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91: Healing Through Fitness w/ Micah Lacerte · Harder Than Life

• 0:00
  I'm Kelly Siegel, and this is Harder Than Life, a podcast about self-love, self-awareness, business, and health. We tell outrageous stories and boil everything down to simple, practical advice you can start using today. Let's get living.
• 0:14
  Welcome to the Harder to Life podcast. Today, we're honored to have Micah LeCert, co-founder of HitchFit Online Personal Training and HitchFit Transformational Gym with us. A true pioneer in the fitness world, Micah's journey has touched lives in 82 countries, helping clients shed over 700 lives.
• 0:32
  thousand pounds. Join us as Micah shares his incredible story of resilience and transformation. Easy enough for me to say. I just keep staring at your beauty. Welcome, my brother. How are you today? Yeah, and I'm so blessed to be here, man, and just excited to inspire and motivate some spokes.
• 0:51
  So, dude, you just used my first word. It was, what inspired you to embark on this journey in the fitness industry, man? Because look at you. You look chiseled. By the way, if people are listening to this on Spotify or iTunes, you need to head over to YouTube and see how handsome. The guy looks just like Jean-Claude Van Damme in his handsome days. You look fabulous, bro. So let's deep dive and share all that. So what got you into this fitness business?
• 1:16
  Yeah, you know, I think my story is kind of similar to a lot of guys that start their fitness journey. It doesn't start with silver spoons and a perfect upbringing. I came from more of a painful place just going the first 18 years of my life. We moved. It was just me and my mom. We moved 30 times, multiple divorces, a lot of pain, a lot of insecurity, abuse, all those things, man, that kind of then get you to a place of going, okay.
• 1:46
  Like, I got to make a decision now as an adult. Do I want to continue down this path of darkness, depression, anxiety, or do I want to start healing? And that's where fitness came in. When I went to college, I found fitness. And Van Damme was one of my, like, big-time idols when I was a kid with kickboxer and blood sport.
• 2:07
  cyborg all of those movies and i was like man i want to look like that guy guys on covers of magazines so i dedicated my life to that discipline of bodybuilding and and you know yeah you get the muscle but what it did to my mind was absolutely fantastic that discipline of of helping with anxiety and depression and then ultimately wanting to help others it sounds like my story too man mine was to just get not not get my butt kicked by my stepfather but um
• 2:35
  So wait, how old are you? 45. My man, looking good as can be at 45. 45 is the new 25. That's what us old guys say. Yes, sir. So you not only opened gyms and you went and transitioned from a traditional gym training to pioneering online personal training.
• 2:58
  How did you do that? Yeah, so it started back in the MySpace days, which you probably remember. And I had just started dabbling into social media marketing. And so this is like 2005, 2006. And I was running this transformation model where I was taking people from point A to point B. I was not retaining, which was traditional personal training.
• 3:22
  Personal training was trying to keep Kelly as long as humanly possible. In my world, I was like, hey, I want to transform Kelly and then Kelly can go and live his life fit and healthy. And so I started doing these before and after pictures on MySpace and whatnot. And how the idea came up in 06-07 was.
• 3:41
  this girl from Canada reached out to me and she said, Micah, I would love to work with you, but I'm in Canada. And I was like, well, what if I just make you a plan and then you follow it and we'll see how you do, you know, communicate with me. And I think she paid through PayPal or something. 16 weeks later, she lost over 30 pounds. And I was like, oh my goodness, I have something. But at the time, you couldn't just look on Google and go, what is online personal training? Cause it didn't exist.
• 4:10
  And so one of my biggest challenges was like teaching people what is online personal training, number one, and how can it work? And man, fast forward to today. I mean, you know, we built and launched the business of HitchFit, myself and my wife, in 2009. But since then, like I said, 82 countries, over 700,000 pounds, man, it has been bonkers. So I started the online before I started the brick and mortar gyms.
• 4:38
  700,000 pounds. Put that in perspective. What is a car? 2,000 pounds? Or a ton? It's insane. If you're not following this guy, head over to Instagram. Mr. Hitchfit is at Mr. Hitchfit, just like it sounds. And his big thing is calves, which we'll get into. It's fantastic. And you can find out more at hitchfit.com. He's got a retreat coming up. By the time this airs, it may be going on. But...
• 5:06
  follow hitch fit and you will hear about more things to be able to work with him this guy man i i gotta take lessons from you bro it's on you look great so tell me a defining moment in your career that shaped your approach to fitness in life like 45 and being as ripped as you this isn't an accident this is intentional so what was the defining moment
• 5:27
  I think there was a few moments that were really, really game changing for me. The first one happened right in the very beginning when I started working out and what it did to change my mind because I was in such a dark place. So that like gave me some hope and some life.
• 5:44
  And then really the second one happened in 05. And one of my big dreams was being one of the guys that I saw on magazine covers that inspired me and I wanted to be an inspiration to others. So 1997, I start 2005, I got my first cover.
• 6:03
  And I was like, dude, I went to a 7-Eleven and got bought like eight of them, left one on the counter or the shelf because I was like, yeah, I want one to be there still. So that was a really big one that gave me the whole like, you know, because I live in Kansas City. We're not a fitness city. No one had ever been on a.
• 6:20
  cover of a fitness magazine and doing that kind of lifestyle here back then. So that was a really big pivotal moment. And then fast forward to 2011, I won a world championship as a competitor. And so those all all of those were really gigantic pivotal moments in my life.
• 6:40
  So I forgot to say, because 20% of the listeners in the Heart of Life audience are 15 to 25-year-olds. So to tell you guys what MySpace was, MySpace was pre-Facebook. So that's how far back he went.
• 6:56
  And it was literally just a space on like a blog that you put, you could upload a little bit of music. It was so barbaric. I never, you know, I never had a MySpace. I took forever to even go to Facebook. But it goes to show you that if you follow Heart of the Life, you follow Hitchfit, you know, I'm 48, he's 45, and you too can look.
• 7:18
  big buff and, you know, I would say look good, feel good, do good. What's your, everybody has this, what's your favorite body part besides your calves? Oh, I mean, calves for sure, number one. Number two, I love, I love triceps. I love training triceps. And, and, and again, my calves and my arms were the same measurement when I was, when I was young and started, they were a whopping 13 inches.
• 7:48
  And so a lot of guys really focus on biceps because it's the mirror muscle. It's the one we see when we're facing forward, whereas tricep makes up a larger portion of the arm. And really getting that horseshoe and all the detail in the tricep, it's probably my second favorite.
• 8:07
  Yeah. I have 22-inch arms, and it's mostly tricep. The tricep's gigantic. So, yeah. Everyone's like, you got big arms. It's definitely my tricep. There was something I was going to ask you to completely – oh, how about – do you take anything since we're in our mid-40s? I'm in upper 40s. Do you take any of the BP –
• 8:29
  BBC 157, that ligament. Yeah, so what's interesting about that is I was just recently on a podcast and, oh man, what is the guy's name? He's like the godfather of peptides, but he was on one of the episodes after me and they were talking deep into peptides world and I really hadn't dove into it quite yet. But I get all my labs done, I make sure all my numbers are where they need to be.
• 8:57
  I was really low on, or not low, but lower than I needed to be on my growth hormone levels. And so I was looking at some of the peptides as far as CJC 1295 and some of the others to get those elevated up to an optimal place. So I've been looking into that. And then the BPC 157, really good for like injury.
• 9:23
  And I tore the calf over a year ago and didn't know about PP BPC 157. That would have been something amazing to use during that particular time. But I'm a, I'm a big believer in it. I have quite a few friends that are using it in their forties and whatnot that are going through different injuries. And it's, it's been like a magic healing potion. Yeah. I'm taking it right now just because you talked about triceps. The only thing that hurts on me is my elbow when I'm doing triceps.
• 9:53
  Um, but I find that when I take the, the, uh, stay on the one, five, seven for a long time, I'm the heaviest I've been in my pretty much with my life. And you wouldn't even know it except I look big. So usually I don't go this heavy because my knees and my joints, everything hurts because it's too much weight. Now that I'm taking that, I feel like.
• 10:16
  good i i do think i'm very distributed a lot better there's no like chunkies although i just put a story out that said i gotta start doing some cardio my daughter and my girlfriend keep giving me feeding me sugar man and i'm like no more sugar i love it i gotta do cardio speaking of which what's your favorite cheat meal or guilty pleasure food
• 10:38
  Oh, man. So I cheat the same way every single time. I'm not a big sugar guy. So I don't do a ton of sugar, but I mean, endless amounts of French fries. I love French fries. So after a big shoot or something like I'll do a gigantic, you know, 16 ounces of filet type deal and like endless amounts of plates of French fries. And I mean, pizza is always a go to. But like, yeah, I just love French fries, man. Oh, dude. Are you a mustard or ketchup guy?
• 11:06
  Dude, I'm a weird dude where I get mustard and ketchup together and swirl it before I do it. I love it. I love it. So big thing about you is giving back. And I'm not going to steal any of your thunder because it's just beautiful. So what drives your passion for giving back, particularly in Haiti and your other charitable endeavors?
• 11:26
  Yeah, I mean, my wife is a huge portion of that. She used to go on mission trips. And one time she came back and she goes, you know, God was very clear. You know, these are supposed to be our children. So we've sponsored a school and children for 12 years now every single month.
• 11:44
  And I think there's 85 or 86 children that we provide for there with their schooling and some food and help with the teachers pay and stuff like that. What I'll tell you about giving back is, is I don't think there's any other path to gaining more joy than to give back to others that are in need.
• 12:05
  And so for me, giving someone an opportunity that may not have that opportunity, it's not about just work ethic or discipline or any of that. They literally don't have an opportunity. Those are the people that I typically seek and try to help. And then and then in return, just.
• 12:24
  A tremendous amount of joy, which for me is foundational, being able to wake up with a purpose. We've said it a thousand times. The more you give, the more you receive. And that's the law of reciprocity. That's the law of, what is the one?
• 12:40
  The secret. That's the secret. So you just keep giving, you'll get back. People wonder why bad things always happen to them. Well, what are you doing bad? So I'm going to get deep. I'm going to deep dive into that faith a little bit more, but I want to ask you another personal question. Are you a podcaster or music guy when you're at the gym?
• 12:56
  I'm definitely a music guy at the gym. When I do cardio, though, I listen to podcasts. So when I strength train, it's definitely music in a specific tempo. When I'm like podcasting or when I'm doing cardio or, you know, some of my recovery stuff, it's definitely podcasts or sermons. I love the sermons. We're going to get into that. But if you could listen to one song, if you could only listen to one song while working out, what would it be?
• 13:26
  Oh, man. I mean, there's so many different genres. There's so many. That's tough. I mean, because you could go Eye of the Tiger, which is classic. You could go in the air. You could go in the air to Nightville Collins. You could do Danger Zone, you know, some of the new stuff. I don't listen to a whole lot of the new stuff. There's some good worship music that's really strong. Oh, man. Dude, I mean...
• 13:51
  Eye of the Tiger, if we're working out and we got, you know, you can do a little bit of clean M&M, you get you going too. I mean, there's a lot of, I mean, there's so many different angles. Hard Rock, you can go back to Guns N' Roses and stuff like that. I love how you do it. If you're watching this, you can see he lit up like a Christmas tree. His smile is just as beautiful as Hart. So I want to dig into...
• 14:16
  How do faith, fitness, and fun intersect into your approach to transforming lives? Oh, man. So faith is foundational for us. Our belief in Jesus Christ is pivotal to everything that we do, every choice that we make. When people ask me and they go, man, you're so happy you have so much joy. And I said, man...
• 14:42
  I wasn't always that way. I went through a lot of really hard things. I'm now at a place in my life that to get through true healing took fitness. That was one of the tools, but my faith and when that really got solid, it came in and helped heal tremendously.
• 15:01
  And so for me, everything that I do is really connected to him. And then the fitness side of things, it's like, I love being in shape. Obviously, there's the aesthetic to it. But going and climbing mountains with my wife all over the world is important and having that level of conditioning. And then just, you know, I think it's so important. One thing that we lose when it comes to fun as an adult, we lose that inner child.
• 15:30
  And I always tell people, I'm like, man, try to let that inner child out as often as possible. You know, especially for us guys like yourself as well that went through a lot. Like we lost some of our childhood, man. And so to relive that in but, you know, in a really happy, joyful way and just go have fun. Go go do things that really excite you and and bring a lot of that inner child out.
• 15:57
  Thank you for reminding me of that because I've noticed lately I'm grinding because I'm starting a new book, starting a new coaching program, and I keep forgetting that you got to have fun. Because the inner child in me does come out, but it's the inner wounded child, which is supposed to. That's what healing is. It's allowing that to come out of you. So you're right. Whether you're letting the joy come out or even the pain.
• 16:20
  As long as you don't wallow in the pain, getting that out of you, it's that concept of holding it in where we self-sabotage. That's where the drinking and drugs and sex and scrolling and all the bad things that we would know nothing about, or at least we don't anymore. I would imagine this is where you met your wife, right, through the fitness industry?
• 16:41
  Yeah, we met at the Mr. Olympia in Las Vegas via MySpace. So that was 2008, man. And I met her really just as a friend. We were going to take a picture that weekend together. And she had just come off of winning a world championship. And I met her and I was like, it was like a woman that I like, I felt like I had known forever that was like a close friend. It was really crazy. And we've been inseparable since, you know, and that was 15 years ago.
• 17:10
  Now, did she win the same time that you won yours or? No, she won. She won in 08. I won in 11. Oh, so you said that as a as that muscle model world champion, what lessons have you learned about discipline and perseverance? That's what we want to get. That's what harder than life is all about. You look over my shoulder. You see consistency turns average and excellence.
• 17:33
  Yeah, I love all your mottos, brother, because you live it. When I talk about the words that defined a person and the traits that defined a person, to me, one of the things that I always look at in an individual is,
• 17:52
  discipline and their choices every single day. I meet all these super successful people that don't take care of their health. I met all these super successful people that aren't taking care of their home and their families properly.
• 18:07
  Like it takes balance and it takes discipline in every aspect of their life. So for me, I always kind of approach it that way. And I can still have discipline and fun. A lot of people look at discipline as something that's negative. What discipline is, is discipline, you know, allows me to have true freedom and in bondage of nothing.
• 18:28
  And that's the game changer, man. So I apply discipline to almost every aspect of my life from goal setting to my faith to my marriage to my friendships, my circle brother. I mean, it's what I look at. It's how I live.
• 18:46
  I love that. Discipline for me is like breathing. It's just a must. I don't even have to think about it. I'm so used to it. It's harder than life. So let's keep that going. And what specific piece of advice do you have for individuals facing that adversity, whether it be in business, fitness, or relationships?
• 19:05
  I would take a look at the choices that you're making every single day in your life. I mean, that's what it is. Like, if you're drinking too much alcohol, you know you're drinking too much alcohol. If you're hanging around a bunch of knuckleheads, you know you're hanging around a bunch of knuckleheads. If you're staying up till 2 in the morning and partying, like, you got to make changes. You got to make changes if you want a better life. That's what it comes down to, and that comes down to discipline.
• 19:31
  Go to bed earlier, wake up earlier, start your day right, get some cardio in, eat right, get into prayer, whatever that is for you. Go work out, make those non-negotiable times each and every single day that are about making you better. And then surround yourself with people that encourage you, that lift you up, and that you can motivate as well.
• 19:55
  I can't, I don't remember a single time ever leaving the gym feeling worse. So I always, it's just non-negotiable. You got to get to the gym. People yell at me, you can't go seven days a week. Oh, really? Watch me. I do it. I have to because I'm a better person. So to me, it's like you brought up alcohol. So, you know, everybody knows that I don't drink. So it's like.
• 20:16
  it's it's a cheat code and to me i don't know a single person who is one by drinking too much alcohol and then and then you furthermore that's a seller they think oh i'm celebrating it's like well then you're punished the next day what kind of celebration do you get punished by having a hangover i don't understand these things now i've been there done that which leads me to my next question what's your relationship with alcohol
• 20:40
  So, unfortunately and fortunately, when I was my mom's first husband, which is not my biological father, but my mom's first husband was a man I loved very much. And he was really good to me. This is the age of like between five and eight. And...
• 20:59
  Ultimately, he was a great man until he drank. And when he drank, he became a monster. He was very abusive. So at a very young age, I associated alcohol to something that was really bad. And so alcohol has never been a part of my life. I haven't had a sip of alcohol in 16 years. You know, and when I got into bodybuilding, then it was just like...
• 21:21
  Dude, it has no place. And I want to be more successful. Like, it doesn't add anything to your life that's positive. You only make bad choices after drinking it. No. I've become one of the greatest ideas when I was drinking. I mean, maybe. Maybe. But usually more negative. Oh, outside of fitness, what's your favorite hobby or pastime?
• 21:48
  Right now in my life, it's hiking. My wife and I get to travel a tremendous amount. We travel 30% to 40% of the year, like all over the world. And so right now, we're just like in this phase of, you know, creating a lot of experiences and memories together of hiking epic mountains in Norway and seeing sunsets and just going out and experiencing life in a way that I couldn't even imagine when I was a kid.
• 22:18
  And so, you know, there's that. And then, man, just the day to day grind of waking up and going, Lord, put the right people in my life that I can make make, you know, help inspire, help motivate and help change, you know, and and.
• 22:36
  I just, I'm in a really amazing pocket in life right now. And, and it's not by accident. It was choices and dedication and discipline for years that got me to this place. And I, you know, and I teach and preach it every day. I'm in awe of you. I, anything that you ever need from me, man, I just, uh, we're, we're brothers of, of, of other mothers, man. It's, it's,
• 23:02
  It's uncanny how you're speaking right to my soul. So I want to be you. You've got this thing figured out, which, you know, I always call it peace, clarity, and freedom. A lot of people call it balance. So how do you maintain balance and wellness in your own life while leading others on this transformational journey, so to speak?
• 23:24
  So I think it really comes down to creating a specific expectation for myself. When I got married to my wife, for instance, I made not only a commitment to the Lord that I would take care of this woman and be a covering for her, but I also made that same commitment for her.
• 23:44
  And so this is just an example of that when it comes to like something like marriage for me, like, you know, I want to be everything that I can be for her. So when I wake up every day, I'm going to be healthy. I'm going to be fit. I'm going to be strong. I'm going to make choices that are going to be good for the marriage. I carry that over into business, how I lead, you know, my different businesses, how I mentor and really trying to help put people into leadership skills so that we can help them grow.
• 24:13
  And right now I'm in this phase. You know, you talked earlier about really being able to express and let some of that trauma out. It's one of the worst things men in general and you know this we don't talk. We don't talk about pain. We don't talk about trauma. We got to be tough. We got to be strong. You can't be emotional, whatnot, like all that's all that's garbage man. Christ himself cried.
• 24:37
  Christ himself got emotional at times, right? Like you can't hold that in because the alcohol, the drugs, the porn, all that stuff comes in. And so, you know, I'm just at that phase in my life where I like, I want to be a voice in the male space as a masculine man that, that is good to his wife and, and live in centered that can go out and, and really encourage men that are really struggling to, you know,
• 25:04
  to get some healing and start talking and start making some change in their life. Man, you are the model citizen. But I know as well as you do, and we're going to share this to the listeners, that we're always working on something. So what's something you're working on now?
• 25:23
  that people might be surprised to know, or just put something you're working on. I'm going to go first because it's, I want you to be vulnerable because this is going to help people. Um, I'm working on, I've been a do doer my entire life. Do, do, do, do, do. And I'm working on surrendering, talking to God and allowing and receiving. So it really just saying being, and it is, my gut is the hardest thing.
• 25:52
  It's hard. I want to just go like, I want to write this book. I want to launch this program. I want to go, go, go, go, go, go. And that's how I've done everything. Meet force with force, resistance with resistance. Don't stand there when I'm on the train tracks when the train's coming through. And I have accumulated massive success doing it. But that got me here. That's not going to get me there. And I know for different levels, you have different devils. And I have to kill that old guy.
• 26:23
  And something God has spoken to me and said, stop doing that. So I know that you believe me. I probably lost 10,000 followers and 30 listeners. They're like, Kelly's absolutely lost it. But you could comment on what I just said and then add it to yours because I know you believe what I just said.
• 26:44
  Yeah, I mean, when it comes to faith, you know, a lot of people struggle with it. And, you know, as you get into the Bible, you start understanding that, like, God gives you free will. And there were periods of time in my life where I turned my heart and my eyes away from the Lord for reasons that I just felt like, you know, he wasn't protecting me. Why is he putting me in these situations? And I kind of just...
• 27:09
  I didn't know God the way that I know God now. I didn't know, I didn't have the relationship with Christ or understood, you know, how it all flowed. And once, once I started, you know, implementing the principles and the disciplines, it, true healing started happening. And then I was like, okay. And, you know, I always talk about coincidence versus like God's timing. Yeah.
• 27:37
  And so when he's speaking to you and you're going, you're going, dude, and as men, masculine men that are entrepreneurs and doers, we just want to run through walls. Like that's how we fix things. That's how we get things done. Where sometimes God goes, hey, I need you to pause for a minute because I'm going to open this door over here.
• 27:59
  And it doesn't mean that that wall you're about to go through isn't going to be a good opportunity, but there's a difference between a good opportunity and a God opportunity. And when those open up, dude, true purpose happens. It's not about making more money, man. It's not about another boat or another car or whatnot. It's like you go out and impact a community.
• 28:26
  You go out and you are a game changer. You're moving mountains with other men. It is game changing stuff where we're going in and going, hey, you know what? We need to stop this whole sex trafficking thing. Let's go make some moves and cut off the head of this. Major stuff where we're not just talking about dollars and cents in a bank, but
• 28:53
  some serious, serious change or going into, you know, thousands of men's lives and helping them get through trauma. Big things. Dude, I got to reiterate that that was fire. Good opportunity and a God opportunity.
• 29:08
  Woo. I'm stealing that brother. Um, you know, you know, and we get so, we get so distracted with good opportunities, but when you are like here trying to get here, you have to stop messing with good opportunities and only do great and God opportunities. And that's where a lot of distraction happens. It becomes distraction because if you're okay with staying here,
• 29:38
  then that's not going to work. Like there are other levels to this. I want on my last day, I don't have any fuel left. I gave every ounce of myself and made as much impact as I could. How do you personally know that it's a God opportunity? Man, so...
• 30:01
  This is going to be a little bit out there for some people that don't know the word and don't understand God. Wait, wait, hold on. Let me just, let me just, before we lose people and before anything, I want to, I want to just give a disclaimer. You use Jesus. I use God. Some of you use higher power. Some of you use source. Some of you use energy. Anything. There is something. I think we can all agree. There is something at work here.
• 30:23
  I choose to call it God. He calls it Jesus. You call it whatever you want. But by golly, notice that it's something. So he's going to go down the Jesus path. It's okay. Feel free to put in source, energy, higher power, whatever you want. Because just follow us here. Because what he's about to say is going to be...
• 30:47
  I know what you're going to say. That's why I teed that question up. So I'm just going to stop right there and let you go with it. But I don't want people that aren't religious. It was the moment that I allowed a higher power into my life and acknowledged that higher power that all of a sudden the God opportunities were coming. And I'll tell you what happens for me, and I might steal a little thunder. Even if I try to sabotage said opportunity...
• 31:15
  God won't let it happen. I will make a wrong decision. Nope. Nope. So that's, and it feels like floating and you, and it's just, it's no matter what you try to do, it just keeps saying, and you want to know what, Mike, I'll give you a, for instance, coaching.
• 31:33
  My coaching group. I tried everything to not do it. And I went, I did, I launched a fitness or an app. I launched a book. I did. And then now it's like, all of it was mediocre. And then now we put our fingers out for coaching and there's so many people interested. Like, oh, good. That was me trying to push it away. And God just going, dude, here you go. Here you go. And it wasn't until somebody pointed it out to me.
• 31:59
  I said, you realize you coach all your friends, all of your friends, anybody who's around you, you're always coaching. And I'm like, oh, boy. So here we're going to do it. And I'm going to change a bunch of lives, a bunch of. So I'm sorry for my thunder because I want people to hear this.
• 32:14
  Surrender. Amen. Amen. Yeah. And that's, you know, a lot of you're you feel all consumed to like it is a presence. And and where where my beliefs are, you know, there there's God, the Father, Christ and the Holy Spirit. So when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, like it is like it hits and you're like, whoa, dude.
• 32:40
  And so I'll give you an example. Seven years ago, we were at a Carrie Jobe concert. This song forever comes on and I'm there. I'm not like a big crier in public type of dude or anything like that. She starts singing the song and all of a sudden, like, I feel like, whoa, I feel these like vibrations in my body. I'm like, what in the world is going on? It was like it was it was kind of kind of trippy. But I knew what was happening once it started happening. Yeah.
• 33:09
  God gave me two very, very clear visions. One of them was to go see my children in Haiti. Both of these visions were very uncomfortable things to do for me as well. And I need to make that important because a lot of blessing comes from being in an uncomfortable state.
• 33:28
  If you really dig deep. So going and seeing the children ended up being one of the most beautiful moments of my life. And the second one was sharing my story publicly about everything that happened to me in my first 18 years of my life that I had told no one. And I'm like, Lord, no. Dude, year by year, I start writing my book.
• 33:56
  And then this last January, I stepped on a stage at our conference and I shared my story for the first time. Now, I'm going to show you how God works. Since that moment, he's opened up so many doors to all these amazing people as I've kind of navigated into the next chapter of what I'm going to be doing in my life. And so.
• 34:20
  Just some really big names, some big organizations. And these weren't people or organizations that I was trying to seek out. God literally just like they're, it's happening right now almost every single day. We head to Houston next week to go meet this guy who has an amazing ranch and they're doing amazing things for men and boys down there. And it's just amazing.
• 34:47
  Good opportunities, God opportunities. When you feel the presence of the Lord,
• 34:53
  and you're obedient to what that vision is or that calling, a true gigantic blessing comes from it. It's fabulous. You went down it, but I'm going to ask specifically, can you share a specific memorable success story from your experience with HitchFit that deeply impacted you besides the Haiti one? I think everybody knows about that. I love it. By the way, Haiti, just so everybody understands, is still under a revolution,
• 35:23
  years and actually the u.s government just issued another like do not travel there and this man walks in like freaking he-man and and handles business but also before you answer that question about a deeply impacted story i want to remind everybody to again follow my man on at mr hitch fit on instagram and then go check out www.hitchfit.com because
• 35:48
  You heard how magnificent he is and what they're doing is remarkable. When he speaks about his children in Haiti, these are his adopted children that he is doing amazing things for. So is there any way, by the way, that that that anybody can donate to that cause?
• 36:04
  Yeah, I will. The organization just changed names, but it was Mission E4 was the mission. So I'll get you that and then we'll get it linked up. You can sponsor children. Yeah, you can sponsor children and they have children all over the world. But they are they're a smaller organization, which I prefer because I kind of know where the money is going and how it's being distributed. And you can go see your kids.
• 36:31
  which is really powerful thing to be able to do. I just saw Eric. I don't know if you know Eric rock from California. He was just, I believe in Haiti as well. Maybe it may as Dominican Republic. I'm not sure exactly where it was, but man, his giving back, it just feels so right. Like an alignment. So can you give us a success story that touched you deeply? That only came to you from being a part of this hitch fit.
• 36:58
  Oh, man. I mean, we've worked with over 20,000 clients. But there is one guy that kind of sticks out that's on my mind right now. And he came to me at 50 years old.
• 37:11
  He had a 60 inch stomach at the belly button, 267 pounds. He was a professional barbecuer. And a month before I met him, he was in Mexico and almost died from an obesity related issue. OK, so he comes in day one. We kind of knew each other, but not really well. And and.
• 37:35
  He sets down, starts giving me all the excuses that everybody does. And he had also been with the trainer for a year and he had gained three pounds in a year with that trainer. So I was like, okay, first off, you need to fire your trainer. That's terrible. Second off...
• 37:52
  I'm going to tell you some things today that you're not going to like and you may not come back because of it. But you have too many yes people in your life and you need somebody that's just going to tell you the truth. And that's who I'm going to be. I don't care about your feelings in this moment. I care about saving your life. And so ultimately I told him that, you know, he was the fat, funny guy that was going to be dead in five years and his wife didn't sign up for this.
• 38:16
  Long story short, we ended up dropping 115 pounds. He got ripped abs, and he ended up stepping on a stage. He wanted to compete. He stepped on a transformation stage and won out of, like, over 80 people. And so –
• 38:34
  With that process of losing all that weight, that's amazing. But even more importantly, he was able to adopt two children as well. And so they're raising, him and his wife are raising in their 50s two little children. He had never had any male in his family live over the age of 55. Wow.
• 38:58
  And he's living great, man. And it's about choices. It's not genetics. It's not any of, I was born fat, any of that. You're eating bad. You're not working out. Anyone can transform their life if they make better choices. So I got to ask some, I got to deep dive into this a little bit more because that's profound. 60-inch waist to probably a 35, 36, let's just say 36.
• 39:26
  How do you do that without any surgery? And did he have, I mean, did he have to have any of the excess skin removed or anything? Well, so here's what's funny that I've found over the years. Stretched skin, a lot of it has to do with genetics. I've seen women get large bellies after, you know, during pregnancy to then come back and have no stretch marks and no loose skin. And then another woman...
• 39:51
  you know, not have as big of a belly, but get stretch marks and loose skin. Typically, if you look at like their, their moms or their dads or whatnot, you, you'll be able to tell if that person will have a lot of loose skin or not from what we've seen with our data. Now, that doesn't mean that it goes across the board that way. With Rob, he ended up having a little bit of loose skin, but we did do it in a relatively, you know, longer period of time. It was
• 40:20
  it was about a year and a half, two years for the whole entire process. So we didn't get it done in like six months and where the body's, you know, cannibalizing muscle and, and, and, and losing, losing weight at a, at a, at a pace that's way, you know, super unhealthy. So, you know, in his situation, not a lot of loose skin, but I have seen guys over the years that they get done with their transformation. They have quite a bit of loose skin. Like it just, you know,
• 40:50
  What I've seen is some of it is genetic or sometimes the way that people transform is incorrect or too quickly. And then their skin can't keep up. Man, for a year and a half, he must, oh, that story just lit me up, man. Thank you for being you. And that's, you know, Rob, kudos for doing the work. You had to do the work. And thanks for listening to my man, Micah. If you weren't in the fitness industry, what career path do you think you would have pursued?
• 41:17
  Oh, man. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a superhero. You know, so I don't know if that would have worked out. We still dress up sometimes in Vegas, like, you know, Wonder Woman and Captain America and just walk around. It's pretty funny, that inner child thing. Golly, what would I have done? Man, I...
• 41:41
  Making impact some way, you know, I haven't even thought about that for a long time. That's a great question. I mean, I wanted to be an athlete growing up. I ended up being that, but just kind of in a different field. You know, I really just thoroughly get a lot of joy out of helping people become better. You know, so I would have stayed in that field in some sort of capacity. I love that. Do you have any pre-workout rituals or superstitions?
• 42:12
  I want to invent this. I don't know what it is about us guys. But I just tell myself, they don't understand you. They want you to fail. I psych myself up. I say all the mean, nasty things in the water boy. My mama said, they call mama something. But I want this invention.
• 42:35
  I work out harder when a pretty lady's in the gym. So you get to work out with your wife. So I happen to work. So I'm going to invent an app that like puts a hologram of a pretty lady right next to you. I'm losing followers today.
• 42:53
  Bro science proves that if you're training in a gym with a beautiful woman, your strength goes up 20%. I mean, bro science, it proves it. No, there is truth behind it, though. I mean, think about it when you were a kid or when you were, you know, playing, if you played basketball or football or whatnot. Like, if your new girlfriend showed up to the game, like, you showed out. You gave extra money.
• 43:16
  On that game, you know, and so there is something to that, you know, I definitely believe that being married now, you know, we're I still flirt with my wife, like every single day and, and, and whatnot, but my motivation now is quite a bit, quite a bit different from that it's really like.
• 43:36
  Man, it's really the stuff that happens outside of the gym. It's the opportunities that I get when I go to the grocery store and someone is like, whoa, dude, you're jacked. Or the little kids, man. It's the little boys that I love the most where they're just like brutally honest and they're like,
• 43:55
  you are whipped, you know, and their mom's there. And it gives me an opportunity to like speak some inspiration and motivation in that little boy's life, you know, for that second. It's that sort of stuff that really gets me kind of, you know, keeps me even more accountable of just like, how can I inspire, you know, everybody that I get to meet every single day. And being in shape, man, I always tell people this, being in shape,
• 44:20
  You just get more opportunity. You get more opportunity in every way. You walk into a room and you are abnormal. You are not normal to the rest of the crew and you get called out. Every conference we go to, everything like that, it's like people, you know, the speaker will always like do shout outs or something like that. It gives us more opportunity to talk to people.
• 44:43
  I'm going to correct you. We're normal. I think everybody else is different. I just can't imagine a life without this. Yes, we've chosen a path that not many people want to go. And whether you want to freaking claim I do steroids, which I don't.
• 45:01
  or tick the fast way, which I didn't. I've been doing this for 30 years. That's just you and your insecurity. And what I say to people is, you're right. If I see you, I know immediately you're legit because I know what it takes to look like you do. And so immediately, you don't even have to speak. And I'm like...
• 45:23
  that dude has got his stuff going on. And everything that comes out of your mouth, I believe. Now, I know you and I believe you, but if I didn't, and those are some cool opportunities too. I was at a party last summer in the middle of the ocean, and a kid came up to me, a 12-year-old kid, big kid, and he said, hey, I want to try out for football. I want to make the team, and what can I do to add muscle?
• 45:51
  And I called his mother over. I said, I want you to hear what I'm going to tell him. And I gave him, and it was just, and then I gave him my personal number. I said, call me anytime and I will help you. And you know what I told him? Consistency and discipline. That's it. Everything works if you work it, but you got to stick with it. There's no shortcuts. There's no cheats. There's no cheats.
• 46:13
  Even if you take steroids, bro, you got to go to the gym. You know, the weights don't lift themselves. So again, do you, I kind of stole your thunder. I apologize. Do you have anything? No, man. I love hearing those stories. I love hearing it. Like that's what it's about. And people think that it's just like, oh, you walk around or some vanity thing. Like maybe it was when I was 18 or 20 when I started.
• 46:40
  I said, but it transitions into this thing that's way bigger than that. It's like when you get to go change someone's life because of the choices that you're making every single day, you feel like you have purpose. You feel like you're making impact. And so it's such a powerful tool that just requires you making different choices than you're making now.
• 47:09
  Show me the people's choices. I'll show you if you're happy or not. I'll show you if you're successful. I just want to point out to the listeners, 25 years my man's been working out. Maybe 27, depends on how you do it. 25, 27, I've been 30. I've said a million times, I should get my pension.
• 47:28
  I'm 30 years. God should let me look like this for the rest of my life because I've done it for 30 years. So what's one item on your bucket list that you haven't crossed off yet?
• 47:42
  I probably don't even know it yet because it's going to be like one of those God deals where, you know, he opens up some door that I couldn't even imagine. There's some places that we want to travel to for sure that are on bucket list. I did one of the scariest things that I could ever imagine last year in Norway. So that's off the bucket list. Yeah.
• 48:05
  I was at, there's a place called Crag Bolton, and it's popular on Instagram, but it's this boulder that's in between two mountains. You got to climb like seven miles up to get to it, and then you take a step out on it with no harness, and it's 3,500 feet off the ground. Like, it is like...
• 48:25
  If you have any fear of heights or whatnot, like, and I, and I don't, but you take that step and your legs are kind of wobbly because they're tired after, you know, hiking for two or three hours, you know, and dude, I mean, I'll send you over the picture. It's bonkers, man. And I was even more scared when my wife did it after me. I was like, oh my gosh, don't fall.
• 48:47
  Um, but, uh, you know, I, I just look at each day as, you know, a new opportunity and, and we kind of just get ourselves into, you know, a lot of things that, uh, that can help us grow and help other people grow. So, uh, you know, our business soul fit, that's, that's one thing that I'm looking forward to as far as bucket list of really expanding that and making some, some huge impact in that way. Yeah.
• 49:14
  So you're in Kansas City. I just happened to hang out. I was in Dallas last weekend, and I was with Ben Newman, who's in St. Louis. And have you had the pleasure of meeting this guy? I don't know Ben Newman personally, but I know of Ben Newman through other people. You want to talk about crazy. He even says he's like, I'm crazy. So I did his unrequired workout.
• 49:38
  And I'm telling you, I didn't like him afterwards. I said, Ben, F off and stay the heck away. He's laughing. So I'm going to read it to you. His favorite number is 44. So everything has to be in four. So you do a four-minute, 44-minute, four minutes, 44-second reverse plank. So lying on your back with six feet up your mouth.
• 50:02
  444 straight plank, then 444 jumping jacks, 444 air squats, 4 times 44 calf raises, 44 curls, 44 push-ups, 2 sets, 44 abs, 2 sets, 44 of running in place, 44 second wall sets, and then 500 push-ups. I looked at him and I said, why couldn't your favorite number be 1? 1.
• 50:28
  You have a chance to meet Ben. He's fabulous. This dude has worked out over 17. He's done this workout for over 1,700 days. He was in the hospital and he was doing the curls in his hospital bed. So I corrected him too and I said, you know, you're not crazy. You're just committed, but it's all good. So we have to make that introduction because he's a really nice man.
• 50:56
  Yeah, he sounds like my kind of dude. Yeah, for sure. We've gone all around it. What's next for HitchFit, and how do you envision continuing to make a difference in the lives of others?
• 51:09
  So HitchFit is really, I mean, we've been in business for 15 years. That business is really solid. We're not in a period of our lives where we're wanting to really expand HitchFit anymore. We have the retreat business with SoulFit that we're growing. That's a newer business. And then I'm in the process of writing my book.
• 51:32
  and conferences and the next chapter that someday down the road we'll get on another podcast and then use this platform to help a whole bunch of men, a whole bunch of men by sharing what I got going on with that. So that's kind of what's cooking with us. We're traveling quite a bit, a lot of podcasts, a lot of TV shows, and really just...
• 52:01
  Just trying to go out and educate, motivate and inspire some folks to not only get healthy and fit, but, you know, really, you know, look at their whole life, you know, from their spiritual, their fitness, their, you know, their relationships and that fun piece.
• 52:18
  And trying to find that balance with those things so that they can have an overall successful life, not just make a bunch of money, you know, which is fine. But if that becomes your number one and only, then, you know, it gets pretty sad once you get it. And then you're like, OK, what now? So, again, follow Mr. Hitch Fit on Instagram. But listen, go to www.soulfitretreats.com.
• 52:48
  These are really cool because you're going to go there with a bunch of like-minded, as he would call crazy individuals, and you're going to get inspired, educated, motivated. But I'm going to tell you something. I've been to these and you're going to walk out with your soul nourished, literally nourished.
• 53:10
  I didn't even mean to say that because it's soul fit retreats, but you will walk out. This is the higher power-ness that we were trying to eloquently say. You will walk out feeling lighter.
• 53:25
  So I highly, highly recommend go to soulfitretreats.com. And then I'm going to end it with, if you could leave me with one piece of advice, what would it be? If you want true change in your life, then start with today and think about every choice that you're making.
• 53:44
  And and really start eliminating the negative stuff that is is is holding you back and keeping you in bondage like, you know, take a look in the mirror. Do you like what you see? Do you like the actions that you're doing? Do you like your relationships? Are you the father you want to be go in and make change? It's possible. There's hope. Just just go and make the changes that are going to help you get there.
• 54:08
  nothing changes if nothing changes so i love that that's great advice i will tell you everybody man follow this guy he's brilliant you like you have a friend in me if there's anything you ever need uh i like coming and doing the workouts with people so i will be around and we're gonna get a workout in and and when you finish that book please come back on and we'll we'll share that with the world because i love to read which i don't even think i did what's your favorite book
• 54:35
  Oh, man. I just got done with a book recently called The Noticer, man. And it was really cool. It's all about perspective and and and really how to change your your your overall perception with how you tackle life in every situation. He story tells amazingly a guy named Andy Andrews.
• 54:59
  And it's a really quick read, but it really makes you think, you know, because we get stuck in this bubble of like, oh, my life is so bad. This is so difficult, whatnot. And really a little change in perception can go a long way. Well, I am ordering it right now as we speak.
• 55:18
  On our favorite part. There it is. There it is. Dude, I drink the Kool-Aid and I'm ordering it right now. And I really appreciate you and I love you. And I thank you for coming on a hundred and white podcast. And Kelly, before we go, man, I just want you.
• 55:33
  To know, man, thank you for using the platform the way that you do, to lift guys like myself up, to spread a message, and also your vulnerability. You know, I follow you on IG. You talk a lot about your past, the decisions that you made that weren't the best, but that you got out of that and where you are now, man. Much respect, brother. Yeah.
• 55:53
  Thank you so much. I received that. And I'm sending you so much love and happiness and positive vibes right back to you. Tell your wife I said hello. And again, if there's anything I could do, I'm just a text away. Thank you, Kelly.
• 56:09
  Please rate and share this podcast. I'm active on all social platforms and love to hear from my Segal supporters. Each and every episode is sponsored by my company, National Technology Management, the easiest and best IT company to do business with, delivering peace of mind with technology every day, even simplifying cybersecurity. Visit TrustNTM.com for more info. Until next week, be harder than life.