By David Tepera, May 1, 2019

One of the many lessons from youth sports is teaching kids about teamwork. If you’ve ever watched a little kid’s soccer game, it’s typically 20 kids bundled together trying to kick a ball. But, there’s always that one kid who has more skills than others who scores all the points.

When I coached my children’s youth soccer teams, I would set up cones on the practice field with position boundaries. They were only allowed to play within those cones. From this, each player learned the importance of teamwork in order to pass the ball down the field.

In all sports, throughout each season, as our children get older, they will develop better skills for specific positions. Each one of those positions requires full effort in order to maximize teamwork.

We’ve all heard “a chain is only as strong as the weakest link.” Of course, this relates to not only sports, but other aspects of our lives.

Which department of your company is slowing progress? Who is the salesperson not hitting their numbers? Which spouse is not holding up to their commitment of a partnership? As you can see, the list is endless, but hopefully, you’re not the reason.

Are you the person we can count on? Do I want you in the fox hole with me? Does the team know you’ll hit your blocking assignments in order to score?

This also pertains to leadership skills. Do you lead with determination, respect and integrity? True leaders lift people up, not put them down. When you can build a winning mindset of others, it will create an exciting environment to work.

I know a company who spent an enormous amount of money to train 32 sales people for an intricate surgical device. But, the new VP of Sales started treating everyone from a dictator perspective, so quickly, most left to work for competitors.

Henry Ford was one of the wealthiest businessmen of his time. One of his famous quotes is “if everyone is moving together, then success takes care of itself.”

Now, today is your decision to step up your game, create success through teamwork and go out in this world to prove you’re the one we can count on.

By David Tepera, April 23, 2019T

In just about every sport, players must learn to pivot in order to maintain momentum. If not, they’ll come to a complete stop, tackled, or worse — lose possession of the ball.

It’s exciting to watch someone with good pivoting skills work their way down the field, court or ice. We all get a big kick from watching opponents fall on their face.

One example to hear commentators describe a skilled player’s pivoting abilities is “that running back can spin on a dime.”

What we must understand is that life is a constant pivot. Your current status is from the direction you pivoted with each and every decision.

Let’s think about some life-altering pivots. Many of us have faced unemployment, death of a loved one, divorce, bankruptcy and many other challenging experiences that can cause depression. Did you curl up in the fetal position or choose to make yourself stronger? Remember, you’re still here and there’s a better life waiting on you. Now, get out there and find it.

Just like those skilled players who pivot to keep momentum, you’ve got to keep pushing forward.

Of course, there’s wonderful pivoting moments as well. You’ve crossed paths with your future spouse, landed the job, had your first child and so on.

Just like sports, the more you pivot, the better you get at it, plus you’ll eventually win the game. Make sense?

We launched our business in July of 2018 with hopes of surviving through the end of year. Out of nowhere, I landed an opportunity to speak on a national radio show, and it catapulted us into the spotlight. Ageless Muscle was being sought out by people across the country needing our services. This isn’t luck. It’s keeping an open mind, positive thoughts, and continuing momentum by not being scared to pivot.

The whole point of my testimony is for you to realize that pivoting is your friend. When facing adversity, don’t let it sack you. It’s your moment of quick thinking to pivot and leave it in the dust.

Listen, you’re in charge of every thought and action you make or create. Don’t let negative situations or others hold you back. You’re the one carrying the ball of success. Today, you’re on a mission to win the game of life. All you need to do is make one strong pivot.

By David Tepera, April 16, 2019

We’re all privileged to live in a country where we can determine our own destiny. You have the freedom of choice to better yourself or waste another day.

I’m positive that everyone has stories of relatives who became successful through hard work and dedication. And, hopefully, you’re one of them. If not, become it.

Throughout the years, as I’m getting older, I’ve found the passion to be productive each and every day. Yes, we need time off to recharge, but constant goal setting is a must.

My time on earth is closing in. I’ve explained to my kids that at the age of 57, I’m closer to death than from birth.

Recently, I ran into an old friend who retired from a long public service career with the sheriff’s department. Even though life is much simpler, Bill has chosen to focus on his health.

During our conversation, as he asked for guidance, I explained the importance of switching his thought process. Bill, like many others, see the gym as a source of punishment.

For me, every time I walk into the gym, I remind myself how much it’s a privilege and freedom to lift weights. No one is telling me what to do and where to go. It’s completely my choice to better myself.

Tina and I put on our headphones, train together, and throw some serious metal around. We rarely talk because we use sign language as a source of gym communication.

How about you? Are you dreading going to work because it makes you miserable, plus not making enough income?

Well, guess what? You have the privilege of making an immediate change by starting the process to better yourself. The economy is booming and there’s plenty of jobs available.

Maybe, you’re in a destructive relationship. If needed, there’s resources to help you. Otherwise, take back your life because it’s your privilege.

Does church seem like a punishment because of wasting a Sunday? Then, you need to search for another religion or church. Seeking a higher power can cleanse our minds and deepen our souls.

Listen, the only reason life feels like a punishment is through your constant thoughts and actions.

Today, you’ll take on a new attitude and realize you have the privilege to make your life and those around you a much better place.

By David Tepera, April 9, 2019

One lesson taught with each of my clients is about control. While lifting weights, you must learn to control the weight and not let the weight control you. It’s the only way to prevent injury.

I sometimes cringe while watching people throw weights around, swinging wildly with cables, and using bad posture while bouncing heavy barbells. It’s really a dangerous situation.

Other factors to consider for control are effort, behavior and actions. This past week, during one of my training sessions, I put each client through an exhausting quadricep workout within the first 15 minutes. My goal was to see how they would respond during the remaining time of training.

Not surprised, and felt very pleased, that each client took control of their destiny by strengthening their behavior, increasing effort and projected into full-blown action. They’ve come to realize that results will only happen when they embrace “control.”

Of course, this lesson is for all of us. How do you respond to adversity? It’s easy to be kind and loving when you’re having a good day. But, how do you treat others when life is throwing curve balls?

Are you familiar with the saying “kick the cat?” It’s where the CEO of a company is upset that he hasn’t received an important paper. He yells and screams at his regional manager, who then yells and screams at his secretary to get it pronto. The secretary never finds the paper and proceeds to yell at the delivery boy. Once the delivery boy gets home, his cat crossed his path and gets kicked. Now, this cat did absolutely nothing, but was the receiving end of a long line of people who couldn’t control their behavior and actions.

Of course, not a true story, but you get my point. Just because you’re having a bad day, doesn’t mean you need to make others have one, too.

Remember, we all have complete control of our behavior. It takes maturity and passion to develop a positive attitude. And, through this, your efforts and actions will set the path to control your destiny.

By David Tepera, April 2, 2019

According to the level of sport, there’s always some type of playbook necessary to improve mental and physical skills for players.

During the 1990s, while an assistant football coach at La Marque High School, we had scout teams attend games of the opponents. Every Sunday afternoon, all the coaches would get together, break down film, and go over scouting reports.

It was these reports that developed our playbook to prepare for next Friday’s game. We would spend all week preparing offensive and defensive players for every statistical scenario possible of the opponent’s tendencies based on the scouting reports.

Of course, if you were around during the 1990s, the mastermind of Coach Alan Weddell took all of us to five consecutive state championship runs.

For those of you who attend or watch football games, those laminated cards the coaches are holding have every opponent scenario possible so that decisions can be made in an instant. Yes, that’s the gameday playbook.

Now, let’s think about our lives. Do you have a written plan for success, or are you just punching the clock each day to ride below the radar with no ambition?

All successful people have a playbook for goals. This could be for education, marriage, occupational, business, sports and of course, diet and exercise.

Before we start each kinesiology program for clients, we have them fill out forms listing all medical conditions, including health and fitness goals. After their first consultation, we put together a playbook for success.

Now remember, there’s lots of obstacles we all encounter each day when trying to achieve our goals. That’s the importance of a playbook. We must prepare for every scenario possible to prevent from being sacked.

You might be on the goal line of success, but a family emergency occurs which takes precedence. Just use a timeout to take care of urgency, then proceed to score a touchdown and win the battle.

One of my clients was on pace to get down to 15 percent body fat by the end of April, but her mother fell and broke her hip. So, my client had to travel out-of-state to care for her for a few weeks.

This was my client’s “timeout” because all training came to an abrupt halt. The good news is that mom is ok and my client is back on track.

So now, it’s time to pull out a pencil and paper to start putting your playbook together. Write out everything you want to accomplish, laminate the paper and place it on your refrigerator.

This is your day to start the journey of winning because you have a playbook of success.

By David Tepera, March 20, 2019

For those of you who are new to my column, Tina and I are the oldest professional physique champions in Galveston County. During the past 3 years, I’ve competed in a total of seven competitions.

Just know, in the body building world, that’s considered a lot of shows because the extreme training and diet can take its toll on the body. Besides my son Dylan, Tina and I have decided to take this year off to focus on our growing business, but as always, will continue to lift weights and eat healthy.

People are usually fascinated when I explain the last week of dieting heading into a show. So, here’s a peek inside our world.

Most body building competitions are scheduled on Saturdays. Your body type and competitive category will determine how many weeks out extreme dieting is needed. For us, we stay relatively lean all year, so we don’t have to panic as we strip fat heading into a show.

On days 7 and 6, we drink up to two gallons of water, along with sodium and carb loading — each day after, dropping a half-gallon, with continual reduction of sodium and carbs.

On Friday, the day before the show, we are down to only half-gallon of water and two days without carbs. Believe me, by Friday night, we look horrible. Our muscle bellies are flat, body fat hovers around 5-7 percent, to which our skin shrink wraps around the body. You can see every muscle fiber and veins poking through our skin.

But here’s the kicker, the night before the show, we eat a large steak, baked potato, green veggies and a glass of red wine. Our bodies will absorb every nutrient, so by Saturday morning, our muscles are fully loaded, along with a small waist line.

We look absolutely amazing, and it’s a beautiful, freaky sight to look at. Check out our website Ageless-Muscle.com for competition pictures.

Now, Saturday is game day, so we can only sip water infrequently throughout the day. There are two shows — one in the morning, and the winners in the evening. We have been fortunate to always be in the winners’ bracket.

The only time we eat on Saturday is 15 minutes before we walk on stage. We eat a small potato, rice cake or a spoon full of rice. Then, chase it with raw honey, and start pumping up with dumbbells or stretch bands. This will give your muscles a strong pump to dial-in their fullest.

Believe me, by Saturday night, our energy is completely depleted, and it takes every ounce of determination to squeeze out an exhausting posing routine.

So, as you can see, it’s not easy to be a professional physique champion. The discipline is off the charts. Next time you decide to start dieting, get in the zone and design your own crunch week.

By David Tepera, March 16, 2019

Seventeen years ago, when I was 40, I trained and ran the Houston marathon. Since that time, plus due to age, I stopped running because pounding on the pavement can be damaging to your joints. My choice of outside exercise is riding my bicycle.

One of the many lessons while riding is to keep momentum. If you don’t continue peddling, you’d eventually fall down.

Each time I go for an adventure on my bike, I remind myself that the experience is similar to life. No matter what road block I encounter, I must find a way to keep moving.

Even today, I still have many dreams with hopes of our business to continue striving. To take a passage I once read “if you don’t build your dreams, someone will hire you to build theirs”.

There comes a time in life you must not regret the mistakes and failures. Only use these as lessons to help strengthen your character to become a better person.

We’ve all fallen off our bikes, but we learn that once there’s momentum, it gets much easier. The best part is to maintain speed because now you can coast without much effort.

What dreams are you building? Have you started peddling? What’s the speed of your momentum? Sometimes you must dig deep because the hill of life has become steeper. Maybe, you’re fighting against a strong wind, and it takes all your energy to fight through it. But, with determination and pride, you can win the battle.

No matter the circumstances, find a way to keep moving. One of my clients is 71 years old. It’s been impressive over the past few months to watch her body develop into an athlete. Yes, her muscles are bigger, she’s much stronger, along with diminishing aches and pains.

Unlike most older people, this client chose not to throw in the towel, but to keep moving with life. This is the strongest she’s been in her adult life. I get to observe this phenomenal with all my clients.

So, what are you waiting for? Don’t give up. Choose to be different than people your age. Let them hang-out in rocking chairs to talk about the weather. Tell them you just finished 3 sets of bicep curls for 20 reps – as you flex your guns.

Now, continue peddling your bicycle of dreams, keep the momentum and you’ll never fall off again.

By David Tepera, March 5, 2019

Several weeks back, we were in a business meeting with other self-made companies. Our goal was to share experiences with hopes to gain a variety of ideas. There were many stories told, but my No. 1 question was “what drives you to success?”

Of course, most of the companies were financially driven, but for us, it’s the feeling of freedom from the corporate world to control our own destiny. We know success will continue because our mission is about caring for people to help change their lives.

There’s no secret, this world can be a tough ride to grind out each day. Throughout the years, we’ve all been beaten down by failures, people and society, but we must not let those knock-downs keep us from getting back up.

It’s time to shake off the dust, clear our heads, and shift gears to get out there and conquer our goals. Remember, most other people don’t want you to succeed because you make them feel lazy and undriven. This is your life, so don’t waste any more time listening to their negative thoughts.

Let’s think about it, I’m sure you have multiple goals. This could be weight loss, exercise, academics, sports, marriage, religion, business and so much more. But, the real question is “what drives you to success?”

Do you want to be your own boss, tired of being overweight, make the team, quit the habit, be a role model for your children and so on?

It’s time to create a new life to reach these goals of success. I’m fortunate to have many clients who share their personal stories with me. My style of training is therapeutic to help keep them motivated through life’s challenges. One lady is overcoming complications of PTSD, and uses training to control her stress as a single mother of three children.

Another client finally realized he wasn’t getting any younger, was way out-of-shape, and wanted to enjoy life to the fullest through a consistent weight-lifting kinesiology program.

So, come on now, it’s never too late, don’t just fade away and let Father Time sweep you away. Each day gives you another opportunity to chase those goals.

Now is the time to buckle up, get your game face on, and begin your journey to success.

By David Tepera, February 27, 2019

In case you weren’t aware, the rodeo is the largest event Houston hosts each year. Last year’s rodeo brought in over 2.4 million visitors during the 20-day event. To give you a better perspective, the Houston Texans had 574,000 attendees through the whole season.

Typically, we think only humans can be athletes, but since it’s rodeo season, I’d like to share a few facts about American Bucking Bulls (ABB).

First of all, the rodeo is highly regulated and the members are incredible animal lovers. There’s the Professional Bull Riders Association, or PBR, that maintains the safety for bulls and its riders.

The ABB is a top breed of bulls bred specifically to compete. They are part of an elite program that breeds genetically superior bucking bulls. Currently, there are over 200,000 animals alive with bucking bull genetics. Their lineage, like race horses, can be traced a long way.

Believe it or not, these bulls know they are competing and are trained in a rodeo atmosphere. This starts at the age of 1 to get accustom the sounds of a highly attended event by using surround sound speakers. Then, by the age of 2, they’re loaded with weights on their backs called a “bucking dummy.” This dummy is remotely operated to only stay on the bulls for 8 seconds.

Just know, these bucking bulls enjoy the excitement of a rodeo event, and knows it will only compete once for the entire night.

Also, the spurs from the cowboys are not sharp. They are dull and only used for grip due to the bull’s skin being seven times thicker than humans.

Over the many years, the PBR has crafted chutes to eliminate all injuries from bulls and riders.

The animals can only be transported for 10 hours a day, and must ride in 6-10 inches of sawdust. Not only that, they are fed high-quality hay every day loaded with vitamins and nutritional supplements to keep them healthy.

Most bulls compete around the ages of 4-5, with some up to 10 years. They live well into their teens. Once they do retire, they become sires and breed more bucking bull calves.

I do find it funny that these bulls are pampered and have the best of treatment from humans, and then, every once in a while, they get to buck one off and kick its butt.

Now, I don’t know about you, but that’s not a bad life for an unlikely athlete.

By David Tepera, February 21, 2019

When competing in sports, there’s the ultimate goal to win trophies or championships. Depending on which sport, the season could be a couple of months or up to a year.

Last year, Dylan, Tina and I competed in a national body building championship, and it took over seven months to prepare for it. Since I’m already a masters pro champion, our goal was for Tina to win her pro card.

Just know, in 2018, Dylan was still competing in the teen category, so pro status opportunity wasn’t available, even though he won first place.

Along the way, during those long seven grinding months, our lives were completely consumed with training and dieting. In body building, there’s rarely a day off when preparing for a show.

There were many days that getting to the gym was tiring, constantly eating clean foods was old and boring, plus recovering from extensive workouts became exhausting.

It was during these challenging times, I would make everyone stop and take in the moment. My message to them was, “remember, being on stage is just one day, but our journey to get there should be the moments we must bond and embrace.”

Isn’t that what life’s all about? Don’t we all set goals for ourselves to complete? This could be education, a long prosperous marriage, raising children, running a marathon or any athletic event.

Each one of those examples takes a long time to accomplish, but it will one day come to an end. Even our lives have a final destination, so what impact did you make along the way?

We all get up each day to fight our way through the grind of life, but we must take a step back and realize the journey is the most important part of it.

Sometimes you don’t win championships or trophies, but if you gave it your best, you’ll love the process to get there. Those are the memories you should cherish the most.

Don’t forget, you’re in other people’s journey, so give your kids a big hug, embrace your spouse, and let loved ones know how much you care. Remember, it’s the journey of life that will determine your final destination, so enjoy the ride.