Hey y’all!
My name is Avery, and I am a Kinesiology major, pre-physical therapy, and I am an American Council on Exercise (ACE) Certified Personal Trainer. I am from Memphis, TN and currently an undergraduate student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
I decided to create this blog to spread my knowledge, encouragement, and overall passion for health and fitness. I intend on posting workout tips, scientific benefits of exercise, healthy recipes, and things pertaining to having a balance of exercise and nutrition with a busy schedule.
First things first, a little bit about my passion for exercise –
I grew up playing every sport you could imagine and have always been incredibly active. I played two Varsity sports throughout high school, soccer and track. One sport flowed into the other, so I was active all year round – when one sport ended, the other began. When I came to college, I knew that this would no longer be the case. When I got to the University of Tennessee, I knew I did not want to quit soccer altogether because it has always been my favorite sport – and favorite form of exercise. Therefore, the first thing I did was join the club soccer team. On the club team, we have regular practices, games, and tournaments against other college club teams and has been one of the best decisions I have made since getting to college three years ago. I am now the President of the club and could not be happier.
Because soccer did not require as much time and attention as it did in high school, I found a passion for the gym that I never knew I would have. I fell in love with the environment and the people I interacted with – so much so that I got a job at the university gym just three months later. My job at the gym has made me the best friends I have ever had in my life – shout-out my TRECS fam – as well as brought me the love of my life, and many other friendships from people who aren’t my coworkers, just your typical gym-goers. These relationships have only made my love for the gym grow fonder.
I am a lover of weight lifting, high intensity workouts, and the stair master (lol). I have never been the biggest fan of long-distance running; however, I love a challenge, as I am very competitive, and I plan to run a half marathon this coming December. I have grown up as a sprinter and would rather do shuttles on shuttles than run 10 miles. Because of this, I have found an immense love for HIIT workouts like EMOMs and AMRAPs. I want my body to be functional; I want to be a weapon. My goal is not to have the biggest muscles, or the smallest waist; my goal is to be my fittest, healthiest, and happiest by listening to my body.
A form of exercise that I want to talk about is – CYCLEBAR. I started going to Cyclebar about two years ago. For those of you who do not know what Cyclebar is, it is a group spin class that is entirely centered around runs, sprints, jumps, and choreography that moves on beat to the music playing. I had never done a spin class in my life; and let me tell you, for someone who considered themselves “in shape,” the experience was nothing short of humbling. My passion and love for Cyclebar grew in every class. I started out only ever riding in the back row, shy with not a single bit of confidence in myself. Over just a month of riding once, twice, or even three times a day, I made my way to front and center of the class. My confidence shot through the roof; I got to know the instructors; I got to know the other riders; Cyclebar was, and is, a second home to me. I have never had the greatest confidence in myself, but Cyclebar struck a fire in me that will never go out. I rode every class directly in front of the instructor that I now considered a friend with the biggest smile on my face.
Weightlifting is something that has brought me more mental and physical confidence than I ever thought it would have. I was always so terrified of the weight room when I first got to college – that’s where all the really buff guys get their superpowers and ban anyone else from entering right? Wrong. I feel like a common misconception that a lot of females have when they first go to a gym is that they don’t “belong” around the big weights or the squats racks and typically just settle for using the machines their entire workout. Trust me – I’ve been there. I would walk to the gym from my dorm and walk on the stairmaster until it felt like my legs could fall off (I still do this – but only because I have an undying love for the stairmaster), and on occasion I would walk around to the little selectorized machines and follow the photo instructions on the side of it. But, one day, I decided to go to the gym when I knew it wouldn’t be too busy, and I grabbed a set of dumbbells and did a leg work-out because, at the time, that was the only body part I actually enjoyed working out. I was so sore the next day and it brought me back to my high school sports days – a feeling I didn’t know if I’d ever truly have again. From there, I slowlyyyyy made my way to lifting about five times a week and my body was loving it. I love the progress I have made in my muscle growth. I now lift 4-5x a week, and weightlifting has truly become my favorite form of exercise. It makes me feel confident, empowered, and strong.
That is pretty much all I have to say in terms of exercise, so let’s jump into the nutrition side of my health journey –
Junk food was my middle name growing up. It wasn’t until high school that I learned how to make grilled chicken on the stove top and began actually watching what I ate. When I got to college, my mom was fully convinced I was going to gain the freshman 15 due to my easy access to fast food; however, I did not gain the freshman 15 – I actually lost weight because I am such a picky eater that there were little to no options for me to eat at the dining hall. I have always enjoyed baking (both healthy and unhealthy) treats for everyone around me, and my mom is a bit of a health nut; so, anytime I wanted to bake, I opted for finding some sort of ~healthy~ recipe so that my mom could eat it with me.
Fast forward to my sophomore year of college, and I finally had my own apartment with my own kitchen. This is where it all started for me – I began to absolutely love cooking for myself. My passion for cooking healthy meals for PICKY EATERS grew immensely. I have even experimented with a few foods that I thought I would never try (i.e. spinach and edamame). I absolutely adore cooking healthy meals that are very simple and very delicious. I want to show others that healthy eating does not have to be complicated OR boring!!!!! As a picky eater, I believe that I have found a good balance of healthy meals that genuinely taste like a dream and anyone would like.
All in all, I hope this little (or really long) post gave you a little overview of my health and fitness journey, and I hope I get the opportunity to help you along yours.
All the best & xoxo,
Avery