TRP made my life better. No doubt about that. With both pain and pride in my heart I'll tell you my life story and how the role TRP played in it.
I grew up poor. As fuck. Large family. 4 brothers, 2 sisters. When I was in highschool, my only food was what we could grow or the once a week chicken thighs my dad used to buy. My parents weren't and still aren't money smart. Or successful. My mother died when I was 6 and my dad re-married 6 years later. My step-mom is a cunt and I credit my dad for having some kind of alpha attitude when she'd start some shit up that shut her down soon after.
When I was 14 or so, my dad managed to save up some money and bought a small piece of land that we worked very hard to farm. I used to come back from school, work 5-6 hours outside with my brothers and then come back inside for homework. We had no time for friends, no time for fun. It was debilitating. And so when I got into college my social skills were a disaster. I had issues making and keeping friends, issues with girls, issues with money. But I had a work ethic that outpaced almost everyone else, so I was in the top of my year. That's how I got my first tech job while in college. It was even harder now, but at least I had some money.
My social life was even worse. ZERO friends, ZERO dates, ZERO plates. I lived in a small condo, no car, but at least I now had all the requirements to build myself into something long term. So I took it easy in college and started making friends and got a few dates. There was this girl I really, really liked. 8-9/10. She indicated that was into me as well. One time we went out together in a larger party, and swung by 4-5 nightclubs and bars. The group wanted to play some beer pong, so we paired 1-1 to play other 1-1 teams. I wanted to pair with her, so I told her we should get into it. She wanted to at first, but later fluked me by saying she doesn't want to drink so she'd sit it out. In comes "Chad". The most alpha guy I had ever seen up to that date. The guy was a total failure, but he was muscular and didn't give a fuck. Whatever, right? Nope. 3 minutes into a conversation with her while I was nearby, SHE asks him if he wants to play beer pong. Bitch, what the fuck? My self esteem died. This was the harshest social moment I had ever lived. I felt like crap. But I stayed. Big mistake. I was alone, at the bar, while everyone else was having fun. Half an hour later, the guy's hands were all over her. Half an hour even later, they were gone to what I assumed was a place they could just fuck. That was it for me. My efforts of pursuing her over the past year or so, gone. Just like that. I couldn't fucking take it anymore, so I went home that night and cried for a while then spent the night until morning just watching the ceiling and thinking about her. What a fucking idiot I was.
So I spend the next year without going out, reverting back to my own self-absorbed, porn-fueled, alcohol-induced, depressive, pitiful life. Every night I was contemplating suicide. Every single night. One day I was reading some bullshit on reddit, and I find TRP. And I start reading, and reading, and reading... Shit vibed with me sooo hard. And I started doing push-ups and sit-ups that exact same day and night in between reading the sidebar articles.
One month later I start going to the gym. And I fucking loved it. Loved every second of it, every lift, every plate, every bar, every squat. So my diet inevitably improved. I started to count macros, calories, plan my meals and cook my own food. 2 years later I decide it's time to push it up a notch and use gear. Bad idea at that time by the way, still have some side-effects 6 years later. My results were astounding. At this point I was living in a house with 4 other people. One of the girls was in awe with me, but my idiot ass was so hurt from that one time I got fluked on that any kind of advance she made I wouldn't take it. I couldn't. This feeling still haunts me to this day and is something I couldn't get over.
4 years later, I'm out of college, Master's in CompSci, decent job, awesome friends, not depressed anymore, fit, no debt, planning my next tech project that's gonna generate more passive income, living in a really nice place and on a big pile of money I use as my investment fund. As I go out in about 3 hours to buy my first car at 24 and on track to buy my own house at 28, I can't help but think of how much TRP is responsible for this. I am still not actively dating or plating as I have no interest in that right now. Last time I had sex was my actual first time, 2 years ago. Let that sink in. And I couldn't be fucking happier with my life.
I also credit my dad, being born in a place of hardship, and my shitty early life for making me what I am today. If he wasn't so bad with money, I wouldn't be here. As someone once said, "Hard times build strong men". I have since cut most contact with my family, for some other reasons.
So thank you, all of you! And if you're new here and your life sucks, the single best thing you can do right now in order to start improving your life is this: START LIFTING AND EAT SMART! Start small. 3 sets of push-ups today. 6 sets tomorrow. Then add some sit-ups. Once you're ready, go to the gym. Don't go there to socialize, don't go to be happy about the fact that you went. Go and lift. And I promise, if you stick to it, your life is going to improve a lot. Plan your path. And stay on it.
Sometimes I think where my life would be if I didn't stumble upon TRP. I'd maybe still try to "pursue that one potential love of my life" instead of putting myself first. I probably wouldn't be financially where I am today. I probably would have been an obese idiot drooling over that hot girl next to me at work. Instead, she pursues me, I am in a good place in life and I am finally fucking happy.
TL;DR: GO LIFT YOU SELF DEPRECATING SUCKER. EAT BETTER. COUNT YOUR MACROS!
