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David Claudio’s Journey
Chapter 1
Inspiration can come in many shapes, forms, and modalities. For some of us, experiencing a humbling obstacle in life can actually be the greatest momentum we need to set our lives in motion to become an incredible inspiration to others; this seems to be the case with David Claudio. His story is well known among many in the fitness community here in El Paso, but for anyone who isn’t familiar, we have decided to embark on a journey with David to learn about his past, join him in the present, and travel with him as he continues on this journey of inspiring others to work together and to become a healthier community.
We start our interview with David recalling being a young boy in his living room with his mom as she slipped Jane Fonda tapes into the TV to work out to. Clearly a fond memory, he laughs as he tells us about that being his first recollection of being motivated to be fit. From there he participated in wrestling, football, T-ball, basketball, and other sports. He was very active in his youth. It was early on, in an elective class in high school, that he discovered weight training to help him condition himself for the sports he was a part of. Shortly thereafter, he found himself falling in love with the subjects of anatomy and physiology. From there, David pursued his passion of athletics by dropping out of high school, getting his GED, and becoming a personal trainer. He is currently continuing his college education by working on his degree in Exercise Science as he maintains a meal prep service alongside his personal training business.
With his professional fitness career taking off, suddenly an event took place that would instantly change David’s life. While getting ready for his usual workout, David’s heart suddenly ruptured. Knowing something terrible was happening, he managed to dial 911 and hand the phone to another trainer before he went cold and passed out. At one point, bystanders thought he had died because they were unable to find his pulse. David reflects on one girl in particular who had an interesting background (she had gone to prison and came out with a much stronger religious faith) standing over him and praying, which led to him taking a gasping breath of air and coming to. He recalls at that moment, waking up to ambulances and people praying over him.
David goes on to discuss his experience in the hospital where he was told his heart had ruptured from top to bottom and that they were surprised he was still alive. With the rupture being contained, he managed to survive. He was flown out to Houston to have surgery where he woke up paralyzed from the waist down; an incident that he claims had been noted in a waiver that stated there was only a 1% chance of him becoming paralyzed. What are the odds? Sadly, he fell into the 1%.
Although suffering an unthinkable tragedy, David notes that if he wasn’t in tune with his health and fitness attributed to years of dedication, he doesn’t think he would have survived, as evidenced through less healthy family members who also passed from the same condition. David goes on to thank fitness and to thank God for still being alive. While health and fitness once felt like a selfish concept for David to compete in shows, now, after having God tell him to sit down and be still, he took the time to reflect and now views his talent and skill as tools to help others in a very self-less manner for the betterment of the community.
Looking forward, David plans to continue servicing the community by providing personal training and nutrition on a customized level, as opposed to a cookie-cutter program. He also has an upcoming procedure that he anticipates will help improve his condition if done in a timely manner. Initially planning to travel to Panama for a surgery that costs over $30,000 and would take longer to save up for, David and his wife have developed a secondary plan in order to try and combat his paralysis in a more financially feasible manner by seeking procedures that would be done consecutively in Tijuana at a much more affordable cost and in a more timely fashion. A Go-Fund-Me for David’s procedure can be found at https://gofund.me/219a2fcf
In closing, David would just like for fitness enthusiasts and professionals to come together more and to help people who are in need instead of thinking of competing amongst each other. He mindfully says “We need to touch the city more on a grander scale.” Let’s come together as a community and join David in this effort.
To see David’s journey as it progresses, keep up with upcoming issues of Body Movement Ink Magazines, and to see this full interview, scan the QR code on this page.
