I wanted to have the traps of Rocky Balboa, and the bodacious pecs of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. It was my dream! But I knew that if I wanted this, I had to take action.
60 Likes, 3 Comments - Joseph Lucero, MS, CSCS (@j_lucero89) on Instagram: "When I was little, I always wanted to be strong and lift weights. I'd always want to help my dad..."
When I was little, I always wanted to be strong and lift weights. I wanted to have the traps of Rocky Balboa, and the bodacious pecs of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. It was my dream! But I knew that if I wanted this, I had to take action. To do this, I would always help my dad move furniture…especially if it was an opportunity to lift something by myself. I even wanted to help my grandpa by pulling out a fence post in the backyard (which felt almost impossible). It just felt good to exert myself into something physical and to feel “empowered” and “valuable”.
So when I grew to being around 12-13, I started playing football which ultimately lead me to my biggest passion: lifting weights. I loved hoisting the iron, especially when I found myself to finally pressing 200 pounds. It just became an addiction, and if no weights were present I would find myself in my room loading as much crap into a duffle bag and trying to swing it like a kettlebell or shrug it like a barbell. If you’re currently reading up to this point, this either (a) relates to you or (b) you’re just a relative of mine trying to be nice and generous. Either way, I am thankful for my love for the iron because I felt it didn’t become just some “past time” to stay involved in…it became my life and gave me meaning…
With this passion, I was able to grow into a successful powerlifter, and by the time I graduated high school I was a 2-time state champion with all my other peers at a high school in Kennedale, Texas. Those two years of blasting the iron and being the pack of warriors that closed down the gym every day was amazing! I felt I had found my place. We won my junior year, as I was the second strongest 242lbs powerlifter at a total of 1540lbs (585-440-515). We again won my senior year, as I was the third strongest 242lbs powerlifter at a total of 1660lbs (625-485-550). Both years I had earned “best bench presser” and even had the record highest bench press by my senior year.
I continued to work on becoming a competitive powerlifter, benching 465lbs and deadlifting 630lbs unequipped at a body weight of 230lbs. Now, I still lift and abide to all the laws of periodization, peaking and monitoring my training but working to implement different concepts and methodologies to my programming. But what it boils down to is every person has their story, and it shapes them into the current person they are. I took my love for lifting into action not just physically, but with earning the proper education to enforce my practices as well.
I attended the University of Texas at Arlington from 2008-2012, earning my BS in Exercise Science and followed by attending the University of Texas at San Antonio from 2012-2014 earning my MS in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Sports Pedagogy. My graduate carrer had me partake in the content of biomechanics, skill acquisition and development, and sports psychology. Once I finished my MS, I continued to study and earned my CSCS through the NSCA. All this being said, my dream is to move towards a doctorate program, to eventually move towards educating students at the collegiate level.
With this industry, there has to be a love for educating others, but more importantly educating yourself to being a stronger resource for your clients and athletes. You can’t become a part of this current epidemic of “others training others”. The fitness industry has an insane amount of under-qualified slums that have the aesthetics of a greek god, but the minds of duds. Their physical appearance is the true base of helping them become “the true resource of all things health and fitness”. But don’t let this deceive you, because after that first month of training, you will realize you have been duped of an educational opportunity and a financial investment.
Every person has their story, and I felt this was the best opportunity to showcase my journey to the iron. I have made it a point to chase my dream, and follow the path of being a strength coach for all types of athletes. I train youth as young as 14, to training the elderly at 72 learn how to balance and create function programs that provide success for everyday living. If you love the iron, you love the programs you create. And I create programs that help people become successful. You don’t have to be D1 to be serviceable, you can be an ordinary common man or the weekend warrior that wants to learn how to deadlift 500lbs. Whoever you are, my job is to provide a service to implement a program that triggers an addiction to the iron, to hopefully make you feel as fulfilled as I do.