07/19/2019
Congrats Amy Slemko ISC HOOC - Amy Slemko
My biggest life lesson that took me years to figure out was to try to stop trying to force your career, relationships and the outcome of aspects in your life.
When I was in high school I was a very awkward teenager. I didn’t wear makeup and dressed like a boy, and had the attitude to make it cool. I didn’t care who I hung out with just as long as I was having fun. My attitude and clothing then shifted to always being dressed up in pumps and dresses and becoming a socialite that was out every weekend and trying to find that picture perfect guy to fit in my life. I thought it was necessary to become something that is of a higher status, such as a doctor. From the age of 8, society painted a picture in my head that it is necessary to go to university and get a high end job.
I set out to become a Chiropractor so I took Kinesiology and was accepted to the Chiropractic program in Minneapolis. I took out a loan and bought a BMW. My life was set, this is what was going to make me “happy”. To afford this luxurious lifestyle, I also had to have three jobs working 15 hour days.
The year that I graduated with Honours of Kinesiology was a rude awakening. I found out I was unable to attend Chiropractic because it was too expensive and I didn’t have a co-signer. I was no longer with the guy I thought I was going to marry as he went on with his higher education. I now am single with a degree that has very few and far jobs for me. I was soon told I had to leave home and was taken in by one of my good friends. I lost half of my friends due to everyone growing up with their own lives. I was in such a rut and soon became one of those people who wanted to give up. I started partying hard to make myself feel better, started racking up debt traveling, started looking at places to move to as it seemed like the easy route out. One place I looked into moving to was Toronto until I did my research. I would still be having to work three jobs to afford living there and would be caught up in a lifestyle that I couldn’t afford.
I needed to get into something, so I started to compete in bodybuilding in the bikini division. You would think it would get you into a healthier lifestyle, but instead I became obsessed with social media and became very focused on how I looked. I started to binge eat after shows and then become depressed as I went from being super lean to a normal weight, but thought I was overweight.
The two jobs that I took on to work my 15 hour days were the Thunder Bay Naturopathic Clinic, in which I was able to use my degree in health sciences as well at 5 Forks Restaurant. My personal training business focusing on females started to kick off and then I had a dream to own/ run a women only gym. My employers were more than supportive of this idea and helped me along the way. I decided to focus on female clientele, as I am a firm believer in empowerment of women. I registered my training business as Intrinsic as I believe that the motivation of exercise should come internally instead of externally and would lead to a faster drop out rate. I started to help clients find ways to fall in love with training and their bodies regardless of size. I started to be okay with being single and shifted my focus on my clients and training to feel strong vs. to look good. I started practising positive thinking and taking a step back from each part of my life and take note of the learning experience rather than any negative effects.
My positive talk allowed to me fall in love with myself again. I can’t say I have worn a pair of high heels and a dress in the last year. There is nothing wrong with that by any means, but it isn’t who I am nor do I feel comfortable wearing such. I am back to my awkward tomboy ways, wearing pug socks and shirts with burgers on them. I met my loving boyfriend who accepts me as I am and has pushed me to be better in every aspect of my life. He and I are a team. This year we went through a prep together for the local Thunder Bay Bodybuilding show. We didn’t kill each other and managed to win our classes. He is one of the main contributors to my success in my career and in body building. I have learned from him to be happy with a simple life with our bulldog and pug.
My own training reflects on my positive body image. I switched categories in bodybuilding from bikini to figure that led me to falling in love with the sport again. It allowed me to fall in love with lifting rather than how my butt looks in spandex and how my photos will do on social media. Bikini is a great category, but it is not for me as I concentrated too much on the outcome vs. the journey. I wouldn’t of been able to do so without the hard love from my coach Adrian Lesey.
My career in personal training really took off when I became comfortable with myself and received help from Frank Solly at Trainers Edge who welcomed me with open arms. I held a women empowerment event early 2019. The location was undetermined until Kyle Rayner, owner of the gym, Nexus, gave me the opportunity to hold the event there and was nothing but supportive of the idea, and even more so watching me become successful. He mentioned he was opening a new gym due to expansion and he had an area to fill. One thing led to another and one year of trying to find a spot for a women only section (Intrinsic) came to be inside Nexus. The next step was leaving the jobs that provided me financial security. Kyle assured me that this was my path and that I wouldn’t look back by doing so. He was right.
I wake up every day looking forward to going to work and find happiness doing what I do. If you were to ask me “if you could do anything in your life regardless of money?” I would be doing exactly what I am doing now.
All of this change happened within 5-6 years. These years have been very difficult and for the first half I resisted the change and it slowed my progress. But, do I regret resisting change? Not at all. I have learned so much of what I don’t want and understand how happy I can be with a simple life. I have learned to finally love myself which in turn brought people into my life that have only helped me find my happiness and push me for better. In my spare time, I intend to continue to compete, be with my friends, my mother and my boyfriend. I have learned they are very necessary in hard times and have proven their worth in my life time over time.
Thunder Bay is a place to grow and has the resources to do so. Thank you to all of the people who will pull over to help you if your car gets stuck in the snow, to all of the people who open their arms when you need something, to the people who pay for your coffee ahead of you, and to the people in Thunder Bay who will always support local entrepreneurs because they just want to see each other succeed.
That is community.
