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Motivational Speaker &
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Many of you may not realise that this is about as personal as it gets for me. The person you see in front of you today; the fit, strong, determined man who produced one of the most outstanding body transformations with the help and guidance of Nick Mitchell, Ultimate Performance (UP). I have vast experience within UP for 12 years and now working for the world’s number one outdoor fitness company, and this is a result of the Army and what happened whilst serving.
As an 18 year old, I graduated from the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, then progressed to join the 3rd Battalion Parachute Regiment with active service from 1999-2003.
Whilst serving, I was involved in a severe assault, which left me spending the next year in Army Medical Care. Whilst I went on to make an almost full physical recovery, I was however left with significant epileptic seizures as a result of my injuries, and to my great sadness, I could no longer serve in the Armed Forces.
During my time in various UK Military Hospitals, I received not only the best but also the most outstanding medical care possible anywhere in the world. My rehabilitation defined in me the belief that I could go on, despite medical opinion, and still lead a full, active, fit, healthy and strong life, be it away from the Army. I am proud of the career I have carved out for myself within UP and now with Be Military Fit since I left the Army, but I know that’s where it all started for me and I am what I am today, in the most part because of what I learned there.
So it is now again my great privilege to be able to give back to those who, more often than not, find themselves in the same situation I was in more than 19 years ago – with life changing injuries and having to find a life away from the Forces.
In December 2017, my partner and I raised over £18,000 for Help for Heroes after taking part in the Help for Heroes Everest Base Camp Challenge. My second fundraising challenge, in 2018, took the form of a 350 mile long cycle ride around the battlefields of France, Germany and Belgium. More recently I have just completed the Virgin Money Virtual London Marathon 2021 for the charity The Hygiene Bank. here
I have been a guest speaker on ‘Pathfinder’ courses for Help for Heroes, visiting Colchester, Tidworth and Plymouth to spend the day with veterans. I have just performed a speech for Remembrance Sunday 2021 aiming to rise money for the Royal British Legion. My role as a speaker is to provide encouragement and motivation through the telling of my own journey through life, describing some of the incredible lows and also fantastic highs I have experienced. It means it can be quite emotional, for me and my audience, but the aim is to leave them on a high, to make them realise that there are better times ahead.