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I’m a big guy. I’ve been lifting weights for ten years. I look intimidating, I guess. I was at Planet Fitness doing bench presses. I noticed a kid in the corner. He was maybe 16, really overweight. He was looking around like he was terrified someone was going to laugh at him. He walked over to the dumbbells, picked up the lightest ones, and did a few awkward curls. He stopped, looked in the mirror, and hung his head. He was about to leave. He looked like he was about to quit before he even started. I racked my weights and walked over to him. He flinched when he saw me coming. He thought I was going to make fun of him. 'Hey man,' I said. He looked down. 'I’m leaving, sorry.' 'No,' I said. 'I was just gonna say, your form is a little off. You’re gonna hurt your back.' I picked up a weight. 'Tuck your elbows. Like this. Slow down.' He copied me. 'There you go,' I grinned. 'That’s the muscle working.' We trained together for an hour. I showed him the ropes. At the end, he wiped the sweat off his forehead. 'I almost walked out,' he admitted. 'I felt stupid.' 'We all started somewhere,' I told him. 'I used to be 50 pounds heavier than you. The only bad workout is the one you didn't do.' He’s been my gym partner for six months now. He’s down 40 pounds. Strength isn't about how much you can lift. It’s about lifting others up with you.