Hello everyone!! When I decided to start this venture, I felt it was important to tell you a little about myself. So to start with, I am a 27-year-old living in the beautiful area that is Boise Idaho. I feel lucky to be in the area with all of the activities, gyms, greenbelt, and opportunities to stay fit.
As do most people, I like to think my story is unique but I do feel I can relate to all women, and athletes especially. And like most people, I can relate to those who have found weight loss difficult and struggle with maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
I have been an athlete and involved in sports since a very young age. In high school, I was able to play varsity softball and grew curious to learn more about weight training, nutrition and what I needed to do to be healthier. With the passion for sports and healthy living I developed as I grew older, I had the great fortune to play collegiate softball and later, international softball in the Dominican Republic. Even though I was an athlete, I have always struggled with eating and wanted to know how to eat healthier.
After finishing high school, I continued my education and obtained my bachelor’s degree later researching obesity, nutrition and medical research in graduate school. I was blessed to work for the wonderful Dr. Warren Willey as a nutrition counselor throughout my graduate studies and spent 4 years and around 6000 hours of direct face-to-face nutritional and weight loss counseling.
My collegiate softball career ended with injuries, surgeries and illness (West Nile can put a pause on your life for a few weeks for sure) and like many collegiate athletes, I struggled with over-training and maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle.
Over-training has side effects that are not often discussed. Not maintaining a healthy lifestyle caused me to suffer from various hormonal issues which caused me to gain and maintain an extra 15-20 pounds of unwanted weight. For nearly 2 years I worked one-on-one with Dr. Willey to setup personal diet strategies, workouts and hormone therapies that worked for me. These experiences have given me both a deep empathy for those struggling with weight loss, as well as an extensive experience in understanding not only the physical work but also the psychological aspects as well.
Outside of coaching and fitness I find balance in my life by spending time outdoors, with my family, friends, boyfriend and our adorable dog Opie.
For those of you that made it to the end of this, thank you for taking the time to read a little about me. If you have any questions or would like to know more about me, you can follow me on social media with the links at the bottom, or email me.
–Ashley