Unleashing The Fitness Monkey!

I was there ... San Quentin State Prison ... service 16 years to life in prison for the crime of second-degree murder. This is my 13 years behind bars, most spent locked in the sunlight inside the cells is not much bigger than a walk-in closet. It was an extremely difficult adjustment to love a guy free and fun of Southern California spirit. I spent most of that time reading classic literature, taking college courses, exercise and teaching me to play "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd on guitar. However, on 22 February was the Milla demonstration last day and I found myself standing in front of an audience of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, journalists and other prisoners when I started my company offer PowerPoint. "Hello, my name is Chris Schuhmacher and I am the founder and CEO of Monkey ... fitness coaching online service that allows recovery from addiction through fitness."

I started my way to the last mile after attending his first day at San Quentin demonstration last year. After seeing my good friend Kenyatta Leal hit out of the park with his tone of potato coach and hear their praise for TLM, I immediately knew it was something I wanted to be part . I remember when he came to interview for the next session is not preserved. I put my blue shirt "lucky", which was recently made to me by a friend lifer "of mine who had returned home recently. Slide I also ensured Chris Redlitz a copy of the new San Quentin I thought getting a college degree and gives a farewell speech epic that I think even cry guardian. I was thrilled when I discovered that I had been selected to participate in the sophomore class of last mile. with so many negative influences surrounding life in prison, trying to take the road often left me standing next to me. now I began to feel as if all these were solitary decisions about bear fruit.

Once evening classes Tuesday and Thursday began, I was totally "happy" Chris and the commitment and dedication of Beverly men the last mile. The guilt and the shame of being in prison can make it very easy to get, but there were two caring and compassionate dynamos who believed in us and were willing to share their energy and experience with a group of thirsty men of motivated to learn. The opportunity that I had before I give the house the first night when Chris told us that if we were willing to put in the work and become graduates of the last mile, have a waiting period for our liberation . As a lifer, I had to learn to deal with a lot of uncertainty, but when I looked into his eyes, I was forced to believe it. Being part of the last mile has taught me the importance of surrounding themselves with people who think and learn to trust the process.

I can honestly say I had no idea what my business idea would be when I started the class. Reading books like Guy Kawasaki Encantada, the effect of Dragonfly by Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith and Brian Solis' The End of Business as Usual, encouraged us to start thinking about the things in life that were passionate. At the time, I think my top three running, tennis, yoga, and not to mention, out of prison. We ask achieve a positioning statement eight words or less define our commitment to ourselves and the creative process. Mine read: "Living with force ... let inspiration roar! "It was so strange and incredible to see how these two things, as a group gave us the courage and confidence to start thinking in terms of possibilities, rather than being imposed by circumstances . A friend of mine said: "You do not need eyes to see ... you need vision." It sounded so true that the last mile led to a further expansion of consciousness that would allow me to see beyond the towers of weapons and barbed wire walls of the prison.

Over the last 13 years of my prison, I am committed to do everything possible to make the best of a bad situation. I participated in many groups and programs designed to help you better understand the factors that led to my crime and I have the life skills necessary to ensure that this does not happen again. Some of the most changed my life was the group of offenders Education of the victim, Counseling Addiction Recovery, anger management and nonviolent communication. The more I learned, the more I realized that the information I was in essential not only for men in prison, could be beneficial to people's lives out of jail too. My original business concept began as a provider of online service working life, you LifeCoach U. called the beginning it was very broad and undefined. It was suggested that I try to reduce it by incorporating more of my personal story. When I started drawing things like products and services, target market, and my own situation, the two things that really caught my attention were the scene of sobriety and stay in shape. It was because of drugs and alcohol also played a devastating role in my life that I vowed never to use. Instead, I developed a lot healthier than the practice of yoga, tennis and training for a marathon SQ dependence. Link my own recovery from addiction with physical fitness was the spark that led to my business idea to life. Physical single has really become a product of my life and life imprisonment.

He asked the men the last mile to create a business idea that integrates the three components of our social causes passion, technology and. Become trapped and realize the damage I had done my motivation to stop using and start living a healthier life. My passion was the physical condition of the body, mind and soul. With substance abuse and addiction play a role in the crimes committed by 80% of the 2.1 million men and women behind bars in the United States, it became clear that there must be a market there for people who struggle to get clean and stay that way. When I started doing research, I quickly discovered that there is an inverse relationship between addiction and physical fitness. A solution revealed that recovery from exercise is ideal because it has been shown to increase measures of euphoria and well-being in a manner similar to drug abuse. It was time to find a way to use technology and to ape fitness for people.

Say that it was computer illiterate is not quite accurate. However, what bothers me is the amount of all the rapid advances and achievements over the past 13 years. For the record, I never looked in Google, skyped, FACEBOOKED, tweeted, scanning, Instagrammed even know what a mobile application before joining MLT. Join this group has been a great opportunity for me to catch up with the world of technology that happened to me. I really wanted the ability to monkey to be able to enjoy all that the world of technology has to offer. I had planned to develop a website that helps members to stay clean for fitness through a variety of books and online games Personal trainers. I also designed a mobile application that will allow members to track your fitness and recovery success and reward for achieving personal goals. More than anything, I wanted monkey ability to be available to anyone who wanted to join. It is my hope to create a virtual community of support that have the power to motivate and inspire members to overcome addiction and live a happier and healthier life. I know how painful it can be to leave behind a social network friends are all involved with drink and drugs. I like to build fitness for those who would monkey alone in its simplicity.

I think social causes Mono built by Nature gym because of its ability to provide a healthy alternative to the dangers of drugs and alcohol. However, I knew it would be time that exercise alone will not be enough. My business model includes several ways to convert addicts who still suffer, including treatment education sponsors of installation, granting registration rights to physical events, and the gift of sport to those who are willing to begin work on the road to recovery. My own experience has me a believer in the principle that the only way to maintain my sobriety is to find ways to continually done.

TLM with each successive session, the concerted efforts of all the people inside and outside the group efforts have really helped the gym monkey take shape and become a potential reality. Once the model has been set up, I knew I would need a logo. Having received and rejected several presentations of artists here in prison, my friend Lucas me up, play tennis, yoga monkey fell immediately attracted me because we had a lot in common. However, it could have been a little too (think steroids) for the general public, and I certainly do not want to scare anyone to be clean. I opted for the next best thing to a computer generated cute monkey and intelligently designed lifting a dumbbell I could certainly see that the icon for the iPhone hot side called appropriately "Buff". The encouragement and support I received from all participants was no less transformative. I remember early on, Beverly told us that the last mile is a true communion of men and women who are always in search of the greatest good for its members. She was right. I am eternally grateful and devoted to all my brothers and sisters in the last mile.

So there I was ... San Quentin State Prison ... ask the public to "join me and be part of the Monkey fitness recovery of the revolution" and received a standing ovation ... crazy. I thought the worst was over, but my heart is still beating a mile a minute. Things got even crazier after the presentations were over and external customers presented congratulations for a job well done and many, many questions. It was definitely more than I expected, and my only regret is not having the time to talk with everyone. I think it is fair to say that when it comes to Demo Day, the sophomore class had crashed. However, the most inspiring and touching moment for me is when a woman named Janet came and introduced himself. She had a warm smile that seemed to tear, as he told me how my personal story and presentation echoed his own life experience. I could not help but get excited, because it helped me realize that even in the darkness of my prison environment, I was able to shed light hope in the life of another person. Demo Day The Last Mile It was one of those defining moments that I hope to keep with me for the rest of my life. I think that despite my circumstances, the universe always conspiring in my favor and the best is certainly yet to come.