Katherine Chloé Cahoon

Ladies, these tips are straight from a man who specializes in training people to get the gold—in the Olympics. Rusty is a recruitment coach. But he’s no Gunnery Sergeant. His tactic is to train with positive encouragement. Lately, I’ve been training for the Couch Potato Olympics. It goes like this…sit on the couch, watch the athletes compete, and vicariously feel like you’re in top shape. I figured it was time to actually get those molecules moving, so Rusty is giving me a kick-start. Let’s hope I can walk tomorrow:)

Rusty was kind enough to take a break from training and reveal some of his dating tips:

You Won’t Reach the Dating Podium by Ignoring a Guy. When I asked Rusty for one thing that confused him about girls, he answered, “Just one?” Then he proceeded to narrow down the list to, “How they talk to guys that they like. They ignore them. Men want the initial conversation to come from a woman sometimes.”

Get High Scores in Confidence. “Be comfortable in your own skin.” Rusty may be a super-fit trainer, but he is “attracted to girls of all shapes and sizes.” What’s most important to him is the connection she has with him, and that she is self-confident. He explained, “If she’s a sweat pants girl, go for that. If she likes to get dressed up, that’s fine too, but it has to feel right to her.” In other words, a woman shouldn’t get done up in something that feels uncomfortable just to impress a man because she’ll give off an uncomfortable aura instead of an appealing one.

No One Likes to Talk with a Wall. A one-sided conversation is an immediate turn-off. Rusty is drawn to a girl who is “engaged in what we’re doing and shows interest.” We can all handle that!

I told Rusty that I’m am arm wuss, so amongst dispensing dating tips, he helped me pump iron. Well, he pumped iron. I rocked my one-pound pink weights! Don’t think I’m qualifying for the Olympics anytime soon:)