I'm one of those cliches that has always wanted a better body and to be really muscular but could never dedicate myself to the gym. I've studied fitness for years but always had trouble sticking to it. I would do a few weeks here and a few weeks there falling off for months if not a year in between. I know that it takes awhile to really start seeing results, especially after eating very unhealthy and not working out for most of your life. But the mind games would start in on me and I would just quit. But not anymore... I am the father of three and realized that I was very lazy. I never had the energy to do anything. Never wanted to go outside with my kids and throw the football or ride bikes, etc. I watched WAY too much Netflix and ate the worst food you probably could. I've never been comfortable going to the beach or the pool and have always hated taking photos because I knew I was overweight. My shirt would be tight around my waist and you could see the extra weight I was carrying in my face. The sad part is that I let myself become like this knowing what it's like for my children first hand; having a father that is sedentary and can't do anything. My father died from complications due to his obesity when I was sixteen years old. His highest weight was 605 lbs. So I have made a vow to myself to be a better father to my children than I have been. I am a civilian contractor working overseas for the next two years. Unfortunately being stationed in the Middle East, I could not bring my family with me. So I promised myself that when I return home to my family I would be a different man. I have dedicated myself to eating healthier and working out on a regular basis. I'm already doing better than I have ever done. Even when I worked out before I would skip abs or leg day. Or I would not do as many reps as I should or skip a set here and there. I don't do that anymore and I not only finish every rep, sometimes I do more because I have more in me. I only get to go home twice a year for a few weeks to see my wife and children and I plan to blow them away with how different I look every time I get off that plane. And when I am finally home for good, I will be the father that my children deserve that runs around and plays with them all the time. I've always put myself last and done things for others. It's time now to do something for myself...

I've discovered so many reasons since I started working out. I have a lot of stress in my life but when I go into the gym, it's headphones on, world off. Any tension or stress that I feel is released in the gym. It's MY time and no one can take it from me. I don't have a workout partner, I don't talk to people I see from work. I'm there for me and me alone. I also love the pump, it's the greatest high you can ever get. In the words of the late Greg Plitt, "you don't have to snort it, you don't have to shoot it or smoke it, you just have to sweat for it." I also feel myself getting stronger, lifting more weight, sweating more, etc. And it's one of the greatest feelings in the world. I leave the gym feeling like I accomplished something most other don't and am ready to take on the world.