I wanted to connect my faith to what I love, which is fitness and sports.
With my history of injuries I could see I wasn’t going to have the long career I wanted. When I got home to Seattle to play for the Seahawks, and I tore my Achilles, all the dreams and aspirations I had as a kid – that was taken away at that moment. I knew I could be healthy again, but I would never have a real shot at that big payday again. I hate school, it’s not my forte, but I did it because I have to. I found a program out of George Washington University that had an affiliation with the NFL. I won the Super Bowl and got my MBA, but I was still lost about what I wanted to do next. I wanted to connect my faith to what I love, which is fitness and sports.
I was still playing in the NFL. It was the off season, and I was in school and thinking about what was next. I started visualizing, and driving around, looking at locations. I had read about guys overextending and that being their downfall financially, so I wanted to start off small. We opened the business in March 2013, and I retired from the NFL that August. The same day I got released from the Jacksonville Jaguars, I got a phone call from my wife that we were having twins. So I made a decision, I think I’m done. I chilled out that weekend, and on Monday I went in to work. Read full article