Over time, I learned to appreciate the body I was given and found that with hard work and a little faith and dedication I could compete with bigger, faster, stronger and more talented kids and, more important, that I could enjoy athletics regardless of the outcome. But I also learned very quickly that not everybody has such a supportive family and not everybody has access to gyms, fields and parks -- and not everybody has an interest in sports or fitness.

Fitness for social animals
In 2004, I created Punk Rope as a means for reaching the athletically disenfranchised and those who have rejected the gym, fitness, moving and, in many cases, their own bodies. I wanted to give to those who are less fortunate than I, and to share the joys of fitness and sport.

The key elements of my fitness philosophy are play, community and music. Punk Rope incorporates all of the above.

Our classes are thematic because, after all, it's a lot more fun to imagine you're James Bond on skis or a Super Bowl quarterback or a great white shark than it is to do squats and lunges without a story line. We weave group activities, games and relay races into the class and organize numerous gatherings, outings and happy hours. We do all of this because, at his core, man is a social animal seeking to connect, and when we find a playmate or two or three, all of a sudden it's not such a chore to exercise. And we play a wide range of foot-stomping, toe-tapping, raise-the-roof music from around the world, because a great song with a great beat leaves you with no choice but to move, and move fast.

When it comes to fitness classes, folks tend to focus on caloric expenditure and tangible results. Will the workout make me thinner, faster, stronger, more beautiful? I suppose Punk Rope can do all of those things, but at the risk of being overly sappy, what we're most proud of is how many smiles we've put on the faces of our students, how many days we've brightened, and how much stress we've relieved.

"Keep on moving"
For me, the highlights of this journey are not how many classes we've launched or how much press we've received, but the weekly hugs from students like Zadith Rivero in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York; the punk rope relay race kids' "art" on the wall of the Four Rivers YMCA in Washington, Missouri; the smiles of the children at events like Recess by the River and the Bronx River Festival; a kiss on the cheek before class from Melissa Ledner's grandma, who can also still jump a mean rope; and the shout-outs at live shows from the Koffin Kats, Kung Fu Monkeys and other bands we love.

My dream is for all of you to fall in love with moving and fitness as much as I have and to find whatever it takes to get your motor running. I get some of my inspiration from George Bernard Shaw, who said: "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." And I also try to heed the advice of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who said: "If you can't fly, run; if you can't run, walk; if you can't walk, crawl. But by all means, keep on moving."