I got Fat. The pic on the left was taken at the end of 2020. The perfect storm of the Pandemic, Gyms being closed most of the year & the recovery of my Broken Leg/Torn Quadricep caused me to gain a ton of weight. I was in good shape before my accident, but right after it happened, I went on a downward spiral of weight gain, muscle loss & had an increase in Stress/Cortisol that led me to accumulate a lot of body fat in a short amount of time.
I remember taking the pic & feeling embarrassed. I’ve been a fitness professional for close to 20 years, wrote a best-selling book called the Mind Body solution, got inducted into the personal training hall of fame, so I felt extremely out of integrity because I couldn’t get my shit together.
I totally lost control of my health.
I was in excruciating pain from my severe injury & multiple surgeries.
I was so lethargic that some days I would lay in bed all day.
It was driving me crazy!
I hardly had any energy to exercise & had to force myself to go to the gym.
Oftentimes procrastinating for hours because I felt like I was allergic to working out.
And Man, it was so damn hard to stick to a Diet!
I would start on a Monday & find myself binging on peanut butter, chocolate & ice cream after a few days of structured eating.
I was also excessively drinking which made everything worse.
It brought me back to my childhood.
I was obese & 60 lbs overweight when I was younger.
All my insecurities came back in full force.
I would look in the mirror & see my chubby cheeks &
was compulsively grabbing my man boobs & belly fat.
I was angry with myself because I could not stick to a damn diet!
Nothing is more Stressful than knowing what to do,
but Not doing it…
Finally, right before New Years, I hit rock bottom.
I woke up hungover, bloated & nauseous from Drinking
& Binging on junk food all weekend.
I realized that I Need serious HELP!
I sat down with Rafaela & poured my heart out to her.
I told her that I felt like I was losing Control & did not want to bring my detrimental habits into 2021.
I remember every word of the Conversation…
When I was younger I was overweight because of my traumatic childhood.
I used food to numb myself like a drug.
I then shared with her all of the areas of pain I was dealing with.
The chronic leg pain I felt 24/7, my mobility issues & inability to move like I used to,
the volatility of my business & Fear of financial loss.
Most importantly feeling like I was losing control over my health
& my life.
I vented for hours & shared my Deepest Darkest Fears.
After bringing everything to the surface, I felt significantly better.
I felt lighter & I had a new sense of clarity.
The heavy emotions that were weighing me down started to dissipate.
After our heart to heart conversation, we started working on a plan to create some momentum.
Rafaela has competed many times in bodybuilding & had incredible discipline that I admired.
I realized that discipline is what I was lacking more than anything.
I was a fitness pro with a degree in exercise science & nutrition
so I already knew what to do.
All I needed was some of her discipline, some accountability
& a kick in the ass of Momentum to push me forward towards consistency.
We stood in front of a whiteboard & wrote out all the strategies, nutrition plans, workouts & cardio commitments.
She recommended that I go back to the fundamentals that helped me in the past & to reread my own books to remind me of what got me here.
After so many failed attempts over the past year,
I knew there was NO turning back…
We both started our plan together on Monday.
It felt like a switch turned on.
For the first time in a long time, I was Focused AF!
We followed our game plan & our body composition started to change.
After finishing a solid week of structured nutrition, intense workouts & consistent cardio
we created Momentum & Alignment.
We fed off each other, pushed each other in the gym & held each other accountable to stick to the simple plan.
As we saw more results we consistently pushed harder!
Our body & mind became aligned
& everything just flowed.
We would wake up at 6am to hit the gym together,
we motivated each other to our limits,
then took turns meal prepping because we mostly ate the same healthy foods.
Then at night after work, we would walk the streets of Manhattan as a healthy way to end the day.
After a few months of Consistency, I was in Flow & everything that seemed difficult became effortless.
I am Grateful that I was able to turn my health around,
heal my leg injury & fall into the rhythm of consistency.
Blessed to have a partner who is Committed & brings out the Best in ME!
It has been an insightful journey & we learned a lot of new fitness hacks to accelerate our progress to make our busy lives easier.
I’d love to share them All with you, but it would require us to write another post about the new strategies we tested to accelerate our fitness results.
If that’s something you’d like to learn, just let us know! 
I’m all about helping others become healthier.
Overall I feel GREAT!
Being in shape makes you more efficient.
You sleep better, have an Abundance of energy &
Most importantly Feel Amazing because you are in a state of optimal health!
I’m not quite where I want to be, but I LOVE the journey of becoming the best version of myself & progressing in every area of my life!
The biggest insight I’ve learned is that you can’t heal what you don’t reveal.
If you’re struggling with something know that it’s OK
to Ask for Help.
Sometimes a Challenge can feel daunting like climbing mount Everest.
Whether it’s needing to lose 100 lbs or being 100K in Debt, you have to dig deep to overcome the Challenge!
Regardless of the problem, you must understand that there is ALWAYS a Solution.
Oftentimes, it’s as simple as being Vulnerable & asking someone for Help.
All progress starts with Awareness.
When you become aware of something that needs to change & you begin to take baby steps towards changing it,
it is a HUGE step towards solving your problem.
All it takes is 10 seconds of courage to turn your entire life around.
First, you must become aware of what’s holding you back,
then begin to think about
WHO can HELP YOU?
When you have that person in mind.
Make that Call, send that Text or start that Conversation.
Whether it’s your Health, Wealth, Relationship or Happiness
Follow this FORMULA:
1. First become AWARE of what Needs to be done.
2. Set the INTENTION of what you want to Accomplish.
3. Figure out WHO in your network can HELP YOU.
4. Muster up 10 seconds of Courage to start the CONVO.
5. OPEN UP about what’s holding you Back.
6. BE READY to take a BOLD ACTION towards your INTENTION.
7. ACTION fuels MOMENTUM &
MOMENTUM Creates CONSISTENCY.
8. CONSISTENCY will Always take you to the NEXT LEVEL.
It’s never too late to be Who you want to Be.
There’s no time limit, there are no rules to Life.
We can make the best of it or the worst of it.
I hope you make the best of it.
And I hope you achieve your deepest desires.
I hope you feel things you never felt before.
I hope you meet people with a different point of view
that inspire you & support you.
I hope you live a Life you’re proud of.
And if you find that you’re not,
I hope you have the Courage to start all over again.
AJ Mihrzad is the author of the best selling book, “The Mind Body Solution: Train your Brain for Permanent Weight Loss.”
