Testimonials

I came to Monika to help me get in shape for my wedding. I had spent the previous year and a half as a consultant and due to the heavy travel requirements, had really let my diet and exercise routine fall by the wayside. When I met Monika, I had the goal to tone up a bit for the wedding and get back into the habit of exercising regularly. She explained her holistic approach and performed an assessment of where I was at, gave a top-level explanation of the types of exercises she recommended, and also a time frame for when I could expect to see results. I was genuinely surprised when she described my existing activity level as "sedentary" and knew that I needed to make changes in my lifestyle. I subsequently bought a 3 month, twice a week package.
 

I absolutely love Monika, but she does not let you get away with slacking off. She really works within your capabilities and gives you the confidence to safely push your limits to reach your goals. She writes new exercise circuits for every training session, so the exercises stay interesting. She also has a thorough understanding of how groups of muscles work together. By the end of 3 months, there was a dramatic difference. I didn't even realize that I hadn't been sleeping well until I started seeing Monika. After about a month with Monika, I noticed I had a lot more energy and realized I was having no trouble falling and staying asleep at night. I also wasn't napping during the day. At the end of the 3 months, I had lost 6 lb of fat and put on 5 lb of muscle.
 

When I reached the end of my package, I was still a month away from the wedding, so I decided to sign up for another package. This time, Monika suggested I meet with her for nutrition counseling. Monika wrote up a couple sample meal plans and we discussed what I had been eating and what I should be eating. During our hour meeting, I learned so much about food and how it affects your mood and energy level. For the next month, I followed Monika's advice to the letter and was amazed to find that I didn't feel like I was sacrificing anything. Sure, I wanted to eat the donuts left in the office break room and have that second glass of wine, but I didn't feel like I was missing out by passing them up. At the end of the month, Monika weighed me and I had lost another 5 lb.
 

Honestly, when I first came to Monika, I thought I looked and felt fine and didn't really have any weight loss goals. I had NO IDEA there was so much potential to have a higher quality of life. As I've alluded to above, I've seen positive changes in my life as a direct result of training with Monika: I sleep better, I have more cardio endurance, I've started running (something I never thought I'd enjoy), and my body looks and feels better than it ever has. Monika is truly worth every penny and I know you're going to love her as much as I do.

Courtney Schnepf
Sr. Credit Analyst at Wells Fargo
Los Angeles, California

I have known Monika as a trainer for 16 years and have had a professional relationship with her for the last 11 years. She is very knowledgeable and I have sent and continue to send my patients to her for post-rehabilitation training. Monika is very proactive in seeking new medical and fitness related information from health care professionals and continuing education courses and makes it a point to provide the most up-to-date information about advances in her professional field to those of us who express interest in it. She takes very strong personal interest in her clients’ well-being and has proven a very valuable asset to my practice.

Allen Letgolts,
Doctor of Physical Therapy
Los Angeles, California

Monika Tarkowska-Carter is a superb, highly professional trainer that I’ve had the pleasure to work with for the past 5 years. I was first referred to her by my physical therapist because of frequent neck and back muscle spasms. A large part of this was due to very poor posture acquired over many decades. This took the familiar form of rounded shoulders, head protrusion, pelvic misalignment, etc.
 

We made postural improvement the main target of training and within a year I began to see real change and a complete elimination of the back and muscle spasms. I am back playing sports with no complaints.
 

Over the past years the improvements in posture as well as general orthopedic health have been great and I receive a lot of compliments from people who can easily see the difference.

Monika’s approach is highly scientific. She began with a thorough biomechanical analysis of my posture and gait, identified the problems and devised a rational training program to address the above issues.

I also like her personal style which is professional and focused on the client at all times.
I would recommend Monika extremely highly to anyone seeking to improve their orthopedic conditions or physical health in general.

A.G. *
Professor of Medicine,
Los Angeles, California

* Prof. A.G.'s last name was withheld at his request as he wanted it to be associated on the Internet only with his published scientific research. However, he is available to verify the references upon request.

I first came to Monika as a recent college graduate looking to learn more about leading a healthy lifestyle in the “real world”. I had the expectation that I would just earn some quick tips on how to eat right, exercise, and balance it all with my demanding work schedule.
 

I got so much more from Monika than I had ever expected, and am so grateful for her help. Her knowledge of the human body and what it needs to be truly healthy astounds me. She put me on a program that was not only healthy, it was more than manageable and I never felt like I had to deprive myself of delicious foods.
 

A few months into our work together, after changing my eating habits and getting some more exercise in, I wasn’t seeing any results. Monika suggested I take a simple blood test to determine whether or not I was sensitive to or reacting badly to certain foods. As it turns out, I have a sensitivity to gluten and dairy, which was ultimately holding me back from losing the weight I wanted to lose.
 

Monika swiftly and smartly changed up my program and suggested I stop eating both of those types of foods for a few months to see how I felt. The results were remarkable. After just a few weeks I felt infinitely better: I had more energy, was sleeping through the night, felt less bloated and uncomfortable, and dropped seven pounds.
 

Without Monika’s expertise and guidance, along with a few very accurate and trusted functional medicine tests, I never would have found out the underlying problem and probably would still continue to feel run-down, stressed out, and bloated. Monika changed the way I looked at food (in a good way) with her holistic approach and her strong belief in the great powers of clean, good food.
 

I would recommend Monika to anyone. Even if the goal is not to lose weight, it is worth it to learn these things from her in order to be healthy and happy. Everyone’s heard the saying, “You are what you eat.” After my time with Monika, I know that to be true. I feel so much better, happier, and energetic because of the changes I made, and would not have even known where to begin if it hadn’t been for her.

Joanna Hardy
Coordinator, Corporate Communications and Marketing
Los Angeles, CA

Monika came highly recommended to me through a Doctor of Physical Therapy, Allen Letgolts. I decided to contact her at the end of December 2011 to set up a consultation. I knew right away that she was going to be the perfect match. We started working together the following day because I felt confident that she would help transform my body to perfectly fit into my wedding dress, which was only 3 months away. My mind and body have never felt better and all my goals finally came to fruition. My arms were perfectly toned and my weight was right on target for my big day.
 

I have another big day approaching in a few weeks and she has continued to help me for the last 9 months throughout my entire pregnancy. She is highly knowledgeable in nutrition and overall health and is very dedicated to her clients' best interest in every way. I feel very confident in recommending her to anyone who is looking to better themselves through health and fitness.
 

Julie Darvish
Senior Fashion Stylist
Los Angeles, California

Before I decided to train with Monika Tarkowska-Carter, I researched over 100 trainers and tried out the five I felt were most promising. I ended up choosing Monika because she understood more than any of the others that different people need different kinds of training, and her experience with different approaches to training had great depth. I stay with her for those and other reasons. As my training needs change, Monika adapts the training. She really cares about my development, and listens to my individual needs regarding training. She's prompt, honest, and has a good, genuine spirit. I have gotten stronger and more flexible, and lost a lot of weight working with her, but more importantly I feel better. I couldn't have made a better choice. When I know people who are ready to make a real change in their lives, I refer them to Monika.
 

Saul Kotzubei
Voice and public speaking coach
Los Angeles, California

Monika is all you could ever ask for in a trainer, and more. She is always on time, fully present and focused! While other trainers at the gym are often distracted and several even use their cell phones, Monika is taking notes about your performance so she can tailor the best workout possible for you. She is smart and extremely educated when it comes to health and fitness and she uses the science she’s studied to help you achieve your goals. Every session consists of different exercises so you never get bored with a dull routine. She has a wonderful sense of humor and is a great cheerleader so you always feel really good, both physically and mentally after working with her.
 

I first went to Monika because of pain in my knee when I put any pressure on it. While she isn't exactly a physical therapist, she gave me several exercises to strengthen my knee. It got better pretty quickly and a year later I am still pain free.
 

I highly recommend going to Monika for all your fitness goals. You will be so happy you did!
 

Julie Bram

Writer, community volunteer and activist
Los Angeles, CA

In 2001 I was scheduled for a back surgery to relieve painful spinal stenosis. At the last minute I sought a second opinion from another qualified neurosurgeon. He suggested trying physical therapy first and then continuing with a physical training program. I canceled the operation. Monika was recommended as the only trainer that my physical therapist could trust.

I am now 86 years old and can look back on the past 9 years with great satisfaction. During those years I have been meeting Monika at the gym 3 times a week. She understands the underlying anatomy and my physical limitations and capabilities. Where I was reluctant to push myself, Monika urged me on. Now I look forward to the hour-long workouts. The results have exceeded my expectations. I am virtually pain-free. My resting pulse rate is lower by 20 points. My old, poor posture, which contributed to the pains, is now greatly improved. This included strengthening my abdominals and lower and upper back muscles. An unanticipated bonus is my greatly reduced blood pressure (I was hypertensive), a loss of 14 excess pounds and 4 inches of waistline. I will say that when I do lapse into my former slouched posture pains will recur. However, the improved muscle strength and endurance helps me get through the day pain-free.

I am pleased to say that Monika has enabled me to live a life more enjoyable than almost any one of my friends in my age group. When they complain to me I refer them to Monika.
 

Monika is very enthusiastic about her mission to improve her clients' body and mental attitude. She attends lectures, classes and reads extensively. She is highly intelligent making each session interesting and mentally stimulating

Arthur Winthrop
Los Angeles, California

It’s with great pleasure that I write a testimonial for my trainer of 15 years, Monika Tarkowska-Carter.
 

At 51 with a long-standing problem with my body image and consequent preoccupation with weight loss I turned to Monika for help with training. Even though exercise had always been a part of my daily life the goal was always set with regard to losing weight rather than effective and healthy training.
 

Today, at 67 I am physically healthy thanks to Monika and fully recovered from a back surgery for a congenital condition. My thinking is no longer consumed with my weight.
In addition to having met all the professional requirements of a qualified trainer, Monika is also certified in both nutrition and post-rehabilitation training.
 

Her unique skills have combined in a way to give me a new perspective on healthy eating, effective and safe training as well as belief in the positive correlation between the two – something I never fully understood.
 

As a psychologist, I am impressed with the insight and understanding I have gained from my work with Monika into the mind-body connection. I feel good, look good and attribute a great deal of my progress to my continuous commitment to training.

Linda Metzner, Ph.D.
Doctor of psychology
Los Angeles, California

I was referred to Monika by friends after suffering a dramatically bulged disc in my lower back. That injury left me without core strength and generally out of shape without much stamina. Monika very carefully analyzed my condition before we began training. She developed a great workout program and monitored it as we progressed. It was hard work but I started to see results very quickly. I was able to rebuild my core muscles and regained my strength and stamina to the point where I was very close to the best shape of my life.
 

Monika constantly introduced new techniques that were very cutting edge. This made the workouts fun and interesting which helped me progress rapidly. She is very professional and clearly dedicated to her craft. Her knowledge of nutrition helped steer me towards a healthier diet and I began to feel the benefits of that change immediately. Her holistic approach addressed not only my nutritional issues but considered my other lifestyle factors such as stress, sleep, work & home environment and others that impacted my physical well-being.
 

Monika was a pleasure to train with in every respect. I highly recommend her to anyone interested in improving their health and optimizing their workout time and effort.

Michael Dean,
Business Consultant
Los Angeles, California 

In the four years I have worked with Monika, I feel like I have gotten physically stronger, nutritionally healthier and have been educated in ways that I never imagined. I’ve had some physical challenges during this time and my workouts with her have always inspired me and made my recuperation much easier. I find her professional knowledge and personable approach, along with her passion for her life’s work, integral to my continued well-being.

Andrea Brandt,
Ph.D., M.F.T.
Santa Monica, California

Monika was my personal trainer for 8 years. We met 2-3 times a week for regular training sessions of 60-90 minutes. Her intense and dedicated fitness routines have yielded extraordinary physical and mental results. I can honestly say that she changed my life. I lost over 40 lb and gained strength, agility, fitness and a lot of self-confidence.

Monika was very committed to making my workouts successful, physically challenging and fun. She was always very creative in my routines leaving no room for dullness or monotony. She put great effort into monitoring each muscle movement to make sure that my workout was done properly and safely. Monika’s personal dedication and commitment to my physical achievement simply reflect her invaluable knowledge and passion for her chosen field.

Mary F. McDaniel,
DO, JD, MPH
Venice, California