We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris Guerrero and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking.
Risk is a marvelous thing for me. It increases the chances of failure, and if there is one thing that drives me as much as my competitiveness to succeed is the thought of failing at what I set out to accomplish. Failure is not an option in how I approach things, and risk intensifies my focus to improve the skills I need to achieve my purpose in life. I embrace taking risks and educate myself on the subject as quickly as possible to make sound choices on how to approach the opportunity. A lot of people tell you to “take risks and just jump”. However, what they fail to mention is that before you “just jump off” that cliff and hope wings magically appear, do enough to educate yourself on the subject that you are leaping in on. Search for what positives might come out of taking that leap and see the risks as challenges you are excited to overcome.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I have asked myself many times how I would define the nature of our business and what it always boils down to is simply this. To help others achieve the things in life that will bring them happiness. We value the people we work with and are fortunate to help them, so this fact pulls us to uphold our actions and ask ourselves how we can improve at helping people achieve their goals towards happiness. This comes as a huge challenge to be able to breakdown the superficial walls that are common, especially in the world of fitness. We strive to get deep within the person’s reasons and link the things we are doing in and out of the facilities to offer a visual roadmap of how a squat can lead to things that matter. Such as playing with your grandkids, or how running 1/2 a second faster will eventually lead you back to things of true value like being a loving father who can play tag or sports with your little guys and gals. The business of health and fitness stems way deeper to us than looking good or lifting a bunch of weight. It involves getting the person to link the amazing feats of strength and movement skills to what matters the most to them after all the other stuff runs dry. This challenge is what excites us the most and we dedicate to getting better at it. Other challenges like having to relocate many times in less than 3 years, and a pandemic that swept the world, has of course popped up. I don’t think any of us predicted the pandemic, however, it has once again pushed us to be better at what we do. Nonetheless, we have remained strong throughout because our reasons to succeed outweigh the ease of failure. Our reasons such as taking ownership of providing a safe space for others to continue to practice and build skills have been a stroke of luck and pure flexibility from our team members. These challenges have accelerated opportunities that have been in the process like virtual coaching and online programming. Now we see how these added options can provide more ways to reach more people. We continue to learn how to make it optimal, and feel very pumped to see where it goes! On a lighter side of things, we call our team members Pineapples and Coconuts! I was born and raised an island boy from Guam so I enjoy throwing silly, yet meaningful, names in the mix to keep things entertaining and fun.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Obviously I would take them over to our facilities and get a workout in, duhhh haha. A few things I know I am great at are enjoying delicious grub, building a business, and restful self-care.. so you might have the wrong guy on this question but here are some places I enjoy in the city. Blue Water Grill – best fish tacos in San Diego. It is more like they wanted to eat a bunch of fish and dress it up on top of a tiny tortilla. My kind of taco. Pizzeria Bruno – Skip the salads! Pick a pizza, no changes, (add this or take out that) just enjoy it as prepared and be ready to taste the deliciousness. Pro-tip: Ask for chili oil to drizzle if you like extra heat and a side of extra marinara sauce for you to dip your crust in. Okay, one other food spot here is Eclipse Chocolate Bar, Bistro, and Bodega – Located in South Park. Head over for brunch and enjoy the chocolate drinks plus a sweet and savory explosion of traditional items like eggs Benedict with polenta, using hints of chocolate or orange-vanilla infused butter. For the sights and sounds of SD, I enjoy the history of Balboa Park, the energy of volleyball being played at South Mission Beach, and to catch some waves! As a boogie border, I enjoy Scripps or small pockets of beach sites up in Del Mar/Solana Beach.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Love this question.. and without a doubt, I have to make the biggest shoutout possible to the team members/clients/friends/athletes that have stuck by my side for over 8 years now. Jeff, Brian, Chris, Mike, Rema, Gavin, Sonia, Dave, and everyone else who I have had the pleasure of coaching, thank YOU for trusting me to provide guidance on how to improve your health and movement quality. Without your support, flexibility, and trust I would not have the fortune to do what brings me joy. I wholeheartedly just want to say THANK YOU!

Website: https://www.proa-athletics.com/ and https://f45training.com/coronado/home
Instagram: proa_athletics and f45_traning_coronado

Image Credits
Bryant Mayberry