Kalispell man's incredible journey lands him spot on American Ninja Warrior

Sitting in his living room watching American Ninja Warrior with his daughters more than 10 years ago, Eric Robbins never dreamed that he would one day face the TV show’s intimidating obstacles as Kalispell’s “Death-Defying Ninja.”

For Robbins, who turns 50 in June, the selection to compete as one of the oldest contestants in the history of the hit NBC show is not nearly as miraculous as the journey it took to get him there in the first place.

Those who knew Robbins as little as four years ago would struggle to recognize him today. Muscled and fit now, just a few short years ago the 5 foot 9 Robbins weighed in at 275 pounds as he navigated his way through corporate jobs around the country.

“There was a lot of travel, bad eating out and entertaining clients. Of course, it was my decision what I was eating, but my job didn’t make it easy,” he said. “My heartbeat would sometimes wake me up in the middle of the night making me think someone was knocking at my front door. I knew something wasn’t right with me, but I didn’t know how bad it was.”

When his wife asked him to visit the doctor to check out a strange freckle on his back, Robbins relented and made an appointment. It was a decision that would not only change his life, it was also one that more than likely saved it.

After the nurse took vitals from Robbins, she quickly left the room in search of the doctor.

When he arrived, the doctor shocked Robbins when he asked him to surrender his car keys.

“I thought it was a joke, but I handed them over.” Robbins said. “When he told me my blood pressure was 206/138 and that he couldn’t legally allow me to drive, that got my attention.”

After a frank discussion during which the doctor told him that if he continued down this road, Robbins would be unlikely to survive long enough to see his youngest children graduate from junior high school, the physician prescribed Robbins the highest dose of blood pressure meds he could and told him he would be on them for the rest of his life.

“The doctor told me he didn’t understand how I was even there. He said that when he saw people with blood pressure this high they were almost always in the emergency room or the ICU. He told me I was lucky that I had been given a second chance to make it right, but it was going to be a long road,” Robbins said. “I suddenly had flashes of my grandparents and my parents having all of their pills lined up, needing prescriptions to fix the effects of other prescriptions to the point where you forget what the original medicine was even for. I didn’t want that to be me.”

After waiting for his blood pressure to drop to acceptable levels, Robbins made a quick stop to pick up his new prescription and then headed home, where the reality of the situation set in.

“That was my wakeup call. I went home, opened the door and just started crying,” he said. “I told my wife that I couldn’t do it. I had tried every diet under the sun for 20 years and none of them ever worked. I knew I had to make a change.”

REMEMBERING A friend who had recently lost more than 50 pounds, Robbins gave the man a call. It was another decision that would forever change his life.

Robbins made the choice to adopt the same principles that helped his friend lose weight, a program that focused on a healthy mindset and cultivating good habits.

“It wasn’t my diet,” he said. “It was all in my brain. It was all about my relationship with food.”

The results were immediate.

Thirty days later, his doctor was in for a surprise when Robbins showed up for his followup visit 20 pounds lighter with his blood pressure down more than 40 points. When the doctor commented that he had never seen blood pressure medicine have such an effect so quickly, Robbins shocked him again when he admitted he had not taken any of the medicine prescribed to him. In fact, he kept the bottle on his desk as a reminder of how his life could have wound up.

In all, Robbins lost 100 pounds in just seven months while also lowering his blood pressure by more than 70 points.

AFTER several friends and family members asked how Robbins had managed such a radical transformation, he decided to give up his corporate career and pursue a future in helping others achieve their health goals.

“People kept asking me how I had done it. They all knew me as this heavy, bald, happy but really overweight guy and suddenly everyone saw me shrinking,” Robbins said. “What I found was a huge need, for guys especially, who wanted to take control of their own health.”

As a full-time health coach, Robbins founded Health ReLaunch LLC, through which he has helped more than 2,300 people to a healthier life while also training more than 160 coaches to help teach his system around the country.

DESPITE HIS success, Robbins would continually find his mind returning to those evenings on the couch with his kids watching American Ninja Warrior.

“I was the dude with a beer in one hand and pizza in the other, watching our show while I snuggled with my girls on the couch. They would say I needed to apply to be on the show, but I would play it off with a laugh knowing how out of shape I was,” he recalled. “I thought about how cool it would be if I could tell them I went back and filled out the application and officially applied. I never thought I would ever actually get on the show.”

In November of last year, Robbins and his family celebrated when he told them he had officially applied for the show. While Robbins continued to train, he never expected the phone call that came at 6:58 p.m on Jan. 20.

Robbins was preparing for a Zoom training session with some of his coaches across the country when his phone started ringing that evening. When he glanced down to check the caller ID, his heart stopped. The screen read: Universal Studios - California.

Unable to take the call, Robbins texted the number back hoping they would agree to call him back after the Zoom meeting ended. To his immense relief, a return text came through agreeing to call him back an hour later.

When the call came in, Robbins spoke with a casting member from NBC who informed him that he had been selected to be a contestant on season 14 of American Ninja Warrior.

After a loud celebratory scream, Robbins and the producer worked out the details of his journey to San Antonio to compete at the AlamoDome March 22.

KNOWING HE had just weeks to prepare, Robbins intensified his training, setting up a new workout regimen with The Summit/Logan Fitness in Kalispell while also traveling to ninja gyms across the country to learn how to deal with the different kinds of obstacles he might encounter on the show.

“On the random chance that I actually made it on the show, I didn’t want to be ‘that guy’ who made the show and then bombed on the first step,” Robbins said. “I think the total unknown of the obstacles was the toughest thing to face while getting ready. There are like 150 obstacles that they use, and they are adding new ones all the time. You don’t know anything going in and you only get to see the course minutes before you have to attempt it. There are no practice runs.”

While he cannot give out any details, Robbins says the taping went very well and should be aired sometime in May. He has also announced that he will be traveling to Los Angeles in April to continue his American Ninja Warrior journey, whether that’s as a contestant or to cheer on

his new Ninja family.

A watch party at Brass Tap in Kalispell is being planned for when the episode featuring Robbins is aired.

For the man who shocked his doctor, friends and family with his transformation, the surprises just keep coming.

“I’m just going to keep enjoying the journey,” he said. “I’m going to enjoy it every step of the way.”

Reporter Jeremy Weber can be reached at 758-4446 or jweber@dailyinterlake.com