"This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
8 years ago if you asked me where I would be now or what I would be up to I probably would have said "dead". I wasn't far from hitting the pavement at mach speeds and death was lingering around my shoulders a little to close for comfort. Rock bottom looked like a five star restaurant and a party for 20 compared to the pit I was in. Money was wasted like I was Jay-Z and parties were non-stop. I was a walking time bomb with no passion, no desire, and no motivation to do anything more than get whacked and sleep, as well as eat Junk Food.
I was a mess. I had medical issues that I ignored and an addiction to the high heavens that Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas played out perfectly. I was similar to the character played by Johnny Deep but understanding me was harder. The bottomless pit I fell into was crazy, a learning experience, and more than anyone should ever really go through. I landed on an edge one day where I found myself sleeping under a bridge near the local river for a week, fishing for catfish and bass so I could have a decent meal. Another edge I landed on had me squatting in a house with no heat or cable TV. I read the bible instead. Probably the turning point of my life even though I am not truly a religious nut. It educated me, intrigued me, and nothing more. It acted as my Simpson's Halloween Treehouse of Horror.
To make an 8 year story shorter after those events happened I landed into good hands, more than I could have ever imagined. It was a shock and a surprise that people actually cared about me. I was given food and clothes, a place to stay, and more importantly a new outlook on life. I started to grow up. It wasn't until a few months ago that I came to realize those changes in my life were brought to me because I wanted it. I wanted to change and succeed and stop being "sick and tired of being sick and tired." Some call it the Law of Attraction.
Needless to say there are many people I need to thank. Some know I am grateful and some I may have never said it to, but I will, on a personal basis- face to face.
I think back a lot about where I was before, how I got there, and what it took to turn my life around. I feel ashamed and embarrassed about the things I did and feel sorrow for the pain my actions caused many people. But with my new interest in Business Books, Self Help Books, and Books geared towards Success I have come to realize I can't think about those things anymore. The past is the past. I am over it.
Moving forward and into the next chapter of my life has me working harder than I ever have before. I have a baby on the way, a full time job where I take as much overtime as I can, as well as a start up fitness business. I blog, I train clients, I lift myself, I love my wife, I work over 40 full time hours a week, I tend to my vehicles and house, and I read. All this while being freaked out about being a father, helping family out in a situation, and trying to promote my business to become a major local success one day. I don't slack anymore. I spent a good portion of my early life being a McDonald's IV patient slacker. Now I set goals and try to burst through them at Mach Speeds instead of falling through rock bottom at those speeds. I've recently subleased a studio for my group training classes through an awesome guy, Ray, from NJ Core MMA in Hackettstown. I went in with my guard up, the unknown right in front of my face with a desire to make it work. A passion to let it not fail.
I spend a lot of my time studying Napoleon Hill's work as well as Jack Canfield, Bob Proctor, Stephen Covey, Alwyn Cosgrove, Jim Wendler, Zach Even Esh, Maxwell Maltz, and Dan Kennedy. These men and their teachings have changed my life in more ways then I feel like writing about. Dan Kennedy has opened my eyes to marketing and Mr. Cosgrove has taught me fitness training and more importantly the business side of it all. Hill and Canfield have voided my mind of negative bullshit and Covey has taught me the ways of being an effective person. Jim Wendler showed me Strength and Conditioning is a passion and Zach Even Esh helps keep it burning as well as teaches me some business aspects. I am where I am with the mindset I have because I enjoy reading their work.
Sometimes people just need to know that other people care about them. I think about this often lately. I know it's true because it helped someone I know hopefully start on the right path again, the path out of that bottomless pit.
This read was awesome: http://thebeatchronicles.wordpress.com/2012/07/27/scream/
Matt has a serious talent for writing and has lived an incredible life based on the things he writes about. I look forward to more in the future. Subscribe to his blog.
Now let me Fitness this Fitness stuff into this blog before it gets too long.
With the new facility I am training out of I am currently offering all new clients a Free 2 week trial.
If you want to lose fat and build muscle while increasing your strength come check my classes out. Check out my webpage at WWW.activate-fitness.net for more info.
The past few weeks I have been training a High School Football player out of my home and the progress he has made has turned eyes and started the questions being asked. More people are showing interest in my program and this is different from the Group Fitness classes I offer. Check out the video below and let me know what you think. If you are a Football player, Wrestler, or student athlete and you're not afraid to train like a beast contact me at activatefitnesspt @ gmail.com
Nobody in this world will give you anything. You need to work for it. You need to want it. Go out there and get whatever it is you want and think positive about it. Nothing but you is holding you back.
Written with honesty and passion.
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