March 2015 Fitness Success Story – Mark

I’m Mark from Irving, Texas. It was like I was consigned to get old and out of shape. It started getting more painful every day. Things were sliding down. I don’t want to say I gave up but it was time to do something—get a little bit more flexible, get rid of my gut and start acting like a 40-year-old even though I’m about 50.

It was horrible—you hated getting up every morning. We kept getting new mattresses. It’s like, “Okay, that mattress hurts.” Well, it’s not the mattress; it’s my body that’s hurting just because it’s staying in one place all the time. So it was really starting to affect everything.

We’d go on vacations. (It sounds stupid) it would take two days to get in shape enough to enjoy the vacation, to get your energy level up. It starts really getting on your attitude. You don’t feel like doing anything.

Okay, nobody is happy about going to work on a Monday but when you’re dead from the weekend and the weekend was just like the work week, you didn’t get out, you didn’t do anything, Monday was even worse.

I’m thankful, I’ve always been very creative at work but it just wasn’t popping; it was just very flat. Again, it felt like, “Well, I’m done.” It was affecting all phases of my life.

The thing I wanted most from you guys that you really delivered on—I needed something to take me to the next level. I had gained a bunch of weight. You guys didn’t get to see me then. But what you guys did was organize it, give me somebody to talk to, accountability, and that really helped.

What I was trying to do was always a “try.” I would make the best bad decisions, but they were still bad decisions.

You really did put me at ease. There are so  many things out there, you have no idea what’s legit. I also had a trainer before I met you. Sweet guy…had absolutely no idea what was reasonable for a 48-year-old guy, and it was hurting me. So yes, I was very nervous whenever I first met you guys.

Your program at first seemed a little bit overwhelming but you don’t force it; you just let people ease into it so it’s been nothing but good. But yes, I was a little bit skeptical at first.

markm_1250First off, just feeling so much better. Taking my shirt off, I’m not cringing. But the physical numbers—I’ve lost 40 pounds  and I’ve gained 25 pounds of muscle in that time.

That makes a huge difference. I’m not that narcissistic but it’s like, “That’s me!” That’s incredible.

It makes me feel great. I’m happy, peppy. We just had a great holiday weekend. There was no downtime. It was awesome.

I can actually, with my knuckles, stand up and touch the floor. Flexibility is great. Now every morning, stretch in bed, get out of bed and I feel perfect.

Work—I like to take the stairs at work. There’s no huffing and chuffing by the time I get to the top. It’s like I took the elevator.

Every aspect—I’m happier, more engaging. There’s a self-confidence that comes along with it. It’s like, hey, Mark, you’re looking good. So it’s great.

To stay fit through Thanksgiving, to make up for everything that I ate, I did four 26-mile bike rides in 7 days. They got progressive. The first one was a little bit rough and the second one felt better. Yesterday’s felt awesome! I didn’t have brick legs or anything. It’s just amazing how much more you can do.

I think that was one of Jason’s [my trainer] big deals—he was very excited when he found out how much I liked biking. That’s a key element that I can keep going. Jason is also this little voice in my head now. It’s like, “You know, you really should do this.” “Why don’t you just go ahead and do something better?” That’s always going to stick with me.

I like your products. After a long ride, I want [Shaklee] Physique. I want Physique after a workout. On a Saturday or Sunday when I could eat something bad for breakfast, I’ll have the protein shake just to get started. This stuff is going to stick with me; there’s no question.

It’s never a bad thing. It’s always a good thing. These guys are going to help you, there’s no question. They are very professional and if things maybe aren’t quite  a match at first, they will go above and beyond to fix it. I’ve been nothing but happy. I’m grateful we met.