Our Reppin' My Whey series allows us to highlight members of the EFM community, the fun facts that make them unique and how EFM has made a difference in their lives.
Let's hear it for Brian, part of the EFM M.A.F.I.A. and someone we're sure you've seen in a few of our Instagram reels before.
What are your current training goals?
I imagine my training goals are the same as any man closing in on the age of 40. There are only 2 roads. Road 1 leads me to the land of functional fitness. Strike a balance between weights and cardio, live a happy and active life for as long as I can. Road 2 is blasting tren and giving CBum a late stage run for his money. Wearing GymShark apparel to formal events and ignoring all my worldly responsibilities in favor of 4 hour arm workouts.
What is your favorite hobby outside the gym?
We are a beach family all year. Long days in the summer, cold plunges in the winter. Trail runs/hikes when the opportunity presents itself. I am also a freelance writer and novelist. Most importantly, I have the unofficial world record for most scallops eaten in a summer.
Tell us about being an active dad. How do you encourage your kids to get active? How do you involve them?
In my experience as a dad and a teacher, kids don’t do what you say, they do what you do. I can’t spend all weekend crushing Bud Light and screaming about football, and then ask my kids to live a healthy life. We have a pretty epic garage gym set up. Rope climbing, log press, free weights, cold plunge bath. I don’t make them workout or play sports, but I put all the right mechanisms in place for them to want to. So far the plan is working. It’s a simple joy to watch your kids grow up, but it’s a beauty that’s never lost on me. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
If you had to pick three people to be on your team for the zombie apocalypse, who would it be and why?
Hmmm. First and foremost I’d take the president. I don’t particularly care about politics, but it’s always good to be faster than one person. Biden looks slow as balls. Skips leg day. Zero break away speed. Next, I’d take my wife. We have great chemistry, plus she is beautiful and the best cook ever. However, she is pretty clumsy and would probably crash into something at like the worst possible time, so Biden wouldn’t last long (RIP bro). Last but not least, I’d take the GOAT, Michael Jordan. The guy is as ferocious as a competitor as there has ever been. He’d take the zombie apocalypse personally and do anything in his power to win. He pretty much runs on whiskey and cigars, so it would be a blast. We’d find zombie Lebron and dunk all over him. Good times.
What is the best piece of fitness advice you've ever been given or like to give?
The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is, “slam it home.” Max benching is a rite of passage any fitness enthusiast should be intimately familiar with. Ask your spotter for a lift off, arch your back, dig your shoulders into the bench and pray to Thor Bjornsson you can bounce 405 off your chest before you blackout in front of the entire gym. A meathead named Bob gave me that advice more than 20 years ago and it still rings true today. There’s a unique camaraderie and culture to every gym (even a garage gym), which is a part of everyone’s fitness story.
If you could live in one fictional universe, which would it be and who would you be?
I’m pretty sure this is a fictional universe and luckily I’m happy being myself.
What is your favorite and least favorite type of workout?
I like to get in the garage gym and have fun. Bench and deadlift never get old for me. I also really like my log press and stone mace from @Earlymanfitness when I feel like switching it up. I don’t dislike squats, but my legs should look like an NFL running back for the amount of time I’ve put in on the squat rack, and they don’t, so that’s bullshit.
How long have you been using EFM products and how did you find us?
I found EFM in a pretty weird way. I was working on a healthy living initiative for my school, and found myself reaching out to a lot of supplement companies for collaboration. It is my belief that schools are missing a crucial element when addressing the issue of ‘mental health’ and that is the lack of emphasis on physical wellness being a part of the process. Without proper nutrition and adequate fitness, an individual can’t look good or feel good. It’s like building a house without a foundation. No matter how many therapists we deploy in a school, it will be hard for them to have a positive lasting impact on a population that is obese. EFM was very generous in what they were able to hook me up with. I contributed some advertisement reels with what I’d received and I’ve been a fan of the brand ever since.
What are your favorite EFM products?
Chocolate flavored Keystone Collagen is my favorite. It’s great in morning coffee and hot cocoa. I’m also a sucker for natural tasting protein bars. I’d say Friends with Benefits is my go-to, even though I like all the flavors.
What is your favorite supplement science?
I’m proudly bro science pilled *in More Plates More Dates Derek accent*. I cold plunge, eat beef liver, and sun my balls. I’m a big fan of EFM’s transparent ingredient label breakdowns. If you like to lift and run, extra protein and balanced electrolytes are essential.
How do you want to be remembered? What impact do you want to have?
LOL who am I, Achilles storming the beaches of Troy? I don’t really think about that stuff. Hopefully when I’m gone my kids will slap a few plates on the bar, then go dive in the ocean and have a good laugh about what an idiot I was.