Express: You were a Navy SEAL. How did BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) training help you develop the FitDeck programs?
Phil Black: As SEALs, we had to become very good at using our own bodies to stay in shape. We were deployed on ships, submarines, in remote areas of the world with no access to gyms. We became very resourceful at using ourselves as our gym. This knowledge and expertise played a big role in creating the FitDeck workout. Even now, I find it hard to get to the gym to workout. My primary means of staying fit is with FitDeck. It becomes a lifestyle choice.

Express: How long did it take you to come up with all of the games and activities in the FitDeck Jr. "Fitness Games and Activities Booklet"?
It took several months, a lot of brainstorming, and input from users across the country to come up with these games and activities.

Express: Did you have help from any kids testing out the activities?
Phil Black:Yes. We did a lot of experimenting with children and saw what they liked and what they didn't like.

Express: Do you go to schools to talk about FitDeck Jr.? If so, what activities do the students like the most?
Phil Black:Yes. Students love to get the opportunity to 'pick their own card' and demonstrate the exercise to the group. They compare what cards they picked to what others picked. Of course, they love when they pick a wild card.

Express: Growing up, was exercise/athleticism important in your family?
Phil Black:Not in particular, I was a basketball player in high school and college [Black was a power forward on the Yale Varsity team for four years], so I was always in pretty good shape. I really found my calling after my SEAL training.

Photo courtesy Phil Black A FitDeck® card

Express: Do you think there is a connection between athleticism and academics? Has one influenced the other in your experience?
Phil Black:I think the discipline and challenge are similar in both areas. Once you experience the payoff of hard work, either in sports or in academics, it becomes an addiction. You always want to outdo yourself.

Express: What sport/athletic activity have you never tried that you would most like to try now?
Phil Black:I'd like to play beach volleyball. I love the beach and volleyball, but I've never had the opportunity to put both together.

Express: Do you use the FitDeck cards every day?
Phil Black:I use FitDeck every day in some form or fashion. I am currently a San Diego Firefighter, and I use FitDeck all the time at the station. We don't have time to get involved in complicated workouts or go to fancy gyms. We have to use what's available at the station. I take out the FitDeck cards on the garage floor and get my workout in.

Express: Do you and your wife use FitDeck Jr. at home with your children?
Phil Black:Yes. While our twin boys are only three-and-a-half years old, we are starting them early with a habit of exercise. We have built FitDeck Jr. exercises into their nightly routine. Brush teeth, [read] books, [exercise using ]FitDeck Jr., [go to] sleep.

Express: You have been a banker, money manager, Navy SEAL Officer, inventor, Certified Personal Trainer and Emergency Medical Technician and Firefighter. What have you enjoyed most?
Phil Black:I think being a SEAL Officer was the most fun and challenging.

Express: What do you do now?
Phil Black:Along with my job as a Firefighter (10 days a month), I run FitDeck. I'm an entrepreneur and loving every minute of it. We have so many projects in development that we'll be kept busy for the next 10 years.

Express: What other career titles or "hats" do you think you might wear someday?
Phil Black:I'd love to be a coach, artist, philanthropist, Cub Scout Leader, motivational speaker, inventor, Ironman triathlete, "Guinness Book of World Records" holder, author, and lots more.

Express: When you say "artist" - what type of art interests you?
Phil Black:I like a lot of art. I like to draw, sketch, paint, and build things. I'd love to try sculpture some day. Anything using my hands.

Express: Besides exercise and work, what other things do you like to do?
Phil Black:I spend a lot of time with my family. We eat breakfast and dinner together every day. I build things around the house with the boys. I like to do anything outside. I hope to become very involved in my children's lives as they grow up.

Photo courtesy Phil Black A classroom enjoying the FitDeck Jr.® system

Express: Tell us something about yourself that we would be surprised to discover.
Phil Black:I'm the tallest Navy SEAL in history. Technically, the height limit is 6'6", but the doctor was so small during my physical that he allowed me to measure myself. Of course, I told him that I was 6'6" (not 6'7").

Express: You have been successful at several things -- you have degrees from two prestigious universities (Yale and Harvard), a successful business background and you were a Navy SEAL officer and instructor. What is the common thread behind those successes?
Phil Black:I think the most common threads are "vision" and "discipline." I've had the good fortune of having very vivid pictures of what I wanted my life to be like. Once that picture is clear, I have been able to maintain an uncommon discipline to get there.

Express: Of all your accomplishments, of which are you most proud?
Phil Black:I am most proud of the success of FitDeck. Not even six months after business school, I left a high-paying, prestigious job at Goldman Sachs. At the time, I had racked up serious school debt, we had just given birth to twin boys, and moved to San Francisco. My wife and I basically decided to pack the family up, put our life's belongings into a U-Haul (including the three-month-old twins) and head to San Diego. We didn't have a job, a place to live, any friends or family. We put it all on the line to start FitDeck. Our accomplishment to date has been a true entrepreneurial story of grit and perseverance.