135 Fitness

My family moved to Nashville in the summer of 1989, and one of the first purchases my dad made was the Olympic weight set that still sits in his basement. I remember the day we got it home and put it together. The basement was nothing but cinderblock walls, concrete floors, and one window. It was now the home of our brand new gray Parabody Olympic weight set and my favorite room in the house. It was in that basement that I discovered my love for lifting weights and setting goals for myself.

‍My dad was the first one to get on the bench and under the bar. He slapped the 45’s on each side, and I remember the distinct sound of the iron plates sliding across the collars and the clang they made when they came to their final resting place. 135 pounds was nothing for my dad, but he started psyching himself up because he wanted us to think it was a struggle.

At 9 years old, he was my hero, and I wanted to do everything he did. I wanted to lift 135 pounds. The problem was that I was too young to lift weights, but I didn’t care. I would sneak down into that basement every chance I got so I could reach my goal as soon as possible. I started out with the 45-pound bar, and at 9 years old, that was a struggle, but I had my sights set on 135.

I spent years going after my first life goal of bench pressing 135 pounds, and when I hit that goal, I never looked back. Unbeknownst to myself, I kept setting life goals that had a foundation in health and wellness. Throughout my childhood, I would go into that basement and challenge myself to become the person I want to be every day. I loved the fact that it was just me and the weights. No matter what I was going through, I would work it out in that basement, banging and clanging amongst those cinderblock walls and concrete floor.

135 Fitness is founded on the idea that the perfect fitness room should inspire and motivate. The best part of my job is getting to know my clients on a personal level and understanding what drives them. I have a passion for designing rooms that inspire people to set goals and go after them. I believe the innate beauty of a fitness room is not only in the design elements but in the intangible feelings it evokes when you achieve your goals.

Moving to America when I was 19, I quickly learned that health and fitness wasn’t what I was used to. Healthy food wasn’t the only option in stores and I spent more time in a car than playing sports and moving my body. I had to make a conscious choice to stay active and healthy. I started going to the gym, hopped on an elliptical and observed other people. Every day I learned new things about weight lifting and fell in love with it.

Being on my own fitness journey for a few years, I wanted to help others take their health and fitness to the next level, got certified in personal training and started my new career. My next mission was to see how far I could push my own body, signed up for a bodybuilding competition and started prep for a bikini show. This taught me about how food affects the body, if you feed it nutritious foods, it will respond and do what you’re asking it, whether that is to lose or gain weight. After that experience, I pivoted towards a path focused on longevity. Our main goal in life is to be healthy for as long as possible and I want you to be able to play with your grandchildren or travel the world for years to come, which starts by taking care of your body.