Most people look for motivation to get them geared up to achieve a goal. Some may need motivation to get to the gym and train day in, day out. It occurred to me early in my life that I didn’t rely on motivation to get things done. Motivation comes and goes. But passion—passion is in you. I never felt that I needed motivation because I had raw passion.
I did what I loved, and one day at the gym turned into two. And I find myself, 40 years later, not missing a beat. I don’t miss a workout, because this is what fuels me. Passion. Sure, some days I’m worn out, and I need a break. So I take one. Sometimes I don’t want to eat clean. So I don’t. It’s like a ladder—a couple of steps up, then one step down. You need that step down to propel yourself forward. I don’t rest because I’m unmotivated. I rest because I’m passionate about being my best, and I know when I need it.
I have wondered for a long time what makes me different. Why is it so easy for me to get up and get it done, when so many other people struggle to stay motivated? I’ve always had something inside me—something that drives me to push forward.
One thing I’ve always done is stayed true to the foundation of trying to appreciate the body I was given. Not because it looks good—not because it landed me magazine covers—but because every time I’m in the gym, it’s time for me, in my own head, to take care of what carries me.
Per Bernal
I didn’t wake up one day and say, “I want to have a great body.” All I really wanted was to be athletically gifted. I was such a loner when I was a kid. I went through a lot in school—bullying, getting beat up—because I was different. And at the time I thought it was the worst thing ever, but I learned as I got older that it was the single greatest thing that ever happened to me. I learned that I didn’t need anyone else’s approval. I just put my head down and did. I go to the gym and train. I don’t overanalyze. I don’t overthink. I go. I work. I improve.
Everyone has rituals—things they do regardless of everything. Read your kids a bedtime story. Wake up and take vitamins. Working out is my ritual. I do it no matter what. Because, at worst, it keeps me stationary. But most often it pushes me forward. I never drop below. Because it’s my passion to be a better me. Like it does to many, life got me down. Traumas happened. I lost my dad. But, trying to be “the man,“ I put up a hard shell and pretended that I wasn’t affected by it. I just picked up and moved on. It wasn’t until after my mom passed away that it really hit me. All the memories of losing my dad flooded back, and I crashed. Hard. Devastation doesn’t begin to explain it. I was lost.
And although I always loved training hard and pushing myself, this is when I realized that I had to find a different “why” before I could be the better me. My good friend, former UFC heavyweight champ Josh Barnett, told me something that really changed my perspective. He said, “Don’t do this because you want to win. Don’t do this to be a gladiator or Mr. Universe. Do it for your last name. Get up off your ass and stay true to who you are.”
And when I applied my actions to something greater, something more meaningful, that’s when I got in the best shape of my life. This is what drove me further— building a legacy. Not to get onstage and be judged. Not for Instagram likes. I am so beyond judgment. I do this for me. My name. For my family. In honor of them. For all they taught me. That is my passion.
At the end of the day, the most important thing you can do is to be your best. The longer you can move forward, injury- free, healthy, and happy, the longer you can conquer whatever lies ahead.
Michael Neveux
You want passion? It has to be about more than a show. More than the stage. You have to find your why. If you are working out to make someone else happy or to conform to certain standards or impress people, then you’ll eventually lose the drive. It has to be for you. Realize that, if you are active and getting your workouts in, you’re taking care of yourself and working to be the best you. You need to start going to the gym with purpose—with function in mind. Function first. Period.
Everything is possible. I have never needed outside influence or reassurance of what is possible. I will make it possible. I will make possible whatever I can because I can. I have always been my own experiment. I test everything on myself. I don’t care if textbooks and articles say that something can’t be done or that something is impossible to achieve. I will put my head down and work as hard as I can to see for myself. I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I really don’t.
My passion drives me to find out what I’m capable of. You’d be surprised—put everyone else out of your head and do what fuels you. You’ll see that there are no limits.
Bruce Lee said it best: “Knowing is not enough. You must apply.” And I apply. I don’t waste time overanalyzing. I just do. Because it’s my passion. It’s a beautiful thing, being in a roomful of people and knowing that I’m different.
If you want to separate yourself from the pack, then find your passion. Working out and taking care of yourself is about so much more than how you look. Seriously. Take time away. This is absolutely worth doing. Dig deep within yourself. Find your why.
