quick clicks

iparenting fitness articles

iparenting fitness q&a

message boards

research baby names

prepare a birth plan

content channels

ip channel rss feeds

read birth stories

read parenting stories

recommended books

e-newsletters

safety recalls

ip diaries

ip store

mom of the month

dad of the month

editor's letter

letters to the editor

Trigger Teen Triumph

Body by Jake's Secrets to Building Teenage Minds and Muscle

By Kendeyl Johansen

No steroids. Steinfeld moved from New York City to California to compete for the Mr. America title and found himself surrounded by contenders on steroids. He knew the drugs weren't for him and his grandmother continued to believe he could win without steroids. "I never took steroids because I was in shape physically and mentally," he says. "Steroids are a shortcut to a dead end that goes nowhere and taking them to build muscle is cheating – and cheating teens become cheating adults. In Get Strong! I'm challenging teenage guys to take control of who they are, to like that person and to develop the confidence to deal with life's obstacles without drugs."

Just Doin' It
As a personal trainer to super-stars such as Madonna, Harrison Ford and Barbra Streisand, Steinfeld realized that the only difference between them and lay-people is that the stars never quit or took "no" for an answer when it came to their dreams. "Steven Spielberg was turned down twice for film school and Harrison Ford went on countless auditions before he heard 'yes', but they didn't let it stop them," he says. Steinfeld's own success with exercise, along with the determination he witnessed in celebrities, helped him develop his "Don't Quit" motto.

This philosophy creates positive momentum that any parent can spark. "Start by helping your son work-out and you'll find he'll see his body changing, which will make him feel better about himself," Steinfeld encourages. "He'll have more energy, more enthusiasm and he'll start wanting to eat right and do more in school and after school, which will make him feel great about himself. Start an upward spiral."