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Well it’s been a long road with many ups and downs, but the short story is that over the last 7 years I have lost nearly 100 lbs of body fat, and 18 inches off my waist, while packing on 40 lbs of muscle.

Of course the long story is much more interesting and informative, so here goes.

As a teenager, I was always a scrawny little guy. When I graduated High School I weighed in at only 130 lbs.

In my early 20’s I was working in construction, so I was quite active, and as such I was able to stay pretty lean. However, a progressive injury to both shoulders prompted a career change at the age of 30, so I went into sales. No longer physically active on the job, my weight exploded. I gained 50 lbs of fat in less than 3 months, and I went over the 200lb mark for the first time.

Over the next 9 years, I would go up and down in weight several times. I’ve tried countless diets and exercises programs to lose weight, only to gain it back again when I stopped dieting and exercising.

It was a vicious cycle, and I’m sure some of you can relate to what I’m about to say. You start to gain weight, and then you don’t feel good due to eating garbage. This leads to depression, lethargy, and lower-self esteem. What did I do when I was depressed – EAT more, and more, and the downward spiral would continue.

At age 39 (7 years ago), enough was enough. I knew I had to make a change. I also knew that my constant and vast fluctuation in weight was potentially unhealthier than staying overweight, so this change had to be permanent!

I made a lifestyle change. I started a sensible diet plan - one that I could enjoy for life . A year later, I started to exercise, but I had to take it slow due to the re-occurrence of the shoulder injury I had sustained years prior. I became a certified personal trainer at this time as well.

Over the course of 2 years I went from 230lbs to 135lbs. At this point I felt great, but I also felt too scrawny again, so I modified my exercise routine to build additional muscle mass. This also meant I could eat more, but within reason this time.

Then I saw the P90X Infomercial, and I was very impressed with this totally ripped 40ish guy named Tony Horton. Being very skeptical by nature I didn’t believe the product could make people look like that, but I decided to purchase it anyway because I figured I could get a few new exercises that I could use with my clients one-on-one and in small group sessions.

Boy was I wrong – P90X was hard!!! I loved it and I was hooked immediately, and yes it did provide me with a ton of new exercises to use with my clients.

In early January 2008, I purchased P90X+ and I briefly checked out the new routines – I was blown away yet again. The folks at Beachbody really know what they are doing!

Since then I created my own mass building/ fat burning programs that incorporate P90X and other Beachbody Programs with Weightlifting - the results have been amazing!

Anyway, it’s been 7 years now, and I’ve stayed the course! I'm currently in the best shape of my life and I continue to improve every day. I hope my story has inspired you in some way. If there is anything I can do to help you, please do not hesitate to ask.

CRUSHING Play Every Day!

Rick Stype, Certified Personal Trainer & Team Beachbody Coach