I realized the other day that this year marks 40 years that I've been working out in the gym. Other than during the pandemic, I've not been away from the gym for more than two weeks at a time. Not to give away my age, but I started as a very young teenager.

I consider the two most influential men in my life being my father, John Engle and Bill Cambera. This post is mainly about Bill and his influence on my life.

I first met Bill when my dad took me to a little Golds Gym in Fair Oaks, California. That first impression of Bill was such a larger-than-life present. Despite his intimidating size and look, he was one of the nicest people I've ever met. And as a young skinny shy kid, he was the perfect motivator to get me into that world. I was never into bodybuilding. I used it early on for athletic performance, but it's become more about a stress reliever and a place that's mine. I've always enjoyed the gym camaraderie and have friends that go back to my early days. It's an exclusive club that came from putting in a massive amount of work together. The gym has influenced my life as well as my family's lives. There are work ethics that I learned that I've handed down to my kids.

The gym we all trained at, “Body and Power”, was put together by Bill. The sense of family that came from that gym is the stuff of legends. The intimidating concept of walking into Body and Power as a young teen and seeing the massive physiques that were being built was almost too much to comprehend. Bill made sure that everyone felt welcome and made you feel like you were part of the “BnP” family. I was extremely fortunate over the years to have many fantastic workout partners, most notably Tami Wooden and Sonja Wallace. Tami is now the strength and conditioning coach for American River College. There were also certain expectations that came with being part of that family; you had to work hard and always put away your weights. :-) if you failed the last task, you heard about it instantly from across the gym and never did it again.

It amazes me, to this day, the education I received at the gym. We talked about anatomy and physiology and the science of building muscle and strength without knowing it. Concepts to this day still hold true and haven't changed. It was like having a master's program in the gym. When I got into college, it brought home how much I had learned early on from the influence of Bill and the crew at the gym. One lesson that resonates with me after all these years and that serves me quite well is that working out is not a passive sport: it's an aggressive sport. If you want to improve, you must be willing to put in the work and be used to discomfort.

That education served me well over the years, such as when I moved to Hawaii and got a job as a trainer at a high-end athletic facility. My boss, the head of that department, was a gentleman named Ramsey Taum, who was also a professor at the University of Hawaii. I was one of the few he hired without a degree, but he stated that my knowledge and practical understanding surpassed most people with degrees. I also learned a lot about customer service from Bill and how he balanced being social with members and managing a business.

When the opportunity came up for me to be part of a World Gym location, my design and management style could be traced back to Body and Power. The type of equipment and layout of how I trained my staff, had roots going back to my early days with Bill. The first year of that gym’s operation earned an award as one of the top gyms in the country. I still have people talking about how much they enjoyed the experience at that club.

As my kids go out into the world, I feel confident that they'll pass along to their families a lot of the things I taught them, which I learned from Bill. It's crazy to think that in 10 years, I will have spent half a century in the gym. I still have no significant injuries and don't need daily medication other than for my asthma, which I've had since childhood. I'm sure I would be in worse shape if I hadn't spent the time I did in the gym.

Here's to the next 40 years!!