Jared Wells of Utica, New York has been fighting for his life ever since the moment he was born. Jared was born with cystic fibrosis, which is a genetic disease that causes persistent lung problems and limits the ability to breathe over time.

Things got even worse for Jared when he was diagnosed with lung cancer, and this five year battle left him incredibly thin and drawn.

Despite everything he had been through, Jared had no intention of giving up. When he was 21, a little voice in Jared’s head told him to fight harder than ever to get healthy.

“I had given up on life,” Jared wrote on Instagram. “I refused to do any of my treatments and medicine and said ‘it’s time to end this fight.’ Or so I thought. Something inside me said f**k that! We’re not done here we have so much more to do.”

When Jared was finally cleared to exercise back in the spring, his best friend Vinny Donnelly brought him to Body Alive, a gym owned by his dad Bob Donnelly. There, the two friends came up with a plan to help Jared bulk up like he never had before.

Five days after Jared started training at Body Alive, Bob posted photos of him on social media. Much to everyone’s surprise, the photos quickly went viral.

“We expected it to get the maybe 200 likes that the page usually gets, then all of a sudden it was getting thousands,” Bob said. “It’s kind of exciting, and it’s all been really positive.”

In just 56 days, Jared was able to transform his body, and he looks completely different now!

Jared’s self esteem has grown exponentially since he began this journey, and he is now trying to help other people get in shape the way he did.

“I’m gonna keep this short and simple,” he said. “To those of you in the darkness right now. I’ve been there. I know what it’s like being stuck in your own head day after day. It’s exhausting but please continue your fight! I promise it will get better. It may not get better today or the day after but if you keep fighting and keep pushing you will find something that makes it all worth it!”

Jared’s goal is to become a professional bodybuilder, and we would not be surprised at all if he accomplished this goal!

Find out more about this incredible young man in the video below.