Pongo Power

My training at Pongo has been a revelation – totally personalized, challenging with an aim toward success, a noticeable difference in my strength and energy and the ability to work out more productively when i do get to the gym. Desi is so knowledgable and such a delightful person, I look forward to working with her weekly. I highly highly recommend Pongo, particularly to anyone who needs exercise that fits their goals as well as their current lifestyle.

I’ve been working out at Pongo Power for several years and I am stronger and more confident than I’ve ever been. I started going because following an injury and physical therapy I knew I needed to get into better shape but didn’t want any boot camp style trainer focusing on my weight or disregarding my injury. I found Pongo Power trainers to be always supportive, instructive and knowledgable. Now I walk into any gym and can confidently exercise. When I got ready to lose some weight, they helped me with that too. I’ve made a lot of changes in the past 2 years due to Pongo Power and I’d recommend the place 100%. The new, larger Flatbush location is awesome too!

I’ve been a client at Pongo Power for seven months. I live with chronic illness, and exercise usually triggers joint pain and other symptoms for me — but working with Ryan and Desi has been phenomenal. They very quickly adapt each training session to work around my pain points on any given day, and they always make me feel like it’s normal and part of their job to do so (rather than making it feel like an inconvenience). They care deeply about how I’m doing and feeling, about the emotional aspects of living with chronic illness, and about ensuring we rebuild the strength that my illness has taken from me. I’ve gotten so much stronger and confident over the time that I work with them, and I’m excited to continue for years to come!

My first visit to Pongo Power has got me finally excited to work out at the gym again. As a once frequent runner and exerciser who fell into bad habits after an injury, I’ve been discouraged, bored and annoyed when going to the gym, feeling like I can’t get into a routine that works and afraid of hurting myself. Erzsi Pongo and her trainers are getting me on the right track– starting with a comprehensive movement analysis that pinpointed areas of focus and showed me how to work with my body, not against it. My first workout with trainer Desi was totally personalized for me. We focused on targeted stretches to keep me limber, core strength and arm toning with a cardio and strength plan for the gym that I’m excited to try. This isn’t a «curl this kettle bell till u puke» kind of workout– it’s a challenging, tough yet thoughtful session where an expert is watching you closely to make sure you get the maximum benefit of each move. I even discovered I’d been doing one stretch wrong for years on my it band… when guided to use the foam roller properly I felt the whole side of my leg release tension… amazing! Best of all, the vibe is cozy, cheery and *normal*. even though you are working hard, you feel like you are being treated to special time just for you. Give yourself this gift of feeling good!

I don’t know where I’d be without Pongo Power. I decided to give it a try after taking a group exercise class a while ago. After the class, I came to the realization that I really had no idea what I was doing even though I’d always been a gym-​goer and «exerciser.» I figured I’d give personal training a go and I’m so glad I did. I worked with Elizabeth and her team for over a year on a fairly consistent basis. Everyone, Elizabeth included, is so nice and thoughtful in their approach. I learned a lot about my body and I’m able to avoid injuring myself (which I wasn’t doing a great job of before …). I think the biggest thing that came out of my time at Pongo Power was that I now feel confident enough to take one of the gazillion exercise classes available in NYC and know that I’m working myself the way I should be. It’s also nice to go to the gym now and be able to come up with my own exercise routines — I definitely couldn’t have done that before.

Elizabeth Pongo is one of the most knowledgeable trainers out there. Her system for training clients, which her whole team uses, is amazing!
I start going to Pongo Power on my doctor’s instruction for my herniated discs. Elizabeth had a fantastic hypothesis of why I had my herniated discs in my very first session (from bad habits taught by a previous trainer who kinda sucked). And since then, she and her staff have been teaching me how to move my body more properly since, with some fantastic results in the pain relief department!
They’re really kind and fun to work with. Supportive of my physical improvement and sympathetic to my chronic pain. I’ve really seen them as part of my health and fitness team. Definitely in my corner! Go go go! You’ll learn so much about your body!

Pongo Power was a fantastic personal training experience for me! I signed up in December in order to lose weight for my wedding. Over the next few months, Lauren pushed me and challenged me on a weekly basis to keep on track and personalized what we were doing based on my wedding dress! On the occasions that I went to other trainers at Pongo, everyone had the same positive, friendly yet motivating attitude.
The other thing that is great about Pongo is how private it is. Because they only train one person at a time, you don’t have people staring at you from all around a big gym while you are trying to get that one last squat done.
In the end, I lost 21 lbs for my wedding and everyone has been complimenting me on how great my arms look! Thank you to Elizabeth, Lauren and the Pongo team!

I an an accountant who has just finished up another grueling tax season, spending hour after hour after hour at my computer. But this is the first year ever I’ve experienced NO shoulder pain, and I credit it all to Pongo Power, where I’ve been training for a couple of years. Last year, the discomfort was less, but this year, voila! Gone. What a gift, even if you have to pay for it.

Elizabeth Pongo and her team at Pongo Power really set a standard for creative, personalized fitness training. I’ve worked with a number of their clients in my massage therapy practice, and they’ve all given impassioned reports on how their works with the trainers here has helped enhance their lives, helping them to feel not only better physically, but also more empowered and confident in their lives in general, which is what a good fitness practice should do. I had the great pleasure to sit in on a team meeting there, and came away even more impressed by the depth of the communication between all team members as they work together to deepen and evolve the level of service they bring to their clients — and knowing Elizabeth Pongo and her associates there as I do, it’s only going to get better!

I have been working with trainers at Pongo Power for about 4 months to work on core strength and posture. I am a life long competitive athlete, so I have a lot of experience with this stuff (or at least I thought I did!), and yet I every time I go in I learn something new about my body or the exercises.

I’ve never been a «gym person» but was intrigued by the idea of personal training, so I gave Pongo a try. I’ve now been going for more than a year, and am absolutely thrilled with what I’ve gotten out of it. Sure, it’s pricey. But I feel like I get so much more out of an hour spent working out at Pongo w/​a trainer than I would going to a gym by myself. I’ve also learned how to work out on my own now, and feel a lot more comfortable using gym equipment and doing a home routine.
I enjoy the community aspect of Pongo. I know them and they know me, and I feel like the trainers there (including Elizabeth Pongo, the owner) really care about how I’m doing and the progress I’m making. It’s very hands on and supportive.
I’ve seen about 4 or 5 trainers over the last year and have learned a lot from each of them. Each trainer brings a different perspective and set of techniques, so the workouts never feel routine.

I started going to Pongo Power because I was having some back problems about a year ago and I thought a more targeted workout might help. Now my back is feeling much better and I’m completely addicted to training! I always thought of hiring a personal trainer as too much of a luxury but now that I have one I consider it a necessity. There were so many things I was doing while I was working out that weren’t helping or actually hurting my body and it’s sooo helpful to have someone there to correct my posture while I’m lifting weights. I love the small size and boutique feel of Pongo. My job is freelance so I train at different times of day depending on my schedule. I’ve worked with all of the trainers here and they are all excellent. Linda Hamilton biceps here I come…

Elizabeth Pongo is an amazing trainer who changed my life. I lost 40 pounds while training with her, and I feel like a completely different person.

Just had my free assessment with Maggie (who, as I understand it, recently replaced Amy). It was really great. I had never been to a personal trainer before, but have always been curious to try. The space is quite small, but doesn’t feel cramped. Maggie and Elizabeth (owner) were very knowledgeable and enthusiastic, and they genuinely seem to want to help people learn how to exercise. I signed up for three sessions. My traps muscles and I can hardly wait to get started!

I’ve had an excellent experience at Pongo Power, where I’ve been training with the fun & fabulous trainer, Amy, for 6 months. Though Amy has just left Pongo, I’m excited to begin with a new trainer.
As anyone who is familiar with personal training knows, you really don’t need a whole lot of space to accomplish your goals. And though I wish there were a few more square feet of space to enable some exercises I used to do, Elizabeth and team have done an incredible job with what they’ve got. I hear rumors of expansion, which would be awesome, although more of a commute for someone who lives right across the street!
I wholeheartedly recommend checking Pongo Power out. You will learn so much even from your first FREE assessment meeting. And you can’t beat the glorious Park Slope location and very competitive prices of other pt studios.
As a «career» girl, I really respect and admire what Elizabeth and team have accomplished with Pongo and you can really feel their commitment and happiness in what they do, which makes training inspiring and easy breezy.
Go Pongo!