I started working out for the first time at age 14 when I was a freshman in high school. We had mandatory strength sessions in order to prepare us for tryouts for the football team. It was the first time I was introduced to fitness. The workouts mainly consisted of following a pre-set order of lifts that would target specific muscle groups, therefore training our bodies to build muscle in ways that they never had before. As soon as I started to build actual muscle and definition, I was hooked. The feeling of working hard towards a goal and physically witnessing your goals manifest themselves is highly addictive (for me anyways).

That being said, lifting was all I knew going all the way through high school and college as well. In all of those years, I started to get really burned out on the gym. I’m sure a lot of you have experienced similar feelings. There was never enough of a variation of workouts, the people at the gym weren’t really for me anymore…basically the ends weren’t justifying the means for me and so I just sort of stopped working out. That went on for about a year and I felt like a total piece of crap. I was eating nothing but garbage, drinking way too much and generally treating myself poorly…until I moved to LA.

From the moment I arrived, I started seeing people working out in all sorts of different ways. Not only were they keeping things fresh, but they were healthier about their approach as well. After all, going to the gym 3-5 times a week and throwing around a bunch of heavy weight and then leaving really isn’t all that healthy. Now, I’ve developed routines that still involve going to the gym once or twice a week, but incorporate all sorts of other weird things too. Keeping those alternate routines as a regular part of my habits allows me to stay fresh and stay interested, maybe the two hardest things about fitness.

I’m going to touch on the different things that I enjoy doing but ultimately, you have to discover what’s out there and what works for you. I realize that not everyone has a beach that’s available to use, but finding fun ways to use the resources you do have will invigorate or re-invigorate your passion for getting healthy and staying fit.

Yesterday, I met up with one of my oldest and best friends, Mike aka Bill. He’s been doing his yoga teaching certification in Santa Monica for the last month and I’m so proud of all the progress he’s made on himself and in life because of his practice. We met up at the workout area by the beach and just sort of started doing whatever we felt like. I LOVE American Ninja Warrior, so it’s fun to go attempt some of the obstacles that simulate what they do on the show. Swinging from the bars, slack-line walking, rope climbing, it’s all a great way to keep your body guessing and stay in great shape. We finished the day with some yoga on the beach while watching the sunset and it was pretty damned awesome. It reminded me how grateful I am to have the opportunity to push myself to my own limits and experience my own reality to the fullest.

I hope that you read this and get excited. I want you to be excited about your own potential. You may not climb Everest, but if you create your own personal Everest, start building towards that so you can see how accomplished you can become. Take steps every chance you get to make yourself better. Facebook, Instagram, Xbox and Pinterest will still be there after your workout. I’m just as bad as anyone, but taking 30 minutes to just go do SOMETHING will make you a healthier, happier person.

Feel good, look good.

I’d love to hear about some of your favorite workout routines. Drop a comment below!

Thanks for reading!

Stay smiling, my friends!

PYS