I got cut from the basketball team my sophomore year in high school, so I went to a local gym court to play instead. Right next to the court was a weight room, and after admiring the lifters in there I decided to start training myself. Progress was very slow at first, but after doing a lot of research, getting some help from local trainers, and staying consistent and training hard, I began to make progress. Other guys at the gym began asking me about my training, and girls at school would grab my arms and make comments! I am also very competitive, and loved trying to out do my fellow weight lifters in the gym. Seeing the hard work pay off and the competitive excitement I got from training was very motivating, and I have been hooked ever since.

There are so many reasons I love working out that I often wonder why more people don't do it! I think maybe they just don't do it properly or don't do it for long enough to realize all of the gains, because I can't imagine anyone stopping with all the great effects it has!

Going to the gym makes you feel good in many different ways. The "pump" you get when the muscle gets flushed with blood from training it physically feels really good and makes you look bigger and more ripped, which is also great. Arnold Schwarzenegger famously compared this feeling to having sex. Intense weight lifting sessions release endorphin's in your brain, similar to "runners high", which contribute to the good feeling throughout the training session and after it. I'm competitive so loading a lot of weight on the bar and lifting it with proper form makes me feel good about myself and like I have accomplished something.

Being strong and fit has helped me out a lot over the years in day to day life. Being bigger and stronger will improve your performance in almost every single sport. I certainly found this to be the case. I joined the Lacrosse team my senior year in high school, and due to my strength and size gains from lifting, I made a great defensive player. As a result, I started every game. The same proved to be true when I started playing rugby in college. My strength allowed me to play on the front row despite weighing only about 180 lbs, a position typically taken by guys 220+ lbs. Despite being unable to practice for more than half of the regular season due to injuries I was able to make a comeback and play in national level games and help my team make it to the 2nd round of nationals and get ranked 5th in the nation. II think without the extra strength and size advantage I had gained from weight training I would not have been able to do this.

It helps keep you very healthy, especially when coupled with a little bit of cardio on your off days. I get regular check-ups and all of my bloodwork has consistently come back impeccable. I rarely if ever get sick, and I feel more energetic and healthy than I did before taking up working out.

A member of the famous famous group of Australian bodybuilders known as the "Aesthetics Crew" once said "if you look good you feel good". I have certainly found this to be true. Studies have shown that teens and adults that took up weight lifting programs felt more confident after weight training for a period of time than they did before taking up weight training. Succeeding and making accomplishments in the weight room really helped me feel more confident about undertakings in other areas of my life. Seeing the gains I have made through training gives me a feeling that I can do anything I set my mind to. This translates to more confidence in everything I do, from job interviews, to getting a cute girls number, to making an A in an accounting class! I have also gotten a lot of attention for it, from men and women, which is fun and inspiring.

These things don't come fast though. It was months before I ever even felt a pump in the gym. I certainly did not get much attention at first either. Sometimes I would look in the mirror and wonder "do I even lift?". But once I finally learned the best training and eating protocols, and stuck to them for a while, I began to get all the benefits, and it was well worth it.