great one!
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