By Caleb Hellerman

Mark Wooten, 41, was devastated when his supervisor told him in November that he was being laid off from his job as a forklift operator in Norfolk, Virginia. It was the first time in his adult life he'd been out work; just a month earlier, he and his wife Caprice had moved into a new apartment with their two 15-year-old daughters.

"It's hard," Mark said. "We've made tremendous cutbacks."

When the Wootens sat down to plan a survival strategy, they agreed to make big changes. But there was one unconventional change: They hit the gym with a vengeance.
Caprice, 40, a hospital technician, had been struggling to stick with an exercise routine. With time to spare, Mark told her he would lend a hand; he needed to work off his own stress.
"Me being out of work and trying to file for unemployment, going through hard times and tribulations -- I told [Caprice], 'You can be my inspiration, and I can be yours. We'll keep each other motivated, even on days we don't want nothing to do with the gym,' " Mark said.