Monday, August 27, 2012

LA, here I come whether you're ready for me or not!

October 31 will be my last day in San Francisco. I plan to be living in LA by November 1.

For the first time in my life I feel like my life has a purpose. I believe that I was placed on this earth in order to make a difference in people’s lives. For a long time I thought being part of Residential Life was the way for me to accomplish that but boy was I wrong. While I definitely touched the lives of some of my students, I know deep down that the difference I am making in my client’s lives as their trainer is so much more significant. I am helping people realize they are stronger and better than they ever thought they were. I am teaching them that life is worth living! I am showing them how living a healthy lifestyle is worth more than all the negative thoughts holding them back.

As such, I feel like there are bigger things in store for me, but I honestly believe I need to be in LA in order for those things to happen. Recently, I had applied to be a trainer on Live Big With Ali Vincent. For those of you who live under a rock, Ali Vincent was the first female winner on The Biggest Loser and went on to become one of the most inspirational “Losers” ever to walk across the BL stage. When I saw she was looking for a team of trainers to help her on her show, I jumped at the chance and submitted my application. I thought with my BL connections, that maybe I’d have a better chance at getting chosen. I reached out to a few of my BL friends and asked them to put in a good word for me with Ali. But let’s be honest, I think my track record speaks for itself. I did train the last TWO at-home winners after all! Plus, I’m a frickin IRONMAN!!! Who better to help inspire someone to take back their life by losing 100+ lbs?! However, in order to be considered for the show, I had to be in LA. Unfortunately for me, I live a few hundred miles north of LA in good ole San Francisco. But this was exactly the wakeup call I needed to make a decision that I have been wrestling with for almost a year now: Am I ready to leave San Francisco and move to LA? Well, clearly you know my decision.

So the decision has been made. As of October 31, I will be stepping down from management and going back to being a full time trainer. I just feel that if I am going to continue on the path I want to be on, it’s time to step down from management and do what I am truly passionate about: TRAIN! Here’s the way I see it… The people I look up to most in my field (Bob Harper, Jillian Michaels, Chris Powell, etc) are not successful because they are amazing managers, they’re successful because they’re amazing TRAINERS!!! I may not be an inspiration to millions of people yet, but I am just as talented as they are so WHY NOT ME?! Why can’t I be the next trainer to make it big?! So, here I am, 2 months away from moving to LA to follow my dreams! I want to inspire a nation that has accepted an unhealthy lifestyle and show them that there is so much more to life! It’s out there, you just have to believe in yourself and trust the process. It’s that simple.

I definitely have a few words for many of my friends here in San Francisco:

Dave – Oh Dave, what would the last two years have been like without you? You will forever be my ghost client but in the best way possible!

Elizabeth – How many “breaks” have you taken? Yet you always come crawling back for more! Unfortunately now it’s my turn to take a “break” from you :( I will train you again, remember that! Oh, and you WILL run a FULL Marathon one day!!

Tessa – Oh Tessa, how you have grown over the years! When we first met, you constantly cancelled on me and didn’t take anything I said seriously. But that all changed and now you’re one of my best clients! It has been a true pleasure training you these last two years and I know that you will continue to train at such a high level, and YOU WILL RUN A FULL MARATHON ONE DAY!!

Brandon - I've had a lot of fun training you! You just keep taking my beatings and coming back for more! Thank you for allowing me to be your trainer, and thank you for following me from Marathon Plaza to Van Ness! I'm gonna miss kicking your ass every week!

Brianne – Oh how I’m going to miss you, but to be honest, I’m not at all worried about you. Since the day I met you, you have truly changed. You no longer question me when I tell you to do something. The day you came in for that tabata treadmill workout and I put it at a 7.0 and said it was staying there for 4 minutes, you just jumped on and started running! No hesitation, no question, just hard work! I have so much faith and belief in you! And I think this is where I say, you will be running the LA marathon with me in March. It’s only 7 months away so get ready! And guess where it starts? Oh yeah, with the US Half Marathon in November! While I won’t be here to run it with you, I know you can do it! And I know you WILL do it! Trust the process, girl, trust the effing process!

Cara – I think you are the one person who has surprised me most. When Brianne first reached out to me, I knew this journey was something that she wanted. Asking for help is always the hardest part and that’s what she did. But then she told me she had a sister who also needed help losing weight and I thought, “okay, let’s get her in here!” I sensed a lot of hesitation from you at the beginning. Scared to run on the treadmill if it was too fast (even though sometimes you still hold on when I know you don’t need to!), scared to run a half marathon, scared you’d never lose weight because you kept plateauing, etc. But since January, you have completely turned things around! Right around mile 12 (you know which mile I’m talking about), you started taking control of this process instead of letting it control you! I no longer sense that fear in you! Even if you plateau, you don’t let it push you back, you just keep moving forward! As much as you want the number on the scale to keep moving down, I truly believe that you know it’s not about that number anymore. It’s about living a healthy lifestyle no matter what the scale says. For that reason, I know you will continue on this journey even after I move to LA.

Landon – It’s been an absolute blast training you these last few months! You are someone who took control of her life long before you ever met me and that’s what makes you so incredibly awesome, but you allowed me to help push you to a whole new level! You are a rock star, plain and simple!

Courtney Crozier – You’re just awesome! I don’t think I’ve ever met a more selfless and giving person in my life! Thank you for being so incredibly wonderful and thank you for believing in me. That’s all :)

Tara Costa – Had I not met you, I probably never would have registered for that Ironman. Well, at least not as soon as I did. You inspired me to register for it YEARS before I ever imagined myself registering for one. And crossing the finish line made me realize that I am capable of so much more than I ever dreamed possible! Finishing an Ironman gave me the courage to do what I’m doing so thank you for being such an inspiration!

Ali Vincent – I think I might actually owe you the biggest thanks of all! Had you not reached out for a team of trainers, I probably never would have made the decision I did. By moving to LA, I will be fulfilling my dreams of LIVING BIG, so THANK YOU!!!

Mike Messina – My man Mike! You came into my life at exactly the right time! After I had trained Jen, I was amazed at everything I had accomplished but was left doubting whether or not it was just a fluke. I mean, she won but by only 4 lbs! After learning from my experience with Jen, I was able to truly perfect my craft and use everything I have learned about nutrition and fitness to help you win. And not just win but KILL IT!! I am so honored and grateful that you allowed me to train you. You helped me realize just how great of a trainer I truly am! You showed me that I truly know what I’m doing and that I have a real gift! I’m not just helping people lose weight, but I am changing their lives! You are a totally different person today from the person I met 7 months ago! Yeah, can you believe it’s only been 7 months?! You are an amazing human being and great things are in store for you!

Dan - OMG how I'm going to miss you! You're the reason I've become the athlete I am! How am I going to continue on my journey without you?! Who will keep me injury free with all the abuse I subject my body to? You have no idea how much you amaze me! This will not be the end for us, but just the beginning! I still have many more Ironman's to compete in and I need to run an ultra marathon one day! I will be calling upon your services again one day soon!

Raquel – Oh Raquel, I owe so much to you. You believed in me before I truly believed in myself. When I first became a trainer, I only did it because I needed to make some money until I figured out my next move. You helped me realize that being a trainer WAS my next move. Introducing me to Jen made me realize that this is what I am destined to do. I’m a life changer but so are you because you changed my life. There truly are no words to express my appreciation and gratitude to you. Thank you for that and thank you for you :)

Elisabeth Meany – You know everything that happens to me in LA is all thanks to you! Everything I accomplish is because you pushed me to be a better trainer! You helped me realize what I was capable of. For that I will be forever grateful to you. You are my wonder twin and we WILL be the next Bob and Jillian. This I promise you! Daniel better get used to sharing you with the world because you will inspire millions one day, the same way you inspire me.

Ilona – In a lot of ways you are my scarecrow (and you know the best part of that statement, you probably don’t even know what it means, lol). If it weren’t for you, I honestly don’t know where I would be today. I mean, who else would sign up for a full marathon, and then keep signing up for them, just because someone asked you to. And who else would agree to train for an Ironman because someone else registers you for it. I don’t know who’s crazier… Me for registering or you for agreeing to train with me. I guess it really doesn’t matter since here we are. 3½ years later and look at everything we’ve accomplished together. From spin class, to the run club, to our first half marathon, to our first full marathon, to our first full Ironman. From being nothing more than mere gym buddies, to becoming friends, then roommates, and now you’re one of my best friends and the greatest fake wife ever! I will truly miss you! (crap, I’m starting to cry as I type this)

To my amazing team of trainers at Van Ness – Thank you all for being so wonderful these last 8 months! It’s been a real honor to be your Fitness Manager.

1 comment:

  1. How psyched am I to be the first person name-checked on this list? SO PSYCHED! This is such an exciting step for you. Please remember us little people when you're famous in LA!

    ReplyDelete