I was overwhelmed, stressed, and felt lost.

I grew up in a small village in the Midwest. Our meals often consisted of meat, potatoes, and a veggie. We had to finish our plates before getting up.

I was a very picky eater. Some foods that amuse me that I refused to eat for a long time were: berries (literally any), pies, kiwi, zucchini, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, fish/sea food, and bananas.

As I got to middle school and high school, it drove me crazy when girls wouldn’t finish their meals, would dab the excess grease off of their pizza, and skip meals or forget to eat.

I was so proud of myself for splitting a Jack’s pizza with my dad. Maybe I thought I was “cool” for eating food and not being a “skinny, popular girl”. Maybe it was my way of coping. Who knows. I was pretty active, so it didn’t seem to pack on the pounds.

The freshman 15

Although I didn’t live in a dorm where many freshman in college gain the good old’ “freshman 15”, I still gained a lot of weight in college. I was in long term relationships. I loved to cook and eat. I loved to bake.

At one point, I was working 3 part-time jobs and going to school full time. I was living 20-30 minutes away from school and often swung by Arby’s or Wendy’s between class and work.

I also worked at Quiznos (a toasted sandwich chain) for a while, where they had the BEST cookies, especially if you send them through the oven in small bits.

My Arby’s order: Jamocha shake and mozzarella sticks. Wendy’s: usually a baconator or son of a baconator. Quizno’s: chicken bacon ranch sandwich and/or broccoli cheddar soup, and always a cookie cut into squares and sent through the oven. No wonder I gained weight.

Plus, with not sleeping well, the stress of jobs and school, trying to maintain a relationship, hardly exercising….

It ALL added up very quickly. I didn’t seem to notice. No one pointed it out. No one checked in to make sure I was doing okay. Is it their fault? Not one bit. My point is, it was just the norm of everyone I was close to at the time.

What changed?

I moved to Indiana with my dog at the age of 23. Away from my relationship. Away from my family. Away from my jobs.

It was a fresh start.

I don’t remember exactly why, but I saw some caffeine tea pills and thought they’d help me lose weight in this new phase of my life. Yikes.

I became a bit more active due to my job at Purdue University. I walked a lot and often had to lift heavy objects. This helped a lot. I also didn’t have a lot of extra money to spend on food in the beginning.

I was just trying to get by…

My weight fluctuated as I discovered all of the amazing food campus and campus town had to offer. I wasn’t a student at the time; but I worked full time on campus and was surrounded by all of the goodness.

Calzones, burgers, flavored sodas, McDonald’s sweet tea & frappuccinos, Coldstones’s “gotta have it” ice creams….

I fit in with the guys I worked with because I could eat all of that. I felt “cool” again. Aren’t brains fun?

Come fall of 2015, I met a guy who is now my husband. We’d go out to eat, I’d cook for him, he’d cook for me. Things got comfortable.

I gained weight again.

We went on vacation in 2016. The photos of me honestly grossed me out. How did I let myself go so much? I hadn’t realized it until I saw the photos. Luckily, I knew Ross loved me for who I was - not my weight!

At 194 pounds, I knew something had to change.

I joined a “biggest loser” challenge that my friend from college put together. Thanks, Hilary! She told me about a girl she followed on Snapchat who inspired her; so I followed suit.

Some of you may have heard of the Ladyboss program. I was one of the first to join the original group. It was lifechanging. I learned a lot about exercise and how to eat healthier. I bought the programs. I drank the shakes. Met amazing people. Needless to say, I was all in.

It helped me discover my love for health and fitness. I dove deeper into nutrition and learning more about how to fuel my body. I lost 50 pounds by the fall 2017 and felt amazing.

(See photos at the top and bottom of the article!)

I started running, thanks to the help of my friend, Meryl. I was never very fast; but I loved the feeling I got from running, especially in a race.

I was so proud of myself for keeping off the weight for the next few years. I wanted to “look” stronger for our wedding in 2019, but I was doing okay still.

The 2019-2020 school year is when I had a health coach. She helped keep me in check and inspired me to further with my life into health and wellness.

In December of 2019, I decided that it was time to make a decision about my life: was I going to go back to school to become a teacher or to become a health coach? I was going to turn 30 in March of 2020; so I felt like I had to make a choice. (You can guess which choice I made!)

COVID hit hard in 2020.

I wish I could say I was one of those people who went all in and got fit. I did complete my Zumba training and got certified to be a Group Fitness Instructor. Learn more about my journey here.

Other than that, I led a pretty sedentary lifestyle. I worked out sporadically, but dearly missed my Zumba crew with Denise and my 5am gym time at Anytime Fitness

In March of 2020, I discovered a lump on my thyroid. I did a few telehealth visits with my doctor. After an ultrasound and biopsy in August, they learned the nodule was benign. But, in the meantime between March and August, I was a mess.

I think I let the stress of it all get to me. I gained just a few pounds - nothing to stress about.

I was also learning about Intuitive Eating around this time. My health coach said I may gain a little weight in the beginning while I was learning about how my body would behave; so I wasn’t concerned.

That brought me to late 2022. I was working at a local gym for just over a year when I was offered the position of assistant manager. I honestly struggled with this position.

I had a lot of extra stress on my plate. I was also teaching several classes a week and had some personal training clients at the time.

I was balancing a LOT. I will always be grateful for that job. I resigned from the assistant manager position in May 2024. I didn’t realize how much the extra stress was affecting me, though. I also slowly quit some of the classes I was teaching to help ease the load.

It was time to focus on growing my business.

I went from teaching 2-3 classes a day, 5 days a week to 5 classes a week. I sat at my laptop for hours on end trying to learn the ins and outs of owning a health and wellness business.

I took courses, read books, joined groups…and sat. And ate.

My body was used to eating a LOT because I moved A LOT! When I started sitting more and more, I still ate a lot. It was a weird transition.

Then, my mom’s health took a turn in early 2024. Honestly, this stressed me out more than anything (and honestly still does). I wanted to be there constantly; but I couldn’t. I stress ate. And still sat a LOT.

Needless to say, I started gaining weight again in 2024. It honestly was interesting to see what it was like for people who work a desk job. Almost all of my jobs over the years had me on my feet and moving!

I had a better understanding of what it was like for my clients with a sedentary job. But, I was tired of it.

That brings us to today.

I started working out on my own again. I couldn’t rely on my in person classes anymore since I cut them down to focus on my business. I cleaned up our home gym and made it a place I enjoy being.

(Scroll down to see a video of my home gym!)

My husband has discovered a new love for roasted veggies. We started grilling out more and preparing our own food more often again. It’s wonderful!

I’m on the path now to feeling better again. I recently started seeing a therapist to help me deal with anxiety and the stress that inevitably comes with life.

The health of my family and friends is a major inspiration for me. I want to lead by example and provide as much support as I can. They can attest to Ross and I always bringing some sort of fruit or veggies to events! HA!

When you start to realize that just being active and eating well can be imperative to a high quality of life, it honestly makes the work more worth it.

I also realized that when it comes to being active, I’m doing what I love. I love Zumba. I love Circl Mobility. I love going for walks and learning to love biking. Weight lifting makes me feel empowered and strong.

I talk about the importance of finding ways to be active in ways you enjoy in my blog post about Inflammation.

I still struggle from time to time. Social events are the hardest for me; but I’m working through that. I am looking forward to finding this new balance in life and tackling summertime head on with all the activities!

My little home gym.

Hi there, I’m Kimberly.

I’m so happy you’re here! You’re taking important and powerful steps towards a healthier, more confident, empowered, and stronger you! Congrats on taking that step. It can be scary and overwhelming. I am so proud of you!

If you would have told me back in high school when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grow up that I would own my own health and fitness business, I would be shocked (especially about the health and fitness aspects).

I always knew I wanted to own my own business. I like to think my dad’s business inspired me. I loved teaching and leading. I worked in schools for years; but something was just not quite right.

One year while working as a para in a middle school, I had a health coach. I was already in the process of my own health and wellness journey.

She inspired me to take what I know, change career paths, and go all into health and fitness. I thought it was crazy. I wasn’t athletic. I wasn’t in what I thought of “good shape”. How could I be a trainer and health coach?

I went for it anyways - and now here we are. I created life changing programs such as the AYM Method, created and taught over 500 group fitness classes, and provided personal training to over 30 clients, some who have been with me for 3 years now!

One of the coolest parts? I’m still a teacher! My lessons, students, and classrooms just look different than I ever thought possible.

And guess what? I absolutely love it. I took classes to become certified in group fitness, personal training, and to be a health coach. I am also licensed to teach Zumba, Circl Mobility, Strong Nation, and Plate by Zumba.

I feel so much gratitude for those who have supported me along the way, especially my amazing husband who has been by my side through it all.

I now have a mission to help others find ways to create sustainable lifestyle changes. I want to take away the overwhelm that I felt on my journey and take you step by step through your own path. Click for info on how to work with me.