My English paper. From Scrawny to Brawny As I looked in the mirror the day after I learned my track season was over due to an injured hip, I saw a skeletal figure staring back at me. I remembered people calling me names like weakling and small fry. At that momen,t I decided it was time to take action and make a better me. I had always been at the bottom of the food chain and decided to work my way to the top. This is when the high calorie/protein meals began as well as the story of my success. Growing up as a child I was raised a pescatarian on soy products with no red meat or chicken. Eggs and fish would be the only meats I ate for years to come. Hanging out in the woods with my friends as a kid I was too small to climb trees. My parents never believed in football or any contact sports, so you could say I was kind of a wimp. My parents signed me up for soccer and soon after I started the beginning of my seven year skateboarding career. My seventh grade year a fellow vegetarian friend and I signed up for wrestling. That year I wrestled in the 86 pound weight class, one of the smallest classes existing. I sometimes found myself to be the butt of the many jokes exchanged at practice, at tournaments, and on the bus. I knew when they called me names like weakling was simply everyone messing around having fun, but over the years it built up. By the end of my eighth grade year, I was able to weigh in the 112 pound weight class. This was a much anticipated improvement but I unfortunately still was ranked at the bottom of the food chain. By the time my 9th grade year came around, I stopped wrestling and focused on my new found hobby, weightlifting. This continued all through my ninth grade, tenth grade, and eleventh grade years but by the end of eleventh grade, I still had only gained a few pounds. Sadly, I weighed a mere 130 pounds. At that time I was also a long distance runner on the distance track team and still followed the pescatarian diet. This is why my limbs stayed long and skinny and my muscles nonexistent. The day before the first meet of my eleventh grade year I got a major hip injury preventing me from running. Falling on my hands, knees, and hips skateboarding the past seven years definitely contributed to my hips being weak in the first place and running four to seven miles a day sealed the deal and that day my hip blew out ending my running career. Nothing I tried to heal it worked and to this day I still cannot run excessively. I still continued to be made fun of about my small size, so I started training hard in the weight room hoping to gain at least a decent amount of muscle. I spent a lot of my time not only weight lifting but also researching and learning everything I could about the hobby, a weight gaining diet, and various bulking workout plans. Slowly my passion for weight lifting increased every single day. Monday through Friday I would go to the gym after I finished working with my dad for 8 hours and it was no easy task. It was a true test of discipline and showed how important lifting was to me but I was dedicated and never missed a day. Every week I was putting on more and more weight, pushing myself to the limit and making noticeable gains. Lifting was like a drug to me; the bigger I got, the better I felt, the less people made fun of me, and the more I loved it. On my first day of twelfth grade, I proudly walked into school weighing in at 160lbs. A few weeks into my twelfth grade year, I was diagnosed with mono enabling me to attend school for two weeks. In this time I was unable to lift in fear of bursting my spleen which can happen if you strain your body while having mono. Only two weeks gave me enough time to lose a whopping fifteen pounds. Gaining it all back I finished my twelfth grade year weighing in at 170 pounds. Feeling much better about myself I continued lifting three days a week. Currently I weigh 170 pounds and train people in my spare time. I have helped a friend lose seventy pounds and helped other skinny friends pack on muscle over the past few years. After this year I will be going to Ohio University to obtain a degree in Exercise Physiology. Helping people in the gym lose or gain weight makes me feel good because I am helping them feel comfortable about themselves.

I get a personal high after lifting. I don't do drugs lifting is my high. You feel great about yourself after you get done.