From Obstacles to Opportunities: The Story Behind Making Monsters
When I was a kid I had a fascination with concocting obstacle courses around the house. These artful arrangements of physical challenges were sure to make any opponent a stronger and better athlete. I was sure of this even after a failed attempt at rappelling left me flailing against the side of our front porch, hanging there, connected to the rail only by a dog leash wrapped around my waist. I screamed for my mom to rescue me despite knowing the trouble I’d be in because I was supposed to be using the leash to take the dog for a walk.
My passion for devising innovative ways to improve strength and athleticism never left me, and I am eager to share with the community what I’ve learned over thirty years in the field of athletic strength training and conditioning. I know that more is required to excel in athletics than merely possessing a strong body. It’s important for me to share this knowledge so that others can have a much more streamlined training experience than I did. Particularly youth athletes.
As a youngster, it was my dream to play D1 college ice hockey. I played competitively starting at 6 years old and have a vivid memory of asking my grandfather about ways I could improve my game. I had to be 11 or 12 years old. He told me I needed to get stronger. I had no idea how to do that, so I begged my Uncle Geno, an avid weightlifter and trainer, to let me work out with him. He did, and I was annoying and persistent enough that I ultimately became his favorite training partner up until I left for the Army years later.
Geno was a savage in the weight room and it didn’t take long for the impact of our training to reveal itself in my performance on the ice. I was on a trajectory to achieve my dream of playing D1 hockey, but as many young teens do, I lost my way. Around the age of 16 I shifted the majority of my energy to fitting in socially. But I never stopped training with Geno.
Despite my teen-angst and occasional bouts of self-destruction, I managed to play two years of NJCAA ice hockey at SUNY Broome in upstate NY , and led the team in scoring my second year, but it was clear the NHL wasn’t in my future. In 2003 I signed up to join the United States Army. Always up for a challenge, I signed up for the Green Berets as a 21 year old with no military experience. I had recently seen something on the Discovery Channel about their 24-day selection course. It looked hard, so I set my sights on that.
I completed the Special Forces Assessment and Selection course in 2004 and was invited to join their 12-month training program. I was officially on the road to becoming a Green Beret, but after four months I had to drop out due to a crippling ankle injury.
I had reconstructive surgery on my ankle and later was assigned to the 1/508, an infantry unit in the 82nd Airborne Division, with whom I deployed to Afghanistan from Jan 2007-Apr 2008. I left the Army in July ‘08 with an honorable discharge, a severely damaged ankle, and little real-world experience.
Post-military, I continued to hone my leadership skills over the course of fifteen years of corporate management at companies such as UPS & Amazon. I never stopped training myself and others for a variety of athletic pursuits. CrossFit, BJJ, and distance running to name a few. My Uncle Geno, who passed away in 2007, left me with a wealth of information and an expanding curiosity regarding athletic training methods. So I became an exercise mad scientist and conducted research on myself to learn the best ways for one to become stronger, fitter, and more athletic.
Unfortunately, I damaged that same ankle to the point where I couldn’t walk more than a couple hundred feet without immense pain. Despite this pain I competed in CrossFit in 2017 and 2018, started training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2018, and ran a half-marathon in 2021.
I quit corporate life in 2023 to pursue my passion of providing youth athletes with a combination of physical and mental training to elevate themselves in a way that allows them to experience the joy of being excellent without stressing over the need to excel. I wish for the youth in my community to have the support necessary to achieve their goals. I want to shift the hard lessons I've endured into a feeling of purpose and passion in the youth of my community by helping them get stronger, physically and mentally.
As I get older, I am seeing that there is little in life any of us can be absolutely certain of, but one thing that I do know beyond a doubt is the value of a quality athletic strength and conditioning program for young athletes. Focusing solely on sport-specific technique, as many do, is not enough. However pairing technique work with a quality and relevant strength and conditioning program elevates a young athlete’s ceiling exponentially. It gives him an earned confidence, and a respectful humility that comes from hard work that leads to reward.
I know that because I lived it. Way back when I started training with my uncle I was a timid hockey player. I can still recall the reluctance and self-consciousness I often felt on the ice. After just a year of training my grandfather raved about how much stronger I looked after watching one of my games. After two years I didn’t need anyone to tell me, because I felt invincible. I felt confident. I had put in the work, the sweat equity, and I was rewarded for the effort.
I would be honored to help your son or daughter feel that pride, that sense of accomplishment. I am currently launching my own youth strength and conditioning program, Making Monsters, and would love to expand our program to reach as many young athletes as possible. Come visit us. Have your child try a free session. Give them the opportunity to take part in a program that will ignite their passion and performance in ways they didn’t know were possible.
And I promise, no one will be rappelling with a dog leash.
Mike DeAngelo
Founder, Making Monsters