When Paul Katami was faced with a potentially crippling medical condition and little hope, he didn't get mad—he invented his own workout equipment to rehabilitate himself

We all have a story, every single one of us. Some are of heartbreak or dreams left unfulfilled. Others are of love or achievement. But the one thing all our stories have in common—is the power of choice. Paul Katami’s story starts off like many others in Hollywood: A young, fresh-faced student abandons his business studies to pursue his passion for acting. Where it settles today, however, is a completely different story.

“I could have easily ended up addicted to OxyContin and Percocet and spent years in litigation,” Paul reflects. “Life is about choices.” Even at his weakest, after a botched corrective surgery, five months of excruciating pain, no use of his left arm and little hope of ever regaining it, he decided that anger would not serve him well. “I channeled it into determination,” he states emphatically. It was that determination, and a little serendipity, that stirred a workout craze and made Paul, now 34, a national fitness star on the rise.

ONCE UPON A TIME…
Picture it: Santa Clara University, 1990. It’s 6:00 a.m. and the fitness studio is filled with sleepy sorority girls wearing oversized sweatshirts and last night’s makeup. In the back row stretches Paul Katami, warming up for the morning step class. After a while, the regularly scheduled instructor fails to show up, and being a budding professional, Paul knows that the show must go on. So he marches to the front of the room, takes the step, and teaches the class himself. A star is born!

“It was the first class I ever taught,” he says, laughing about the incident. “I’ve always loved fitness.

FOLLOWING A NEW PATH
Building on his interests of acting and fitness, after he graduated, Paul made the move from the tranquil Bay Area to bustling Los Angeles, where he enrolled in UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television. “Were you motivated by your starring role as the step instructor?” I ask.

“No,” he chuckles. “I just knew that if I was going to do this, I should do it while I can.” Paul received some early encouragement, as acting roles came quickly. His very first part was as a waiter in the successful teen sitcom Saved By The Bell. It continued with parts in the Geffen Playhouse’s production of Love! Valour! Compassion! as well as a pilot for MTV. At the same time, Paul joined Diavolo, a Cirque du Soleil-style troupe.