This week we sit down with my dad, Al Couden.

45 years as an electrician… and plenty of battle scars to show for it — including a fractured skull and a blown knee (ACL, MCL, PCL all at once). He was always active through work, but never followed a structured training program until about a year and a half ago.

After losing my younger brother and his youngest son, everything shifted. What started as a way to cope has turned into something way bigger — fitness becoming a shared outlet that’s brought our family closer than ever. Now it’s a multi-generational thing we do together… from the gym to family trips in Puerto Rico with the kids.

We talk about what it’s like starting in your late 60s, building better habits around food and drinking, and stepping into the unknown — including signing up for his first-ever fitness event: a HYROX relay with my mom, Coach Drake’s dad, and Missy Biddell.

Real perspective. Real growth. Real family.