Steve Ngo

This active duty U.S. Marine has taken his fitness to the next level with the guidance of Jim Stoppani and the entire JYM Army.

Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD

Updated September 28, 2023

Written by Steve Ngo

I'm an active duty U.S Marine Corps. In the last 18 years of my military service I’ve always been in good shape, but I’ve never been able to achieve the level of fitness that I always wanted. I've tried many times, but I always ended up disappointed or injured by pushing too much weight with improper form.

Approximately three years ago my health started to decline. It started with severe pain on my big toe and it got worse a couple days later. I went to see the doctor and that’s when I found out that I had gout and extremely high cholesterol. All this occurred because of an alcohol issue, unhealthy diet and lack of exercise. I was 35 years old at the time and I had two young children that I needed to set an example for.

I decided to go back to the gym and start eating healthy, hopefully to fix my health issues naturally instead of relying on medications to relieve the symptoms. I did all kinds of research and found the Shortcut to Size program by Dr. Jim Stoppani. It came with a diet plan, and I strictly followed his recommendations. Upon completion of Shortcut to Size, I dropped a few pounds of fat and put on a few pounds of lean mass. My cholesterol level also dropped within normal range. This really got me motivated because I finally found something that actually worked. I signed up for an account on JimStoppani.com to get more training and educate myself about nutrition. I'm grateful that Dr. Stoppani allows me access to his website for FREE because of my military service.

After joining his website, I jumped right into Down and Up Mass, MED Training, Drop Set Countdown, Jim's Giant Program, Super Shredded 8, Fitter Faster Leaner, and HIIT 100 for the Holiday Shred Challenge. I also educated myself on the nutrition aspect, but I made a few mistakes along the way. Thankfully, Dr. Stoppani was always there to help. I noticed significant gains in strength as well as size. I went from a super unhealthy 155 pounds to 187 pounds, gout-free and with normal cholesterol levels in July 2015. At this point, my goal shifted to more muscle and definition.

In November 2015, Dr. Stoppani suggested that I try the Holiday Shred Challenge. I was on Week 6 of Down and Up Mass and it was my second time doing the program. I joined the Challenge at 178 pounds with close to 20 percent body fat. At the end of the Challenge, I dropped five pounds and my body fat percentage fell significantly. During the Challenge, I learned more about nutrition and was introduced to intermittent fasting.

Even though my body fat percentage had gotten lower, I was still not happy with where I was at. I decided to jump on the New Year’s Challenge with the hope that I could get more shredded. I also changed my training strategy by incorporating JYM Strength Bands, extended sets, more cardioacceleration after each set, as well as Tabata after each muscle group, and HIIT cardio every day prior to weight training and intermittent fasting.

With the new training plan, I was able to drop from 173 pounds to 159 pounds in four weeks. Friends, family and fellow Marines were shocked by my results and they actually asked for recommendations to help them reach their goal. I rely solely on the JYM supplement line, training program and nutrition to achieve my goals. I will continue this journey and slowly shift my goal toward competing, but not right now.

One thing Dr. Stoppani told me is that “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Fitness is a lifestyle, not a race, therefore we should take our time, focus on training, nutrition and most importantly, enjoy the lifestyle. But don’t be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone and push yourself harder.

I would like to say thank you to Dr. Stoppani, Justin Kamb, Kevin Kennard, Will Kucharek and all the JYM Army members for educating me and keeping me motivated during this journey.

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