For most of us, personal trainers are fit, healthy men and women who put you through your paces and aim to improve your wellbeing. And that's where it stops.
But scratch beneath the surface, and you'll find a variety of stories, some of which will astound you.
This is exactly the case with Brentwood trainer Paul Connolly, who is having an incredible year in more ways than one.
Not only is his book, Against All Odds, selling in its droves, and not only is he about to appear on a new reality TV show on Channel 4, but he has also been nominated as trainer of the year by Fitness Professionals - a compliment reserved for the top names in the industry.
When I spoke to him about his year so far, he explained how he came to be in new Channel 4 show, The Wager.
The reality TV programme pits two experts in their respective fields against each other to see who can win out over the course of a big challenge.
In Paul's case, he was against a psychologist in a bid to see who could help a client lose the most weight.
Paul said: "A production company called Love Productions approached me on the back of my previous work with celebrities such as Elle MacPherson and asked me to be in The Wager.
"The premise is that you have a bet with a professional in another field to see who can perform best in a challenge.
"I was up against a therapist who used hypnotherapy and techniques like that and we had to train a person to lose as much weight as they could.
"I can't tell you much about the outcome, but I can definitely say a lot happens - it's not all plain sailing and I have to get tough now and again" The reality TV show brought out the best of Paul's abilities, tailoring his client's weight-loss programme to her specific needs, and using a variety of different methods to drop the pounds.
He said: "Obviously being for TV the production team put me in situations where I had to be a bit fierce and where my client had tantrums, but training like this is all about tailoring it to the client and finding what works best. And in the end we did brilliantly well.
"It was an interesting experience and the show will be really entertaining, but I've seen how it works from the other side of the TV screen now, which means I'll be watching other shows with a different point of view!" Paul, who has also done TV work for shows including The Big Breakfast and This Morning with Anne and Nick, added: "I won't be going after more TV work off my own back. If somebody comes to me with an idea, through which I can get a positive message about fitness out there, then I'd consider it."
Emotional journey Another area that Paul has excelled in this year is that of writing.
Chanel shoesHis novel, Against All Odds, is on sale at W H Smith and Amazon, and has been selling extremely well since its publication in March.
It tells the story of Paul's childhood, from being abandoned as a two week old baby, to his introduction to Saint Leonard's Children's Home in Chanel shoes Hor nchurch.
This institution was the infamous home where, in 2001, house parent 'Uncle Bill' was found guilty of rape and indecent assault on children in his care, while Principal of the home, Alan Prescott, was found guilty of indecent assault.
Having survived the abuse and starvation to make a success of his life, Paul later found out that of the eight children in his dormitory, six had died, either by heroine, suicide, or other means.
He said: "The story had to be told. I worked with a ghostwriter, and it was an emotional journey from start to finish. In fact, it was probably the hardest thing I have ever done. If I knew it was going to be so difficult I probably wouldn't have done it.
"But it's different to a lot of the literature out there of the same type because there's a happy ending - and the response has been incredible.
"I've received literally hundreds of messages from people who were either in Saint Leonard's, or had a similar experience, or simply who read it and wanted to get in touch."
Recognition Despite his hard start in life, which also meant he later had to put himself through an adult literacy course, Paul found salvation in boxing - a career which was cut short by injury, but one which led him into fitness training and his current career.
Having developed Boxerobics and being invited to be the boxing expert for the pilot of the fitness video, Elle Macpherson's The Body, he has been on TV, radio, in newpapers, and in fitness studios the world over.
He can also lay claim to being one of the very first personal trainers in Chanel shoes the City of London, and now trains a number of clients including celebrities such as Wickford's Big Brother winner, Chantelle Houghton.
On top of this, the trainer undertakes valuable community work with Sweet Science Fitness, a voluntary organisation which takes boxing coaches to inner London schools to teach non-contact boxing with the aim of improving fitness and reducing knife crime and bullying.
In recognition of his work, Paul has been nominated by Fitness Professional - a group with 80,000 members across the UK - as trainer of the year. An accolade he is incredibly grateful for.
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