My First Taste of Coaching and Transformation

My First Taste of Coaching and Transformation

My first real experience with training and coaching probably began around eleventh grade in high school.

At the time, I was simply making my way through life like everyone else — going to school, hanging out with friends, discovering who I was becoming, and naturally starting to spend more time around the girls in my class.

One particular girl and I got along really well. She was kind, easy to talk to, and we built a nice friendship.

By then, I had been driving for about a year. I owned a humble little Volkswagen Golf, probably a 1995 model. To me, that car was freedom. It was my pride and joy. Even though school was only about ten minutes away from my house, I loved every second of driving there and back.

One day, she approached me with an offer.

She told me that one of her aunts had recently opened a gym, and if I gave her rides there, she could get me in for free.

Naturally, I said yes immediately.

I did not even ask what type of gym it was, where it was located, or what training even looked like. I was simply excited by the adventure.

On the first day, I drove to pick her up at her house, which was already pretty far from mine. After that, we headed toward the gym — and I quickly realized this was no short trip. The place was almost an hour away from my home.

But I did not care. I was happy to be there.

I had never stepped foot inside a gym before, so I had no idea what to expect.

When we arrived, I discovered it was a very small gym tucked inside a relatively new shopping plaza in one of the neighborhoods outside the city. The space itself was tiny.

I still remember it clearly:

a small dumbbell rack, maybe three barbells, a couple of benches, a few plates, and two resistance machines that could be adjusted in different ways. There might have even been a lonely leg extension machine somewhere in the corner.

Nothing fancy.

But for me, it was the beginning of something enormous…

See what happens in the next issue of Strength Matters #3

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The Wisdom of Exercise

Recently, I came across a quote from the incredibly influential yogi Paramahansa Yogananda that deeply resonated with me. This is what he said about exercise:

“Many persons do not exercise at all. Working is not real exercise. Of course, any physical activity does some good and is better than a sedentary life, but if it doesn’t use all the muscles, you are not truly exercising.

Scientific exercise means working the entire muscular system. That charges fresh blood into the blood vessels in all parts of the body, and as a result, it washes away poisons and gives life force, laden oxygen and food to cells throughout the system.

By tensing and relaxing all of the body parts as taught in the system, you shut off and then open little valves in the blood vessels and thereby direct a tremendous supply of oxygen through the blood to all of the major muscles and organs of the body in turn.”

What I take away from this is that exercise is one of the highest forms of self-care.

Living a healthy and capable life means giving yourself the time to move, breathe, strengthen, and care for your body. Exercise allows your body to experience life more fully. It gives you freedom — freedom to go where you want, do what you want, and participate in life with greater energy and confidence.

What also stood out to me was the idea of tension and relaxation working together.

I can relate this directly to kettlebell training.

In movements like the kettlebell swing, you learn when to tense and when to relax. You learn how to coordinate breath, posture, power, and timing into one precise and unified action.

When all of these elements begin to work together, something remarkable happens:
you feel rhythm,
timing,
focus,
and flow.

And that carryover extends far beyond the gym.

You begin to move through life with greater awareness, greater control, and greater connection between mind and body.

Exercise then becomes more than physical training.

It becomes practice for living.

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Creatine and Longevity

Creatine may be one of the most misunderstood supplements in fitness.

For many years, people associated it only with bodybuilding or getting bigger, but research continues to show that creatine can support much more than muscle size, especially as we age.

Creatine helps support muscle preservation, energy production, recovery, and even cognitive performance. It helps replenish ATP, the body’s quick energy source, allowing for better training quality, improved output, and more consistent recovery.

One important thing to understand is that creatine is not a steroid, and it does not need complicated cycling protocols. Some people may notice a small initial weight increase due to muscles holding more water, but that hydration actually supports strength and performance.

Personally, I believe supplements should never replace the fundamentals: quality training, proper nutrition, sleep, and consistency. But when those foundations are in place, creatine can be a valuable tool for strength, recovery, and longevity.

Would you take creatine if your goal was longevity, but not bodybuilding?

Until next time…