I’ve been coaching and motivating people in health and fitness it seems all my life, well if not my whole life, then at least the past 20 years! A long time ago, in a land far, far away, I was a semi-professional trumpet player. Growing up in a family of classical musicians, the trumpet and music was my life. I started playing trumped when I was 5 years old – and in my senior year of high school, got in to the Eastman School of Music, a dream come true! Freshman year of college changed ALL that – surprise, surprise!

That year I learned about fraternities, sports, and girls… Need I say more? Music was now completely out of the picture, and since I had a US Marine Corps ROTC scholarship, I had to get into shape. This was my introduction to intensity - workouts that could make you puke! Surviving school, my platoon sergeant, early morning workouts, my fraternity, and graduation, I got commissioned as an officer in the USMC.

The first year in the Marines was fantastic – I learned everything about being an infantryman or “grunt” – from tactics, and land navigation to communication and leadership. I became an expert shot, learned knots backwards and forwards, learned how to SCUBA dive, even repelled off very high towers and helicopters. Then, as a combat engineer, I learned about building things, laying minefields and obstacles and then explosives – how to blow things up! After that, the real “fun” began - I reported to my first duty station, checked in with the Colonel, and got the files of 40 Marines that I now was responsible for – in the Marines, they call it “Platoon Commander.” I traveled the world with my platoon – California first (a long way from my home state of Maryland), then Hawaii, Israel and the Mediterranean, Panama, the Philippines, and finally Oman, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait – yes, the first Gulf War. I loved my experience as a Marine, but after four years, it was definitely time to get out.

For most guys, getting a job is priority 1 when they get out of the military. Not me. I decided to ride my bike across the United States with a couple of buddies! Then I got a job – as a sales rep/engineer for a very large specialty chemical company. In my free time, I went outdoors taking up cycling, mountain biking, whitewater kayaking, snowboarding, rock climbing, and mountaineering. In 1995, I tackled the Eco Challenge, a round-the-clock, 300-mile expedition adventure race that is regarded by athletes across the world as the greatest, most extreme challenge ever; the premiere test of physical skills and mental tenacity. Yes, it was all that! And since my team didn’t finish as a complete team, I HAD to do another one… and that led to my third… and fourth. I went on to get sponsored by Red Bull for shorter distance races (24 hours or less), and routinely placed in the top three in at least 30 races over five years.

That all led me to my current profession in the health and fitness industry. For years, people had been asking about what I did to stay in shape – so it seemed like a natural fit. I got an entry-level sales job at Gold’s Gym Venice – in the nutrition department, and also became a massage therapist. Wanting more education, I enrolled in UCLA’s fitness instructor program and subsequently attended the prestigious CHEK Institute for corrective, high performance exercise kinesiology and nutrition. I have trained with some of the world’s best coaches in running, corrective exercise, Olympic lifting, gymnastics, and yoga.

Transitioning officially to fitness coaching, I worked over the years with thousands of people in many areas related to health and fitness. In ’04, while surfing the web, I came across www.CrossFit.com. That day forever changed my life. Using myself as the guinea pig, I started CrossFitting – and was absolutely amazed at my results! Shortly thereafter, I opened the doors at Petranek Fitness.

I remain committed to my own development physically, mentally and spiritually. CrossFit is my training system of choice and I workout about 3-5 times per week. I eat well about 75% of the time. I’m inspired by overachievement and beating the odds, and see transformation happen in front of my eyes almost every day at Petranek Fitness. I love what I do, and love my life. I now have another part of life to love – fatherhood. Julia, my wife, gave birth to our son, Dashel George, on March 8th, 2007 - he is the love of our life.