A friend recently shared a quote with me that I can’t seem to get out of my head.
Don’t ask what the world needs, fine out what makes you come alive, and do that. Because what the world needs id more people who have come alive.’ – Howard Thurman
This quote has me evaluating how I spend my days and thinking about what truly makes me come alive. I’ve been reflecting on my own journey to adopt a healthy lifestyle and my desire to help others find their path.
As a wife and mother of three I’ve been juggling life, healthy eating and exercise for over 14 years. I know the struggles to interest children in eating healthy foods over junk, I know how it feels to be exhausted and have no energy for a workout, and I remember looking at myself after my third child and wondering what in the world happened.
When I was young I was active in sports and many physical hobbies. As I grew older and had more responsibilities I became more of a sideline fitness junkie – sometimes only reading about the things I should do, or watching transformation shows. I knew time had come for me to get off the sidelines.
My children were one day away from me having three under the age of three so believe me, carving out time for myself was no easy feat. But I made a commitment to myself. Every day during nap time, when I desperately need to do laundry or clean or maybe even get a short nap myself, I put on my workout clothes and did something.
It started with basic workout DVDs and progressed to training for my first half marathon. I spent many hours on that ‘dreadmill’ but in the end I completed my first half marathon before my son was a year old. I wasn’t going to break any records with that time, but I set a goal to do a half, and I did!
I think that’s the time that I realized I had a whole lot more in me than I ever gave myself credit for. I didn’t need to rely on those DVDs, I had learned enough about form and varying exercises I started creating my own routines using free weights in my garage. Before long my body wasn’t the only thing transforming. I was shedding pounds AND stress. I was exchanging disappointment for accomplishment. I was pausing at the mirror rather than rushing past it.
Then the thought struck me that I wasn’t the only woman who was going through this. I wasn’t the only one who had complete independence and total control over my life and my body to have everything change. Now I want to pause here and make it clear, I wouldn’t exchange a single thing to have those things back, but what I needed to figure out was how to regain what I thought was ‘lost.’ It wasn’t lost, I still had the power to make choices and I still had control over my body.
So I began looking into the process of becoming a trainer. I knew that I could identify with my clients because I had walked in their shoes. I could be that trainer that didn’t intimidate their client by their ‘perfect’ body and ‘controlling’ expectations for diet and exercise.
If I was going to help others, I had to meet them where they were. Find out deep down what they wanted to achieve and help set a plan for getting there. Not everyone wants to lose a ton of weight, not everyone wants to build muscle, not everyone wants to train for a marathon – the key is deep down we all want to achieve something and my job as a trainer is to pull that out of my clients and coach, inspire and keep them accountable to their goals.
Over the past few years I have trained college students to retirees and everything in between. Each of my client’s has had unique goals and varying athletic abilities. Together we’ve battled through plateaus, setbacks, injuries and sometimes even failures, all to also experience breakthroughs, achievements and milestones.
I have a passion for healthy living and nothing makes me feel more ALIVE than passing that passion on to others.
I feel challenged to get better at sharing my passion so I’m making some changes…
- A re-commitment to blogging. Not everyone will be able to work with me as a trainer, but I do have the ability to encourage, educate and inspire through this blog. I encourage you to request blog topics on your biggest struggles/questions about exercise, healthy living, clean eating, etc. and I will do my best to respond to them.
- E-mail updates – I promise not to clutter your inbox with nonsense, instead you can expect a monthly newsletter with training tips, sample workouts and healthy recipes. Sign up for my newsletter today!
- Virtual training – can’t meet me in the gym? Don’t let that stop you from working with me! I’m putting together virtual training packages for clients. You can purchase a set of workouts for a one time fee, or pay a monthly fee for weekly workouts and continued support. Check out the basic virtual packages available or contact me and we can structure a program based on your needs.
I hope these changes will not only benefit you in your quest for healthy living but that they will also inspire you to find what makes you come alive.
Personal Training by Jenn 