Life Before KickStart

How was your body before Trevor Kashey Nutrition?
My body was inflamed, puffy, and not anywhere near its peak. I would get winded going up stairs. A turning point for me was last fall at a concert when I started to see some double chin in a photo with a band that I had wanted to see since high school. I immediately thought “what the fuck, dude?”

How did that (state of being) make you feel?
Like I had turned into a person that did not prioritize himself even in the most basic form of health. Somebody that broke promises to himself. Physically it made me feel like I needed to hide my stomach and made me a bit self conscious, which I’m sure came out mentally as well.

Was there anything you were unable to do that you wish you could have done?
Nothing in particular. More things that I wish I was willing to try but didn’t have the confidence to even give it a shot because of where I was.

During that time, how did your current state of being affect those around you?
I think the biggest way it impacted those around me was my mindset. I’m a pretty positive person, but I know when I beat up on myself it is going to come out in the form of less patience, more anger, and negativity occasionally.

The Moment Everything Changed

How did you hear about Trevor Kashey Nutrition?
I heard about TKN from Michael Easter’s book, The Comfort Crisis.

What were your doubts and fears before starting the program?
Really the only doubt and fear I had was the cost of the program. It’s expensive. I knew I had to save to make it happen. Maybe a little double about the efficacy, but I trusted it before I pulled the trigger.

What made you say YES anyway?
I was tired of feeling like everything I was doing was failing with my body nutrition wise. I never wanted to join for the lifting or workouts. I had that covered. I knew my nutrition overall was shit.

I had to do something while I’m still young, and I was pretty confident having a coach was it.

Life After KickStart

Where is your body/mind now?
Well fuck, reading this and the next question before responding and thinking about it has me tear up a little. I feel like I fucking said yes to myself and actually kept the promise. Mission driven work fuels me. The first question is what is your occupation. The question should be what wakes you up in the morning. For me, it’s community and making the people and places I come into contact with better. It’s to absorb knowledge so I can achieve those things. This program does that. My body is down almost 18 pounds in 12 weeks. My aptitude is way higher than it was before. My mindset is that I’ve fucking got this. My side effects of changes are glued on my wall and in my clear phone case to remind me of my why. It’s all good baby.

How does that make you feel?
Pretty awesome, to put it short. I feel like I’m keeping my promise to myself by finishing out these 12 weeks strong, but realizing this is a promise that goes beyond 12 weeks, because I’ve got a long life to go.

What are you able to do now that you were not able to do before (mentally, emotionally, or physically)?
Physically pound for pound I’m the strongest I’ve ever been because my strength has stayed the same or gone up since the start of the program (I lift heavy) and my weight has gone down. I also can see the start of abs on most mornings and it’s fucking great. My lines in my shoulders are more apparent when lifting too.

Mentally and emotionally, I’ve had great affiliations in the program and realize that I have more to build outside the program as well. I didn’t have that before. I realized my affiliations outside the program were partly why I was where I was. Not being around people who were ready to level up on the daily.

I can also mentally and emotionally say my armor is stronger than it has ever been.

The Ripple Effect

What positive impact did that have on others around you that you might not have expected?
People have noticed the weight loss. Especially those that haven’t seen me in awhile. I’ve been talking up the program and my coach (Ben rocks. Period) in hopes that somebody says yes to themselves now or later as well.

John’s Words to You

What would you tell someone who is reading this right now and is unsure about taking the next step?
First I would say: Why the fuck not?

I would then ask, who is important to you? Why are they important? Does this person look up to you? Do you think they’re watching your every move to see what you do next? Have you been treating yourself how you want them to treat themselves?

Then I would say, you can never be the best for anyone else in your world until you are the best for you. It starts there. the rest works itself out.