Gain tremendous size and strength with the incredible Jessica

You find it so hard to choose. They're all amazing. Each of these women could have so much to teach you.

But when you think about why you came here in the first place... when you think about the woman you met in the cafe, that strong, muscular Asian woman with the undercut who first told you about Velvet Steel... you realize that you want to get _strong, _first and foremost.

You point at the thick, solid, formidable bulwark of brawny buffness that is Jessica Cruz. "Her. I want her."

"Awesome choice! Soon you'll be slamming steel with the best of them," Emily says happily.

"I'll set up the appointment," Ada says, and winks at you. "Your strength-building journey begins soon!

When you first see Jessica in the flesh, your throat goes dry, and you gulp.

"Wow," you say, as you shake hands with her. "The photos really don't do you justice."

"Thanks," she says, flashing a wide grin and looking _down _at you. She has to, because she's tall -- you estimate about 5 foot 10. Her sun-browned skin gleams with health and vitality. Her brown wavy hair cascades onto her shoulders. Her grip is firm and strong, and you can feel the calluses on her palms.

She keeps smiling at you, and you realize you're smiling back. "So, um... shall we get started?" You realize you're still holding on to her hand and quickly you let go, blushing all the way to your roots.

"Oh, yes! Yes. Sorry!"

She laughs to put you at your ease, and you both walk towards the free weights section. At your request, you're both wearing regular workout gear -- midriff-baring sports bra and workout tights. At the moment, you're the only fully-clothed women in the gym.

"Ok, so... before we begin... let's go over what we'll be doing together. You want to get strong, you said?"

"Yeah. Strong enough to... to win at stuff."

She raises an eyebrow. "What stuff?"

You turn your gaze over to the arm wrestling tables. Right now, a pair of women are going at it, grunting as they try to outmuscle each other. They're nude except for harnesses at their waists -- strap-ons held in place by straps of black leather, that jiggle as they struggle against each other for supremacy. You can only assume that they're arm wrestling to determine who tops whom.

"I want to be strong enough to wrestle down another woman, and take her as my prize," you hear yourself say, to your utter astonishment.

"Well, guess you'll fit right in," Jessica chuckles. "So, no powerlifting meets for you. But since you've chosen me, I guess you want to get strong my way."

"Yes. I want to be big, and thick, like you." You swallow hard, and continue. "I want to have big chunky muscles, like yours. To lift really heavy weights. To have a powerful body that can do... things."

"Sounds great. Here's the plan..."

Jessica starts you off by explaining that real strength isn't built by doing isolation work with little dumbbells, but by doing large "compound" movements -- movements that "recruit multiple muscle groups simultaneously": in other words, big movements that need you to work many parts of your body at once. Additionally, you've got to do these movements with significant load, i.e. lots of weight.

"So, as a beginner, you'll go on a strength-building program based on the 'Big 3' of powerlifting, which I believe are the basis of strength," Jessica explains. "The so-called Big 3 are the bench press, squat, and deadlift. I'll teach you these movements today. The deadlift is the most complicated, but for now we'll start off with simple variants, using light weights. Don't worry, I'll guide you every step of the way."

And so it begins. You do squatting, pushing, pulling, bending over, picking something up off the ground. The weights are light or in some cases nothing -- Jessica has you learning the movements first before using any weight -- but every workout leaves you breathless and bathed in sweat. This is far more strenuous than you could ever have expected!

"You need fuel for your muscles," Jessica says, laughing. "That's something every single woman here knows all too well! Are you vegan?"