My passion for fitness began at the early age of two when my parents first enrolled me in dance classes. I continued in dance all the way up and through high school, in addition to competing in soccer for nine seasons, and performing as a cheerleader for five years. One might say that I’m competitive by nature, I relish a challenge and during my formative and high school years I took advantage of every opportunity to develop and showcase my athletic ability.
Following high school graduation my life became substantially less active; I was no longer competing in sports or dancing, but after so many years of highly competitive activities my metabolism was trained for maximum intake. Over the course of a year (2010-2011) I gained between roughly 30 to 40 lbs. I was also unprepared for the affects of weight gain on my self-esteem. Within two years of graduation, I was out of shape and suffering from low self-esteem and battling anxiety. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life but I knew I had to make a change, so I packed up the pieces of my life and moved across country from Macomb County, Michigan to beautiful Los Angeles, California.
The change of scenery wasn’t an immediate fix and a hit a few bumps along the road. I also found it difficult to make genuine friends in my new city of strangers; nevertheless, in April of 2013 I landed a job as a sales associate at a corporate fitness gym. I was inspired by my co-workers, peers, and mentors that I had met through the gym, and by September I decided to compete in a bikini fitness competition. I reached out to a close friend and mentor to help me prepare for the show which was in December. The preparation was intense and grueling and the show itself was a huge learning experience, but it was also the first time that I had really felt good about my body since high school.
Over the next two years, I continued to train and learn and earned my Personal Trainer Certification (NCCPT), and in January of 2015 I decided to become a full time independent personal trainer. In May of 2015 I competed at NPC’s Cal States show in Culver City and earned 1st place in the novice category and 4th place in the open competition. In December of 2015, I went on to compete at the prominent NPC’s Excalibur Show, which in addition to being a great deal of fun was also a great learning experience.
Throughout this process I have had to adapt and overcome and the real life lesson has been discovering who I am and what I want to do with my life. I love teaching and training and helping to inspire others to become better versions of themselves, while at the same time learning to love oneself at every stage of the journey. It is sometimes a long road in order to learn how to be happy with what we have, while working towards what we want, but it is a vital life lesson. My goal is to truly inspire and empower as many women and men as I can before I leave this earth. One area where our education is generally deficient is in how we take care of ourselves mentally and physically, which is essential to our health and welfare. I plan to continue competing and developing my knowledge of health and fitness, so that I can continue to train, empower, and inspire change in as many lives as possible.