“5 years ago I was in a really bad place. I was going through depression and tried taking my own life. I was drinking all the time and doing drugs. I was exercising but it felt like a chore. I was just going through the motions. After all of that went down, I knew I needed to make a change or I would attempt it again. It was trying to take my own life that changed everything. That was the turning point for me. It was a culmination of that whole event and years of battling with different things. I don’t know what clicked but after I got out of the hospital, I looked at things differently. I looked at working out as a way to help. I’m not cured of my depression. I still struggle with that. But the exercise helps a lot. When I’m not working out as much, I feel myself being more down. Or beating myself up over the things I can’t control. Working out and eating right and making healthier decisions has changed my life. Now I just get up and go to the gym. It’s part of my everyday life.”