The (Brief) Autobiography of an Avid Fitness Enthusiast
Last modified 5 days, 19 hours ago.
[Note: In progress, but I think this is a good (and interesting) start.]
I wondered why I ever got started in fitness.
I loved lifting weights.
I didn’t care how good (or bad) I was at it. I just loved doing it. (Not that I was too bad at it, though).
I started when I was 12 years old in the summer of 2000. (I think I was 5’5”, 110 pounds at the time).
A year later, in 2001, I was 120 pounds, and could row 65-pound dumbbells. My form was a little shaky, but I look back and think, ‘Wow, I was a pretty strong, wiry young fellow.’ I looked pretty awesome, too.
I educated myself with a steady diet of Flex magazine and Bodybuilding.com articles. (Yes, yes, gosh, I know!)
I never had the boon of hypertrophy (muscle growth) that many fitness professionals had, though. Nope, I never gained 40, 30, or even 15 pounds of muscle, like Jeff Nippard, Layne Norton, or Drew Baye. I got pretty strong in some exercises, but I never was able to join the swole patrol.
Now it is literally 25 years later.
I had to reflect back on why I bothered at all. And that’s it... I loved movement. Exerting myself. Trying to get stronger. Running and pushing myself. That’s what I loved.
I could not care less about diet. I know it’s important. I do the best I can, but it’s not my passion. It’s more like a necessary irritant. It was amazing the changes a few micronutrients and fatty acids were able to make in my life, though. God, what an eye opener. But diet isn’t fun, and it’s not why I ever got into this. I have to remember not to be too hard on myself, though. I’m in good shape, feel pretty damn good, and I eat far better than most Americans.
Nope, you won’t catch me at McDonald’s, smoking cigars, or drinking whiskey or beer. But I’m usually not “counting macros,” either. I just make sure most of my meals consist of fresh whole foods, but I know I eat too much cheesecake, too!
Anyway, physiology is awesome. Biochemistry is, too. (After all, I did get a bachelor's and master's degree in exercise and nutrition sciences. Yeesh.). But the diet stuff, well… what an annoyance.
I am an avid enthusiast, because of the exercise. . . because it’s amazing to lift heavy stuff and learn how to do it better and better.
Back in the day, I was in awe of Lee Haney, Rich Gaspari, Pavel Tsatsouline, and a few others. Now, I mostly compare myself to myself. I try to be a little bit better than I was before. I call that perspective, I suppose.
I don’t care about flexing my abdominals to impress other people. (Physique pictures are extremely misleading anyway. You’ll have to do your research to get a 1,000 words of truth out of them).
I want my clothes to fit me well, though. I don’t want to be walking around with a 34” or 35” waist. I never want to be overweight. I want to look respectable and healthy.
Sometimes people ask me how I got into fitness. How did I choose it? I say, it chose me. They might get a kick out of that response, but it’s true.
Most of all, since it’s such a big part of my life, I want to enjoy health & fitness. I want to stay connected to why I bothered to get involved in fitness in the first place...
I got involved, because I enjoyed it so much. I became an avid enthusiast from day one.
Every now and then, I have to remind myself of that.
Random list of tidbits.
My early fitness inspirations: Jack LaLanne, Bernard Hopkins, Daniel Igali, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lee Haney, Dr. Fred Hatfield (“Dr. Squat”), Pavel Tsatsouline, and Frank Zane. (Jack LaLanne would be one of the top influences. The rest are not in any order).
Resistance training: I love lifting weights, but I lift for longevity now. You could say I’m a “defensive lifter.” I say it’s just a smart(er) way to train.
Athlete life: I was never a champion. That stung for a while, but I'm OK with it now. If you are touched enough to try to be the best athlete you can be, don't do it halfway... give it 100% damn it. I'm cheering you on.
Recreational-substance use: I do not. I drink alcohol on the rarest of occasions. I don’t do recreational drugs. I severely limit my caffeine consumption. I think if athletes have a kryptonite, it’s alcohol. I just stayed away for my fitness longevity and health. I don’t believe there’s any benefit to it. If you like it, cool, that’s fine. I don’t partake, though.