About Tom

Who is this guy?

Hello my name is Tom Greenwald. I am a 22 years old fitness enthusiast and also a former extreme MTB rider. If you are reading this then you are probably asking yourself – "who is this guy?" and "why should I listen to what he says?" I’ll cut to the chase.

I’m not the typical 30-40 years old muscle man who has a ton of experience and knows everything there is to know about fitness and exercising. I’m not the kind of guy who will offer you a training program which will make you lose 40 pounds of fat and win the Mr. Olympia title in 4 weeks.

Of course, I’m exaggerating but the bottom line is that there is no big supplement company paying me, so that I could sell people shiny garbage, if you know what I mean. I am an average guy who has worked hard to get a well-rounded and functional body. What I can offer you is the knowledge that I have obtained through personal experience - trial and error. Keep reading if you want to know more about me.

My early years

I was born in Latvia. In my childhood I was far from athletic. I was a tall, skinny boy who wasn’t interested in sports at all. My family has always been encouraging and even pressuring me to do some sports. I can understand that because my grandfather and father were involved in different sports in their youth.

Unfortunately or fortunately I’m a person who is hard to be influenced from outside. I need to experience everything myself. I try to learn from my mistakes and analyze everything I’ve done. I have a non-stop desire to improve myself and become a better person for myself, but most of all - for people around me.

My MTB passion

Regarding sports and physical development I had a “click” when I was 15 years old. I saw a TV reportage about the first 4X track in Latvia. For those who don’t know - 4X is an extreme mountain biking discipline. I immediately understood that this is what I want to do. I started to train with my old standard MTB. Only after the first year my parents where ok with buying me a specific, competition-ready 4X bike. At that moment the MTB bug really bit me.

For the next three years I worked really hard. In the summer I trained five days a week at my local BMX track. In the winter I played volleyball, went to gym and had two trainings a week in an indoor BMX track. During this time I travelled a lot. I lived in Germany and England for some time.

From top to bottom

When I was 19, I was able to compete neck-and-neck with the top 4X riders in my country. Sadly, that was also the year when my body started to break down. There were many injuries but two of them made me really think if it all was worth it. At first I had a heart overload while I was training. Five months later I had a nasty crash. I basically landed on my head. I didn’t break any bones in the crash only my neck was strained. At least that’s what the doctors said at first. After the crash I had to walk around with that silly medical collar for neck injuries. I thought I had gotten off easy.

Few weeks later I noticed strange pain and numbness in my left leg. It got so bad that I almost caused an accident while driving my car because my leg suddenly went numb. I went back to the hospital for some x-rays. It turned out I had two ruptured spinal discs in my lower back. Doctors said I did the right thing coming to them so soon otherwise things could have gone very badly for me.

The lowest point

That was it. I was lying in my hospital bed and doctors said that my 4X riding career is over and only mild physical exercises could be possible for me even after recovery. They also said that I would be required to wear a compression belt all the time. I wasn’t allowed to jump, run or lift anything heavy. You can probably guess that it was a really tough and depressive time for me.

Recovery

When I got out of the hospital I knew that it wasn’t the way I want to live the rest of my life. I consulted my physiotherapist and also researched information on the internet where I found people with similar problems. Slowly I managed to clarify the path I have to take to a full recovery. It took me a while to process all the information but in the end it was worth it.

I undertook an intensive core workout routine. This routine consisted of Pilates, calisthenics and exercises used in martial arts conditioning routines. I did it every single day for a whole year. With time the pain and numbness went away. I started to attend gym and lift weights again. I bought an XC mountain bike and took part in MTB marathons and enduro competitions.

New beginning

For a moment everything was great, but then I started to get bored with lifting weights. I was seeking challenge, something fresh. That’s how I started to train with bodyweight exercises. Since then it has been a continuous journey of exploring new training methods.

Now I feel I have finally come close to a point where I’m satisfied with what I’m doing. However, this definitely isn't the end of my physical and mental development. Sky is the limit for me and everyone else.

My life now

Right now I’m working on my paper to receive a bachelor’s degree. I’m in the best physical shape of my life, and I still ride my bike although it’s a road bike. I might be only 22 but I am a good student in the school called life.

Everything you read in this website is coming from my personal experience and research. It’s not the absolute truth but it sure is a very useful information for an individual who is willing to exercise and get in shape in a safe and healthy way.