While all the kiddos have been whisking away back to school, this mama is at work doing the same thing. For those of you who didn't know, I have been hacking away at my Master's for the last year and a half, maybe two. I was taking classes online while working at the gym still, and then took a break when I had Wyatt as there was NO TIME for school! However, I am so close to finishing my program I can taste it :) As for now it is probably not going to be that useful to me but I may end up using it one day, you never know!! I am a goal-oriented person and completing this program is huge for me. I studied English in my undergraduate degree at Auburn University...and that usually leads people to the next questions...."How the heck did you become a Personal Trainer with an English degree?" Good question. I'll get to that.
Upon completion of this program I will have my BA in English, (more specifically, Technical and Professional Writing), and my Masters in Education (Teaching and Learning General Education.) My masters is through Liberty University.
https://www.liberty.edu/ Check out this link if you're looking for a solid, online university, especially if you're interested in studying with a Biblical worldview, like I was. I am in week 2 of an 8 week course, and then only have one left after that and I am DONE! I think I will wait until January for the next class, it is too difficult to try and jumble it all in during holidays etc. What will I do with this degree, you might ask? I'm not sure yet, but I do know I felt compelled...some might even say "called," to it. It may have been the overachieving youth in me that initially prompted the gesture...however, my overachieving days have fizzled and now my goal is being a well-rounded wife and mother, while placing my complete trust and growth in the Lord.
Back to the "How did you become a personal trainer?" question.
Some may know, others not, that I have always been an extremely competitive athlete and have always loved playing sports, sweating, running, high-fiving, and roughing up on the enemy, regardless of the sport. In my case, soccer was I ended up playing the longest. I believe somewhere along the line I took a blow and did some damage to my lower spine. Throughout high school I struggled on and off with low back pain, although it was manageable through exercise and some chiropractic help...at least for a little while. I opted out of pursuing soccer beyond high school for a couple of reasons, 1. I wanted a break. 2. I was learning towards going to a bigger school for the "college experience" and I simply was not dedicated enough to it to even try and play at one of those schools. 3. I was already suffering from aches and pains and knew it would only get worse. UGH and it did.
Sophomore year at Auburn was when it peaked. I have no idea when it happened, but finally my back had enough. After examinations, physical therapy, cortisone shots, epidurals, acupuncture, chiropractic care, anti-inflammatories, and what I now think was a mild depression due to the amount of pain I was in, I became a little withdrawn and stepped away from some of the extra curricular activities I was involved with in Auburn. (my sorority, and a year later, Young Life.) It is amazing how physical pain can really alter your mental state and decision making. There were other factors at large during this time, but largely I think much of my decisions were revolved around my "situation." I remember coming back from class and icing my back 8 times one day. 8 TIMES! Who ices their back 8 times a day? I did. I graduated from Auburn and moved on with life. I learned early on that I had herniated a disc at L-5, S-1 and also was experiencing some degeneration in that area. No easy fix. My life as an athlete was sorely changed forever, or so I felt at the time, and I was very "down." BLAH BLAH BLAH move on....
Pull up your bootstraps, Megs. That's kinda the mentality I had to have, thanks to my parents who were there for me but also pushing me to keep pressing on. I remember upon graduation, I moved back to my mom's house temporarily and she said to me, "You have 2 weeks to get a job." No if's, and's, or but's. I had thought about teaching English, but the thought of standing on tile all day in uncomfortable shoes and sitting at a desk was not an option for me at the time. So....I RANDOMLY, saw opportunity in the field of Personal Training in Jacksonville at Lifestyle Family Fitness, so I filled an application out (knowing I was not certified, nor really qualified at the time,) but I knew a lot about recovering my own body and I was "fit looking." I was drawn to the fact I could wear sneakers and just be absorbed by the "healthiness" of the people around me. I hoped for recovery through osmosis haha. Most of my coworkers didn't even know I had an injury, or if they did, they had no idea how bad it was. FAKE IT TIL YA MAKE IT! Thanks for that Mom. Tough love has gotten me through some tough periods, but it was necessary. Got a call, got an interview, got a job. WHAM. I pretty much just used my job as a way to rehab my own body and while I was getting certified and beginning to train others I began to see what an incredible machine the human body is. The truth is, it wants to heal itself! It really does! People ask me all the time how I got into this field and how I rehabbed my back. Here's the truth. I rehab my back every day of my life. I stay active, I stretch, I eat clean (most of the time), I supplement with vital nutrients that ease my inflammation, I stay hydrated. All of this has often been difficult, and I have had ups and downs. I know this is a long post but I feel like I owe it to the many who have asked and gotten a very brief, vague response.
That was more than 6 years ago.
I still have back pain a little each day. I still exercise everyday, even if it's just a little. The C-section put me down for a while and has made core training more difficult, which is necessary to my well-being, but I am persevering. Literally, there have been days that Phil 4:13 has carried me. It is Christ's strength in me, not my own, but enables me to do the things my body does not want to do but I need to do anyways...(did you follow that?)
So here I am, just turned 29...Living by the Lord's plan. Mommy, English Major, Education Masters, Personal Trainer, wanna-be athlete, wanna-be Wonder Woman. All of it truly does not matter, because it is not about me. My creator made me the way I am, this wanna-be Wonder Woman- busted up injured/washed -up ex-high school super athlete. This is a big part of my story, however. I hope to help people pull up their boot straps when times get tough and when physical ailments hit you in the face and almost debilitate you. You must persevere though, and keep trying. There is no easy solution and no easy way out. It requires discipline! Just like faith, it is a muscle that needs to be exercised!
I'll end it this way.... The name I chose for this blog "Throughout all generations," comes from a scripture that has been instrumental in carrying me through many seasons in my short life.
"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or can imagine, according to the power at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever, Amen." Ephesians 3:20
I no longer work at the gym, after having Wyatt I have stayed home and exclusively train a hand full of clients who are near and dear to my heart. They are more than gracious with putting up with the craziness of my house/day sometimes!! I am so thankful for them, and hope to make even the slightest difference in their lives.
So, there it is. I've never really put it out there like that, but now you all know the nitty gritty. Thanks for loving me anyways, in spite of my flaws. Just be encouraged, if nothing else, from my story. PERSEVERE!!
Love,
Megs
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