Reflecting

Looking back on my childhood, I can't think of one athletic attribute that was bestowed upon me. I was the kid that got sand kicked in his face. When I was fifteen, a reflection in the mirror told me that all the names I had been called since grade school painted a picture in my mind that held me back from my physical potential. At that moment, I took charge of this part of my life and walked into a gym for the first time. I began to workout and lift weights, not to prove anything to anyone but myself. After one year of training, I entered my first bodybuilding show. I placed third and was ecstatic over the achievements I had made. One year later, I had a revelation that physical appearance is not the most important thing nor does it define who we are. My motivation for working out was to prove something to myself, that I was a "somebody." I took a mental, physical and spiritual inventory of myself and changed my direction away from physical self-absorption and set my vision towards helping others.

Helping Others

From 1989 to 1992, I was a part of a team that performed feats of strength and spoke to thousands of youth about issues that plague young people on a daily basis. In a world where we open magazines, turn on the television, or walk down the street, we constantly see something we are not. We see a super model, an athlete, or an actor that's telling us we should look like them, wear what they wear, drink what they drink, and if we don't we aren't "cool." Our message was that your are unique, you are special, and we are here to tell you that you are loved. Their worth was not based on what the media unfolded before their eyes, rather their worth was based on who they were as a unique, specially designed person with a purpose to impact not only their own world, but the world around them.

Peer Pressure

When I was seventeen I faced the peer pressure of taking steroids. I would like to say that I don't condone the use of steroids nor do I condemn steroid users. Everyone has a choice to make, fortunately for myself, I chose not to. Why? I had a moral issue with taking steroids. I also had a strong will and drive towards training. I wanted to walk into the gym and know that if I squatted 400 pounds, I squatted 400 pounds without the use of any drug. Bottom line. I have always been a results oriented person, and this is what I share with my clients. We set goals, we plan and we work hard. True results are not going to come from a magic pill. It's going to come from empowering ones self to make a decision and take charge of our lives and make a change.