Lemons....Lemons....Lemons....LIMES!!!!

Lemons, Lemons, Lemons, ahhh.....there are some LIMES!! Now that I have you wondering what the hell I'm talking about I'll be glad to explain!

As most of you know I have been on this crazy weight loss, fitness journey for a number of years now (I think 5 to be exact) and I feel like it has finally started coming full circle.  I started very overweight and not knowing one end of a dumbbell from the other and was convinced the machines at the gym were going to kill me (some days I still think that...lol) but I am in a place now where I don't have to look at the personal trainers on tv,or at a local gym and think someday" I am going to do that".  Wouldn't it be nice to help someone change their life, reach their goals and become the person they want to be....wouldn't it be nice to do something with my time that will help support me financially but isn't work because I truly care about I'm doing, wouldn't it be nice not dreading waking up every morning and going to a job where all I do is count down the hours until I can leave, wouldn't it be nice to be with people who I know for that solid hour, or maybe at least 30 mins, don't like me and wish I'd just go away but after that 30 mins or so love me for making them move and feel alive again. I am finally there....feeling these exact things.  It hasn't been an easy trip as I've had lots of ups and downs and I know personally I have some things to improve that will make me an even better personal trainer but those are all a work in progress.  Improving these things will not happen overnight but with my determination I'm sure they too will all come together.
I can look back over the last year and say giving up my office job to take my course at Eastern College was by far the best choice I have ever made.  It was as scary as hell and sometimes knowing I don't have a cushiony office job to fall back on still scares me but that fear motivates me to go on line and market myself, to try and think of ways to get my name out there, and to reach out to more potential clients.  Although I probably picked the slowest time of the year to do this I'm still very optimistic that every day will bring new people to me.  And hey, January is just around the corner!! :)
I started my first official bootcamp last week. Only a few people attended but it was enough to allow me to get over most of my nervousness and make me feel ready to take on the world next Wednesday!!  I'm hoping it all works out at the training studio where the bootcamp is being held as this is the type of clientele I really hope to focus on. Who knows, maybe in the near future I'll get hired on there and be able to reach out to even more people. Until that opportunity arises (if it does) I will continue to build my own business, doing whatever things I can think of to get my name out there while helping as many people as I possibly can along the way.
So, what's next for this future fast chick?  Well....I can honestly say I don't know. lol  I'm working at  Mount Saint Vincent University for the next three weeks until I complete my internship for school and after that I have no idea.  I am thinking of more bootcamps I'd like to do and trying to think of ways to get more people involved.  Perhaps I'll seek out a few more personal training studio's to see if they would be interested in having me do some bootcamps for them.  Another option is to reach out to groups about doing some public speaking about my journey and how by never giving up I am finally doing what I love.  Oh, and how could I possibly forget studying for my American College of Sports Medicine exam, which I write on Sept. 30.
A few people have told me over the last few days that I am so lucky to be able follow my dreams and do something I'm really passionate about.  I thanked them for the kind words and never really knew how to reply but after thinking about it I can say I truly am lucky, this is a dream, MY DREAM and I'm living it, right at this very moment!!
I just thought of my favorite quote - "pain is temporary, quitting lasts forever" p-plakas.  There are many times over the last few years that I could have and indeed wanted to quit but I never did and I'm glad I didn't because I wouldn't be where I am at this very minute. The reward has been so worth the pain I have suffered!!!

Now if you'll excuse me I have to go and put some limes in my water. 

Hey everyone!  It's been a long time and so much has gone on in between now and my last post.  When I have some time I will sit down and write about it.  Long story short, life is good right now. I am engaged to a great guy, working hard to get through the Health, Wellness & Recreation course at Eastern College and I'm in the process of starting my new personal training business.  Never a dull moment for sure these days!  Well, I had to do a project for school explaining my goals for the next 6 months, 12 months, 3 years and finally where I see myself in 5 years. I thought I'd share them for all to see.  Some of it will be a "dream" but most of it I'm going to work my butt off to turn it into reality. As always, I hope you'll all come along for the ride, it's going to be fun!!

6 month goals

-          Graduate from this course (hopefully with honors) – I made a lot of changes to be able to take this course and I want to make it worth it. It will be the first time I’ve ever had honors in a course I took so it would mean a lot. If I don’t get honors, it won’t be the end of the world.

-          Lose 50 pounds – for my health and because nobody wants an overweight trainer. If I do it I will be much healthier and be able to do even more things/activities.  If I don’t it means I will become more limited to the things I can do and I will continue to see more things fall apart on my body.

-          Gain more clients – so I can help other people change their lives and not be “afraid” of fitness. If I do this it means I’ll be helping to make people healthier and happier in their lives and perhaps live longer.  If I can’t gain more clients right away, I’ll have to keep thinking of creative ways to market to get my word/name out there.  It would be heartbreaking to me if I can’t make a career out of helping others change their lives.

-          Build a more professional webpage – To help get my name out there. It will mean perhaps getting more clients.  If not, it will help me inform the clients I already have of things that are going on it my life (fitness) and anything that’s coming up.

-          Register myself as a business – It looks more professional if I have a business name to back my personal training.  I think having a business name will help increase my clientele, make me seem more professional.  If I don’t get a registered business, I’ll continue on the way I am.

12 month goals

-          Gain more clients – If I can gain more clients I can help them change their lives. This is very important to me as I want everyone to know they can do it.  If for some reason, I can’t I’ll have to keep trying.

-          Get my body to 20-25% body fat – it’ll mean that I’m a healthier version of myself.  It will also help me better be able to get my clients to that level as well.  If I can’t get there I won’t give up, I’ll just keep finding different ways to do it.

-          Get my ACSM and CCEP Certifications – I chose this because the more credentials I can get the better it’ll look and the more tools I’ll have to help others.  It will be personally satisfying for myself to reach this goal. ACSM was the first certification I attempted but I gave up while studying, it was too difficult for me at the time. If I don’t get it the first time, I’ll study harder and try again and again until I get it.

-          Do more public speaking about my weight loss journey – I have done a bit of this already and really enjoyed it.  It was practice for me speaking to people, and it was nice to talk to people and let them know that I understood what they were going through and that they too could make their weight loss dreams come true.  If I can do this again it will mean that I can reach even more people, and even I don’t get to work with them directly as their personal trainer I can still get them started.  If I can’t do it I’ll try blogging instead.  That reaches people as well, just not as many. It’ll make me a bit sad if I can’t do this but I’ll still continue to reach out to people in other ways.

-          Do the Mount Washington Bike Race again – this race is totally a personal goal for me.  The first time I did it I finished with 5 paramedics working on me and the second time I quit half way through because of what my finish time would have been (I would have been fine, I didn’t set me watch back to US time so I was an hour ahead of the actual time).  I hate myself for quitting last year and so I WILL do it again.  Again, this time it’s personal!!!!  If I don’t do it next year I’ll continue to train for the year after.  There is no what if I can’t do it, I AM going to do it!!

3 year goals

-          Start looking for locations to set up a gym

-          Check out the costs, rent, insurance and equipment costs for both a gym and for a personal studio inside my home

-          Do fitness talks Canada wide and maybe in the US as well

-          Get other Fitness Certifications

-          Get certified in Nutrition so perhaps I can aid people more with this aspect of weight loss –

5 year goals

-          To open my own personal training studio or gym and to take Good Life down!! –

-          Hire different trainer’s so I can offer my client’s a more rounded fitness experience

-          Write a book about my weight loss journey

-          To attend as many fitness conferences as possible.

-          To prove to all the people who said I’d never be able to support myself on just personal training/fitness related stuff that I can and that I’m doing just fine!