FRISCO, Texas – Before a routine training session with their teammates, FC Dallas players Chris Seitz, Tesho Akindele, and Ryan Hollingshead were put to the test in the gym, and had a couple of special guests working out alongside them, and found new motivation.
On this particular afternoon, they did bicep curls, push-ups, and rope workouts with the athletes from Adaptive Training Foundation (ATF), a fitness sanctuary that’s dedicated to restoring hope through movement to those with physical impairment by creating opportunities for adaptive athletes to train and compete.
After retiring from the NFL, five-year veteran David Voborafounded a for-profit gym to offer training to elite athletes. It wasn’t until meeting U.S. Army Staff Sergeant, and quadruple amputee, Travis Mills in 2014, that he found new inspiration. “I just walked up to him and had this gut instinct to ask him to work out with me.” And thus, David found a new purpose and passion and created ATF. “What this is for these vets is a new ridge line. It’s camaraderie. I recognize quickly that my NFL players that were working out, they lost all their excuses. And everyone championed each other in the gym.”
Marine veteran Blake Watson is one of the athletes that trains under David, and got to workout alongside FC Dallas players. “It was kinda cool to welcome them into our world and show them how we take regular workouts and adapted them so that, no matter what your injuries are, who you are, you can still get a great workout.”
Ryan Hollingshead, who rehabilitated his way back to full health after breaking three vertebrae in January found new inspiration after talking to and working alongside some of the athletes. “I think too often I can get in the mindset of ‘oh man, I’m still not at 100%. I’m still not all the way back. My fitness isn’t there.’ And these guys don’t make excuses. They just keep working, keep coming to the gym, keep working out. And I need to have that similar mindset.”
It’s impossible to be around David Vobera and the ATF athletes and not feel empowered and inspired. “I can really say I’ve never really had a bad day at the office after these guys,” said Tesho Akindele. “And they just keep pushing. All of them had such a positive outlook on life.”
And while he wore a different kind of uniform in the Marines, Blake Watson knows the brotherhood that this kind of environment can create. “The locker room mentality, the camaraderie, it’s the same thing as the military. You get to know each other, everyone’s background, and we all bond together through sweat.”
The team will welcome back David Vobora and his athletes to Toyota Stadium on Saturday, July 4th as guests, in honor of military appreciation night. To help support the warriors of ATF and their mission, you can pledge $5 for every FC Dallas shot on goal with The Drive app.
