Shane Lance  BS, MEd

One of my favorite things to do as a kid was to read my dad’s hunting magazines.  I carefully went through every page.  Shoot, I even read the classified ads in the back.  I even continued to have such an interest into my teenage years.  I was just starting to notice the girls when the Universal Bodybuilding ads started to get my attention.  The ads promised you could go from skinny wimp to big muscular hero and always get the girl.  I was convinced.  I wasn’t skinny, but it had to0 work for chubby kids too right?

After lots of begging, I finally convinced my mom that I couldn’t live without muscles.  On Christmas day, my 15th year, I got the Universal Bodybuilding program, a bench, and a set of weights.  I can’t say that I was immediately addicted to this new lifestyle I had chosen.  My body was always sore and I always seemed to be hungry. However, around twelve weeks later I began to notice a few things that changed my life.  My shirts began to fit tighter.  Was I growing? Or was Mom shrinking my shirts?    People started asking me what I was doing to make my arms grow.  Best of all I noticed that girls would grab my arm when they talked to me.  They couldn’t keep their hands off my guns! Ha ha.  That’s all it took for me to be hooked.

Now, 30+ years later, I am still passionate about fitness.  For the past 20 years I have had the pleasure of training and coaching high school athletes in several different sports.  In addition to coaching wrestling, track, football, and strength & conditioning, I have also been involved in powerlifting, cross fit, bodybuilding, martial arts, and Olympic weightlifting.   One thing that I have always enjoyed is the fact that everyone is like one big family.  Go to a weightlifting competition, it is one of the only places you will see people cheering on their competitors.  That is awesome to see.  But the thing you will notice about the weightlifters, bodybuilders, and cross fitters, is that it is not just a passion but a way of life.

Choose the fitness lifestyle.  You don’t have to be a hardcore bodybuilder or marathon runner to be fit.  There are many different and fun ways to be fit and healthy.  Watch for more info on this blog and on the Fit Club Facebook page.  It is a lot more fun staying fit and healthy with a bunch of friends than going it alone.