About Me

ALOHA, MY NAME IS DANIEL PŌHAKU VOUTSAS. I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN HAWAI’I AND ATTENDED KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOLS. AT THE AGE OF EIGHT, I EMBARKED ON MY ATHLETIC JOURNEY AS A GYMNAST, WINNING MULTIPLE GOLD MEDALS IN VARIOUS EVENTS. I LATER BEGAN COMPETING IN TRACK AND FIELD IN HIGH SCHOOL. DURING MY OFF-SEASON TRAINING, I STARTED CROSSFIT TO BUILD STRENGTH AND ENHANCE MY OVERALL PERFORMANCE. I DEDICATED MYSELF TO CROSSFIT AND OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING, WHICH LED TO A FULL ACADEMIC AND ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIP TO MENLO COLLEGE TO COMPETE AS AN OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING ATHLETE.

DURING MY COMPETITION YEARS, I SUFFERED SEVERE BACK INJURIES THAT LEFT ME IN CRITICAL CONDITION AND UNABLE TO WALK WITHOUT PAIN. I EXPERIENCED A DISC EXTRUSION AT L4, L5, AND S1, AND MULTIPLE SURGEONS ADVISED IMMEDIATE SURGERY, TELLING ME I WOULD NEVER WALK PAIN-FREE AGAIN. THEY STATED THAT SURGERY CARRIED A 50/50 CHANCE OF SUCCESS BUT GUARANTEED I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO COMPETE AGAIN.

REFUSING TO ACCEPT THIS AS MY FATE, I SPENT COUNTLESS HOURS RESEARCHING THE SPINE, PHYSIOLOGY, AND PSYCHOLOGY OF THE HUMAN BODY AND MIND. I WAS TALKING WITH SPECIALISTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD, LEARNING FROM PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES WHO OVERCAME EVEN MORE SEVERE INJURIES, AND EDUCATING MYSELF ON TECHNIQUE/TRAINING/RECOVERY. THIS BATTLE WAS MENTAL AS MUCH AS IT WAS PHYSICAL. I BEGAN READING BOOKS, LISTENING TO PODCASTS, WATCHING DOCUMENTARIES, AND TAKING CLASSES ON FORTIFYING MY MIND. I WAS TAKING STEPS DAY BY DAY TO HEAL AND COME BACK STRONGER THAN BEFORE. FROM THIS WHOLE PROCESS, I HAVE GAINED A BETTER ABILITY TO NAVIGATE THROUGH LIFE THROUGH MY NEVER-ENDING LEARNING OF THE BODY, MIND, AND SOUL.

WITHIN MY TRAINING PROGRAM IS A METHODOLOGY OF STRATEGIC TRAINING AND RECOVERY THROUGH DEVELOPING MENTALLY, PHYSICALLY, AND SPIRITUALLY. WHATEVER ENDEAVOR I TAKE ON, I GIVE MY ALL TO GET THE BEST RESULTS. A MOTTO I CONSTANTLY REMIND MYSELF IS “HOW YOU DO ANYTHING IS HOW YOU DO EVERYTHING”. THIS REMINDS ME TO NOT TAKE SHORTCUTS, AND LEAVE NO ROOM FOR BEING UNPREPARED. I AM CONSTANTLY LEARNING AND GROWING MYSELF IN ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE AND WILL CONTINUE TO DISPLAY THAT PROCESS THROUGH MY SOCIAL PLATFORMS. I AM EXCITED FOR YOU TO BEGIN YOUR TRAINING AND JOIN THIS JOURNEY OF SELF-MASTERY WITH YOU.