I actually got started lifting when I was about 12 years old with dreams of building a perfectly sculpted and athletic body. Of course at that age with no guidance I was doing most everything wrong except for my arms. That was the one muscle group I was able to get to grow pretty easily and I quickly became addicted to training them. Long story short, i've trained off and on for most of my life as well as playing sports up till I was about 32 years young. Slowly but surely, I became more focused on my career and what I had worked to build, began to fall apart. For the first time in my life I took my shirt off at the beach and the abs that I used to show off were covered by a disgusting blob, years of bad habits and a slowing metabolism had finally caught up to me. I went from a hardgainer who could eat anything and everything around the clock without fear of gaining an ounce to the realization that I allowed this to happen to myself. I had become what I despised and what I always swore I would never be. It wasn't the example I wanted to set for the people who work for me. I'm constantly traveling and have had to be resourceful in many of my workouts. First thing I tell people who are considering weight training is always, "Check your ego at the door, it will get you hurt" followed by, "There's no bench press at the beach, it doesn't matter if you bench 315 when you're a blob, stick to getting your form right all the time!" I've learned that injuries really suck when you're trying to make progress so I listen very carefully to what my body tells me now.

I love seeing the progress but even more than that. Personally, i've always loved a challenge though most of the challenges i've presented to myself. I want to see just how good I can get and then smash through those plateaus. I always train by myself so I don't have to count on anybody but myself. I love the stress release in the gym, it's absolute solitude where I can forget everything but the task at hand. Even the moments when I really don't feel like going, I find motivation from BB.com, watch MMA training videos and jam to some music to get me pumped up and then I can't wait to go. I avoid skipping a workout as much as possible, because missing one often turns into missing two. I'm back for life and as of 10Mar2012 I will have maintained a steady strain for two years straight. This will be the longest period of consistency for me ever. The most important thing I always remind myself is how hard it is to start over. Only I can fail myself, so it's up to me to make sure this is one thing I don't fail at.