April 30, 2014 | Vol. 3 | Issue 2
DAILY DIGEST
Finding the Motivation
Nimitz Sailor challenges himself to improve Story and photos by MCSN (SW) Aiyana Paschal
H
e is a tall man, over six feet tall. He looks fit, not someone you would suspect of failing a physical readiness test (PRT) because of a body composition assessment (BCA). But that’s just what happened less than two years ago. A few PRT cycles have passed since his failure in October 2012, when Electrician’s Mate 2nd Class Quinton A. McDonald from Clinton, S.C., now a Sailor on board Nimitz, was his heaviest at 223 pounds. “When I failed my BCA,
it was a huge eye-opener for me,” said McDonald. “Not only for my naval career but in my life as well.” The biggest mistake McDonald came to realize he had made was not properly managing his time. “My time-management skills were there but they weren’t where I needed them to be,” he said. “I took more care of the command than I did myself, and in the end I only ended up hurting myself.” The day after McDonald found out he failed his BCA he started making the decisions
that would lead him to a healthier and more positive lifestyle. He now stands at a healthy 188 pounds and is preparing to run a marathon. “I changed what I ate,” he said. “I started making more time to get in the gym and added more days out of the week. I started making tasks and goals for myself and working toward them. Not only physically, but in all aspects of my life.” McDonald believes that only you can make the change to lead a healthy lifestyle, but finding the right people to Continued on page 4