Name: Mark Heupel
Program: P90X Classic
What made you decide to start P90X? Was it the infomercial, friend or co-workers results, bored with the gym, etc.?
So there you are, in the North Pacific Ocean 80 miles offshore. You are alone. It’s sometime after two in the morning and the only lights you can see are the eerie phosphorescent streaks caused by the 70+ knot storm winds. Before your sailing vessel de-masted and rolled, you logged the swell out of the northwest at 22 feet. Now, as you flail in the trough, with your head bobbing in the black sea water, that same swell looks like a five story building ready crash down upon your little body and tumble you like an industrial washing machine. You are in 48 degree water, and the cold has penetrated your survival suit with a thoroughness reminiscent of a pack of angry dogs. You are shivering uncontrollably with hypothermia and your family is somewhere out in the ocean lost to you. Your only hope is the bright orange helicopter that has suddenly appeared from the gloom with a bright light. The ugly angel is your savior and may hold the rest of your family inside its tiny fuselage, if only it didn’t just bobble in the sky and veer radically away from you. Barely scooping away from the ocean’s clutches the helicopter disappears into the gloom as quickly as it arrived. Unbeknownst to you, the pilot of the helicopter had a heart attack at the tender age of 36. He had been working on blocking his arteries with fat for the last 14 years by eating poorly and skipping workouts.
Flying helicopters and saving lives is my job. I didn’t have heart attack, but it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibilities had I continued down the path I was following. I don’t want to be one of those guys who constantly fights health problems so that I can do my job. I want to be able to do it efficiently and safely, but that isn’t the only reason I wanted to get in better shape. Honestly, my primary motivation came from my lovely wife.
One day my wife looked at me with elevator eyes and said, “You are getting fat.” I had seen the P90X infomercial several times and even know some people who had gone through the program, but I never thought that kind of workout was for me. Prior to P90X, I had always thought of working out as an endurance test and I figured if I could still run 5 miles, swim 2000 meters, and bench press more than my body weight, I must be okay…right? The truth is that I wasn’t okay. The extra weight I had put on was making me prone to injuries especially in my shoulders, lower extremities, and my back. Pain makes the desire to workout wane very quickly, and yet I persisted in the belief that I was okay–that it was normal to gain a few pounds when your metabolism slows in your late thirties, that I wasn’t fat, I was more slender and in better shape than most of America. The psychology of self-image is delicate, but denial can be broken by an objective point of view if you are open to listening. By the way, if your reference point is the majority of America, you might just be in denial.
After my wife’s comment, I saw the P90X infomercial again and decided it was finally time to change the way I workout and the way I eat. I didn’t think it was going to be easy, but I thought even the loss of a few pounds would be great. The day I ordered P90X, I started working out seriously again while I waited for the program to arrive. When the program arrived, I jumped right in to the first workout the following day. I didn’t bother with the fit test, perhaps because I was still relying on a self-image that believed I was in good enough shape. That first workout proved me wrong, but I pushed through with modified movements. It wasn’t until the third week that I could complete a workout without modifying the movements.
What were your biggest obstacles (work, school, family) in getting your P90X results? How did you overcome those?
There are obstacles and there are choices in life. The past three months have probably been the most stressful times I have experienced in my current job. The thing about job stress is that it is usually created by artificial obligations, especially when talking about a desk job, which is what I am currently assigned to do. I bet the people I rescued and drug runners I have stopped never thought that the pilot of the aircraft above them was working his way towards serious health problems.
I am a busy person, but I made the commitment to follow a solid nutritional plan and workout consistently despite work and graduate school obligations. I tried not to sacrifice family obligations, but my wife may have a different viewpoint on that subject. Without the support of my wife and family I would never have been able to make a commitment to this program.
How has your P90X results changed your life?
In 90 days, I reduced my weight from 210 to 181. I am slimmer, stronger, and fit enough to face life’s challenges. Moreover, this program is sustainable with no more effort than it takes to eat poorly and avoid workouts. Best of all, my self-esteem is higher and I no longer feel self-conscious about taking my shirt off at the lake or the pool.
Why did you sign up to be a Coach?
So far being a coach has been all about the discount (25%) and home delivery of the products. This program also helps keep me committed; although, so many people ask about the progress I have made that I see no reason not to capitalize on my efforts and would feel really guilty if I reverted to old habits.
This was a guest post written by fellow coach Mark Heupel. You can contact Mark at his Coach Website to talk about his P90X results or flying helicopters for the Coast Guard.
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