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Derek Weida is a courageous warrior on the battlefield. On June 23, 2007, he led a team of soldiers to raid a base in Iraq, forever altering his life.
As the leader of the raid team, Derek Weida was the first to infiltrate the insurgent-held base, but they were alerted before his entry, preparing weapons in advance.
Sergeant Derek during his military days
Despite the failed mission, Derek Weida suffered a severe knee injury that proved incurable despite the relentless efforts of doctors.
Derek Weida embarked on the darkest years of his life
As a result of this accident, Derek Weida was forced to leave the military and endured the darkest days of his life. The former soldier drowned his sorrows in alcohol, knowing only the solace of liquor and contemplating suicide on numerous occasions.
However, another turning point continued to reshape his life once again. In January 2011, he received an invitation to participate in Mudder Tough – an obstacle course race with a military-style twist.
Mudder Tough is an obstacle course race with a military-style twist.
Initially, Derek Weida saw it as a joke because competing in Mudder Tough is one of the toughest challenges in the world. Participants must endure many difficult challenges such as swimming in mud, jumping over fire, or even... getting electrocuted. It's hard enough for a healthy person, let alone someone with a disability like him.
“I don't know why, but I want to participate in this competition” – Derek shared. He spent 6 months preparing for this competition and he demonstrated it through a 14-mile race in Beaver Creek, Colo.
He also underwent an upper body strength training session quite easily and led a group of 24 people to cross the finish line in 4 hours.
Despite having only one leg, he and his teammates still completed this competition.
After the competition, Derek asked his doctors to amputate his irreparable leg, and this time, the doctors agreed to his request.
“My disabled leg before couldn't be fixed and it couldn't make my life any better, I couldn't do anything to improve it. But now, with a prosthetic leg, I can completely change my life,” Derek shared.
Embarking on a new, more passionate future.
However, that competition was just the beginning, and to keep motivation for Weida,
After enduring that challenging competition, Derek Weida found a new joy for himself, which is the gym. Unlike the previous dull appearance, the former soldier is now known to millions through workout videos to inspire others in their gym routines.
“Mudder Tough has changed my life once again, through it, I forgot despair and thanks to it, I came to the gym – where I can overcome insecurities and conquer myself” Derek shared.
To continue keeping Derek motivated, his friend Endsley signed both of them up for the 2nd Mudder Tough competition – a grueling 8-hour challenge where they had to push through with their team. And he truly became an inspiration to many.
Realizing his ability to inspire others, Derek Weida set a goal to train in the gym to recover. Derek Weida enlisted Endsley's help to create a non-profit program aimed at helping other veterans find motivation to overcome like he did.
Bringing strong values to the community
And the non-profit project The Next Objective was approved, and every month he trains with 50-70 people at his gym. With the help, he produced a simple T-Shirt line called Straight Legless and used the proceeds to build a gym for veterans, hoping it will be completed soon.
Following that, Derek Weida created short workout clips and posted them on social media to inspire others and promote the Straight Legless brand. The video titled “Losing Weight with Derek Weida” went viral on social media with over 6.5 million views and more than 40,000 emails sent for advice. And not stopping there, he released another video titled “Welcome to Legless Part 2” which also gained significant attention.
Derek Weida also participated in a CrossFit competition alongside other fit athletes and was sponsored by a supplement company, 1st Phorm.
“Many years ago, I didn't think I could be where I am today, we can't see what's ahead of us, but if we keep moving forward, eventually we'll get what we need. If we stop and give up, we'll never find the next things for our lives,” Derek Weida said.
Below is a workout video by Derek Weida
And finally, here are some pictures of him.
Posted by: Tan Pham
Keywords: Derek Weida – From disabled veteran to a gym motivation icon
