Goals For 2015

2014 has been very good to me.

I graduated from college as well as completed an amazing internship experience where I worked under two former NFL strength and conditioning coaches. Most importantly; however, I deepened my relationship with God.

From a lifting standpoint, I also felt that I accomplished a lot this year.

My bodyweight increased from 147lbs to 160lbs, and I finally maxed out on bench at 225lbs. I also  got my squat and deadlift techniques down.

As happy as I am with these goals from both a personal and lifting perspective, I hope to accomplish even more in 2015.

Here are my goals for the new year.

Personal Life

1. Continue to develop my spiritual life through attending Mass weekly, reading scripture daily, and through both private and group prayer.

2. Find a full-time job in the fitness industry. Currently I am studying for the CSCS exam, and hope to earn this certification by February. On top of this, I plan on obtaining a personal training certification, as well as look into athletic training.

3. Becoming the best big brother I can be. For the first time in three and a half years, I am finally at home for good. It's time for me to have the influence I have so longed for in my 16 year- old brother's life.

Lifting Goals.

1. Squat 315lbs by mid-2015. I finally have started to squat to at least parallel and this past week, I squatted 235 for five true reps. I hope to hit a clean 275 by February and go from there.

2. Continue to progress with my deadlift. Deadlifts have been in and out of my lifting regime throughout the year, but this exercise is now centralized in my training. I hope to surpass 315lbs in the next few weeks.

3. Bench 250lbs by mid-2015. A shoulder injury in the late fall slowed down by my bench progress, but yesterday, I hit 190lbs for five repetitions for the first time in months. This puts my estimated max back around 225. If this keeps up, this goal is extremely realistic.

4. COMPETE. This is something I have always wanted to do, especially in bodybuilding. However, over the last month, I have realized how satisfying it is to lift heavy and see consistent improvements. Because of that, I have slowly gravitated toward to competing in powerlifting. I hope to do this during the summer or fall.

Publishing your goals for the world to see holds one accountable, and I plan to be just that. I love rap music, and often use lyrics to explain how I feel. One of my favorite lyrics is found in Jon Connor's song "Place on Earth" through his words, "Every year is my year."

Well in 2015 and beyond, every year will be MY year.