John Basedow
360 Degree Life Change
By Monica Davis
It is amazing how life can present opportunities you never thought were possible; when you change your mindset and begin to see yourself as a winner.
This is exactly how John Basedow became known as one of America’s biggest fitness gurus. He changed his way of thinking and believed in his ability to succeed despite the challenges he faced. Of course, success comes with a price – hard work and commitment.
John’s journey to becoming America’s fitness expert didn’t happen right away. His interest in fitness began with his producing and syndicating a television show from the basement of his parent’s home. The show, Images, focused on health and medical topics. By the seat of his pants he learned how to produce and distribute the show and became very successful at it for three years. As this chapter of his life ended, another began, but not before John experienced a downturn in his life.
He always had a dream of appearing in a fitness magazine and as he puts it, “I was nowhere near in the shape I needed to be in to appear in a fitness magazine. I was like a bowling pin on legs.” Being a person dedicated to achieving his dreams, John decided to try various diet and fitness programs, none of which worked.
He quickly became aware that life can throw you a curve ball at any moment and if you’re not prepared to catch it, then you’d better be ready to accept the challenge it will take to get back into the ball game. After the success of his show, John found himself in a place and time where no money was coming in. “I was frustrated, I was broke, and I was out of shape. I felt like there was nothing going on and nothing to look forward to,” he recalled. He was at the lowest point he had ever been in his life. “I couldn’t afford to pay the mortgage. I wanted to throw up my hands and quit”.
But he didn’t give up and decided to take stock of his life, to figure out what he was doing wrong. Why was he not reaching his fitness goal? Was it the food he was eating or the exercise plans he tried? Sometimes when you can’t find a solution, you create your own. With a background in biology and a lot of trial and error, John created his own fitness program. Within eight weeks he created a breakthrough in his appearance, fitness level and most importantly his attitude. He achieved his goal of appearing in numerous fitness magazines. Just think, ten weeks prior he thought there was no hope of accomplishing his dream. But with a change in mindset, he became empowered to turn his life into a success.
Today, the very same fitness program he developed for himself has created an entrepreneurial success for him. ”Fitness has a ripple effect,” John stated. “It improves everything physically, mentally and emotionally.” He has since created other fitness programs and recently began the production of a fitness reality television show.
He also believed that if the program could work for him, a guy who used to look like a bowling pin on legs, then it could possibly work for everyone else who tried everything but obtained no results. Hence, the Fitness Made Simple, Unlock Your Potential video he made on a shoe string budget. Don’t be misled; a high level of dedication is necessary to achieve anything worthwhile.
Jonathan from Meadowview, Virginia is just one of thousands who have benefited from Basedow’s workout plans. He states, “I’m proud to say that I have dropped my body fat percentage from an unhealthy 23% to an unbelievable 7% and have experienced gains in energy, strength, stamina, and endurance that are indescribable. I just thought I’d let you know that your work made a difference in my life and that I greatly appreciate what you have done for me and so many others.”
John’s passion has always been fitness and television, and he has found a way to marry the two to create unlimited possibilities. Within four short months of creating his first television commercial, John was able to get completely out of debt. Today he has created a fitness empire while simultaneously helping thousands of people get into shape. His advice to those who think they can’t be successful is: “No matter how low you are today, that has no bearing on where you’re going to be a week later, a month later or a year later, so you don’t ever quit. Don’t ever give up on your dreams, because if you believe in yourself, anything is possible. I am living proof of that and all of those people out there have that same power within them.”
Here’s what he calls his business model, “Start small, build big, and always keep control along the way.” Basedow’s success did not happen without hard work. In the early stages of building his business, he did everything, from packing boxes with his videos, to answering phones and handling customer service calls, to working until three o’clock in the morning. John has achieved success over the years by following his own advice.
