Hello all! I started my health journey 4 years ago when I decided to become a personal trainer. Here is my story:
I had just moved to the booming oilfield town in Odessa, Texas and was interested in joining the gym. I had never really been involved in a gym before, other than my small hometown gym in Blakely, Ga when I was 16 years old. Let me tell you, .. the first time I walked into the gym, it was very intimidating. Not to mention that I was in a gym that housed a lot of competitive bodybuilders and fitness gurus in the great state of Texas. Although I was hesitant on joining the gym, I signed up any way and got a consultation with a Certified Personal Trainer. I immediately felt comfortable knowing that I had someone there to help structure my workout routine and to motivate me and push me.
Fast Forward..
After working with my trainer for about 5 months, I saw an article about a personal trainer and I consulted the training company I had been a client of. I got my 1st certification as a CPT and started building my clientele. A few weeks into personal training, the company I was working for had a promotion opportunity where I could not only work more on my personal training experience, but also sell what I absolutely loved to do!
No brainer, I immediately leaped on the opportunity. I was now a CPT and an Assistant Fitness Director. I was literally in the gym every day from 9am to sometimes 9 at night making sales and loving what I did. About a month later, I was making an impact on sales and was promoted again, this time as the head honcho.. the Fitness Director. I had moved up in the company and was impressed with myself.
After running the personal training department of this gym that I was once intimidated to even join, I decided to venture out and go into business for myself. The months passed by and I had been so busy raising my kiddos and with studying to get a better certification I decided to take a break. If you know me, sometimes I get burned out of things.. Dont we all though? My family ended up moving from deep West Texas to the other side of the state to lovely, Seabrook, Texas.
After living in Seabrook for a couple of months, I had the itch to get back into the business of Personal Training. Coincidentally, the company that I had previously worked for had stations in the gyms in and around Houston, Texas where I had gym memberships. I immediately applied when a good friend and prior Supervisor of mine called me and told me that they had relocated to the same area and were hiring for my prior position.
So.. I threw on that old blue shirt and got back to work. Working out on my lunch breaks and putting people through fitness assessments and selling personal training was my daily routine. A couple months passed by and a position for FD had opened up and I was chosen for the position! I was excited and nervous but that meant that I had to leave the gym I was in and move to Almeda, TX. Not far from Seabrook but the traffic sucked!
After working at the Almeda location for 4 months, they needed to move me to another gym in Baytown, TX to help bring sales up.. I was sad to leave the Almeda location, however, I decided to go anyhow. At this point.. I was training to be enlisted in the Army. I had a ship date and everything. My main focus at that time was to sell PT and to train and be ready for the physical fitness aspect of being in the military. When I went to MEPS in September of 2019, I was more than ready to join. I ended up passing MEPS with flying colors and was so excited to start my new career as a Physical Therapy Specialist in the Army.
The days went by and my ship date was announced as November 17th, 2019. I was to go for 12 weeks of basic and then 28 weeks in San Antonio for my job training. When the end of October came around, I ended up leaving the Personal Training company I had been working for since the beginning of my journey and stay home with my kids to spend time with them and to go visit my family in south Georgia before I shipped.
Upon arriving back home in Georgia, I ended up having a change of heart. Could I really leave my kids that long? Could I be apart from my family that long? All things negative came to my mind. When I was visiting and spending time with my family, I decided that it wasnt the best thing for me and that I needed to move back home to Georgia to help my daddy and to raise my girls around family.
When I moved back home in December of 2019, I started back up with my personal training and finished my ISSA Certifications. I have been grateful of all the friends I have made in this profession and all the places it has taken me. I have learned a lot by personal experience and I continue to perfect my craft and try new things to help me better serve my clients. By continuing my education and adding new certifications, I can help more people achieve their ultimate fitness goals.