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I have been active my entire life. I have grown up playing competitive soccer every summer and competitive hockey every winter. Fitness was never an issue for me, and as a 'skin and bones' kind of teenager, I could eat whatever I wanted to, and never have to worry or focus on gaining any weight due to both my active nature, but also my insane metabolism.

In September 2003, I began university where I played varsity soccer for my school. Again, I was thrust into a situation where I was very active (playing soccer 5-6 days a week) and even working out hard in the off season. I thought I was in great shape, and nothing could bring me down. Well, I was wrong.

I ended up hurting my back. It is hard for me to put an exact date and time on when I did it, but I feel as though being a skinny teen, and always trying to lift weights that were too much for me either at work or recreationally really strained my back over the years.

I never realized at the time, but my back was progressively getting worse over about a year's time between September 2003 into mid 2004. I finally decided to get things checked out at the doctor's as I had lost so much flexibility, I could no longer touch my toes, not to mention my dad noticed that I was essentially dragging my right leg as I had lost so much strength in it!

I went to the doctor's and had a CT scan done in October 2004, and the diagnosis was not good. I had a 1cm ruptured disc between my L5-S1 vertebrae. This absolutely devastated me. I wondered at how somebody so young (1 month away from my 20th birthday) could have such a terrible thing happen to my body.

My doctor gave me a few options on where to head, which I decided on having surgery done in December 2004. The surgery went well, but I had lost a lot of flexibility and strength. I struggled through soccer for the remainder of my time at university, as well as struggled through soccer with my competitive summer team back home. I became complacent, drank a lot of alcohol, and generally became very unfit!

Around February 2008, I started to get extremely scary thoughts racing through my brain, where my mind was convincing myself that I had a list of terrible diseases and that I was going to die. I began having severe panic attacks and depression which nearly ruined my life from February 2008 until about July of that same year. Over this time, I became even more unhealthy and unfit, and generally felt the worst I had in my entire life!

I then decided to try the P90X program. I guess it was the infomercial that got my mind turned around. As I saw this normal, everyday, type of people in the videos that were experiencing amazing results, from working out at home!

I told myself that I could either give up, and let myself become depressed and filled with anxiety for the rest of my life, or I could turn things around and get back to the healthy mind and body that I used to have...but better!

I also had more motivation, as I was getting married on January 3rd 2009. I wanted to be in top physical shape and be happy for when I saw my wife walk down the aisle.

I began P90X in September 2008 and completed the full 90 days with great results. I had improved my flexibility greatly, and gained some impressive strength and stamina. But on top of all of that, I had fully gained control of my mind and body, and felt better than I had ever felt in my entire life! Mission accomplished.

I then went on to complete a reduced-schedule round of P90X in the early portion of 2009. And then a P90X/P90X+ hybrid in the fall of 2009. I am currently working through a massive 25-week hybrid routine that I created consisting of P90X/P90X+/One on One Volume 1 which will take my right up to my cruise I am going on with my wife at the end of June 2010!

I will continue to use these tools and tips that I have learned from Beachbody after I return from my cruise to continue my life-long health and fitness!