My weightlifting journey……
I began lifting back in mid to late 90’s to increase my overall strength, but mainly increase my leg strength to assist my long distance bicycle riding. Most of my guy friends were typically worried about their chest and arm size to impress the girls. That was not my main focus, Legs were my means of getting around, and so I focused on leg exercises. In early 2003 I had made impressive gains in my legs measuring 27 ½” around the thighs with the capability to leg press 1100lbs for several reps, squat 430lbs and partial or half squat 600+lbs. But all this came to an end when my L4/L5 & L5/S1 discs basically exploded or fragmented causing immense pain in my lower back. Surgery in October 2003 and again in January 2004 relieved my pain when the Neurosurgeons removed all the disc fragments that were basically floating around my spine. My physicians informed me that this may have been avoided if I focused on opposing muscles to balance my muscular structure and create less stress on my spine. An example would be, I over worked my Quads and under worked my Hamstrings, thus causing an out of balance situation where my spine was being pulled forward due to the difference in the muscular tension. After rehabilitating from the surgeries, I headed back to the gym, but this time, with an agenda to focus on an overall symmetrical physique with no emphasis on any particular body part, except those areas that need brought up. Slow and steady was my game plan. With my work schedule, there were times I would go months without working out. But all was getting better; all my lagging body parts were making gains in strength and size. Then when I thought all was good, spring of 2010, I was diagnosed with 5 out of 6 discs in my cervical spine to be bulged and on top of that, I have spinal stenosis in my cervical spine. The bulging of the discs seems to have been caused again by unbalanced musculature in my upper body. The spinal stenosis can cause numbness in my face, arms or cause sharp pains shooting down my arms, shoulder blade area and even into my lungs, and have lack of mobility of turning my head side to side due to the immense pain or tension. After a year of therapy, I started again, at 6’6”, weighing 255lbs; my physician suggested I focus on trimming down in size. She thought the less overall body weight I had, the less stress it would place on my weakening spine. In January 2011, I entered Bodybuilding.com’s 2011Transformation Challenge with a friend of mine to have accountability for this adventure in weight loss. With my spinal stenosis in remission, the twelve week challenge was a personal success, dropping more than 30lbs and going from a 38+” waist down to 33”. I continued to eat clean and follow a symmetrical type workout through the summer, the weight continued to go down and so did the inches around my waist. For the first time that I could remember, I actually saw definition in my abs. To this date, barring my spine issues, I feel as if I’m in the best physical shape ever. I give God ALL the Glory and Praise for giving me the ability to pull through my medical setbacks, and reach the physical conditioning I have today. I will never again put limits on what I can do or overcome. I am living proof that if you believe deep down, you will succeed in reaching your dreams.
Thank You Jesus ;)

Overall I love it because it is a natural way for me to relieve stress. I feel better overall if I work out regularly than if I go at it sporadically. After a workout I feel energized and rejuvenated. Like an adrenaline rush that lasts for hours after you are finished working out, also a feeling of satisfaction of competing with yourself and winning. Even if you go into a workout with a tired body and no motivation, you come away with energy and a sense of accomplishment.
Just Love The Iron…