Health & Fitness: My Story

I guess you could say I was basically raised in a gym.  My earliest memories as a little boy were the days I spent running around my Dads gym.  How many kids can say that their Dad was Mr. America?  My Dad taught me early in life the importance of health and fitness.  When your Dad was regularly winning titles like:

1966- Mr California AAU "Winner"

1975- Pro Mr America WBBG "Winner"

1975- Mr International WBBG "Winner"

1975- Mr USA WBBG "Winner"

You can't help but learn what it means to be physically fit and healthy with trophies from these contest on the shelf of your home growing-up!

As a kid growing up I was very involved in sports such as soccer, football, baseball and wrestling.  Having a Dad who knows so much about health and fitness always gave me an advantage as an athlete.  As a young boy my Dad taught me exercises I could do to make me a better athlete.  During my high school years sports and fitness became my passion.  When I wasn't playing sports I was in the gym training.  In 1986, I received a football scholarship to Northwestern Christian College in Minnesota.  I knew that I wanted to spend my life in the health and fitness field.

Just prior to graduating high school in 1986 as I was training for my first year of college football, I was diagnosed with diabetes.  I really believed that this was the end of my football career and the chance of having any type of healthy life.  But it was during this time that the things I had learned from my Dad really carried me through this difficult time in my life.  When I got the diabetes under control I began to train really hard! All through the summer after graduating high school I trained and watched my diet even though I had diabetes I was healthier and stronger then I had ever been. I did play college football that year and my diabetes actually became a strength rather then a hindrance.  Having diabetes made me have to focus on my health more then I would have had to if I wasn't diabetic.  I finished playing my first year of college football and did well, but due to a knee injury I was unable to continue playing.  I began to focus on bodybuilding and again under the watchful eye and training of my Dad in 1988 I won the North American Natural Bodybuilding Federations Mr. Teenage USA Competition.  I felt at this time I would make health and fitness my career. I decided to move to California to complete my education and work towards the completion of a degree in Physical Education.  My hope and desire was to become a Physical Education Teacher.  In 1991 I graduated from Christian Heritage College in San Diego with a Bachelors Degree in Physical Education.   

During my senior year of college, I began working with the Big Brothers program and other programs in California, helping troubled teens it was at this time my life focus changed.  I felt more then wanting to teach people how to be healthy and fit physically, I wanted to help young people just live better lives and make good life decisions.  So from 1990 to the present I have spent my life working with young people through community and church organizations. In 2001 I moved to the Columbus, Ohio area to develop a youth program for a faith based organization. I have worked as a developer of community and church youth programs and a youth and family counselor for over 14 years now.

In 2005 I was confronted with the most difficult situation I have ever had to deal with.  I was diagnosed with stage 3 stomach cancer.  I was told by doctors that I had a 30% chance of surviving the cancer and if I was going to survive I would need to have my stomach removed.  Being that I have been an insulin dependent diabetic for almost 20 years having my stomach removed was a death sentence.  It was during this time that I once again drew upon my knowledge of health and fitness and most importantly my faith in God.  During the almost 20 years since being diagnosed with diabetes, although I was not working in the field of health and fitness professionally I had been personally committed to a life of good health and fitness.  Being the father of 2 amazing kids I knew I had to beat this cancer.  All during my cancer treatment I focused on staying strong both physically and mentally.  And by the grace of God just about a year after being diagnosed with stomach cancer and going through aggressive cancer treatment I was found to be cancer free. 

So now at 40 years of age, I have decided to return to my passion of physical education and health and fitness.  And my passion to help people live exciting healthy lives is the mission of Barefoot Fitness. My love of life, my experience and knowledge of health and fitness gained through growing up with and being influenced by a father who is devoted to and still spends his life working as a health and fitness trainer, to my advanced education and training in health and fitness, I feel this makes me a personal trainer who can help people experience lives of personal wholeness, optimal health both mentally, emotionally and physically.  I hope you will give me the opportunity to help you reach your health and fitness and life goals.