Name: Daniel Rockwell

Location: North Florida

Height: 6”0 (180cm)

Weight: 190-205lb (86-93kg)

Date of Birth: July 13, 1991

Birthplace: Dunkirk, NY

Certifications: ACSM certified personal trainer (2012)

Degree: Marketing BBA, University of North Florida (2015)

 

Before getting involved in the fitness industry, I was always competing in various sports.  Growing up, I played football, baseball, and wrestled.  Sports have always been a priority for me.  I found the human body fascinating in regards to physical performance. I started seriously working out at the age of 13. Early on, I decided to strive to make my body perform at the highest possible levels through working out and nutrition. My favorite sport was football, and I dreamed of playing it professionally. That was my main focus and motivation in the gym throughout high school.  A mentor at the time noticed my discipline and introduced me to the sport of bodybuilding.  My senior year of high school I entered, and placed first, in a USBF natural bodybuilding show. I went on to win the teenage category of the NPC Rochester bodybuilding show as well as the NPC Mr. Buffalo competition the following year.  

 

As you can probably guess, football didn’t work out.  After tearing my ACL, along with other injuries, my dreams started to fade.  I played a little football as a walk-on at Buffalo State College, but it just wasn’t meant to be.  After feeling like a failure, I decided to make a big change in my life.  I have always had so much respect for soldiers, so I decided to become one.  I left Buffalo State as an honor student, packed my things and headed to Florida to join the Florida Army National Guard.  It was hard for me to take a year off of college for military training, but it was a great experience.  I became a black hawk helicopter mechanic for the Army and enrolled back into college as soon as my initial training was complete.

 

 Although I enrolled at the University of North Florida, and had military obligations, I still had a strong passion for fitness. I started competing in the NPC men’s physique category and eventually became nationally qualified.  Soon after, I started getting offers for fitness modeling and I took advantage of those opportunities.  I loved competing but didn’t have the best experience with the NPC. It seemed as though competitors were doing so much for the sport, with little in return.  Also, as a natural competitor, it was getting harder and harder to compete in the NPC. It made sense for me to drop out of competitive bodybuilding completely and follow my fitness-modeling venture. This was great, because I was now getting paid for what I love to do, and there was no pressure to satisfy judges with the physique they wanted.  It’s now solely a “you vs. you” mentality for me. Many people told me that they were inspired by me and wanted to know how I achieved my physique. I then became a certified personal trainer through the American College of Sports Medicine so I could help people reach their goals.  Although I am certified, I firmly believe that the certification means very little. I realized anyone could become a trainer without any real world experience in the gym.  Now, my goal is to create the most aesthetic physique possible, while inspiring others to do the same.  There are no specific dates that I must be in shape, for me, its everyday.  I’ve implemented fitness into my everyday life and it’s made me a better student, soldier, and person.  I strive to share with you the quality of life that I’ve received from fitness.