CEO Message: Why I Built SWOLE

---

I was gearing up to deploy overseas in the middle of COVID when the thought hit me.
I was playing a game where you create a character, grind for hours, and pour in time and money just to make them stronger. That character wasn’t real. But the effort was.

That’s when I asked myself:
Why are we working so hard to level up fake versions of ourselves... while neglecting the real one?

That question never left me.

 I took it to my friend and co-founder, Christopher Polynice.
“What if we built a social platform that worked like a game, but the progress was real this time?”
That was the seed. SWOLE was the answer.

At first, I built SWOLE for myself. I needed it.

I’ve always been in sports like football and wrestling, but I’ve also been that chunky kid in the back, struggling with consistency. Some days, the gym felt like a reward. Other days, like punishment. I hit slumps. I skipped workouts. I coasted.

SWOLE gave me something I didn’t even know I needed: a reason to show up. A scorecard that mattered.
It became a mirror, not just for my body, but for my mindset.

It also helped me walk away from the noise.
I deleted all my social media four years ago.
Tired of the fake. Tired of the filters. Tired of watching people perform for likes, while I felt more disconnected than ever.

SWOLE is different. It isn’t about how you look.
It’s about how you move. How you grow. How you fight through the mess and show up for yourself, one day at a time.

This app isn’t here to entertain you.
It’s here to elevate you.
Mentally. Physically. Socially.

Even with no investors or additional funding
We're still building. Still believing.
Because this mission is bigger than me.

 SWOLE is for the athlete.
The weekend warrior.
The introvert who grinds in silence.
The person who wants to post their gym wins and actually be celebrated for it.

This is the platform for those who are tired of scrolling and ready to start climbing.

We’re building community through movement.
Not just to compete, but to connect.
To challenge. To rise. To level up.

If we get this right, SWOLE won’t just be another app.
It will be the start of something new.
A revolution in how we show up for ourselves and each other.

And believe me, we're just getting started.