Differently, Tim McCormick

I’m sitting down with a longtime friend, Tim McCormick, someone who has been part of our life for years, sharing his journey of healing and transformation.

From 320 lbs to 160.
From addiction and relapse… to sobriety he now protects at all costs.
From surviving… to living. 

This is about waking up, asking for help, and doing the hard work to change your life, one decision at a time.

Inside our conversation...

 • The moment everything had to change
 • What it really looks like to walk through addiction and come out the other side
 • The small shifts that created massive change
 • What it means to live differently, for real

If you need hope, this conversation is for you.

Make sure to cast your vote for Tim!  Here's the link.
https://mrhealthandfit.com/2026/tim-mccormick

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Transcript

Opening And The Need To Change

SPEAKER_06 1:18

I'm excited to have you tourney with the different ways of service today. So just go back, man. Like take us back to the moment you knew something in your life needed to change.

SPEAKER_02 1:38

Wow. That's uh that's a long time ago. And honestly, it started probably around 2001. I had indicated to Quentin that I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I was sick of running the rat race. And I just nothing seemed to ever go good, but yet I was in a place where I was drinking a lot and doing the wrong things all the time. And you know, it's the true definition of insanity where keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. But the good thing was you and your husband decided to send me to landmark forum.

unknown 2:39

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_06 2:40

And so remember, I forgot about Jim. Holy moly!

Hip Disease Surgery And A Prayer

SPEAKER_02 2:48

So it dates way back, right? And by doing the course, I got really fired up and tried to continue what I had learned, and I made many breakthroughs, but none of them, I guess, were strong enough to put the alcohol aside and uh just get focused. And so the stuff that I learned, as with everything kind of in life, got put to the side again, and then I just continued the drinking and the doubtfulness that goes along with it, and it uh you know, like I moved back to Memphis around 2004, and change of environment, but not change of behavior, continued to escalate. Um good thing is I found Julie, my wife, and she was able to share in my struggles and give me hope. And but truly, it wasn't until uh I started to have my my hip problems, and I ended up having avascular necrosis, which is a bone disease, and it basically there's no cartilage between your hip joints, so it's bone on bone, and when there's bone on bone, there's no blood flow between there to nourish your bones and keep them healthy. So necrosis is death, and it basically killed the bone in my socket and joint, and anyway, I had to have both my hips replaced probably about a year apart. But I was real heavy.

SPEAKER_06 5:00

I was and what age were you at that time?

SPEAKER_02 5:03

Yeah, I was I was 40 when I had my hips replaced, and now I'm just about to be 55.

SPEAKER_06 5:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:10

So the doctor, the doctor told me, you know, wait as long as you can to have have your you know have this done. You're so young, and you know, the the guarantee of the hips lasting longer than 15 to 20 years, you know, it just wasn't there. So, of course, I'm gonna have to have them done again in my lifetime, but regardless of that, um, we had the first hip done, but I waited and waited and waited, and man, I was in so much pain. Um I was on Percocets for pain. Um and I was on them for months and months before even surgery because of the pain. But by the time we got into surgery, I couldn't get comfortable no matter what I did, uh, even with the pain management stuff. So we went ahead and had surgery, and when we when we woke up, the doc looked at me and he said, you know, what on earth? Why did you wait so long to have this done? And I I told him, I said, You're the one that told me to wait as long as I could. I said, Maybe you need to be more specific when you tell people to do something. Anyway, he said that the he said the whole top of my femur, the ball on my femur was gone, and that it I just had like a stick and a cup for all intents and purposes. And uh anyway, I knew then I waited too long, but I did what I was told. Anyway, uh it was about a year later I put on more weight, you know. I was still immobile. I had I had the disease in both hips, and one was more severe than the other at the time. And so I I waited about another year and had my my right hip done. And um when we went into that surgery, it was I was so heavy, I was 319 or 20 pounds, uh, that when everything was a go, but when we got in there, the the anesthesiologist went to put me out, and I was kind of twilight sleeping, and it was like all of a sudden I couldn't breathe, and I'm wondering in my own mind while I'm kind of twilight sleeping, what on earth is going on? And anyway, all of a sudden I was able to breathe again. I thought, man, this is really weird, something's going on, and then I remembered, you know, I'm I'm I'm in surgery, and all of a sudden I couldn't breathe again. I'm thinking, you know, I'm trying to breathe through my noses and my my lungs just they're not working, like something's gagging me. And um I guess it was probably 15, 20, 30 seconds went by, and all of a sudden I can breathe again. I'm like, man, this is the weirdest thing ever. So I just said a prayer. And it was no sooner the thoughts came out of my head I was waking up from surgery.

SPEAKER_04 8:29

It's good, it's okay.

SPEAKER_06 8:42

Man.

SPEAKER_03 8:54

So I was waking up and uh I just thought, thank God.

SPEAKER_02 9:06

Anyway, when I was in recovery, everything had gone good because I got the hip replaced and I was out of pain.

SPEAKER_06 9:22

And what did the doctor say? Are you gonna go there where the doctor said about that moment when you said the prayer? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:31

Yeah. Yeah, when I woke up I was for the first time in like probably three years.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

I didn't have that broken bone feeling.

SPEAKER_06 9:50

So I get back to the lot of pain for a while, my friend.

SPEAKER_02 10:02

But so I'm I'm back in the room and the surgeon comes in and he says, you know, everything went okay and all that sort of stuff. And I said, Man, I said, you guys had problems. And he looked at me and with kind of a smirk, he said, yeah, he said, the anesthesiologist said you might might remember something. He said, uh, man, I gotta tell you, he said, we had one heck of a time putting that tube down your throat so you could breathe during surgery, the intubation tube. He said, You have so much fat on the back of your neck that we couldn't get your neck back far enough.

SPEAKER_04 11:04

Anyway, he said, uh, if you don't lose weight, I can't work on you anymore. And I just thought to myself, wow.

SPEAKER_02 11:21

They almost weren't able to do surgery because of how so anyway, I was dealt with that, but I was so thankful that all of it was over finally, and so I had to digest everything he said and uh try to put some type of course of action together, and uh it all basically I had to go through recuperation and all that from the hip surgery in order just to get my mind around the whole thought of trying to get on a healthy situation, you know.

SPEAKER_03 12:21

Yeah, so I've um since then I have gained lump weight.

SPEAKER_06 12:29

Go back for just a second because when you told me that story, like your the doctor told you that your head finally went back, like right at we think it was like right about the time you prayed, right?

SPEAKER_04 12:41

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 12:42

Yeah, like just fell back and he was able to get the tube in. So I just wanted to tie that back.

SPEAKER_02 12:48

Yeah, no, I'm glad you did. You know, I I was getting all emotional, but basically, you know, he said we had problems putting the tube in your throat. And I said, Man, I knew something was going on, but I couldn't figure out why I couldn't breathe and what all was going on. But I said, I did remember I was in surgery, and I I just told the Lord, you know, Lord, let whatever happened happen. That you know, your will is your will.

SPEAKER_03 13:17

And he said that, and it must have been that exact moment that all of a sudden your body went limp, your head went back. Wow, and we were able to do it.

Pain Pills Become A Second Addiction

SPEAKER_06 13:31

So good. So you're recovering from surgery. I'm sure you're on lots of medications, so take us from there.

SPEAKER_02 13:39

Oh yeah, yeah. So I was I was um I was getting back on my feet and everything, and so you're only supposed to be on the pain medicine for so long after you have surgery. But anyway, when I went back to my regular doctor, they just continued filling the pain medicines, and so without thinking, you know, I'm thinking they know what they're doing and that I need this medicine longer or whatever. Anyway, uh I kept taking them. And after three years of eating percocets, like they were candy because of the pain, I'm no longer in the pain, but I'm still getting these medicines and I'm still eating them. And anyway, I was I was hooked beyond belief on those things to the point that I was you know using well beyond what they were giving me, which was about 120 every 30 days. I'm spending money to get more off the street and everything else. I mean, it's just going downhill. I'm still drinking, I've still got all this stuff going on, you know, bad decisions. Um, but anyway, it was 2019, 2018, 2019. Uh I was really escalated in my drinking and and all the pill taking and everything else. And uh I I finally just I was starting to drink on the job and stuff like that, and I just knew that I was it was escalated out of my control. And it it was February 14th, 2019. I asked for help, and I went into a rehab locally, and I spent 30 days in there, and and I was I felt good, I felt strong, I felt clear. Um but just getting out of there and and getting back into my normal groove, it was almost like same old, same old, I guess. It was ever it was the time of day, it was um five o'clock, you know, whatever the hour was that I normally would would consume, I had to battle those feelings every single day. And unfortunately, 30 days, in my opinion, is not long enough to get recovered. And so it wasn't a week later I was drinking again and trying to hide it like like nobody knew, you know, they knew, but anyway, that's just how naive and how addiction to manipulate your mind to where you think you're fooling everybody and justify it. It's just yeah, it's just so obvious to everybody that it's it's going on. You your your your behaviors, your mannerisms, they all change, you know. You go right back into it, and you know, I I I I tried to fool myself again uh for five weeks or whatever, I think it was, uh, February to March 14 to 15, and then I went back in I went back in in April and then got released right before my birthday 2019, and I held on longer after that 30 days, but you know, it's it's just the wickedness of that stuff, and it's on every corner, you know. You don't have to go find a dealer, it's legal, it you know, it is it is, I don't know, it's the most evil thing I think I've ever encountered.

SPEAKER_01 18:02

Wow.

SPEAKER_06 18:04

So it sounds like the journey like is back and forth and kind of up and down. What was the next big sort of pivot moment or shifting moment or catalyst that sent you on a new trajectory?

SPEAKER_02 18:19

Well, I got out in May for my birthday, and then we continued on doing the same job and the same everything, you know. Uh I didn't last. I I lasted maybe four months this time. And uh by November 24th, I was drinking and driving. I was drinking and driving at work, that was my job. I was making all the wrong decisions. I I literally I knew that if I didn't stop, that I was gonna kill somebody or myself. And thank God I asked one more time to put all the shenanigans aside, all the line, all the everything, all the manipulation that goes along with it, and I asked for help one more time, and we did it a different way. We kind of did like a outpatient almost type thing where I was in a a specific home with other alcoholics, and then we'd do schooling during the day or whatever, and I I don't know what was different about it, but I just don't think the first two times I was ready. And after that last time, uh I knew I knew I was done with it.

SPEAKER_03 19:49

I don't know how, but I I took it so serious.

SPEAKER_04 19:59

We've watched you, yeah. Now I defend my death. I defend my sobriety.

SPEAKER_06 20:19

Say that again?

SPEAKER_00 20:23

You defend Yeah, I defend my sobriety, no.

SPEAKER_06 20:27

What does that mean?

SPEAKER_03 20:33

At all costs.

SPEAKER_06 20:37

Like you are protecting it is kind of what you're saying. Like it's become like a sacred thing, important thing that you are like actively protecting in your life. Is that what you mean?

SPEAKER_03 20:51

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 20:53

Yeah, wow. Wow, what an incredible gift, Tim. So we talk a lot of oh yeah, go ahead.

SPEAKER_03 21:10

I was gonna say the other thing is you know, it was getting off of that juice that allowed me to wake up enough that I knew that that stuff it can be for some people, but it didn't for me.

SPEAKER_02 21:34

And so now I look back on it, and the longer I went without it, the more clear I became. And then, you know, I was on Subox and I was on all kinds of uh anxiety medicines, three different anxiety medicines, and depression medicine, and high blood pressure medicine, uh triglycerid. Medicine, I was on three tranquilizers to go to sleep and stay asleep. And then I was on a CPAP machine, two different inhalers that I had to take daily, and just all kinds of stuff, right? So as I was waking up from the alcoholism, I started thinking, man, if that stuff had me that cloudy, what about the rest of this stuff?

Tapering Suboxone And Questioning Incentives

SPEAKER_05 22:27

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 22:28

So I started thinking, well, man, I gotta get off of this suboxin that they had me on for the opiate addiction. And literally, it was it was harder to get off the medicine they put you on to get off the opiates than it was to get off the dadgum opiates. And that confused me. And so I'm out of rehab and I'm having to go to a a um I believe it was an addiction medicine doctor, I guess is what you would say. But he he never offered really to get me off of the Suboxan. And I just thought that that that was some kind of gimmick. Like it was his gimmick to get me coming back every month. And so with me wanting to improve myself, I thought I've got to get off this sivoxin. And so I I was on two whole strips, and then I started doing one strip and three quarters of a strip a day. Then I went to a strip and a half and then a strip and a quarter, and then down to one strip. I just kept marking it off. And so by the time I I even had to put off going to see him because I had extra medicines, you know, I still had a prescription of that, so I didn't really need him, and but he's questioning me. So I go in and I'm like, hey, I've done really good, man. I've gotten off of most of the Subox and stuff that you've had me on, and he almost chewed me out. And I thought, what is this? So he he said, Well, what do you mean you're you're you're getting off of it? You you you need my help to do that? And I thought, if you're an addiction doctor and somebody's putting down their addiction, why is he not cheering me and saying, hey man, that's fantastic. You know, why isn't that a celebration? Yeah, like he should be jumping up and down, going, dude, you go, you know, like you go, boy. But it was almost like he was mad at me for not including him on my journey. And I thought, you know what? You're no better than the drug dealer on the corner, is kind of what I started thinking. I'm like, why are you upset with me that I'm stopping taking the drugs you're giving me? And so I was like, look here, man. I said, you know, I don't appreciate you kind of condoning me or you know getting on my butt about it. I said, you ought to be cheering me on and and and being celebratory. I said, I got a bad vibe about this. I said, you know what, you just go ahead and give me what you need to give me. I said, I'm taking a quarter of a strip a day now instead of two whole strips. I said, you give me enough to get off this stuff and and we'll we'll be done. And so he he wrote me the prescription, and he did, you know, like 16 strips, and normally there were 60 uh per per prescription or what have you. But anyway, I I got down, I got off of it, and so finally I'm like, thank God I'm done with that stuff, and I started really to feel better. I mean, like, you couldn't even imagine how much better I started feeling. I felt more awake, more alert, I felt more active. Um, and then I I'm thinking, all right, well, if this is getting better, what about these anxiety medicines they got me on? So I quit all three of them immediately. Just cold turkey. I was like, we're done with this stuff, man. I got off of the anxiety medicine. Yeah, keep going. I I I I look, I I I woke up even more, you know, and I'm thinking, I'm thinking, hey, there's something too. Yeah, after getting off of the three anxiety medicines, man, I, you know, when your family physician, when you when you first go to your family physician and you tell him all, like, I guess my wife was going to a family physician, and I said, I need to start going to him. And so after I got a rehab and stuff, I went to him with all these prescriptions. He's like, Man, I I you're gonna have to see your specialist. There's no way I can touch all these things. He started asking me, Do you fall asleep at red lights? Do you fall asleep during work? You just fall asleep for knowing, you know, like he was worried because I was on so many depressants, so many downers that he didn't, he couldn't believe I was awake, you know, like and that really that really dawned on me that I've really got to get off this stuff. So it escalated me getting off of it. But the the big thing, I got off that depression medicine, and I'm gonna tell you what, I've never been happier in my whole daggone life. I don't know what's in that stuff, it'll make you feel better, like you know, you're not as depressed for a little while, and then they put you on a stronger dose when it's not working, and then it's one after the other, but I got off my depression medicine, and and I am the happiest I've ever been, I think, since I was a kid.

SPEAKER_07 27:45

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 27:46

And I'm not saying I'm not saying that my journey is for everybody, I'm just saying that everybody has their own.

SPEAKER_06 27:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:53

Yeah, this is what I've done, and and it has worked. I can't even begin to tell you, Carly, you see it.

SPEAKER_06 28:01

I I've seen it. I've witnessed your spirit coming back, uh, your aliveness, your disaster life, like everything all over. So so you got off the alcohol, you're getting off all the prescriptions, and then is that when it started rippling to your body, like your weight?

SPEAKER_02 28:21

Yeah, well, as I'm getting off all that stuff, I'm I still have that goal. I still have him in the back of my head saying, You gotta lose weight, or I ain't gonna work on you, you know.

SPEAKER_06 28:35

Right. But it was it was like um it was down the priority list at that time.

SPEAKER_02 28:43

Yeah, well, I was I was feeling more energetic, I had more energy. I started, you know, I started that new job in September 21 at Smith and Nephew, where you know, I I'm making replacement joints for human bodies, for God's sakes. I've had you know my hips replaced. So it's like, how can God put you in such ironic situations? I've had hips replaced, and now I work for a company that makes them, you know. I mean, like, yeah, I I feel I feel like I'm I'm doing something good. I know that what I'm doing benefits people and their health so much. It made all the difference in in me coming out of pain and starting to live life again to the fullest, you know, not being on crutches after three years, you know. I mean, like it all just started to work, right?

SPEAKER_06 29:38

Uh your life is literally waking up.

SPEAKER_02 29:41

I mean, it just yeah, and yeah, and along the journey, I'm thinking we've gotta we've I I'm being more mindful about everything I do the more I wake up and get off these medicines. So I'm thinking, well, how can I get the weight off? And I'm thinking to myself, for two months, I sat I was coming home from work and I was thinking, I need to go to the gym. I just need to go to the gym. And then I'm thinking, well, before I go to the gym, I need to do sit-ups and push-ups here on the floor in the house for 30 days, and then I know that I'm good to go get a membership. I couldn't even get off the couch to do sit-ups or push-ups to save my life for over two months. I kept telling myself, I gotta do this, and then it just nothing ever became right. So I said, you know what, that ain't working. So we're just gonna escalate things. And I went down to the gym and I got a membership, and I thought, by God, we're gonna put it into motion whether I want to or not. Because the whole push-ups on the floor at home ain't working, right? So, anyway, I ended up getting a gym membership, and it was about two days, I think, went by after I got it. I finally went in, and I wasn't wanting to, you know, set records or anything like that, but I thought if I just get on the floor as big as I am, and I put in the effort, something's bound to happen. And so I got down and I was able to do a whole whopping eight sit-ups starting out, and so I thought, you know what, that's all I got now. That's all I have at the moment. So I did that. I started doing a little bench press and stuff, very lightweight, just to wake my muscles up and stuff, and let them know, hey, we're gonna we're gonna start activating you guys. And so I didn't really get sore, and that was what I was looking for. I didn't want to get sore and be like, man, it hurts so bad, I don't want to do it again. So I just kind of did that for two weeks. I did really, really lightweight, like the lightest on the machines. I just I I wanted them to wake up. Anyway, so I started doing that, and as I'm going, I work third shift at Smith and Nephew, and anyway, so I've I've gotten out of my element about when to eat and when the proper times are and stuff like that. So I'm I'm kind of in no man's land as far as my timing is concerned. I'm still used to days, but I'm working nights, and I'll I'll work four hours and then I'll eat a sandwich. I would have like a turkey sandwich or something uh for lunch, and then I would go back to work, and when I got home, I was I was eating a meal, and then I was going to bed basically. So I started thinking, well, I'm not even hungry when I get home in the morning, but yet I'm eating, and that doesn't make sense. So why not eliminate the sandwich at lunchtime and then just eat when we you know when we get home? Well, we'll start doing one meal a day, I guess, basically, is what it ended up being. And so I I started doing that, and I started losing weight, like I mean, I couldn't even, it was crazy. I was losing seven pounds in a week. Then some weeks I would lose 10 pounds. But after about every 20 to 25 pounds, my body would say, We're starving, we're gonna hold on to anything that you eat as long as we can. And so I would plateau and I would not lose any weight for about a week, and I'd start thinking, All right, we gotta confuse the body. Um, so I would start eating intervals different than the once a day, and I would do that for about 10 to 12 days and and make my body think, okay, really, we're not we're not starving, everything's cool, we're back on track again. And after about 10 or 12 days, I would shut it down again and I would go to one meal a day. And at that point, when I when when the plateau would go away, I'd lose 20 pounds in a spurt of about 10 to 10 days to two weeks, and then it would start to do that whole plateau again, and I would have to confuse my body, make sure that it thinks that we're doing okay, and then I would shut it off again. Anyway, I lost 70 pounds in one year. Then I started implementing the workout schedule that started to get the gym membership and all that stuff, and I started lifting weights, and I lost another 40 pounds, probably in about three months, just by lifting weight. Um, my breathing started getting better, the inhalers and all that stuff went away. I was on a CPAP machine, I no longer use it. I took it back. Uh I'm off of all my blood pressure medicines, my uh torvostatin for high triglycerides and all the anxiety medicine, the suboxin, the depression medicine. I don't take any of that stuff anymore. I I take one antidepress or uh one anti-inflammatory every other day, and I I I rarely eat a Tylenol or an Advil or anything like that. It it doesn't sit well with me anymore. But I I I still work out. I mean, and to say that I wasn't overdoing it is an understatement. I was I I got so into going to the gym after seeing results that it hooked me. You know, I I I like it. I I feel like if I have to take a day off, it's like, well, I know it my body needs the rest, so I'm not as hard on myself about missing a day as I used to be, but um, it was all about finding my own groove with what I was doing and how to do it. Um I I do things differently than most people in the gym. I I do slow uh repetitions, I I do a lot of negative resistance training. A lot of people are trying to you know work out real fast and do this and that. And I I take my time, I try not to hurt myself, I try to do good form, and I I try not to uh get ahead of myself. I I've I've set goals of what I want to achieve, and these may be lifelong goals, but uh as long as I can check a box here and there that hey, I've done that, I got that, I got that, I got that. It's starting out small, sticking with the plan, trying to switch things up when you come to a roadblock. Be ready to bob and weave when you get in there, you know. You might run into a roadblock, but make adjustments and get around it. Don't let small things hang you up. Don't don't don't get overwhelmed. Start small, get the consistency. With consistency comes discipline. With discipline, the world is your oyster.

Finding Root Causes And Making Amends

SPEAKER_06 37:32

You know, it's funny, I I always um I think of like self-c, you know, in in the world, it's like people talk about self-care and like it's always kind of bugged me, but what I really believe is self-like real self-care is self-fair. What are like maybe one, two, or three things that you hung on to through all of this that you would say were the biggest pillars that kept you in the journal?

SPEAKER_02 39:39

Well I did personally a huge mental evaluation, and I after I started waking up I started looking for root causes of where I went wrong. Um and it it took me way back to like twenty one years old. I narrowed everything down to a bad breakup that triggered me into a a at the time I didn't consider it a a a I wouldn't say a depression, but an uncomfortableness that made me drink to not remember those feelings, to never want to have that happen again. And I went I went the wrong way, you know. I went into the drinking mode and then it became the party mode, and then it just became me. But I believe that anybody who's struggling with depression if they do a deep dive, I believe that they will figure out when they started to get depressed, and then they'll remember what triggered them and to spiral out of control, or you know what I mean, to just to always have that that negative hitch in you, I guess, that that little thing that always keeps your defenses up, you know, in a bad way. Uh but I believe that I believe that through through being mindful of where it all kind of went wrong, if you can isolate that and make amends with it, it'll change your life. And and I did. I I went as I went as far as to try to find the latest address to that girl's name that I knew, the best possible address that I could find, the latest one. I wrote a letter. I I told her I was sorry, that you know, everything everything that I had done was wrong with her as far as not speaking to her again and so forth and so on. And it it lifted a burden of hell I'd been carrying it around for what 40 years, you know, twelve 35 years, you know, and and to to put a stamp on that and send that thing, oh man, that was joy.

SPEAKER_06 42:33

I had no idea, right?

SPEAKER_02 42:34

I I didn't I didn't know whether she'd get it, but I knew it was in God's hands. I knew that I had done everything that I could do to make amends with the situation that I felt uh took my life and spiraled it out of control. But you know, it it took me to deep dive into it to really put a a name and a face and and a situation and all that of where things went wrong. And by putting a stamp on it and sending it, like I said, I don't know whether she got it, I don't know whatever happened with it. I just know that I I know that I did what I needed to do and that God would take care of the rest, and and he has because I'm no longer burdened by that. I know that I thanked her for helping me get baptized and my first Bible, and I still have that Bible today.

SPEAKER_07 43:26

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 43:26

And yeah.

SPEAKER_07 43:29

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 43:30

Well, and that's that is kind of crazy how our mind kind of crazy how our minds work, and that we think that everything's okay, but we're just putting a band-aid on something that needed addressed a long time ago. So if you can figure out what's ailing you, it will benefit you beyond your wildest dreams.

SPEAKER_06 43:51

Yeah, you know, I I call that like part of your survival model, but for all of us as humans, like somewhere along the way, we latch on. To some idea or belief or effect, you know, just like you said, you did. And then we start living our life to kind of survive something or try to overcome something or avoid something or protect from something. And then we cut off all this living, right? And your story is like such a beautiful example of like letting that all fall away so that you can actually freely live and not feel like you're living to survive, but you're living to create and build a life now. And I've watched you do it. It's it's been incredible to watch you. So to give people a snapshot of this transformation and what your life looks like today. Because you you've lost how much weight have you lost overall?

SPEAKER_02 44:54

Uh since I was at my heaviest, I've lost uh basically what I weigh now, 160 pounds.

SPEAKER_06 45:03

Wow. Like a whole body.

SPEAKER_02 45:06

And yeah, well, I was in like a 46-inch waist, and now I'm in a 30.

SPEAKER_06 45:13

Wow. Yeah, you guys, you're gonna you're gonna see pictures here it um soon, but it's your transformation is incredible. And your your lifestyle has changed.

SPEAKER_02 45:26

Yeah, I you know, I can honestly say that I had a I I hadn't, I'll be honest. I I hadn't thought about going to church in years, you know, and I'm out in the backyard, it's Sunday morning, and I work nights. I got off of work, I come home, I'm gonna cut the yard, and uh most of my stuff is battery operated, like my weed eater blower and stuff like that, but the lawnmower is gas. But anyway, I'm using all my electric stuff, and it all of a sudden all the batteries died. And I'm like, well, all right, it's gonna be probably two hours before I can continue this. And it wasn't the time that that thought hit my head. I heard, you have time to go to church. And I thought, what was that? And I was looking around like I thought somebody had entered my yard. I didn't know, but I know that when I looked around, wasn't nobody there. So I was kind of freaked out. I sat down the weed eater and went inside, and Julie was on the couch. She said, Everything all right? I said, Yep, I'm going to church. So I went back to the back and took a shower, and she said, God talking to you. And I said, Yes, he is. So anyway, I went and took a shower and got all dressed for church and clothes that don't fit anymore and all this stuff. And I'm like, I'm out and I got on the phone. I looked at Bell V Baptist Church. I looked at my old church where I got baptized, where that girl helped me get baptized. I don't know what time it starts, but well, it's 8 40. It starts at 9 15. There was the perfect amount of time that I heard the signal to go, to take a shower, get dressed, get in the car, look at the time. There was the perfect amount of time for me to get to that church. How that works.

SPEAKER_01 47:35

I don't know.

Faith Mindset And Daily Healing Practice

SPEAKER_02 47:37

So I went to church that day and uh I talk about power. I read the Bible all the time. I try not to let grass grow under my feet with that. And with the working out, with the Bible reading, with all my journey, I know that what is above is below. So if you're good in your mind, you will be good in your soul, and your body will be good. What is above is below. Mind body and soul. If you don't pray, it's good for the soul. I highly recommend it.

SPEAKER_06 48:33

So true. You know, it makes me think, I can't remember if when you were here that I said this, but um, I recently saw um somebody talking about the story in the Bible where Jesus heals the man at the pool. And he asked the man, like, do you want to be healed? And this woman like went back into like the original um language, like the Hebrew or I'm not sure what it was, but she found that like what Jesus was really asking was, are you willing to live differently? Because if you're healed, you're gonna have to live differently. And that just really struck me.

SPEAKER_02 49:17

Yeah, and there's there's truth to that. And and I know firsthand because uh with with my back, it's like I don't know, it's it's kind of hard to explain, but it's like you're you're either you're either healed and you leave it all behind. Or you're not. You know, when you when you get baptized, you're supposed to leave it all in the water and begin new. But the thing that people fail to realize is you have to crucify yourself to this world every day, every morning when you wake up, so that you don't crave the worldly possessions that everybody on TV and everything, everybody's always after. You need to be self-content and happy with where you are, what you have, and truly be thankful for what you have, not not what you want. What you want is all fake. It's it's truly all fake. What is above is below. Get your mind right, your heart will follow, and your body will too. If you believe that you're healing, you're going to heal. My back, I have spinal stenosis, and I I hurt all the time, but I I don't I I tell myself every day I'm healing because I am.

SPEAKER_07 50:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 51:00

And and it it gets less painful and less painful with working with a a professional chiropractor, he's got me to where I'm starting to know that my body is healing, and I was told that it wouldn't. But if you believe with all of your heart and your mind and your soul, your body will heal itself. I promise you that. And mine's doing it. I'm living proof. I I no longer have all those medicines. You you you can't say that I needed a CPAP machine if I no longer need it. And I told myself I'm healing and my body is healing. I no longer need all that stuff because my body is healing, because I tell myself I'm healing. That's so beautiful, and I believe God, I believe God that He He He made a magnificent body, it is perfect. Just believe that it is, and it will be.

Muscle And Fitness Contest And Serving Others

SPEAKER_06 52:04

So good. Okay, Tim. So this journey and story led you to finding this contest. So bring us up to speed about this contest that you're in so we can share.

SPEAKER_02 52:20

Oh my gosh, this is just it's beyond me. That's all I can say. In a million years, I never figured that I would be entered or would have entered a contest of VNA muscle and fitness magazine. After being as big as I was for as long as I was, it's still baffling to me. I I I literally um I had a friend at work. I told him, hey man, he's an ex-bodybuilder, he's 60 years old. I said, Hey man, you're in great shape. You ought to enter this contest, you know, it's worth$20,000. And he says, Oh, they don't want me. And I was like, What do you mean, man? You're in perfect shape, you know, all that stuff. He was like, he was Mr. U T Martin back in 77 or something. You know, I mean, like, this guy knows what's up. Anyway, he's like, they're not looking for me, man. He goes, You're the one that needs to enter it. He goes, You got a story. And he said, and the whole thing's just kind of crazy.

SPEAKER_07 53:21

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 53:22

And he the thing, the thing that triggered me was he says, You ain't got nothing to lose. And man, that stuck with me. That stuck with me for the next uh four four hours, four hours at work. I was thinking, you know what? He's got a point, I really don't have anything to lose, and I could really use the twenty thousand dollars, if you know what I'm saying. Yeah, I was like, well, you know what? Uh that morning, yeah, that morning I went home and I started filling out their little thing, and uh I think you texted it to me that day. Yeah, I even told Shane about it. I you know, I was like, Shane, you need to enter. He goes, I already did. I was like, what? And you didn't tell me Shane, by the way. Yeah, I entered it, and with within 24 hours, they had emailed me back saying you are totally in this contest. And so it's been really fun. We've had so much fun, and so honestly, I'm just trying to get the I'm I'm just trying to get the word out there that asking for help when you have alcohol or drug addiction, it is not a weakness. It's it's like the strongest form of self-love and uh you know that that you could ever show yourself or others. And it's an inspiring thing to transform uh yourself into what you want to be, uh even if you weren't sure what you wanted it to be. You know, like I said, just be willing to make changes, you know, don't be so steadfast in your journey that it's just gotta be that way. You're gonna run into roadblocks.

SPEAKER_07 55:12

Just expect them, right?

SPEAKER_02 55:16

Yeah, it's it's inevitable, but just be patient, you know, make adjustments, get around your little obstacle that you think is so big and great, it's usually not. You make it bigger than than what it is. The the highest mountain you'll ever have to climb is the one you create in your own head.

SPEAKER_06 55:36

Oh, isn't that the truth? Wow. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 55:40

And if you can find people who have transformed, Buster Chops. Ask them questions, ask them what makes them tick, and they'll be happy to share what works for them. It may not be exactly what you need, but it worked for them. Just listen, and like I said, make make adjustments.

unknown 56:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 56:01

When you run into your little roadblocks, make adjustments and it'll happen. Just set reasonable goals.

SPEAKER_06 56:10

So what I'm excited about this contest because I do feel like Tim, like this contest, and if you if you won this contest, that it would give you a chance to share your story more and be like just be an inspiration for people that are wanting to create similar you know changes in their own life. And I'm excited for that reason. But what like would knock your socks off about like winning this contest? Well and I think you've already won, right? You've even said that. Like you've already won.

SPEAKER_02 56:50

Yeah, just by them accepting me and allowing me to be in the competition, I'm thrilled. I mean, I've already won.

SPEAKER_06 56:58

That in and of itself, look at where I come from and impact on you. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 57:03

I mean, it's it's it's uh it's good to know that all of this hard work isn't in vain, that I might be able to use my transformation to help others, and that's what I want to do. I really want to help people who are struggling, whether it's drugs or alcohol or just some type of a problem. Um you know, the biggest thing is I want to get the word out there about the drugs and alcohol. It's it's not a weakness, it's it's so strong, and we're all proud of you if you try. That's all I can say. And there's strength in numbers. By God, deserves strength in numbers, man. So if you find like-minded people, you will excel. You just have to you have to open your eyes and see the opportunities in front of you and seize them as they happen.

Voting Links Donations And Final Definition

SPEAKER_06 58:00

Yeah. Okay, so for someone listening who wants to see your pictures and your story and take a look at the contest and cast a vote. Um where do they go? And then we'll put all these links in the show notes too. And this because the contest is ending. If you're listening live to this podcast, it's ending tonight at what time, Tim?

SPEAKER_02 58:28

Uh 9 p.m. Pacific.

SPEAKER_06 58:31

9 p.m. Pacific. Okay. Um so don't wait to go make your vote. And Tim, where do they go?

SPEAKER_02 58:40

Um, we're going to go to I'm trying to pull up the link. Sounds good. I will read off the link. It is H T T P S S semicolon forward slash, forward slash, M-R-H-E-A-L-T-H-A-A-N-D, F-I-T.com forward slash 2026, forward slash T-I-M-M-C-C-O-R-M-I-C-K.

SPEAKER_06 59:19

And that's Mr. Hammond.com forward slash 26 and then Tim's name.

SPEAKER_02 59:26

That'll take you straight to that'll take you straight to my profile and it should be able to allow you to vote. The contest for free votes is for Facebook members only, unfortunately. Uh, but you are able to vote every 24 hours, and I need every vote I can get, so please help.

SPEAKER_07 59:43

Uh donations can be made.

SPEAKER_02 59:48

Yeah, donations can be made and and depending on the dollar amount as to how many votes I get, um, but they are going to go to the Be Positive Foundation, which helps fight uh childhood cancer, and they also do a lot of research, but they also help uh fund families that are in need of uh monetary to help with the the the the uh cancer treatments and so forth. So it's it's all for a good cause, one way or another. I hope to get my word out there that uh their strength and numbers and recovery is no joke, man. It'll change your life.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:30

So good. Um, and do you have to be on Facebook to make a donation too? You have to be on Facebook, is that right?

SPEAKER_02 1:00:38

You do not have to be on Facebook in order to make a donation. The donation type thing uh is separate.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:46

But will it come on votes for you too?

SPEAKER_02 1:00:48

Yeah, it will it'll pass votes, yeah. It even though you're not logged into Facebook, if you donate, it automatically uh gets registered and the votes the votes come to me.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:59

Okay, so we would love your votes if you've been inspired by Tim's story. And Tim, can they follow your story on Instagram or anywhere else?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:10

They can. I don't I don't have much on Instagram, most of my stuff is Facebook, but I'm trying to learn Instagram and be more visible on there.

SPEAKER_06 1:01:19

Yeah, I think your story could be on there too. Okay, so I will include any and all um links in the show notes so you can go check all of that out. Um Tim, I have one last question for you. What does differently mean to you?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:44

Differently to me is probably the way I live my life now. Differently means to put all of your programming aside, the stuff meaning that the stuff you've learned and the stuff that's not working for you, put that stuff aside and do things differently, no matter what it is. Make changes. If it's not working, make adjustments, do something different, put that first step, make that first step. Quit saying tomorrow, let it be today, let it be now. Put your put your words into action, get on the court instead of sitting in the stands watching life happen, get on the court and make it happen for yourself differently.

SPEAKER_06 1:02:40

That's so beautiful, my friend. Um, I just want to thank you for like sharing your story. I'm honored to share your story, and I'm just so grateful for you, man. I love you and I thank you for being a constant, steadfast friend in our life for so many years.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:02

Well, it's my honor, and uh, I love you guys. I'll be doing it for you guys. And uh anybody needs help.