‘The main lesson learnt is balance’ – BULLETPROOF Co-Founder speaks about body image struggles

Since its foundation just over a year ago, BULLETPROOF CULTURE has achieved something that was pretty much unheard of before it came into the local fitness picture.

By bringing together a plethora of athletes of differing skill sets and areas of expertise, this up-and-coming platform can now offer fitness enthusiasts – irrelevant of their experience – a community to fall back on, learn from, and grow with.

The idea to kickstart BULLETPROOF was birthed, in fact, after Founders Scott Schembri, Adam Sullivan, and Andrew Mercieca became aware of a lacuna in Malta’s fitness community and thus embarked on a journey to revolutionise it for good.

Co-Founder Andrew Mercieca took to social media to detail the struggles he came across throughout his years-long fitness journey; struggles that would’ve been somewhat eased should there have been a strong community to keep him in check.

“Growing up, I was always the chubby kid. I wasn’t comfortable with my body, I lacked motivation to do anything, and my self-esteem was extremely low,” Andrew started.

“I still remember once being so desperate that I had tried to make myself puke after eating, but luckily didn’t manage,” he continued.

It was when Andrew turned 15-years-old that he started to reclaim control over his body.

“I started by going for jogs and watching my diet – but my motivation was low. At the same time I started playing rugby and I found lots of support from the community,” Andrew wrote.

“I had lost my bulk, but I wasn’t happy with the results. I wanted more. I got a gym membership, started to obsess over weight-loss, and came across the INSANITY workout by Shaun T,” he continued.

As Andrew started noticing his efforts paying off, he doubled down on his exercise regime and even adopted a dedicated diet – but he still wasn’t happy.

“I reached my goal, but looking back now, it was the wrong one. I was so obsessed that I often missed out on social events because they didn’t fit my lifestyle,” he confessed.

“As I entered my twenties, I realised that there’s so much more to life than a six-pack. I started to be easier on myself and started to look at fitness in general instead of physique. I felt happier and healthier, but still felt that I was lacking something. I was partying a lot, but still hitting the gym. It wasn’t healthy, but I was getting by,” he said.

That’s when the idea of BULLETPROOF CULTURE came about. The prospect of using his skills to guide and motivate others who were on a similar journey as his intrigued Andrew.

This newfound purpose helped Andrew rethink his attitude towards fitness and thus nurture a healthier relationship with his body.

“Today, I’m not too concerned about how I look, the focus has shifted more onto how I feel. I want to have the energy and strength to do what I want to do and feel comfortable in my own skin but still be able to enjoy my life with friends and family,” Andrew wrote.

“The main lesson learnt is balance. I went from one extreme to the other. Now, I’m safe somewhere in the middle, feeling healthier than I did before; but I’m not perfect. I’ve still got a long way to go,” he concluded.