Mo Ghori shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Mo, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
I’m chasing my purpose in life: to help as many people as possible become healthier, happier, and fitter. If I ever stopped, I’d be denying the impact I was put here to make. I’ve seen first hand, the change my coaching has made in peoples’ lives. I’ve lived, loved, laughed and cried with the people I coach. I’ve helped people quit substance abuse, get off anti-depression medication, and improve all areas of life: family, fitness and finances. Watching the impact of what I do has given me the tools I needed to fight my own demons.I refuse to stop. If I did, the people I’m helping, the ones still waiting for me, and even my own growth would lose the chance to reach our fullest potential..
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I grew up in Pakistan, overweight and with a deformed knee. I was the fat kid everywhere I went: at home, among family, and in school. I had low self esteem growing up, which was made worse from the constant bullying in school, among family members and at home. I started my fitness journey when I was 16 years old. I did what I could from what I learned from second hand bodybuilding/fitness magazines. I did the best I could with the limitation I had because of my knee. I continued this journey when I came to the U.S for college. Even in college, I didn’t quite fit in. I always felt like an outsider and had a tough time making connections with my college mates. I even joined a fraternity, but still felt like I didn’t belong. A year after I graduated, I moved to San Diego with my then wife, hoping to find a better life and a more positive state of mind. Things took a huge turn when I was going through a divorce at 27. I was losing the one good thing I had in life: my partner. I was sad, depressed, broke, and suicidal. I was waiting tables at the time, without any purpose or direction in life. In order to find some sort of drive that would keep me going, I looked deep inside to find what I really, truly wanted to accomplish before I died. And the answer was clear. I had never been comfortable in my own skin. I was still not happy with the way I looked and felt. So I decided to look for a doctor who could fix my knee. I had already been to 3 doctors in Pakistan and 2 in the U.S who could not help me. But I was determined. I finally found a doctor who said he could help me. I was operating purely on faith: How could this doctor do what the first 5 couldn’t? I gave put in my 2 weeks at the serving job I had, and scheduled the surgery right away. I took a cab to and from the hospital. I spent 2 months on crutches by myself, without having a single person there to help: my entire family was in Pakistan and I had no real friends in San Diego. I crutched to the gym 4-6 days a week to train my upper body. After the two months on crutches, I had to spend another year to learn how to walk again, and rehab my knee and my quad which had completely atrophied. The struggle of recovering from the pain of the surgery, and the loneliness of doing this all by myself, changed me in a very deep way. I realized that no one was ever gonna be there to save or help me in any way. I had to do it myself. As time went by, my knee and my leg got better and stronger. And so did I. During my recovery, all I did was study training methodology and nutrition. I had a degree in mathematics and economics, and had also studied science at a very deep level. I was able to understand health and fitness better than I ever had. Over time, as my physique, my mental health, and my self esteem grew, I found a new passion and zest for life. People started approaching me for advice and help. Now, 13 years after my surgery, I have helped over 100 people find joy and happiness in life through their own fitness journey. My coaching is not just about fitness. It is about understanding that by making a decision, and through the development of consistency, pain tolerance and discipline, you can change every aspect of your life. The pain and suffering from my surgery, and the discipline and consistency that I developed by building my physique, gave me all the tools I needed to reach my highest self. And that is what my coaching brings to others. I help them develop consistency, pain tolerance and discipline through the process of getting healthier and fitter. And it is with these tools that my clients change every single aspect of their lives: family, fitness & finances.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Fat, weak, insecure, self-centered, and hating others who I saw as more successful than me. I believed that those who were thriving were lucky. I accepted my position in life as being permanent. I had no confidence in myself. I did not, and could not believe that I was or could be someone important. I had no real mission in life or drive to do something useful with it.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
It taught me to take responsibility for my place in life. I accepted that nothing happened to me, and everything happened because of me. Once I realized that I was responsible for every aspect of my life, I learned that I also had the power to change. I learned that with enough time and effort, I could do and become anything I wanted.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a cultural value you protect at all costs?
I despise negativity. I do not hang around negative people. If and ever a person in my circle is being negative or bringing up a problem, I always offer them a solution. This is the culture I create in the environments I’m in: if you bring me a problem, then we will work together to find a solution. If there is no solution, we will stop focusing on the problem and move on. If someone only wants to spew a bunch of negative nonsense without having a strong mindset to cope with it, and be resilient and look for a solution, then that individual is deleted from my life. There are no exceptions. Friends, family and my partner are all held to this standard.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What pain do you resist facing directly?
The pain of never feeling like I am living up to my true potential. No matter how much I do, how hard I work, how much I push, I always feel like I’m falling short of what I can truly accomplish.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.grandmasta.fit
Image Credits
Instagram: @lilations
