Why? The winner...

I just want to thank everyone for there entries and the support you show to the gym on a daily basis. It is all of you who make's my job great by coming in everyday and busting your butt. So without further delay, the winner of our Why? contest is Richard Hall. Here is what Richard wrote...
Why do I exercise? When I originally started to exercise it was to lose weight. I started off weighing 285lb and got down to 228lb, losing a total of 57lbs. With the right diet and lots of hard work, I was on step closer to my target weight of 205lb. It felt great to be able to look myself in the mirror everyday and see a new person, not only on the outside but also on the inside. Getting my old fat ass in shape was opening so may doors for me. I stared to do things I thought were never possible. I had more energy and confidence, I was full of life and what it had to offer. My motivation: My childhood. I grew up always being the chubby kid. Picked on because I wasn’t skinny or muscular like most of the kids around me. Unable to do things the other “skinny” kids were able to do. Those memories are what fired me up to work thru the doubts in my mind.
Today, well Tony, you already know most of the story. On August 31st 2009 I was in a single motorcycle accident where I almost twisted my left foot off. Five surgical procedures later the Doctors were able to save my foot, and with it, the news that I might not be able to run ever again. During my rehabilitation I slowly started to gain the weight back, a whooping 32lb. I tried going back to the gym and getting into a routine of exercise again. I had to dig deep and try to forget the words of my doctor that I my never run again.
Why I exercise today: To get back what I had lost, my energy, my confidence, my physical ability, and most importantly my mental strength.
What motivates me today: My motivation changes every day. The words “YOU MAY NEVER RUN AGAIN” motivated me thru every painful stride I took when I ran a mile and a half to qualify for the RRT Team. Then another day it well be a simple look in the mirror and not like what I see inside out. Or I could simply walk by a picture of me before the accident and it would put a fire in me. But there is one thing that get me fired up every day and that is the pain I feel every time I step on that left foot. Knowing that I’ll have to live with that pain for the rest of my life sets a fire in the pit of my stomach. As it anger or frustration? I don’t know but it fires me up.
Tony I don’t want to sound like I’m kissing your ass but I’m glad to have met you. You were put in front of me to wake me up and to push my soft ass to do something again. Seeing you bust your ass for something you believe in was something I needed to open my eyes and to me get back in the right mind set. You have become one of my biggest motivators to get back on my feet and fight my way back to being the best I can again, and for that I thank you. I’m looking forward to getting my ass handed to me and tossing my cookies on the black top. See ya at the gym Bub.

But there was so many good entries I could not just pick one, so I am also picking Christina Fiore. Here is her story...
Why do I exercise?
Because type 2 diabetes runs in my family, but I refuse to believe that it is genetic. I believe that it is a choice. I believe that what makes it run in families is generation after generation teaching their children too many bad habits and not enough good habits. Unfortunately I didn’t realize this until just recently. Now I am 30 years old and I feel like I am falling apart already. I joke that having a child broke me. But really 30 years of abusing my body is what broke me. I could have made the choice that generations before me made and stop being active because “I am getting too old to do those things now”. But instead I made the choice to fix myself.
Because I never want my son to have to fix himself. He came into this world so perfect. It is my responsibility to preserve that perfection, to teach him how to maintain it and to help him build a strong foundation to carry him into his adult life. It is hard to make the right choices when the wrong choices have been ingrained in you for so many years. I don’t want it to seem to my son that it is a choice that he has to make. I want fitness to be a basic physiological need for him, something that he doesn’t even need to think twice about. I need to pass on the tools that are required for him to achieve this. If I don’t have the right tools, I can’t pass them on to him.
Because I don’t want to rely on pills to “fix” my problems. Since giving birth I have had some anxiety issues. I was talking to a friend about this one day and learned that she used to have the same problem. She takes a pill every day to “fix” the problem. I know at least 3 people that take pills for depression. I hear way too often about kids with ADD or ADHD that need medication. The list goes on. I think that people these days rely too heavily on this kind of band-aid fix. I want to truly conquer my issue. I want the problem to go away. I don’t want to become dependent on a pill to cover it up. I really believe that regular physical activity combined with a proper diet is the answer to many of the ailments that plague so many people today.
Because for the first time in history the youngest generation of Americans have a shorter life expectancy than those that came before them. I do not want my son to be a part of that statistic. And I never want him to believe that he should be either.
Because I see too many people taking the lazy road today, I don’t want to be like that. It may seem like the easy thing to do to pick up some fast food on the way home from work and veg out in front of the TV with it. But in the long run I know that it will really make life more difficult. Since I have had my son I have taken much more notice to the quality of life of the people around me. I have listened to people complain because they are constantly sick and they don’t understand why, but then just chock it up to old age. Meanwhile they refuse to exercise, eat right or quit smoking. Every time I go to Wal-mart I see people that are so fat that they can’t carry their own weight around the store. They stop at the McDonald’s conveniently located inside the store then ride around on an electric scooter while they shop for more junk food. I don’t want to be like either of these people. I would rather be like the 60 year man that has taken care of his body, still exercises every day, maintains a healthy diet and looks more like 40 than 60. If someone asks him how old he is, he replies “You are only as old as you feel.” If asked how old he feels, “21”.
My grandfather died when I was 10. I have one memory of sitting on his foot and holding onto his leg while he dragged me around the house playing with me. I was probably less than 2 years old. The rest of my memories of my grandfather were of him in a wheelchair. He had both legs amputated due to complications from diabetes. It only dawned on me a couple of months ago why my grandfather had no legs. Nobody ever told me. I do not want to create that memory for my grandchildren.
What motivates me?
My son. Knowing that he counts on me for everything. He has never met his father. It is up to me to make sure that he gets to play sports and learn to ride a bike. I don’t ever want to be too tired to play with him. What keeps me going is knowing that I cannot fail because I cannot let him down.