Get results at Final Round

Photo: Contributed

Jay Saunders says the sentence like he’s rattling off a grocery list or making small talk with someone.

“I haven’t had a client not get results yet,” he says.

If that doesn’t convince you to give it a go at Final Round Gym in West Kelowna, nothing will.

Final Round Gym is a non-contact facility that provides all the training a boxer or a mixed martial arts fighter would do before a big fight. Saunders, who is a boxing and MMA veteran, calls it “functional fitness without the injuries.” You can get some contact if you want, but “you gotta pay a little extra for that,” he said with a smile.

Saunders moved to Kelowna to take a forestry job, but it wasn’t long before a gym hired him to do personal training. He worked at several gyms in the central Okanagan before deciding to go out on his own, taking the best attributes of every place he was employed.

The one thing that bothered him was how much people had to pay just to get in the door of gyms. Final Round Gym offers unlimited classes for $120 per month. It’s only $80 per month for children. There is a three-month minimum, but, as Saunders says, you are going to see results. Potential clients can take advantage of a seven-day trial membership to get a feel for just how good Final Round Gym is.

Saunders is a certified strength and conditioning specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). He specializes in weight-loss and sport-specific training programs designed to increase speed, strength, power, agility, reaction timing and functional fitness. His training style incorporates high-intensity cardio with resistance. He also has extensive striking and boxing experience, which started with an amateur boxing career at eight years old.

Saunders enjoyed a successful 10-year amateur boxing career and followed it up with five years in the professional ranks, so he is well aware of what it takes to be successful. He's lived it.

“It’s having a passion for it that makes me different than other people,” he says. “I love getting people results.”

Photo: Contributed

Fadrina Gaudenzi went from left to right thanks to Final Round Gym.

One person who saw those results at Final Round was Fadrina Gaudenzi. “When she first came in she was very timid, very shy and very quiet, but you could tell she wanted it,” Saunders said. “She got tired of feeling the way she was feeling. Fadrina was one of my most stubborn clients. She didn’t want to change her diet. She is an Italian girl.”

Now she boasts washboard abs. Was it easy? No, but Saunders motivated her to get it done and he is adamant that you will feel the same way if you’re looking to lose weight, get ripped or just plain feel better about your body and your life.

"Fitness has been part of my life for a very long time now, but I was never quite able to get where I wanted to be," Gaudenzi said. "I'm not a morning person, but I was able to change that for Jay Saunders 6 a.m. fight fit classes because I love them so much. He is so motivating and really knows how to get you results, not to mention that he's just a super nice and fun guy. I'm so happy to have Final Round to work out at with a fun group of motivated people. I have never felt better."

All classes incorporate heart rate and calorie monitoring to ensure clients are giving it their all to crush their goals and get to where they want to be. There is no cheating with this technology.

“It’s hard and intense,” Saunders says. “I train them like I would any of my professional fighters. Come in and get going. You’re here to work. You’re too busy dying on your bag to care about who’s beside you, what’s going on around you. You’re too busy listening to me screaming and yelling at you to push harder and listening for the combinations I’m calling. I don’t let people go through the motions.”

Final Round isn’t just about boxing, MMA or kickboxing. Saunders also offers high-intensity training (H.I.T) and youth MMA classes—a perfect combination of the best training under one roof.

There is also a scale that will give you the cold, hard facts about yourself, including body fat and muscle mass. There have been plenty of tears when people have stepped on the scale.

“It cost 15,000 dollars, and it won’t lie to you,” Saunders says. “It will tell you exactly what your body mass index and body fat percentage is.”

Saunders is also passionate about helping youth feel good about their bodies and gain confidence. He is even thinking about buying a bus for an after-school session.

“With young men it raises their confidence big-time,” Saunders says. “I watch their grades go up. I watch them have more respect around the house and with their parents. They sleep better.”

Click here to take advantage of the seven-day trial membership, or enter to win a free month membership for you and a friend.