Michael Marangelli

Coming off multiple knee surgeries, this former football player got back in the gym with proper programs and is now going strong.

Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD

Updated September 28, 2023

Written by Michael Marangelli

In the fall of 2014, I was a freshman in college. I was coming off my third knee surgery, a tibial tubercle transfer, which was one last attempt to align my kneecap to keep it from popping out of place as it had five times already.

I had a weightlifting background from playing high school football, so I knew that I wanted to get back in the gym. After doing some research, I found Jim Stoppani. I was 180 pounds of basically just body fat. As I got into a gym routine, I decided to give Shortcut to Size a try in January 2015. My goal was to gain 20 pounds of muscle, and in the 12 weeks of Shortcut to Size, I dropped 11 pounds but also made serious strength and endurance gains.

Heading into that summer, I gave Shortcut to Shred a try. This is when I began to use JYM supplements, including Pre JYM, Post JYM, Pro JYM, Vita JYM, and Shred JYM. I dropped another 14 pounds to get to 157 pounds and I was pretty shredded. That's when I decided this Jim Stoppani guy was the real deal. I went back to the college football team that I work for at the start of the 2015 season, and they went nuts. They asked me to flex my biceps every single day — literally.

I joined the JYM Army and JimStoppani.com, and since fall of 2015, I have completed Down and Up Mass, 5, 3, 2 Strength, Power Pyramid, and Shortcut to Strength. I’ve followed Dieting 101 in different ways to get stronger or leaner, depending on my specific goals.

More adversity struck, though, as I developed an infection in the scar on my knee in the spring of 2016. It only took a week to recover from the minor surgery, but the first day back in the gym, I sprained my MCL (same knee) in a freak accident. Honestly, that got me down. But I recovered with proper rest and amazing support from the JYM Army, including my best friend Blake Daniels, who is also a JYM Army member.

Now I’m completely back to normal. I’m healthier than ever, weighing about 162 pounds, and I've joined the 2017 Summer Shred Challenge. I love getting to educate others and share everything Jim/JYM-related! I still have my good days and bad days with my knee. But there are two things that I live by: Do every workout as if it's my last, and as the tattoo on my left shoulder reads, "make gains forever!"

I cannot thank Jim, Mike, Justin, Will, Jim Sr., Kendra, and all of the JYM Army for what they’ve done and put together with integrity. The JYM Army is the best support group that I could ever have. This two-and-a-half-year journey is only getting started.

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