When we first met in 2016, I needed to let him know how much of an impact he had on my journey. Eventually, that started the basis for our friendship. Fast-forward to today, he’s like a brother to me. I tell this to him every time we talk, or get together, but if it wasn’t for that initial encounter I don’t think I’d be where I am today. I was lost after getting kicked out of nursing school and was simply going through the motions in pharmacy school. I had this thing that I REALLY enjoyed doing that I was good AT, but I was so scared to take that jump, & believe in myself.  Matt believed in me before I believed in myself. To this day, it means so much to me because I know how lost I was at the time. He believed in what I wanted to accomplish and the person I want to be. #1 reason why surrounding yourself with people who support/believe in your mission is everything.

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
You can see how this works. We’re social creatures and that means we’re always going to be influenced by other people’s mindset, beliefs, limits, and ambitions. As a result, you’ll empower yourself to hit your goals if you’re surrounded by people on a similar wavelength to you. That’s because their actions will provide reference points and examples to inspire your own choices. WILL is the OG of the evidence based scene, someone I not only consider part of my inner circle, but someone who inspires me to strive for greatness. Will leads by example and helping countless clients all over the world to create an impact and results by striving to optimize client compliance with education and communication.

Eric is someone I've learned so much from! He's someone I look up to, and it was super memorable hitting some poses and speaking Arabic with him back stage- at the first show of my second competitive season. I’ve learned so much from him, his work and I can’t thank you him enough for expanding my mind and pushing the envelope for logical/evidence based practices. Critical thinking, logic, and reason are the prerequisite backbones of science. Science cannot be used or interpreted effectively without these underlying factors being exercised. Science is the tool. It is an extremely helpful tool for testing specific (often hyper-specific) hypotheses and drawing potential conclusions from the results. The specific results of individual or groups of studies must then be carefully used to help paint a bigger picture of the truth. Studies are all minute pieces of a grand puzzle, and it’s the puzzle that matters most. Being someone who loves learning about physiology and having evidence that allows me to cater my approach for myself and clients has been something that’s allowed me to consistently level up over the years and has ultimately driven my growth.

"As an athlete, you should never stop striving to be better.. and as a coach you should always strive to improve too."

Alberto (FATHER FLEX) is someone I admired growing into the athlete and coach I am today. His conditioning is always of the highest of levels and to me it truly embodies what a natural athlete is capable of. I had the pleasure of having Alberto on Anabolic Radio Ep. 04 where he enlightened me with a story about a bodybuilder named Jeff Rodriguez. Long story short, Jeff was asked if he’d miss his shredded glutes once competition season was over. He replied, “No, the only time I need them is for show day.” It’s very common to scroll on instagram and see shredded people on your timeline. It’s far less common to see those who commit to long stretches of gaining. “Where you perform your best, probably isn’t going to be your best look— BUT that’s where your ‘BEST’ look is born.” Building muscle is similar to watching paint dry. It’s much harder to grow tissue compared to fat loss. EVERY great physique has it’s period of deep restructuring. Understand that just like in a contest prep monitoring yourself and making adjustments based on your rate of progress is essential. Dieting past single-digit body fat is an extreme goal and it requires a high level of consistency and sacrifice. For longevity as an athlete, it’s imperative to have times where you’re more flexible between contest seasons. That way, when you start a fat loss phase/contest prep, you’ll be ready.