The Faces of Fitops

Nick Billow, FitOps Squad Commander

FitOps can save nearly 50 vets at a time, but more suffer each day, Billow says. Here are just some of the proud veterans of FitOps Foundation. 

Randy Lloyd (Class of November 2016)

EMPLOYED: GNC, Las Vegas, manager

Like a lot of former soldiers, Randy Lloyd came home from war with injuries. Some were physical—back pain from a yearlong tour in Iraq as part of an Army Reserves unit out of Ogden, UT. The more serious wounds, though, were mental and emotional.

When Lloyd’s service ended in 2010, doctors prescribed opioids for his pain. But while attending college, he started taking more medication to deal with the pressures of school and a case of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Soon, Lloyd was addicted to prescription drugs. Then it became heroin.

“You never grow up thinking you’re going to be an intravenous drug user,” Lloyd says. “But when you’re constantly trying to comfort yourself, you start to justify everything.”

After dropping out of college, Lloyd hit rock bottom in 2012 when he had to be revived by paramedics in a grocery store parking lot after overdosing on a combination of heroin and cocaine. After that, Lloyd checked into a nine-week Veterans Affairs rehab center. He got clean, moved to Las Vegas, and became a GNC store manager. While working at the Olympia Expo, he heard about FitOps.

“When I got accepted, I came home and I started crying,” Lloyd says. “I knew that I was on the right path.”

But FitOps didn’t just help Lloyd improve other people’s physiques; it also positively impacted his own. Entering the program at a soft 225 pounds, the 5’6” Lloyd eventually cut down to a ripped 176 and has since competed in three NPC bodybuilding shows, capturing a victory in 2018.

Ultimately, Lloyd’s goal is to become an IFBB pro like his FitOps mentor, Marine Xavisus Gayden. “This has been one of the most amazing times of my life,” Lloyd says. “And it’s due to FitOps.”

Wesley Prophett (Class of November 2018)

EMPLOYED: Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH, recreational assistant manager

When Wesley Prophett was discharged from Air Force active duty in 2014, he found himself at a crossroads. “My mental and physical health were at an all-time low,” says the Ohio native.

He decided that the gym was the best place for him to start tackling his problems. “I began working out religiously,” he says. “Although I only had a little idea of what I was doing, I knew that if I kept exercising, I would see progress.”

Three years into his health journey, he started working as a receptionist at LA Fitness, carefully observing the club’s personal trainers and their teaching styles. He was convinced that he could do their job better.

A few months later, Prophett, 30, learned about FitOps at a powerlifting meet. He then decided to commit to becoming a full-time personal trainer. “The program literally gave me a new purpose in life,” he says. And the community has supported his dream ever since.

After completing the 2½-week camp program, he was all set to begin teaching his first group class when nerves suddenly hit. He immediately reached out to his FitOps family for a confidence boost.

“They reassured me that I was more than capable of teaching the class,” he explains. “And I’ve been killing it as a group instructor ever since.”

Rocky Conejos (Class of May 2018)

EMPLOYED: Gold’s Gym, Crofton, MD, personal trainer, group exercise instructor

When Rocky Conejos joined the Army in 2011, he had just lost 45 pounds through diet and was now ready to hit the gym. “By the time I left the Army in 2016, I was exploring my own style and decided to pursue personal training as a career,” Conejos, 30, says.

Instead, he started a job in the corporate world. He enjoyed it at first, but he soon found himself fighting depression. “It was a difficult time for me because my company lacked team support,” he explains. “In the Army, even in the worst situations, you still have a sense of camaraderie with your squad.”

His wife, still on active duty, encouraged Conejos to apply for the FitOps program in Mississippi. After completing the vigorous camp course, he says he found not only a community of like-minded men and women, but he found himself as well. “It’s helped me to not feel so alone and to connect with others who struggle with PTSD,” he says. “FitOps is an amazing opportunity to help veterans to pursue their goals while helping others.”

Kyle Roley (Class of 2017)

EMPLOYED: F45, Willow Bend, TX, personal trainer

Kyle Roley’s entire immediate family have been Marines, so when it came time for the Washington native to choose a career, he followed in his family’s boot prints and enlisted.

A high school wrestler, Roley always enjoyed physical activities but says it was in the service where he found his love for fitness. “Being surrounded by a bunch of meatheads helped develop a passion for getting stronger and, in turn, made me more confident,” says Roley, 29.

He was on his way to earning his certification when he joined the FitOps program. Since graduating, he says he struggled with depression and took a break from training but is now back and feeling better than ever! “When you’re surrounded by people who all have something in common, it makes accomplishing your goals that much easier and much more fun,” he says.

Chaz J. Thomas (Class of 2019)

EMPLOYED: Crunch Fitness, Amarillo, TX, personal trainer

For Chaz J. Thomas, 29, going through the FitOps program was nothing short of life-changing. “Before the camp, the only people I had any relationship with were my kids, my fiancée, and my best friend,” says the Ohio native. “I’ve lived my life building walls and I don’t make bonds easily. But in FitOps, I met people I couldn’t push away, because they wouldn’t let me. I’m happy they didn’t.”

Prior to joining the program, Thomas spent four years in the Air Force, where he discovered his talent for training. “I had lots of other veterans asking me about my workout program,” he says. “After a while it seemed I was always training someone, and I learned I enjoyed helping others get fit.”

A personal trainer now, Thomas wants to encourage his fellow vets to join FitOps and for more companies to get involved with the program, too. “I strongly recommend any vet to take this opportunity,” he says. “If you’re constantly asking yourself, ‘What am I doing?’ If you need a path, need a purpose, or even just need to be in that environment again that we had in the military, please go apply now! You have people out here who want you to succeed and live your life.”

Victor Viramontes (Class of November 2017)

EMPLOYED: Equinox Sports Club, San Francisco, personal trainer

When Victor Viramontes, 31, entered the Marines boot camp, he was completely out of shape. “When I enlisted, I could barely do eight pullups or 100 situps,” admits the California-born veteran. “I never envisioned becoming a personal trainer.”

He did, however, become fascinated with fitness during his four years in the Marines, and after his discharge was invited to join the FitOps program in Texas.

“From Day 1 to graduation, I was able to find the motivation that I had lost since leaving active duty,” he says. “Once veterans leave the service, they’re forced to walk a path toward many unknowns in their future while reliving every day of their time in uniform.” With FitOps, he’s found his path again and urges other veterans to follow suit. “FitOps is amazing for any vet with a vision to change people’s lives,” he says. “You’ll get the experience you need—to help yourself and others—one training session at a time.”

MEET THE GRADUATING CLASS OF NOVEMBER 2019

Rachel Rugato, 28

Trained in Muay Thai as a child by her dad, Rachel Rugato knew how to hit back if something got rough. During high school, she muscled her way onto the boys’ hockey team. Acceptance wasn’t guaranteed, but after proving she could hold her own against the guys—and even losing all but eight teeth in the process— she was no longer the black sheep of the team.

Rugato’s enjoyment of physicality made combat a logical choice after graduation. “I wasn’t that great academically, but I was a damn good fighter,” she says. In 2006, she enlisted in the Marines as a communications operator. In civilian terms, that means holding the radios and carrying the squadron’s communication antennas. “They’re usually the first to get shot at,” she says. “So I was like, ‘I’m going to do that.’”

Yet, despite her plea to continue serving her country, after her tour of duty was complete, she was notified of her discharge from the military. It wasn’t because of any violations, wartime injuries, scars, or misdeeds; it was her tattoos. “You were a good Marine! Denied!” she remembers hearing the commanding officer tell her. “I crumbled,” she admits.

Rugato’s discharge was followed by depression, dead-end jobs, divorce, and homelessness. “The hardest thing I went through was leaving the Marines and going through transition,” she says.

Rather than throw in the towel, she opted to build up her self-esteem by building up her body. “I wanted to paint myself orange and have a suit glued to my body,” the Las Vegas resident says of her decision to embrace the bodybuilding lifestyle.

Rugato wound up regaining her physical and mental fitness, even competing in the 2019 NPC Southern California/Western All Forces Championships. Eventually, she discovered FitOps and is now on a path toward a full-time career as a fitness pro.

“I was never going to give up on life, but fitness saved my entire outlook on life,” she says. “I can make a difference for others now because I’ve been in their shoes and I know what they need.”

Clint Hardecke, 44

At 6’4” and a lean 180 pounds, Clint Hardecke was his high school basketball team’s big man in Minnesota. “I played under the rim and they just fed the ball to me.”

His stepfather was a Marine during Vietnam, so Hardecke gravitated toward the same path after graduation. After shedding more than 10 pounds during the 13-week boot camp, Hardecke began to hit the weights. “I did it all: presses, deadlifts, squats, you name it,” he says. The regimen helped him add nearly 70 pounds as he was deployed overseas—from Africa to Southeast Asia to the Middle East. In 1999, he left the USMC at a muscular 255 pounds.

He returned to Minnesota and built a successful career building, rebuilding, and demolishing homes. Years later, he and his wife relocated to Arkansas. And it was his better half who first learned about FitOps Foundation at a local gym and passed the info along. Hardecke researched the nonprofit, and saw the lives it had touched in previous classes. Immediately, reflections of lost friends began surfacing in his mind, especially his closest friend in the Corps, who had OD’d from heroin in 2013.

“The last time we talked, he said he couldn’t do it anymore. Then he was gone,” Hardecke says. “I began realizing my purpose, too, was gone. My wife said, ‘You need to apply to FitOps.’ After I applied and was accepted, I realized I really needed this in my life.”

The regimen of training, academics, and camaraderie—all of which are standard at every Fit- Ops Foundation camp—brings back memories from his Marine days. Upon completion of FitOps, Hardecke hopes to create a veteran- owned gym—maybe even build it himself—as well as continue to be involved with the FitOps Foundation’s mission to drive down the suicide rate among vets.

“My journey to FitOps was 20 years in the making,” he says.

Melissa Barre, 31

A learning disability led to Melissa Barre being homeschooled as a child. It also allowed her to discover a penchant for solving intricate math equations. Remarkably, Barre graduated from community college at age 14. However, family issues were an emotional anchor: She had an emotionally abusive upbringing, was forced into foster care, and eventually relocated to live with an abusive aunt.

“I didn’t grow up with the best lifestyle,” she admits. Then came an ultimatum: Get sent away to another group home, or join the Army.

The math whiz opted to enlist in the Army as a logistics expert. Later, she was deployed to Afghanistan. The exposure to war, along with the years of mental abuse, began to take a severe toll on her mental health. After four years, and despite her pleas to remain enlisted, Barre’s psychologist dropped the news: “You can’t be around the military anymore—you need to go.”

She was honorably discharged from the Army, which she admits was the hardest day of her life. “I did all this stuff for my country, earned several awards in Afghanistan, and all of a sudden my life was just gone.”

Finding her footing didn’t happen overnight, professionally or in her personal life. She tried her hand at various jobs—waitress, sales rep, library assistant—but nothing stuck. On the homefront, Barre got married, then divorced, and had two children who were eventually taken from her. Her weight ballooned to more than 200 pounds, and, at her lowest point, she wound up in jail. With seemingly nowhere to turn, attempts to take her life followed.

“I was once this amazing person who did so much for my country. And now I’m just a criminal who shouldn’t be alive,” she recalls thinking. “But I believe that God saved me.”

While at a suicide group meeting, someone offered her some lasting advice. “You have too much to live for. Find something you’re passionate about,” he said.

She did, losing all the excess weight she had gained (“I wanted to look good again,” she says), and began volunteering as a fitness director for a Christian nonprofit. She then discovered FitOps through a friend, and wasted no time applying. “Everyone here has such a similarity to the service,” she says. “Civilians don’t understand what it’s like to be in the military. It’s controlled and regulated, like it is here. We understand it.”

Once she finishes FitOps training, Barre plans to continue helping other vets with their struggles.

“I wish there were a place every veteran can feel at home, whether it’s an actual home or a classroom where their peers share the same experiences,” she says. “[Veterans] don’t just need psychologists, only to go home alone and have nothing. We need something afterward. FitOps is a great start.”

Tyrone Gowans, 38

Tyrone “Ty” Gowans was a Louisiana high school track star, competing in the triple jump and 400 meters. As hard as he worked to stand out on the track, he partied just as hard with friends, pulling all-nighters out on the streets while his mother worked the night shift as a nurse.

Even so, Gowans wouldn’t allow anything to stand in the way of a career in the military, although he wasn’t sure which branch to join. After deliberation, he chose the Marines, where he’d become a communications expert.

After boot camp, Gowans returned home to visit family and see old friends, but one night the reunion went south. His buddy gave him advice: “He told me, ‘You need to go home. You don’t need to be here.’”

He left, and the next morning, Gowans learned that his friend had been shot and killed. “I shouldn’t be here,” he says tearfully.

Things got worse. A motorcycle accident before deployment forced his discharge from the Marines. Depressed and with nowhere to go, Gowans bounced aimlessly around the country. During a long-distance trek from New York to San Antonio, he began feeling numbness and discomfort. At the ER, doctors found scores of blot clots in his upper body. “They told me if I hadn’t come, I would be dead,” he reveals.

Joining FitOps gave Gowans new purpose. “Coming here we know that we all have different struggles but we also now know that we all have a common bond in fitness,” he says. “Fitness in some way kept us from our demons and helped to save our life. It gave us each other; having someone to talk to and hold onto as an anchor means everything right now.”