San Diego --
Most
people have a dream or something they work toward, and it takes determination
and motivation to destroy any obstacle that stands in front of a dream.
Private
Tristan A. McGonagill, Golf Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, had to
find the motivation and will power to shed extreme weight to be eligible to
become a Marine.
McGonagill
lived in Bellville, Texas, with his parents and two brothers. Unlike most
teenagers, he was homeschooled during his high school years.
“When
I first began schooling, I weighed about 265 pounds,” said McGonagill. “Because
I was homeschooled, I never really got the chance to play sports or get a lot
of physical activity, so I became pretty lazy.”
The
young Marine worked at a local grocery store to socialize and to earn some
money.
“I
continued to ignore my weight issue,” said McGonagill. “It was up until my last
year of schooling that I realized I needed to make a change. About a quarter of
the way through my senior year, I had had enough of living the way I was and
being lazy, and I wanted to attain my dream of becoming a Marine.”
McGonagill
was intrigued by the Marine Corps because of its brotherhood and camaraderie,
and from a very young age, he wanted to be a part of it.
He
went to a local Marine Corps recruiter and asked what he needed to do to
enlist.
“When
I went in and talked to the recruiter, he had told me that I needed to get my
weight down to one hundred and ninety-one pounds. I was still just about two
hundred and sixty five pounds,” said the young Marine.
From
that day forward, McGonagill started new diets and workouts to begin getting
rid of the body weight holding him back from being a Marine.
“I
started running twice a day and cutting out most of the bad things from my diet
as well as started weight lifting,” said McGonagill. “At first, I mainly
focused on cardio to get the weight off, so I did things like mountain
climbers, lunges and jumping jacks.”
He
had to change his life in every aspect. He became more active and was very
disciplined about his food choices.
“Eating
was probably the hardest thing to change,” said McGonagill. “I was so used to
eating anything I wanted. Changing that to only small portions only a few times
a day was not an easy task.”
As
time went on, McGonagill was able to run further and lift heavier and he
continued to push himself to the limit. But,
he knew he had not reached where he needed to be. By constantly staying
motivated as well as having help from his recruiter and recruiting station, he
was got closer and closer to his goal every day.
“As
time went on, I noticed the weight slowly withering away, and within six months,
I was down to two hundred and two pounds,” said McGonagill.
When
he went to weigh in at the Military Entrance Processing Station, he was
eligible for a waiver to get him to recruit training.
In
October of 2015, McGonagill became a part of Golf Company, 2nd Recruit Training
Battalion, and began the transformation from civilian to Marine.
According
to the 19-year-old Marine, recruit training was challenging, but nothing he
couldn’t handle. He is prouder than ever to have completed the training and
become a Marine.
While in recruit training, McGonagill lost an additional 24 pounds, totaling over one-hundred pounds all together throughout his journey.
Following
graduation from recruit training, McGonagill will move on to the School of
Infantry in Camp Pendleton, Calif., and then on to his military occupational
specialty school as an amphibious assault vehicle crewman. He hopes to make a
career out of the Marine Corps.
“If
I were to give advice to people who are in the position I used to be in, I
would tell them to never lose sight of their dreams,” said McGonagill. “No
matter how tough it gets, never give up.”