Anthony Matlock is a health and Fitness lifestyle coach.  He grew up in Seattle, Washington and played competitive sports year round, up until college where he played D-3 basketball.

Besides competitive sports, Anthony also loves weightlifting. He started lifting weights from the age of 13, from the summer between 7th and 8th grade and has been hooked on to it ever since. Anthony regards intense off-season weight training and overall strength training to be vital when it comes to playing competitive sports.

After college, Anthony Matlock went through a rut for a couple of years. He wasn’t playing competitive sports anymore, and he didn’t have his off-season either. These were a few bad years for Anthony. He was barely working out, eating junk and partying too much. Anthony Matlock had lost the drive to push himself physically and mentally- he had lost his WHY for training. Then he had his “rock bottom moment”. Anthony says that

“Sometimes it takes us to having a rock bottom moment to shift our mindset and discover our WHY.”

For Anthony, his rock bottom moment came a couple years after college. While visiting a Sally’s hair supply store to purchase some hair grease, he bumped into a girl that he had attended high school with. Now an employee of the store, she blurted, “Damn, what the hell happened to you?! You got fat!” It was brutal. All Anthony could do was laugh to himself out of embarrassment.

This was the moment that began the process which realigned his mindset and pushed Anthony to refocus on his health and fitness journey. This was over 10 years ago. Now Anthony not only keeps himself in shape, but he also helps others reach their health & fitness goals along the way!

What would you say makes your approach to health & fitness unique?

My approach to health & fitness is unique because I focus beyond the external. I pride myself on being a fitness lifestyle coach – not just a fitness trainer. I’ve found that the majority of people need more than just a fitness program. They need much more than a program detailing how many miles to run, how many sets/reps to complete, and a list of all the foods they can’t eat. 

I approach helping people with their health and fitness journey by making it a priority to understand their mindset. Understanding the barriers holding them back from reaching their goals. Then, it’s about working to align their mindset with the work it will take to achieve their goals. 

What are your beliefs about fitness and diet? If you can narrow them down what would they be?

I believe that balance is key. I preach a health & fitness lifestyle. People go from eating and drinking whatever they want – to then overnight jumping on some extreme diet – this is not sustainable. What typically happens is people are able to follow these diets for a few days or weeks and then they binge. This becomes a cycle and they don’t see results. They then jump to the next fad diet and the cycle repeats itself.

When you focus on turning health & fitness into a lifestyle, beautiful things start to happen. I believe to see results your focus should be 70% diet and 30% exercise. I also believe that there should be no foods or beverages off limits. Anything and everything, but in moderation. Eat whole foods for 80% of your day’s calories and allow 20% for the foods you love. This is a healthy balance. This is how you enjoy life, while also getting in the best shape of your life. 

As someone who has dedicated her career to inspire, motivate and push people to accomplish their fitness goals, what would you say is the most common obstacle(s) that stops dads from achieving their dream body?

The most common obstacles that I’ve found stopping dads from achieving their dream body is the limited time, lack of flexible diet, clear & efficient fitness routine, and consistency. These, along with other core challenges are addressed in the DadBodybuilding program.

Who or what has inspired you to make the change and live a healthier lifestyle despite being an athlete?

What inspires me to live a healthier lifestyle despite being an athlete, is the positive impact that I can have on others. That’s real. When I’m in a difficult workout or face a moment of weakness, I say to myself, “Anthony, it’s bigger than you.” When I know I’ve helped someone or inspired someone to live a healthier lifestyle – that’s what motivates me to keep going. 

As a former competitive multiple sports athlete, do you have any tips for those who’d like to take the same journey?

My advice for anyone trying to take the same journey:

• Step one: Start by assessing your mindset. You need to fully internalize the hard work, dedication, and sacrifice it’s going to take. Are you ready for this type of commitment and life shift? 
• Step two: Figure out your WHY: the profound reason you want to embark on your journey of a health and fitness lifestyle. 
• Step three: Prioritize & Execute. Make this health & fitness lifestyle a priority in your life and then do whatever it takes to execute the plan. 

Can you walk us through a sample of a typical 1-week workout routine for yourself?

I workout 6 times a week; which consists of weight training and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) for cardio. I do lower body twice a week and dedicate a day primarily focusing on chest, back, shoulders & delts. I add in sets for arms at the end of my workouts, a couple times a week. I don’t really do Abs exercises; instead, I incorporate movements that activate my core. I typically reserve the 6th workout for intense cardio for 90 minutes. My workouts are structured and very challenging. I like to pyramid up with the amount of weight and reps.  

As a coach and fitness trainer, what advice can you give to dads and future dads who want to live a healthier lifestyle?

My advice for dads to live a healthier lifestyle would be to start with their kids in mind. It’s important to set the example for your kids, that leading a healthy lifestyle is paramount. Secondly, don’t lose sight of why you’re working to live this healthier lifestyle and revisit it in your mind daily. Lastly, don’t sell yourself short.

“You can do it and you will do it. Don’t make the lack of time an excuse. Because when we make something a priority, we always find the time to get it done.”    

Can you tell us more about your membership site project? 

The DadBodybuilding membership site was created to help dads get in great shape, become healthier, and understand how to live and sustain a healthy and fit lifestyle. The framework used to develop DadBodybuilding stems from the everyday challenges dads face. There are numerous programs for pregnant women and moms. What about dads? DadBodybuilding is a fully built out program to guide dads step-by-step, along with their health & fitness journey.

What are the unique features of your membership site that we can look forward to? Can you walk us through it?

The membership site includes everything a dad would need to get in shape and adopt a sustainable health & fitness lifestyle, at an affordable price.

Some of the unique features include:

• Choice of 3, 4, or 5 days per week workout plans to fit into a dad’s busy lifestyle.
• Built-in calculator for a customized and flexible diet plan, to have more options to eat with the family.
• Full detailed workout and cardio routines accompanied with video tutorials by me.
• Progress section that includes week-to-week progression pictures and graph chart, to see how your hard work is paying off.

What was it like working with NMI?

Working with NMI was a great experience! From the first consultation call with Natalie – to working with her and her team on my project – to post-live, it’s been a truly great experience. 

To be honest, there are a lot of agencies that do really excellent work. However, what sets NMI apart, in my opinion, is the business expertise and counsel that they provide throughout working with you. NMI works really intently to not only create the project you envision but to lend their deep expertise to create a site that converts well and tells your story. 

Lastly, if you’re in health & fitness, NMI is the agency to hire. Natalie and team are the best at what they do and they take pride in delivering a customer-centric experience and polished finished product.  

What are your goals for the future? Any upcoming projects?

My major goals for the future with DadBodybuilding is to be apart of the health & fitness journey of 1 million dads. It is my hope the DadBodybuilding program will lead dads to the adoption of a health & fitness lifestyle and become the example that inspires their kids to do the same. 

Finally, where else do we find you on the net?

You can find me on all social networks @dadbodybuilding

www.dadbodybuilding.com
Facebook: DadBodybuilding1
Instagram: DadBodybuilding
Twitter: DadBodybuilding
SnapChat: DadBodybuilding
Pinterest: DadBodybuilding

The post One On One With Anthony Matlock: A Health & Fitness Lifestyle Coach appeared first on Fit Lifestyle Magazine.