Personal Journeys: Strong body, steely resolve

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Photos: How a skinny kid with dyslexia survived a gunshot wound to realize his lifelong dream of becoming an entrepreneur.

Patrick Whaley, founder and CEO of Titin, a line of weighted workout gear, returns to the dimly lit parking lot in Midtown where he was robbed and shot in the chest in 2009. He credits his Eagle Scout training for helping him keep calm.

Patrick spent 17 days in Grady Memorial Hospital recovering from his injuries, which included a pierced lung, grazed liver and the loss of 60 percent of his blood.

Despite losing a quarter of his lung in the shooting, doctors say Patrick has no physical restrictions, as demonstrated by his flipping a 600-pound tire during a CrossFit workout behind his office in Alpharetta.

Bulking up muscle has been a lifelong quest for Patrick, shown here at age 5 in 1992.

Patrick won the 2010 in Venture Prize and People's Choice Award at Georgia Tech for an early version of his Titin workout gear, then called Omega Wear.

Patrick, right, with his Duluth High School swim coach Jim Reason around 2005. A late-starter to the sport of competitive swimming, Patrick went on to set a record in the 200 freestyle.

With business on the rise, Patrick takes an order by phone while getting an order ready to go out in his Alpharetta warehouse. Earlier this year, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy, but two large orders have helped build momentum.

Patrick models a Titin shirt, which features 14 strategically placed pockets that contain 8 pounds of weighted gels across the upper body and upper arms. The shirt can be placed in the freezer to chill it before working out.

Patrick inserts gel weights into Titin shorts before shipping them off to customers.

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Patrick Whaley, founder and CEO of Titin, a line of weighted workout gear, returns to the dimly lit parking lot in Midtown where he was robbed and shot in the chest in 2009. He credits his Eagle Scout training for helping him keep calm.

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