This is the founder’s column where I get to speak my mind and make my profound (or not) points of view known to the world. Today’s topic is, by way of introduction, some of my history and my journey into self-improvement, leading to this website and the business ventures I hope to see spring forth from it.
I’m 66 years out of the womb, and have been working on improving my body and mind for most of that time. I started as a skinny kid of 5’- 10” and 115 lbs. when I finished high school, pretty much an outsider with a history of underachievement. A stint in the Navy got me into electronics and the guided-missile business and up to 125 lbs. Three years in my Dad’s cabinet shop heightened my mechanical and tool skills and got me up to 130 lbs. and a desire for an easier way to make a living.
Things drastically changed when I was hired by Hughes Aircraft Co. and started life with my new wife Jo. Hughes had a very positive culture that fostered personal growth, and it seemed that I could do no wrong in that environment. I was advanced, promoted and educated, eventually leading to a Masters in Engineering Management from UCLA. I’ve had a long career in the defense industry, am still a working engineer, building missiles, and not likely to retire for several years unless this website turns out to be a real moneymaker. Along the way we raised two great kids and have held a very blessed marriage together for 40 years.
At about 31 I started seeing mid-body fat growing and decided to start running for exercise. I found I wasn’t very fast, and couldn’t run very long without tearing up my legs or ankles. I pushed it for about three years and after several rolled ankles, sprained muscles and even a stress fracture, I decided to join a gym and build some legs that would hold up better. By this time I was a whopping 135 lbs., having gone through college on a steady diet of ‘Double meat whopper with cheese please’. So at 33 I joined my first gym, and promptly fell in love with the mirrors.
Wow - can anything compare with the sight of your fragile frame getting bigger and tighter and pushing bigger weights? Of course; but it was a real rush then, and it still is today for me! I have a love affair with the weights that just won’t quit. I work out because I love the way it feels to move weights that are near my limit of strength and I love what I see in the mirror as a result of it. I love that I can hike all day with the young kids and physically keep up with people 40 years younger. Very Cool!
However, somewhere about 45 things weren’t working as well. I had been doing the same stuff, but results were hard to see. I started looking at bodybuilding supplements, trying different protein drinks, vitamins, when I came across a company called Cybergenics. They claimed their pills would enhance my ability to grow, and I would be virtually unable to over train. Well, it worked as claimed. I put on about 10 lbs. in two months, got visibly more ripped and was doing shrugs with 315 lbs. on the bar at 160lbs body weight. That experience started me on a quest to understand the mechanisms behind muscle growth and strength, and eventually to the whole anti-aging field. Along the way I have learned much, and this website is dedicated to sharing that knowledge, and much, much more. This column is planned as a weekly brain purge, and next time I’ll talk about some simple principles of nutrition and why seniors need to take it very seriously.
Good Living, Frank
