PJ Boehm

How one motivated guy turned a difficult family situation into motivation and won the 2023 Holiday Shred Challenge.

Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD

Updated March 28, 2024

It’s amazing what can be accomplished in only six weeks. For PJ Boehm, the accomplishment took the form of completely changing his body and winning my 2023 Holiday Shred Challenge — including a $5,000 grand prize.

What does it take to achieve something so great? For PJ, it took some added motivation, a top-notch exercise and nutrition resource in JimStoppani.com, and the best damn training partner a guy could ever ask for.

PJ’s Driving Force

Coming up on the Holiday Shred Challenge in the fall of ‘23, PJ was as determined as ever to get in the best shape of his life. His motivation was very close to home. In fact, it was literally at his home: his brother Carl had been diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer earlier in the year, at age 38.

“When I started the challenge, I knew that I had to be all in,” says PJ. “I had done other challenges previously, but this time around was different. Carl was out in the Swole Barn (home gym) with me 4-5 days a week. He was my training partner throughout and still is now, and he’s the most inspirational person I've ever had the pleasure of training with.”

Having someone to work out with helps provide accountability, but in PJ’s case, it also provided perspective and inspiration.

“My brother Carl has shown me that no matter what life throws at you, it’s all about having a positive outlook on life,” says PJ. “And if you want something in this life, you have to go get it. Life is too short not to take full advantage of your situation and give it your all. That has been my biggest motivator to really get after it.”

Results in Only 6 Weeks

In just over a month following my HIIT 100 program during the challenge, PJ lost an impressive 14 pounds of body fat (from 212 pounds down to 198) and got absolutely chiseled. As it turned out, his third time was a charm.

“This was my third time completing a Jim Stoppani ‘Shred Challenge,’” says PJ, whose goal coming into the challenge was to get below 200 pounds. “Each time I had completed one of the challenges, I grew in strength and knowledge due to the different training techniques I learned by following Jim's elaborate training programs to a T.”

Training is just one piece of the puzzle. Results truly start to compound when one of my nutrition plans is combined with the workouts.

“Although I got stronger with each program that I completed,” says PJ, “I got by far my best results when I got serious with my diet. I read through Jim's Dieting 101 multiple times just to make sure I understood what needed to be done. I also read through his Reach Your Peak article multiple times, which I had heard people talk about on the JYM ARMY Facebook page. I followed that to a T for the final two weeks of the Holiday Shred Challenge. The key ingredient for me to hit my dieting goals was the meal prep that I did every week for the six weeks during the challenge — and I am still doing it to this day.”

To help maximize his workout performance, recovery, and, ultimately, his results, PJ took Pro JYM, Pre JYM, Post JYM, Vita JYM, Omega JYM, and ZMA JYM (all of which can be found at JYMSupps.com) every day during the challenge.

Progress, Not Perfection

If you think winning a contest like the Holiday Shred Challenge requires perfection, it doesn’t. PJ had his struggles along the way, and not every workout was perfect.

“The challenge wasn’t easy for me. It was hard work. There’s no sugar-coating that,” he says. “Not every single workout was 100%, but in the end, I didn’t miss a single day. The bottom line is that it's all about consistency. You’ve just got to see where you are, visualize where you want to be, and be ready to put in the work.”

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