My good friend Joe Cebula has been in the fitness industry for a number of years and holds numerous certifications. 

Despite that his fitness has suffered over the years. The demands of running a gym, being a family man, and father had taken their toll. Constantly putting other people’s needs first he let his own fitness suffer. This is a problem common to a lot of coaches. We give so much to other people there’s not much left to give ourselves at the end of the day. 

There came a point where Joe decided enough was enough. He called me and asked me to train him so he could just focus on the hard work. I told him to follow the program in my book the “Maximus Body” that I did with Men’s Health. At first he was skeptical. “Isn’t that program for beginners”. I told him to trust me and give it a shot. He worked his ass off twice a day every day, ate well (but he did enjoy some burgers and steak), and dedicated himself to self improvement. 

Look at him now. He’s literally, at 39 years old, in the best shape of his life. 

I’d like to take some credit for his transformation but the truth is this was all done through his own hard work and dedication. Joe is living proof that there is no magic pill, no three easy payments of $9.99, and that with some hard work anything you set your mind to is possible. 

Joe, I’m proud of you for your transformation, and even more proud of you for leading by example. The people you coach are fortunate to have you in their lives and I’m fortunate to be able to call you my friend.

In Joe’s words: 

“Father, husband, coach, entrepreneur… It’s a lot to juggle.

My family is my life, my clients are my business, my business is my livelihood.

My business is fitness. I help my clients become the best version of themselves through physical training, and I’m good at it.

Yet my own struggle with self-image and success was ignored.

I was a fighter in college. I trained hard and I was fit as hell for my efforts. I won a lot of fights. But life was more simple then… I was focussed on myself.

As a professional coach I was focussed on my clients and my own fitness was an afterthought. It showed.

Sure I could move a lot of weight but I was not the picture of fitness: too jiggly around the middle to draw in the clients.

In the fitness industry image is everything. I knew I had to look the part and I knew I had to figure out how to balance my life to make it happen. I also knew that I needed help.

I reached out to Bobby and we devised a plan. The workouts and nutrition became non-negotiable. I had to plan ahead and focus on preparation.

I worked on systems to automate my business that afforded me much more flexibility in manging the day-to-day stuff. I learned to prioritize tasks and delegate.

I made time for my family and during that time the focus was on them.

It wasn’t easy. It didn’t happen overnight. There were a lot of messy days and a lot of mistakes. There were a lot of check-ins with Bobby to keep me going.

My community showed interest and support and I got better at it… Better at all of it.

I’m still not great, but I’m certainly much better now than I was before and my results show the fruits of the struggles I undertook to get here.

The fight isn’t over, either, it never is. What I learned through my transformation is that I CAN and I know that I’ll figure out how to do better as time goes on. 

In the meantime my clients, my community, and my family have benefitted from my experience and the inspiration it brings. There is a new energy in my life and it’s only growing stronger.

#EveryDamnDay”

Follow him on Instagram here: @bearkillah

To learn more about developing the Maximus Mindset visit www.maximusmindset.com