Q: Describe your life before the Body-for-LIFE Challenge?
Hectic. Because Pam and I are both Marine Corps Officers and because we had two little girls we seldom had time to catch our breath (or so we thought). Life seemed to be screaming past us. I had a feeling of being disconnected to the things happening around me. I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent with my daughters but found that I was losing a sense of myself. I was missing “Mark” time.

Q: What made you finally decide to take that first step and enter the Challenge?
A fellow Marine Corps Officer actually registered me into the Challenge. She and I had just started working out together and she mentioned that she had registered herself and that it was something we could do together as an extra bit of motivation. She didn’t realize the level of commitment that it would spark in me.

Q: What were your very first impressions of the program? Did you struggle or was it liberating?
I struggled a bit with letting go of old pre-established conceptions of what it meant to work-out properly. I was one of those guys that thought a person needed to bang out endless sets and exercises for the same body part. I you weren’t in the gym for at least an hour and a half, you weren’t training enough. Once I let go of my pre-conceived notions and truly believed in the program it was exhilarating.

Q: Talk about the moment you first began to see changes in your body and/or outlook?
It was after I completed my second full week of the Challenge. I actually started lifting weights two weeks before starting the Challenge in order to get through the initial muscle soreness. Doing this enabled me to train hard from day one of the Challenge and it netted immediate results. I think I actually took a photo in order to compare it to my day 1 picture. I took a picture about every two weeks after that for comparison purposes. I felt a little vain, but I kept flexing my triceps in the mirror at home thinking “I can actually see something there!” Pam gave me heck every time she caught me.

Q: Did you have to over-come any obstacles during your 12-Week Challenge?
You bet. I caught a pretty nasty cold that turned into a sinus infection around the third week of the Challenge. I just didn’t have the energy to train like I wanted to for about a week. That’s when I realized the truly great aspect about this program. It didn’t matter that my body was somewhat weaker and wasn’t responding the way that I wanted it to, because it was the EFFORT that I put forth that mattered, not the actual pounds moved. Additionally, I injured my left shoulder while doing incline dumbbell presses around week ten. Following the initial injury, I experienced immense pain whenever I did pull-ups (my favorite back exercise). I had to completely cut pull-ups out of my routine after that. It has since healed completely.

Q: How did you feel on the very last day of your Challenge?
I was concerned that I hadn’t trained as hard as I should have, and that I should have eaten better. I was going through normal doubts that I wasn’t quite ready. I kept thinking, “If only I had a few more days”. I think this stemmed from the fact that I lost most of week seven when I took my family to Disney World. I kept wishing for those days back. Once the final photos were taken and I saw the look on Pam’s face as we were snapping the photos, I new we had accomplished something special.

Q: What was the reaction of your friends and family to the amazing changes you made?
Disbelief. You have to realize that my family is located in Florida and Maine while I live in North Carolina. They didn’t see the transformation as it was happening, so when we sent them the final photos they truly thought they were doctored photos, as if I had put my head onto somebody else’s body. My sister makes all of her friends check the website now.

Q: Do you still follow the Body-for-LIFE program?
Absolutely. I discovered a real affinity for running while completing my challenge and the Body-for-LIFE program is perfect for pursuing my personal running goals. Instead of being stuck in the gym 4-5 days a week moving iron (which I do enjoy) I am free to get outside 3 days a week. I just don’t believe that there is a better way to workout, so long as you bring the intensity necessary for the full workout.

Q: If someone were to ask your advice about starting—and finishing—the Challenge, what would you tell them?
I’ve been following this program since its inception, and I can’t believe I waited this long to start it. I have literally been telling Pam for the last nine years that I should complete a round. Find out when the next round is and register for it. I was so embarrassed with my before photos that I almost didn’t do this. I didn’t want the world to see just how out of shape I had become. Thank the Lord for Pam because she kept telling me to forget about today and concentrate on where I wanted to be in twelve weeks. One of the best things that I did in order to help me complete the Challenge was to schedule my after photos with a photographer the day I started the challenge. This made the completion of the Challenge a tangible thing that I could look to whenever my fortitude might start to wane. For me, there was always the reality that at the end of June I was taking my clothes off in front of a perfect stranger. I had a partner working out with me when I started and she never scheduled her after photos. She dropped out after the sixth week.

Q: How has your life changed since doing the Challenge?
I think I’ve become a better father simply due to the increased energy. Chasing around my little girls Kayden (4) and Sarah (2) can wear you out quick after a 12 hour day at work. It still amazes me that after I put them to bed at night I want to go for a 5 mile run. My body needs it now. I’m definitely more combat effective here in Fallujah. It’s not uncommon to see fellow Marines begin to fatigue as our days drag in to the 16th hour of work. Decision making can become slow and muddled after several days of this tempo. I’m finding that after working hard for 16 hours I’m still able to make clear and effective decisions. I’m still beginning each morning at 0530 with BFL, even knowing I won’t see the rack until midnight.

Q: Where do you think you’d be if you had never done the Challenge?
12 weeks closer to dying of a heart attack at an early age. When I say I was eating fast food burgers, fries and a coke 20-25 days a month I mean it.

Q: After going through the 12 Weeks, how was your mindset different than it was before? Where you able to face challenges in your life with more confidence?
Yes. When I break my answer to this question down to its most basic elements a simple truth emerges. Because I can feel my body and its muscular strength with every movement I make, this new physical ability transfers itself into an unconquerable mental attitude. I know what I have already conquered by completing this challenge (fat, laziness, procrastination, pain, fatigue). Now I don’t think I have the ability to conquer life’s challenges, I know I have the tools. I’m walking proof.

Q: What is your favorite free day meal?
I didn’t really take any free days because I ate what felt to me like a normal diet. It was very important to me that I ate meals that my children could eat too. Pam and I simply couldn’t cook one way for me and one way for the rest of the family. That’s not a program I would have stayed with. Most of my meals were taken directly from the Eating-for-Life cookbook which I found very easy to live with. Pam and I cooked from that book about three to four days a week, purposely making enough for leftovers. I would then take the leftovers as lunch the next day. That being said, I absolutely cannot get enough of the Balsamic Vinegar Salmon recipe found in that book, and I’m always game for a marinated steak.

Q: How have you spread the word of Body-for-LIFE to other folks?
Now that I’ve been selected as one of the Champions word has spread pretty quickly through parts of the Marine Corps. Towards the last few weeks of the Challenge I started to be approached almost daily by either a fellow officer in my V-22 squadron or by a young enlisted Marine in the locker room of the gym. The questions were always the same, “What are you on?” or “What do for this body part?” It’s the perfect opening to begin a discussion about BFL.

Q: What are your current goals?
I’m trying to put on a few more pounds of lean muscle while concurrently increasing my monthly mileage (running). While it appears that these two goals are counter to each other, I am seeing positive results. I have to be honest, I’m very happy with my current state.

Q: Quotes that inspire?
I included this in my written transformation submission and believe it is very relevant to anyone considering this program. “What a disgrace it would be for a man to grow old without ever seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable” –-Socrates.

Q: Define Success?
When the amount of joy in your life is more than you ever envisioned for yourself, when your children call God their Father, when you bring your Marines home, those are my measurements of success.

Q: What are your favorite EAS products?
Myoplex Lite, Myoplex Deluxe, 100% Whey Protein, Phosphagen Elite