People often ask me why I’m so passionate about health and fitness. What inspired me to start this business, walking the talk and helping others to achieve their own weight loss and body composition goals? I want my clients both now and in the future to understand what drives me. To give you an insight, here’s my story.
WHERE IT ALL STARTED
I was fairly chubby as a teenager. Other kids would taunt me and change my surname to ‘Belly.’ I remember once when I was playing football, a supporter of the opposite team shouted, ‘Watch out for the elephant!’ as I thundered past them down the line.
My lifestyle didn’t improve when I went to University. In fact, it got a lot worse. I embraced student life far too much, drinking heavily, with my staple diet becoming any sort of takeaway. So, as well as being overweight, I was also extremely unhealthy. A doctor once told me that I’d be seriously ill by my mid-thirties if I carried on the lifestyle I was leading at the time. I didn’t take the warning seriously, telling myself it was ages away and that I’d stop living like that at some point, so I carried on with my unhealthy lifestyle.
WHERE IT ALL CHANGED
It was only after another booze filled stag weekend that I received the initial trigger I needed to change. I felt so ill after that weekend that I genuinely thought I was dying and it scared the hell out of me.
I was sick of being a fat guy and living an unhealthy life, so I decided to focus on my health and shape up. I didn’t completely change, but I did enough to make a difference. Wow! Suddenly I was attractive to the opposite sex! And I received compliments! I’d never received a compliment about the way I looked before. That was motivational to say the least. I wanted more of that, so I continued to improve my lifestyle, my exercise habits and my diet.
THE FINAL WAKEUP CALL
A few years later, I received the final wakeup call that would change my habits and lifestyle for good. For years, my mother had suffered from cancer but she’d finally managed to beat it, although it did take its toll. She lost her social confidence and became a lot more housebound than before. We didn’t worry too much about this as she had beaten the cancer and could now live a long and happy life. It didn’t turn out that way. While our focus was on the cured cancer, a far less detectable disease was growing. Her sedentary lifestyle had caused her to develop heart disease, which tragically took her life at a relatively young age. It was a massive shock which took me years to get over.
FOCUSING ON A HEALTHIER FUTURE
My experiences made me think about how many people in this country led sedentary lifestyles and were overweight. How many people were unaware of the harmful changes happening inside them through living that type of lifestyle and the devastation to which it could lead. It was clear to me that exercise was a key factor in avoiding that fate.
I wanted to tell people. I wanted to inspire the positive change that they needed to improve their lifespan and wellbeing. I became an avid practitioner and advocate of health and fitness. I read and researched everything I could find on the subject. I qualified as a Personal Trainer in my spare time and completed a lot of additional training in the industry. I started to train people while continuing to develop my own physique and improve my lifestyle. I tested everything out, using myself as a guinea pig.
This was now my passion. My aspiration was to start a business where I could help people achieve health, strength and better body composition. When the moment was right I’d leave the finance industry and follow my dream.
Finally, after many years of preparation, I took the plunge. I’m now living the dream. Life Force Fitness has become my vocation. My mission is to help people lose weight, get stronger, increase their confidence and live well.
I’ve gone from fat to fit; experienced 22 years of commuting and corporate stress; researched and perfected the science and practice of muscle gain and fat loss and am a devotee and avid practitioner of health and fitness. I can help you in your quest to become fitter, healthier, leaner.
If you’re ready to take a positive step towards looking great and living a long and active life, then please get in touch. The next chapter of your own unique story starts here.