My fitness journey

My introduction to fitness began in kindergarten, when I started playing soccer in my town’s league. I remained active throughout my elementary years by participating in athletic programs in and outside of school. My athletic career continued to middle and high school where I was a member of the soccer and track teams.

After graduating high school, I struggled with finding a place for fitness in my collegiate course load as a music education major consisting of classes, lessons, and performances. Although I gained weight during my freshman year, it went back down close to my high school weight by the middle of sophomore year after getting my diet under control. I exercised sporadically but missed having a consistent routine and did not know how to get started.

In my last semester of college, my friend told me about these pilates workouts from Blogilates by Cassey Ho that you can do at home. I tried a few and was hooked! POP Pilates was the perfect level of difficulty for me and Cassey had a great personality in her videos. She also had a monthly calendar listing the workout videos of the day along with healthy recipes. Due to this structure, I was able to continue these workouts during my transition to the workforce. Her recipes helped me clean up my diet and changed my views on healthy eating.

After a few years, I needed a change in my fitness routine. Coincidently, I got hired to teach POP Pilates at a local gym (see this post) and had unlimited access to the gym. With this new opportunity, I needed a new plan. At the time, I had limited knowledge of weight room workouts and decided to download the SWEAT app and try BBG Stronger. I later switched to the PWR program. Both programs helped me become more comfortable with the gym and learn new exercises. After a year, I stopped using the app and began to develop my own workouts.

Earlier last year, I decided to enter the world of amateur bodybuilding in the figure division (see this post). Preparing to get on stage was a dramatic, yet worthwhile change to my diet and exercise routine. My hard work in the gym and the kitchen resulted in two high place finishes, including a figure overall win! I am currently training to compete later this year for an opportunity to become a professional bodybuilder.