“Growing up, I was a boxer. It was me and my older brother. We traveled around New England. We fought all over the U.S. We went to Canada, Mexico and Europe to fight. He was a standby for the U.S. Olympic team. I fought for the U.S. Army boxing team. I had 12 professional fights, and I only lost one.

“When I decided not to fight anymore, I thought about my stepfather. He was a bodybuilder. Everywhere we’d go, people would gawk. He was this big, muscular dude with long blond hair like Fabio. So I was like, maybe I’ll get into lifting weights.

“I liked it, so I entered my first bodybuilding show. I ended up winning the Maine state championship. That same year, I won the Georgia state championship. Then I went to Florida and won there, too. I’m still competing.

“What I really like about bodybuilding is what I liked about boxing. It’s so individualistic. It’s all on you. If you cheat on your meal or get lazy and miss that workout, and you get on stage and lose, you only have yourself to blame. For me, that makes it much more worthwhile when you do achieve success. You know you truly earned it.

“Bodybuilders are pretty sensitive types of people. You’re constantly studying yourself and thinking, ‘How are they perceiving me? How can I look better?’ Because it’s very subjective. You’re always on stage in your underwear, and people are judging you. It’s like the worst scenario ever, right?

“People probably think these guys who lifts weights all the time are just big meatheads. But bodybuilders are some of the smartest people on the planet. Especially because they know the science behind what they’re doing: how the muscles and tissues work, how they get repaired, and how nutrients play a role in that.

“These people could be scientists. They’re building their body and changing it. They’re their own experiment.”

— Zack Field

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• ‘I think my worst fear is just being average’

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“Growing up in the ‘80s, we were not a healthy family. It was all canned and boxed food. My mom was a chronic dieter, raised by a chronic dieter. Fat-free, carb-free — we did all the fad diets.

“My mom passed away from breast cancer when I was 17. At the time, I definitely was not the epitome of health. I tried to get out of gym class as often as possible. If we were running that day, I was the kid who would say, ‘I don’t feel well. I need to go see the nurse.’ I had a lot of self-esteem and self-worth issues. It was just the narrative I had for myself. When you don’t feel like you’re worth the time and effort to lace up your shoes and go for a walk, then you don’t do it because it feels pointless. Getting into fitness and having to face my own issues, that created a whole new life for me.

“They say that anyone who’s lost a lot of weight has that one moment when everything starts to change. For me, it was when I was contacted by MD Anderson as a high-risk case because of my mom’s very aggressive breast cancer. They called after my second born and asked me to come in for all my screenings.

“I was a good 100 pounds overweight, but I blamed genetics. Everybody in my family was overweight, so I figured it was just my lot in life.

“There was this very sweet radiologist who went over all my results. Then he looked at me and said, ‘Mrs. Carlson, my main concern is your lifestyle.’ He said, ‘With breast cancer in particular, if you’re overweight, you tend to be more at risk. So if you’re not moving, eating a balanced diet, and getting some of this excess weight off, then it’s not a question of if you’ll get cancer, it’s a question of when.’ I cried, probably for about a week. Then I just decided I did not want to leave the way my mom did, and I started doing something about it.”

— Michelle Carlson

Michelle, who worked hard to lose the weight, became a trainer, nutritionist and self-described health nut. Learn more at michellecfitness.com.

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• With kids at college, second honeymoon begins

The post ‘I did not want to leave the way my mom did’ appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I was in the industrial painting business for about 35 years. I remember working on the bigger tanks at places like Exxon. We would sandblast and then paint them. The toughest part was sandblasting. We used these big hoses, and it was like 110 pounds of pressure. That’s hard work. It really kept me in shape.

“Working every day like that, everything was OK with my body. After a few years of retirement, I started having problems with cholesterol and things like that. That’s the reason I’m over here, trying to fight gaining weight and keeping in shape.

“Everything changes when you stop working. Some people, they don’t believe it. But it’s true. I was one who did not believe it before. When my friends told me about it — ‘Oh, in retirement I’m getting fat, I’ve got this, I’ve got that’ — I was thinking to myself, that’s not going to happen to me. But it happened.

“Now I do what the doctor says. I try to take care of myself and keep an eye on everything. I don’t want to get diabetes or anything like that. So I decided to change my life a little bit.”

— Ruben Valerio

The post His health outlook changes in retirement appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“We’ve been skating together for about a year. Within that time, I broke my elbow and she broke her ankle. That’s it, besides little nicks, scrapes and stuff like that. We’re both in our 40s, so we try to protect ourselves as much as we can.”

“For three months after my surgery, I couldn’t walk on that leg. After being so active and building this community of friends skating with us, life just being indoors got pretty frustrating. Then he got me one of those knee scooters, so at least I could go out to the skate parks with him. When I finally got the doctor’s OK to get back out there, I returned to the skate park where the accident happened. I told myself, ‘Just do it,’ and I began testing my limits to see what I could do. It’s taken a lot of patience to get back to where I was before. And the memory of getting hurt is still right there. I don’t know how to make it go away. I’ve just tried to quiet those thoughts and gradually build up my confidence again.”

Are you accepted by the younger skaters?
“Yeah, I think so. Every now and then you get that, ‘Oh, look at them’ kind of thing. But after they see us make a few runs, it’s all cool.”

“Most everyone we skate around are in their late 20s and early 30s. There were two couples our age, but they kind of backed out of it and haven’t stayed as active. But we keep going. We really enjoy it. It’s great exercise, and it definitely makes us feel younger than our years.”

— Lino Hernandez and Sherry Carabes

They skate at parks all around the Houston area, and enjoyed a skate adventure to the Grand Canyon. Next up: Venice Beach in California. Check them out on Instagram @lino_mcqueenhtx and @sharebearhtx.

The post Injuries can’t keep this skating pair down appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“When I was young, my mom would sit me down while she worked out. She took care of her health and her body. She had health books laying around everywhere. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I guess that was kind of setting the foundation for me.

“About my junior year in high school, I was always working out. I was the first guy to get there and the last guy to leave. As I was showing progress, some of the guys in the upper class took notice and started working out with me. And once I saw that, I fell in love with it. I saw what taking care of your body and your mind, and really training hard and staying focused, can do for you. That’s when I started falling in love with what I do now.

“My job as a trainer, as a coach for my clients, is to find out what lights their fire and gives them the potential to get to where they want to be. I help keep them accountable and stay motivated. Life is going to do life. Life’s job is to smack you down and stomp on you. It’s your duty, if you choose to accept it, to rise up and fight against it. To be able to climb that mountain, to cross that stream, you have to apply the effort. We all want to be successful. I’m just trying to help people reach their full potential in life.”

— Vincent Grant

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• ‘We all are capable of achieving our goals’

The post He’s helping people reach their full potential appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I’m a full-time personal trainer. I’ve always had a passion for fitness. But I didn’t realize this was something I wanted to pursue until I got out of basic training with the Army National Guard.

“While I was in basic, I was a platoon guide. I took a leadership role under the drill sergeant. That’s when I discovered I had a way of motivating other soldiers. I let them know I was right there with them and we were all going through it together like a team.

“I realized that I enjoyed helping people get better physically and mentally. Through personal training I can do that. Someone might be beating himself up, thinking he can’t do something, until I show him otherwise. Then he has a whole new perspective.

“A key is to just try. It’s like when you go to a restaurant where you’ve never tried a certain food because you were always turned off by it. But if you try it that one time and you find out that you like it, then the sky is the limit.”

— Dorion Nora

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“I began losing weight when I was 29 because I really didn’t want to start my 30s being overweight. I decided it was time to get healthy.

“I lost 40 pounds while working out at the YMCA, and now I’m a fitness instructor there. I got help during my weight loss journey, so now I get to return the favor and help others.

“I also want to be a good role model for my kids, to teach them about staying active and using our bodies how they’re intended. Too many kids these days just sit around and aren’t very fit.

“They come to some of my workout classes and watch what goes on. Just being at the Y all the time, they learn a lot.”

— Emma Boullion

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— Richard Andrews

The post ‘I realized fitness was more my calling’ appeared first on The Baytown Project.