04/30/2025
When I was in high school I knew I loved fitness and wanted someday to make it a part of my life. In college I knew I wanted to teach and coach. After college I had a dream of someday having a fitness business where we would mostly be outside and ALL levels of fitness felt welcome. That melted into specifically wanting busy moms to be able to bring their kids to the workouts, if they needed/wanted to (I was a single mom at that time).
In Spring of 2018 I started my outdoor fitness classes. We used stumps for tricep dips, step ups and balance drills. We used thick cut heavy logs for bicep curls, cheap yoga mats and 5 -10 lbs weights made of plastic.
Those first few months I would schedule a class, spend an hour planning it, a half hour setting it up just perfect and sometimes no one would show up.
After a few months of a bit of advertisements and shyly sharing to others I had steady regulars and pods of high school athlete groups. I held educational personnel classes, private family classes and themed classes.
For the dark 6 AM classes I put out 9-10 Tiki torches so that we could see.
I was able to buy more equipment.
I would roll around stumps, tires, haul ropes, kick stability balls, medicine balls, and hang up TRX ropes from my trees. I threw my back out a few times and tripped over more dumbbells than I can count. In the summer, I had to change my clothes at least four times a day, depending on amount of classes and/or clients.
I was always telling people they should come to my yard and see if they liked working out outside.
I was always loading and unloading a wagon or golf cart with equipment.
I was always planning workouts, researching, and taking more certification classes.
I was always thinking about inventive exercises.
I was always sore.
I was always physically exhausted.
I loved EVERY minute of it.
I was always laughing, talking, joking but most importantly, listening.
I was always in awe of how people challenged themselves.
How they rally around each other, supporting, encouraging and challenging each other.
I loved to praise, to instruct, to coach.
I was always trying to make it more fun while keeping it challenging.
I loved the complaining (real or fake).
I loved the Spontaneous therapy sessions, the "venting", the laughing.....always the laughing, the hugs, fist bumps, and the high fives.
I loved watching relationships building all around me (and with me).
I was always happy.
It was invigorating.
It was electric.
Today was the last official regularly scheduled class.
Bittersweet.
I'll be disoriented and a bit heartbroken for a bit but know that those relationships will continue on.
VF classes aren't over entirely as I plan to schedule "pop up" classes in the fall of 2025 and continue in 2026.
I want to thank EVERY SINGLE wonderful person who has attended a class in my yard. YOU are amazing, really.
It has truly been my pleasure and my honor to say that I was your coach.
Thank you for making my dream come true. 😘
