#9 - Clinton Ford

Clinton Ford shares his story about how his journey in life has led him to opening First Fire Boxing Gym in Ormond Beach, FL. As a licensed personal trainer with 10 years of fitness instruction experience, Clinton uses his high energy, motivational and progressive coaching style to encourage, uplift and edify his family of clients. Learn about the endorphin rush his clients experience and how the fighter mindset they gain helps to propel them through life's everyday struggles. Clinton was able to transition from his career in corporate management to a lifestyle where he is happy and healthy and he has been able to help others to create a fitness weight loss plan that works, even with an  impossible lifestyle and work schedule. Go to his website to see the class schedule, personal training services available and contact information.  

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First Fire Boxing Website 

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Chapters

• 0:53 First Fitness Influences
• 6:19 How Clinton Used His Day Job to Learn About Fitness and Nutrition
• 7:44 Biggest Struggles with Food Prep
• 9:27 Biggest Struggles with Workouts
• 11:04 One of Clinton's Greatest Client Success Stories
• 15:43 What A Boxing Gym Has to Offer
• 20:29 How to Work Up to Bootcamp
• 29:59 How Clinton Developed His Coaching Style
• 33:08 Crossfit vs. Bootcamp
• 36:52 Clinton's Advice

Transcript

0:11

This is Angela Grayson from the Loving Life Fitness Podcast. To help others in their fitness journey. It’s All Possible. It's time to wake up. Here we go. Hello, everybody. This is Angela Grayson from Loving Life Fitness. I am your host today and I have somebody with me who is going to help you live your best life. His name is Clinton Ford. He's from First Fire Boxing in Ormond Beach, Florida. And he's going to provide some insight for us today. Hi there, Clinton. How are you doing? Doing great. Thanks for having me. How are you? I'm doing great. Yeah. What I'd like to talk to you about first is you. Your journey fitness going way back as far back as you can remember. What was your life like in the area of health and fitness? Well, you know, I kind of always grew up around very active individuals. I would go outside and, you know, back then there weren't any iPods. There was a few video games, but that was usually for rainy days. And most of the time we spent outside and I can remember my earliest memories were it was a group of guys that were living across the street from me. They had a weight set in the basement. I grew up with three sisters and I had no brothers and they were all older than me. So a lot of times I would spend time over there and they was was probably like six brothers down there and hittin the weights. And, you know, I'm just a young guy, probably about seven years old. I just started asking them like, hey, what is this? What can I do with this? And so that just sort of carried me in the beginning till my middle school days. And I started wrestling in middle school and I played football and I dabbled in basketball a little bit, but it really got serious. In 2002, I had a car accident which put me in a concussion, and I was kind of going in different directions in my life and I decided I wanted to join the Marines. And so for that, I had to, you know, really start to focus in on diet and nutrition and working out because I wanted to be the best Marine that I possibly could be. And I wanted to start out as a Squadron Leader. I had some really good recruiters. They kind of coached me along the way. So, you know, my dad had just left for Florida and he was powerlifting at the time and we would just exchange information over the phone and all of that. And as I was going through my training, my sisters ended up calling my dad and was like, how he's going to the military? You know, he's the only boy, you know, what happenes if, blah, blah, blah, because this was right around 911. And so I pretty much had told my dad when he called me like, Hey, guy, I got my mind made up. Dad, I'm at work now. Focus being ness and that we've already can talk. So he goes, Well, why don't you give this a thought? Why don't you come down to Florida and I'll pay for your college, your first semester? And so I said, I don't know. So, you know, kind of got my, ya know just give this a thought. I prayed about it on the day that I prayed for the answer, I was in Florida and they had no record of me ever swearing in, not a thing. The recruiter stopped calling me. It was just like it was divine. And then once I got down here, me and my dad linked up and we were working out every, every other day, you know, when he had an off day workout, that just pretty much shaped me to start going to different gyms. I actually, couple of years later started teaching. Well, actually, I was just the front desk receptionist at a gym here locally. I don't know if you're familiar with Omega 40 on Granada, it used to be. It was a family owned gym and I started just being a receptionist, checking people in. And then when the opportunity came up because the master instructor for the boxing program had gotten sick and so they asked me to sub in. And so I subbed and I did terrible. I didn't have the right flow, the right music, the right everything. So I ended up studying another instructor that was there and just kind of seeing, you know, what he did, how he got the crowd into it and got them engaged. I came back and taught the class again and that was pretty much history. And the class started to grow and grow and grow and grow to the point where they were like, Clinton, you're going to have to open up your own gym One day. I was like, Hmm, that's a thought. But, you know, at the time I was working for a company and I was going up the corporate ladder, so it really wasn't like a strong thought for me. It was more like, hey, you know, maybe you never know what. It was that type of thing. I have to say, what was that six years ago? Here I am now with a gym and we've been in business for five years now and God is good to me. And what I like about what you just said was that your family really was a big influence right from the beginning, your sisters and then your dad to have him work out and mentor you with your programs. You don't have too many dads that work out with their sons. They're usually working out with their friends or work in sport. But that's pretty amazing that you had your dad there to help inspire you in the field of fitness. Did you pursue your education at all in nutrition and personal training? Absolutely. So what it was, is when I was going to college, I was actually going for supervision and management. And it was basically like as I was going through that because that was actually a requirement for my next level and the company that I work for. They wanted you to have a bachelor in something and then that was like a check mark. I went for supervision and management because I was already in management, I was in management of the company and I just started taking like some nutrition classes on the side. I wanted to learn more about just human nutrition. I mean, I knew a little bit from I read the book that Arnold Schwarzenegger made from cover to cover, and I've read like so many other scholarly journals and things of that nature. I really wanted to have like an in-depth study on just your macros and how your body processes them and digestion. And at that time, Keto wasn't around all the different fads, the Atkins diet, what have you. Yeah, I went and did that. And then of course, while I was teaching at the gym that I used to work at, I went ahead and got my certification to be a personal trainer, and that's pretty much what kind of put me on the education of having every day having everything locked down in the field that I was going in. So it's good. Any struggles along the way that you'd like? Oh, now, oh man, I'd say, you know, the main thing was the habit of preparing food beforehand. Now I was I've always been great at this is all I got to work with. So let's say on crunch time and there's a McDonald's there, or there's a Chick-Fil-A here or there's a Chipotle egg here. I'm an expert on being able to just go to the right thing on the menu or to alter it to whatever diet that I'm trying to do, you know, whether I'm doing Keto or if I'm doing carb cycling. I was always great at that. But I was terrible at making meals for the week on Sunday and preparing them because by the time I get ready to eat and was the chicken was dry, the salad was soggy, and everybody else around me had fresh food that wasn't healthy, but obviously it looked better. Yeah, So I had to get over that. And the one thing I started doing was just keep it simple. I had to convince myself that it's not about how flamboyant the food looks and, you know, all those things are great, but it's about the discipline of staying on track and just knowing that if you eat this, it's better for your body than going to get that quick fix from whatever. Even if it's something that you alter, it's going to have the sodium that it's going to add to preserve in it. And it's not going to be anywhere near as good as the food that you prepare at home on Sunday. That's dry on Wednesday. But you still got to eat it. You still got to eat it. So that was probably my biggest struggle diet wise. And then workout wise it was knowing when to quit. I tried in the beginning of my workout regimen to do too much in a day. I would do super sets and this and that, and it would sustainable for about two, maybe two and a half weeks. Right. But then after that, it was like I got burned out my mind and think about got to go to the gym. I got to do all these exercises. When I learned to just prioritize certain body parts together that I knew were complementing each other and just let that be enough. Take those rest days, come back fully replenished, make sure I'm getting a sleep and do it again, and do it for other body parts. That's when I really started to succeed. Those were individual pain points. The diet and the consistency of the workout was everything personal trainers. We have our struggles, of course, where we are no different than everybody else. And the matter of figuring out what's best for you and allowing the time for it and setting the goals and taking little steps at a time to reach the place you want to be, Change. Right? Right. Which moves on. Things change, your habits change. You get bored with something, you want to try something different. And so everything is ever changing. We just have to keep our goals in line so we can keep moving forward. It is the truth. Think for a second about maybe a client of yours that came to you with struggles of their own, how you got them on track. One of the greatest success stories that I would have to say was from I was an individual, was a police officer, and she had just a crazy schedule. I don't know if you're familiar with their work schedule. They work 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. or I believe it's

7: 11:22

07 a.m. to 7 p.m. anyway, it's like a 12 hour shift and then they do that for days and then they're all for like two and then they go back on to a 12 hour shift and it's like the flip flops, like the they going at night one for our ship and then they flip flop it after two days ago in the daytime. So trying to get a regiment for her was extremely difficult because everything looks good on paper, right? We can all say like, all right, cool. You just flip flop your schedule when you're on nights to go this way, and that will be fine. We can prepare for that. But we don't anticipate the struggle that may came with that work day. The stress, how you feel, how you might feel, run down. So getting to that was a huge struggle. What I was able to do was just implement, again, small changes that led to big results. Everything from everything that you could possibly use using your toolbox. Keto Diet if you couldn't make it to the gym one day, let's go low carb this day, let's go low carb the next day. Okay, You got time today. Let's do 30 minutes of strength training and then let's do 15 minutes of cardio or flip flop it. 15 minutes of cardio, 30 minute vice versa. So it's just knowing that people are human and that you just have to be willing to adapt to whatever it is that fits the needs of the client. And then understanding that the client, once they reach out to you, they have a desire to win. It's not that they are. They're trying to waste your time if they have to cancel or if something comes up, like not getting discouraged as the trainer or not getting impatient, just allowing them to have a little bit of recess, working with them, using empathy and just encourage them along the way. Like as long as those things are in place and being able to adjust, it's going to work out because eventually there's going to be something that's proven to work for, for you as the trainer and as for the client. And once you find like that formula, it's just a matter of tweaking a few things here and there and you got it. So I would have to say this young lady actually lost £50 and like I want to say, five months, something like that, four or five months. She was doing really, really good. She had our times where she told me like, Hey, I'm going on a cruise and this was going to happen. And so like, you know, it, I was like, All right, got all the crew will stay away. They stay away from that. But if you got to have this, all right, you know, I would kill you. So. But yeah, just understanding, having empathy, being a patient and knowing people are human tweak in that schedule. Fine tuning it. Fine. Right? Yeah. And keep it going. You know, once you get those lifestyle changes, you need to keep going eating whether it can, you know, working out, whether it comes to, you know, your your job and adjusting so that you can get the rest that you need. Right. You have the energy to do life also right. This once we start slipping and going back into those old eating habits that's on that old yo yo cycle and falling apart and people get discouraged. Try these. Try to tell my people it's all about lifestyle changes. You're right. Yeah. In the long haul, you know, just your expect to lose the £50 and then you go back to your old ways cause you're knocking on my door. Right, right, right. Yeah. This day with that keep coming. You know, this is good for you. It's good for your body, your life. Absolutely. 100%. Yes. Yeah. Let's get into what your gym is all about. I know you do boot camp training. You do lots of other things, talk about your place and all the different kinds of activities you have there and why. Why do you do these varieties of activities? So when you first come in, I like to just welcome people and make them feel comfortable and value my competitive edge on some of the more well-known gyms is that, you know, you're not just a number when you come in. The first fire is a part of a family and everything is about relationship and trust and building that trust, making people feel comfortable. Because when you're working out, you are a little vulnerable. You all know everything. And there might be some things that are difficult to do, some exercises that are difficult to do. So that's the first thing I try to do is make people feel welcome. We have it's a 3600 square foot facility. I have a fitness studio with your traditional gym equipment, machine lakes. I have a daycare for kids. I also have 25 heavy bags. It's two levels. So people are spread out and have room to maneuver. And then I also have a like a cross-training room with some more unconventional type of exercises and training, such as sleds and tire flips and being able to do pull up. So like your rigs rope climb, I do the sledge hammer. It's just everything that we're kind of break the monotony of a normal workout. And then also I have a smoothie bar, so the smoothie bar is there to prevent people from going to of fast food restaurant. Actually, they work out and just give them that quick fix, protein shake or tea or whatever that their fitness requires are their fitness program requires like losing weight, drink tea or supplement it for shake, etc.? Yes, and that is pretty much it. I tried to make it as versatile as possible. I tell everyone that, you know, don't judge yourself by another person's activity. Modify. You need to. There's a lot of people who can't that have had preexisting knee conditions, bad conditions, etc.. So what I try to do is when I'm giving demonstrations, give them the modified version as well as the regular version so that they are comfortable doing it the way that they are able to do it physically. And yeah, we have our dialog afterwords and tell me how much they don't like me and but then I like to congratulate people who made it through the class. And yeah, I just make you feel like a family, a real family when they're all just getting it done. And then I also loop them into like a group, a Facebook group, or we can have some dialog on nutrition, you know, sort of like a Q&A thing. It's just really just real natural, organic and something that you probably wouldn't find at commercial facility. That's that's what I love. I'm sure a lot of people come there wanting to burn calories and lose weight. And, you know, the punching bags, they're also kickboxing or is it all. Yes. So what I do is the boot camp style classes are like what runs Monday through Friday. But I also do step aerobics on Wednesday. I do a weightlifting class on Saturday and then one on one I do traditional boxing and or kickboxing if someone desires that. So it's not designed to get you in the ring immediately, so to speak, but it's more so just technique, proper form, making sure that you are hitting the bag correctly on the jab your foot work your guard. Those things and just kind of gets you in the door so that if you did want to go down that direction actually competing, you could because you have the basic fundamentals to do so. Yeah, but everything is mostly a weight loss tome and just fitness because I'm really big on people getting their numbers right, cholesterol, getting their blood pressure down and making sure that they're not risk for any pre-diabetes or anything like that. You know, I really try to tackle those chronic illnesses that are sort of plaguing a lot of Americans right now, because I'm pretty aware of that coming from the background with the company that I used to work for. So it's definitely part of our mission that somebody comes into your gym and you know that they do have some concern to lose weight. They have an issue with, let's say, diabetes is one of those or another condition could be a heart condition. You have periodization schedules, protocol that you would go through to maybe work them up to where they could join your boot camp. Awesome. Absolutely. I love to start people off with one on one training just so that I can get a understanding of what their limitations are and then kind of guide them in the class. Hey, you know, what we're about to do is exponentially beneficial in this way, but it might be a little challenging for you, but say and then you just kind of go through the ropes that way. I love doing it that way. That way. I also kind of have an understanding of how they communicate and what their personality is like. So then I can kind of put them on a bag that fits them and kind of introduce them into the class and the way that that they would enjoy, not feel embarrassed or put on the spot or what have you. Yeah, the One-on-Ones is definitely they're the way I would have a perfect pathway for anyone to start. But if you already know someone that's taken the class, that's fine too, because they're going to already kind of give you the ropes of anything that I possibly missed, and you'll just feel warm and comfortable. So let's see how many people usually in your boot camp classes right now is because it's the summertime. It's anywhere from 8 to 18, maybe 20. But once it gets cooler, the average is like 15 per class 12 to 15, and then it can go all the way up to 30, just depending on what the class is. You know, a lot of people enjoy. I do a circuit class on Wednesday where I'm in that cross training room that I've mentioned to you about, just because some other people might have a membership at another gym where they do weightlifting or they do yoga and they kind are just looking for something different, you know, one or two days up a week. So they'll go to that on Wednesdays and then there's that leg day class on Tuesday that everybody seems to love and hate at the same time. That can be a very popular class as well. I think I've had like already 35 people. Some like that in my class. Yeah, we we make it happen. We make do everybody's comfortable and we spread out if we need to and it gets done. Have you ever asked clients whether or not they enjoy small group classes compared to the large group class? That's funny you say that in the Facebook group they have automated messages that you can put on a time schedule to ask questions and engage. And one of the questions that they had was something similar to that, like what do you like most about such and such? And so I kind of reworded it in a way that was kind of similar to what you just asked and their response was really, really like surprising because some people said that they like a large class, because they like the energy, like they like the energy coming from everyone and they like to see so many different types of physical fitness levels. And then some people like the intimacy of a smaller class, you know, because I get a little creative when there's not a lot of people there because you have more space, you have, you know, more equipment that you can utilize. So to make up for the lost energy that might have been there with with all the other people that would have been there normally are there. I try to make up with doing something creative. So that puts a spin on it. It makes the small class like a golden ticket, but then it also makes the large class, the most popular item, I guess. But that's a great question, though. It's funny you ask that because I just dealt with that the other day. Yeah. And I wonder, too, if, you know, one of the two gets better results in the fast strike amount of time, whether it be strength, whether it be cardiovascular, which one gets better results with a smaller class. So you can pay more attention to how people are doing. Yes. Your class according to that too, without them even knowing with a large class, you know, everybody, this is what we're doing and you do it to the best of my ability if you can't do it that way. And that's just the way it is, perfectly said. And of course, the best benefit of all is the one on one training all the time, you know, because you can really zone in to that one particular way. Won't may is kind of be as much fun or yeah yeah like that that there is that I you know I don't know I think it just depends on what type of person you are but again you pay for that exclusiveness that one on one training, it's optimal because all of your focus is going to that one client. So anybody who has any questions about should I do this or should I do that, man, the one on one is the way to go because you're going to get every ounce of energy that your trainer has and all of their knowledge, and they're focusing their attention on you and that time. So whether it's 30 minutes, 45 or an hour, that is your time uninterrupted. It's great idea and you can notice their alignment. You can notice they're doing things incorrectly and you can correct it right away so they get right then up, up. Okay. So the benefits of kickboxing, boxing men and women. So we all know that heart disease is the leading cause of death. And in America, I mean, it's more people are just going to have some type of cardiac arrest, and that's usually what takes people out of here. So when you talk about boxing and kickboxing as the first thing we we have to address is the fact that you're working your heart the largest muscle, most important, the endorphins that come off. Oh, my gosh. You know, we talk about chocolate being, like, so satisfying and we talk about certain types, other foods and what have you, and getting the satisfaction and the joy of it meant the endorphins that come out of that mix of being able to move around a little bit but hit a target and sweat at the same time. And then you got, you know, great music and somebody's screaming in the background. You know, it's just like it's just great. It's like jubilee all over, all over the gym. So I've had a several clients who have gotten blood work and gotten their blood pressure and good ranges, cholesterol and glucose numbers and great say that's one of the main things that keeps me sort of doing it and going is because they got to see not only do you immediate effects of someone just being in a better mood and have them like a mood stabilizer being able to release and get those endorphins and look great, all of that. But the long term, that's well with the the chronic conditions that we all have to fight, basically, because what the foods that we eat and the environment and even some of the things that are passed down through heredity, you know, I couldn't think of a much better workout for me, it does a lot. And then it puts you in a fighter mindset. It changes your way of thinking. Everything becomes a fight and it becomes like, how am I going to outmaneuver this opponent? Whether it's schoolwork, laundry, dishes, you know, like give be it could be anything you like. You'll notice how your mind starts to think of things as just just an opponent that you have to outsmart, outmaneuver, outlast. It works. What's interesting, that could be a life saving batting when it comes to career and relationships and absolute dealing with any kind of problems that come up in life, I never even thought of that when it came to boxing. You know, I had read an article that it increases confidence and you feel empowered, releases, releases, stress, improves, can't build strength, lose weight and also makes you feel more confident with yourself to do you ever need. Yes. I never thought for a second about what you just said. About dealing with struggles and feeling like it's a fight and you can accomplish anything if you put your mind to it. That's right. Yes, definitely. Definitely. I've had to use that answer key that that way of thinking so many times of my life. And I just thank God that that was something that I had in my toolbox. It really wasn't even rehearsed. It just it's what I just came out naturally. Because if you do something day in and day out on another level, it'll start to seep over into other things. And that was just really beneficial for me and I was able to endure and be consistent and persistent. And it did well for me. But a lot of works do for people also, whether as a kid, college student and later on in life, were you ever involved in any kind of sports throughout your. Yeah, Yeah. So hands down, I had a coach when I was in the sixth grade. His name was Coach Ledbetter, and I never forgot how he's basically and how I developed my coaching style with an addition to my dad. He was my wrestling coach. So wrestling is probably one of the most intense sports that will gas you out quickly if you don't know technique and or if you haven't conditioned yourself properly. So we would do. I was in the sixth grade. I never forgot we ran for a mile we did hundreds sit ups a man a mountain climbers 50 burpees a 50 pushup. Before we did anything we fought the for any wrestler at the bar, any of the, you know, the cool stuff. You know, before you got your your helmet and all of your equipment. No, no first Give me these 50 burpees, these 15 push ups and oh my God. So I mean, I did play football, play basketball for a bit, but wrestling, I mean, hands down was the most impactful sport that I've ever played in my entire life. You do carry it after middle school. I did. I did. So I did for two years. And then I stopped in eighth grade because I got a job and I should have, should have kept going. It's just, you know, at the time, you know, money was tight. I had to start thinking about working and I wanted to work. Yeah. So I couldn't do work and play sports at the same time. It definitely gave me a great work ethic, though, even though I wasn't playing sports. But I never forgot. Coach never forgot it, and to this day I still use his coaching style at and I still do burpees. And here I thought that my son got his great work ethic ethic from mom and dad. But you know what? He was a wrestler in high school. Maybe it was a wrestler than wrestling less in wrestling is I would wrestling against any sport because there's no there's no glitz, there's no glamor, There's no nobody sees you when you have to prepare for that match and what that conditioning looks like. So wrestling hands down. As a mom, I was always worried about my son when he used to go and practice and prepare for his wrestling. And I've learned so much about him because of what the coach put them through. I just believe it. But like you say, a lot of things about life. It instills the ethics here. Yes. Yes, absolutely. A good sport. I was wondering if you might be interested in comparing CrossFit to boot camp. It has everything to do with technique and form. I do not disagree with any of like the CrossFit ways and honestly they have some of the best athletes that are very much in shape. The only thing that I say about CrossFit is that man, you can get injured really quickly without the proper form, without the proper technique. It's a very fine line where with boot camp the things are done with maybe less weight but just done frequently. You know, when you think of a boot camp, you just think of a regiment that you do every day and it's sort of like a bread and butter thing. But because it's something that you do every day where it's not maybe as strenuous, but it's just done consistently, you get those results. I sort of like progressive overload. It's like you're you're going to either you got to lift heavier weights. Are you going to do more reps, you know, on that side, you're going to get that progression of muscle building. I would compare that to CrossFit being like more of a workload, but boot camp being more of like a consistent type of thing. But those guys are tough. Those girls are tough. I know a few that have come to several of my classes and you know, they'll tell me, you know, no joke, like your class is tough. There's obviously some areas that they excel in a lot a lot more than some of my other members. You know, when it comes to daily chipping squats and some of those other maneuvers, because they're used to use a lot heavier weight. But then there's the other things where we don't take many breaks. In my class, in a bootcamp class. So, you know, having that on going consistent repetitions but fast and between sets type, they if you're not used to that type of workout, it's going to take some time to kind of get up to that. Plus the fact that it's usually pretty hot inside there. So I know there's some CrossFit gyms that don't turn on their AC either or They're in a warehouse. It gets pretty hot at first fire. You have to get over that, but you can. And there are plenty of places that you can kind and modify. If you're going to be in the big part, you're going to you're going to sweat, you're going to sweat, and it's going to be hard. Is that why it’s called First Fire or is there another reason? It’s funny you ask that. So I actually had a dream that that's that's what the name of the business was supposed to be. It was just like this It was on a business card and it said first fires. I didn't have anything to do with naming it. I just woke up and said, Oh, there it is, First Fire. How about that? there you go. And that was before I even had a gym, or that was while I was teaching the classes at the other gym. So I knew that eventually I was going to have a gym because that name just came up. I was like, okay, you're sad. I went, I wish that all things come to you that easily in your future. Yes, me too. You as well. Holy moly like, Just just go to sleep. And the answer will be right there as soon as you you go sleep and you wake up and know exactly what to do. Hey Clinton what I would like to ask you if you were to leave, are listeners with some goal setting ideas? What would that be to help them get to that better life that they're dreaming of? Just don't overcomplicate it. Man don’t overcomplicate it. Don't try to do everything in one week. Give yourself steps maybe that you know where your go to foods are for fitness and you know what you should eat and what you shouldn't eat. You know, But just to try to set up some structure, a lot of times you just want to the day of we want to start a plan, a workout, a routine or whatever maybe just try to give it some time before you start to think about what good might look like in terms of a regimen and then once you get that planned out, then you go into, okay, this is the day I'm going to start it. I wouldn't say to stay in that place forever, but just try to give yourself some planning time. Planning time is everything. Because if you don't if you don't plan, then the minute something doesn't go your way, you're going to easily get distracted and you're easily going to just fall off. So if you're going to start working out, let's say next week, start thinking Saturday or Sunday what that's gonna look like, What is that going to look like? Do I have enough clothes for the week if I don't? Okay, cool. What do I need to go get? I have all the necessary tools. I have all the information for the class and I'm going to take or the instructor or the the personal trainer that I'm going to get with. What does my pantry look like? What does my freezer look like? You can't decide you're going to get in and start working out and you got nothing in your fridge and you haven't went to the grocery store. And so as soon as you’re finished working out, first thing you are going to do is, I'm hungry. I'm gonna, you know, go to McDonald's. So start planning that out now so that the next week you've got all the tools that you need to succeed and then you deal with everything you have to do on a day to day basis and day basis. Don't give up. Stay consistent. Don't use the weight scale as the determining factor for everything. So many people fall into that trap. And it could just be that, you know what you're putting on this, but you're losing there. So it's just balancing. But how you feel, how clothes fitting on you? Did you enjoy the workout? Those are the things, but planning, planning, planning, plan, planning. Just plan and take it one day at a time. Excellent words of advice. Okay listeners, you heard it from Clinton Ford. He sounds like he's a man who knows what he's talking about. He's a picture of success. So go ahead and sit down, make those plans, set those goals, and just take it one day at a time. Well, thank you, Clinton. I really appreciate you being on the show today. I know these listeners can get a lot of value from everything that you've said. And who knows, maybe one of them will come in and visit you. Sounds good. Yes. And thank you for having me. This is Angela Grayson from the Loving Life Fitness Podcast. To help others in their fitness journey. It’s All Possible! It’s time to wake up. Here we go.