December 2014, I was up late watching TV and trying to fall asleep when I saw a commercial for the bodybuilding.com 200k tranformation challenge. I had been wanting to do something in the coming year to help jump start a healthier lifestyle, and something about this challenge just screamed out to me. 

Earlier that month, my love and myself had been though some tough times. Our cat Sake' had been diagnosed with 33 kidney stones and had to have two emergency surgeries that resulted in over 15k in vet bills. We don't have kids and our pets are our life, so there was never any question of IF we would do the surgeries, but after it was all said and done we were left wondering, how are we going to pay for them. 

On top of the vet bills, I personally was dealing with some medical issues including a severe case of the kings disease, GOUT! It was the most painful thing I have ever experienced and had left me in pain and out of shape. Walking had become almost impossible, let alone working out. 

I made the commitment to start using hypnosis, and relaxation to reduce my stress levels and try and cure my gout. I stopped drinking, which was one of the hardest things ever. I stopped using the Dr prescribed medications and went for a more holistic approach using essential oils and herbal supplements. Now 6 months later I am GOUT FREE!!

So when I saw the #200ktransform late that night in December I knew I had to do this. Not only for my health but if I could do my best then I knew I would have a shot at winning the grand prize, which would go a long ways to help with our medical bills!! 

The journey has been long and tough but I have to say that I LOVE IT!! I have been following a low carb, high protein diet (which is not very gout friendly but I have made it work with my mental motivation). I am dedicated to this lifestyle and I can not see myself ever going back to my old lifestyle. I am hooked on working out, eating clean and using the power of the mind to create the life and world I want to live in. 

I could not do any of this without my better half, and the love of my life Jess. She and my pets (siren my dog and red and sake' the cats) are my world and I am doing this for them! I want to make sure my animals have long happy lives and I want to take Jess on a trip to somewhere tropical.