Submit Your Story
Submitting a story about what inspires you on the job or the circumstances that led you to accomplish a health and fitness goal helps us tell the story of ACE. We encourage you to submit your thoughts below, as well as a photo or video. Be open, and of course, feel free to browse other submissions by your fellow professionals. We are all the fabric of ACE.
Submit Your Story
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Joanne Koury
Whitehall, PA
I am prompted to write this by one of the ACE staffers who assisted me during a recent renewal process for my 28th year of certification as a group fitness instructor with ACE. My 35 year career in...
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Christopher Prophet
COLUMBIA, SC
I'm Cj Prophet with Flex Squad Fitness and I've been a certified personal trainer for 6 years. I developed a love for personal training while going through my very own weight loss. I'd never been v...
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Adriano Melikardi
CHICAGO, IL
Fitness and sports have always been my passion. From my early teenage years, I started working out. I loved how it made me look and feel. I came to the realization that ultimately what I truly want...
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Roxanne Massie
ALEXANDRIA, VA
My weight loss journey began in 2013. I just had total knee replacement surgery on my left knee in October and was preparing for the same surgery to my right knee in July of 2014. Suffering for yea...
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Carlos Buzonich
Miami FL Hialeah, FL
Sports have always been a part of my life, starting with soccer. I was not a natural athlete; the physical preparation was a challenge for me, so I put all my effort into training...
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Aaron Allie
Waupaca, Wisconsin
Some very awkward and impressionable grammar school years remain the prominent reason I’m so committed to helping others find or stay glued to fitness. As an overweight and unmotivated teen, ...
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Jessica Deany
MCKINNEY, TX
I was living a really unhealthy lifestyle in college and was very inactive and out of shape. Fortunately, I started getting involved in fitness my junior year and discovered a strong passion for it...
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Linda Gottlieb
Milford, CT
I never set out to be a fitness professional. Loving movement, my early years were spent in dance class and losing myself in the beat of all genres of music. In the early 1980s, I decided to become...
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Aline Laing
Lawrenceville, GA
I am an avid runner, fitness enthusiast and an certified ACE Personal Trainer and Health Coach. Let me tell you my story as to why I chose to join the health and fitness industry. After earning a g...
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Robyn Bumgarner
Channahon, IL
My name is Robyn Bumgarner, and I am an ACE Certified Personal Trainer. I am also currently studying to become an ACE Certified Health Coach. My journey to a profession in the health and fitness in...
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Kim Tate
DRESSER, WI
In 2010 I found myself spiraling down into a severe state of depression that seemed impossible to get out of. I had resigned from teaching in 2005 to become a stay-at-home mom. A daughter and twin ...
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Yvette Salva
marlboro, NJ
My name is Yvette. I want to share my story of recovery with you, in hopes that it may help someone reading this today.Since the age of fifteen, I have been dealing with anorexia/bulimia, al...
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Brandon Soares
OLYMPIA, WA
If you would have told me out of high school I would be a personal trainer, I would have made sure to point out how terrible of a fortune teller you were! You don't leave high school 250 pounds, pr...
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Lisa Pezik
Ancaster, ON
Fitness has always been a catalyst for change in my life. As a child, I was overweight, bullied and struggled with self-esteem. In middle school, I decided to become active in volleyball, basketbal...
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Heidi Blum
LIVINGSTON, NJ
You could say that I have they typical story of being the fat funny kid growing up and I turned that into a positive by becoming a personal trainer. But there is nothing typical about me. Not only ...
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Ariel Zimmerman
SANDY, UT
My story began in 2012 when I went to the local Anytime Fitness for my first bootcamp class. I came in amped and excited to get started. About halfway through the workout I felt like I was going to...
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Lauren Evans
RENO, NV
I wake up every day with the drive and passion to help my clients reach their goals, whether it is completing their first triathlon or running a Boston Marathon Qualifier time.After spending...
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Beverly Hosford
Bozeman, MT
Like many middle school girls, I was teased through my pre-teen years. It was hard for me to make friends. I was a happy, light-hearted girl who loved the outdoors. My enthusiasm for fitness is wha...
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Nancy Howe
PHOENIX, AZ
In 1997 at 42 years old, I was diagnosed with cancer. I was a competitive recreational runner, profiled in "Runner's World" in 1990, and a daily exerciser who followed a healthy diet. I developed a...
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Andrea Claassen
Minneapolis, MN
My fitness journey began in high school. I was a three-sport athlete back in high school and college, so fitness has always been part of my life growing up. When I was a junior in high school I sta...
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Karen Brown-Gordon
Cedar City, Utah
I have been working in the exercise science field since 1989. I received my masters in exercise science/physiology then, and my first ACE certification, which was Group Exercise Instructor -- of co...
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Brian Crombie
PORTSMOUTH, NH
My name is Brian Crombie and I'm an ACE Certified Personal Trainer from Portsmouth, N.H. I wanted to share a success story from one of my clients, Marianne Pernold:"Stage I breast cancer cam...
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Cindy Rakowitz
AGOURA HILLS, CA
I did not realize the magnitude of my injuries until I became fitness aware in mid-life. Fascinated with the power of endorphin release and balanced kinesiology programs, I became ACE Certified to ...
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Inga Romanoff
Manhattan, NY
Fitness has been both a passion and a personal journey. Initially, I became serious about working out because of a personal injury. Over time, with help from my coaches, inspiration and support fro...
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Kimmi Alyssa Hellman
Temecula, CA
As an avid athlete myself, I began coaching soccer teams and realized I wanted to help my players more than just with skills. I chose ACE because the program is thorough, well-respected and recomme...
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James Mayfield
BOULDER, CO
When I was a child, I wanted to be a teenage mutant ninja turtle. By the time I was a teenager, I no longer wanted to be a turtle or a mutant. I've trained for most of my life and gained some measu...
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Lisa Azevedo
Encinitas, California
My name is Lisa. I'm a single mother to two fantastic children, a type 1 diabetic and a breast cancer survivor. I am an RN and an ACE Certified Personal Trainer. I barely worked out a day in my lif...
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Michael Callahan
CHALMETTE, LA
By the time I had reached my late 30s, I had ballooned up to 270 pounds. I smoked two to three packs of cigarettes everyday and I was always suffering from some sort of bug. I was a long-haul truck...
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Erin Barela
STUDIO CITY, CA
In 2007 after being a smoker for more than a decade I quit and joined the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training Program. With them I trained and completed the San Diego Rock & ...
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Kimmy Addison
PITTSBURGH, PA
I have personally struggled with body image issues my entire life. I've been overweight and I have also been anorexic. Regardless of how I looked, I was never satisfied with my body, even at my low...
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Matthew Skelly
WILMINGTON, NC
As a child I had an insatiable appetite for food, so much that at the age of 10 and with a height of 4' 11" I was already 140 lbs. My doctor encouraged me to drop 20 pounds, and that was being mode...
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Daniel Sopp
Cortland, NY
It was four years ago in the summer of 2010 that I was seriously considering a career change. I was stuck in jobs that I really didn't like, but only stayed because I needed to pay the bills. I had...
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Geoffrey Rubin
Scottsdale, AZ
Fitness is my driving source of creating life-changing actions. Every story has a beginning and mine starts when I was a young man in middle school. It was an early May afternoon in 1999. My father...
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Frank Tortorici
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA
I was born and raised on Long Island, NY in an environment of a loving extended family. Yet with all the visual love surrounding me as a youngster, there lied a pain and darkness I shared with no o...
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Cappie Geis
San Diego, CA
At age 20 I "discovered" fitness and began teaching group exercise. I have been teaching classes for almost 40 years now! I have always enjoyed cooking since my home economics class in high school....
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Kimberly Venti
Scituate, Massachusetts
My name is Kim and I am an ACE Certified Personal Trainer living on the South Shore of Massachusetts. I am a very active individual that loves year-round surfing, Crossfit, yoga, stand-up paddleboa...
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William Neco
Brooklyn, NY
At 11 years old, I nagged my parents to buy me a weight set so I could become like the pro wrestlers I watched on TV. But it all changed for me one day iun 1972 when I saw Vasily Alexyev on the cov...
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Hameedah Tirado
Los Angeles, CA
Since childhood I enjoyed conditioning and challenging my body because I was an althlete. Then one tragic night, 10 years ago, I was a victim of a senseless act of violence. This left me without th...
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Brandon Corrales
DEWEY, AZ
Fitness and nutrition have played a huge role in my life and have helped me in my recovery from wounds received in combat, both physical and mental.In high school I fell in love with exercis...
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Ashley Thompson
Pooler, Georgia
Originally from Carrollton, Georgia, I went to Ogeechee Tech cosmetology program in Statesboro, Georgia. While attending college, I battled the deadly disease of Anorexia Nervosa for three years. D...
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Cindy Asch-Martin
Olympia, WA
After my left leg had to be amputated June 2011, my chosen career and the knowledge that went with it came in quite handy. For about 13 years, I had been keeping myself and others in shape as a cer...
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Brian Luu
SACRAMENTO, CA
While I was a fairly active youth, physical activity was not a big emphasis on my life growing up. It wasn't anyone's fault; it just was what it was. This was not an issue until I entered adolescen...
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Nicole Hadley
SPRING VALLEY, CA
I have been in the fitness industry for over 20 years and have raised four high-energy children in the meantime. It has been a struggle to balance the demands of both motherhood and being fitness r...
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Matt Petersen
Grayslake, IL
I was a jock growing up, but that was ended my senior year in high school with a knee injury that led to knee reconstruction of two ligaments. My future plans had been to enter the Air Force Academ...
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Julian Gajic
HAMILTON, ON
In 2005, at age 37, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I had a sedentary lifestyle and bad eating habits, so it was inevitable. But, through determination, persistence, focus and a lot...
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Claudio Yakupka
ALEXANDRIA, VA
I came to the USA with the dream of being a successful personal trainer. It took me four years working in the food-service industry to save the money to become ACE certified and start to work as pe...
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Jessica Glaser
MILWAUKEE, WI
I began my weight-loss journey in 2003, when I was faced with the reality of being a role model for my toddler daughter. I grew up as an obese child and had been overweight my whole life. I remembe...
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Jill Brown
Los Angeles, CA
A setback is a setup for success.At 40 I found that I was in the best shape of my life. I've been a fitness instructor since 1989. I started teaching shortly after graduating college with a ...
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Jennifer Pirtle
SAN ANTONIO, TX
Fitness and nutrition has always played a very large part in my life. As a child I was active in dance, loved running and playing with my friends. When I was ten years old, my family had a very maj...
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Dana Fine
WEST ORANGE, NJ
My name is Dana and I have over thirty years of experience in the health, fitness and rehabilitation field. I have extensive experience in general adult fitness, the senior/mature market and ...
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Shannon Smith
Parsonsfield, Maine
As an adult with a healthy appetite, I gained weight once I got a desk job at a credit union. After the birth of my son, even as a stay at home mom, I went back to my old ways. I quickly gained wha...
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Farel Hruska
SAN MARCOS, CA
After being in the fitness industry for almost 15, I became a mom and it rocked my world! I had never been happier and yet, I felt my personal definition or identity had drifted away. I had a preco...
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Boe Glasschild
FLINT, MI
My connection to the fitness world began at an early age. I was born a severely asthmatic child. Until about the age of 11 or 12, I spent the majority of my life on our sofa reading books throughou...
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Kevin Heffernan
BIDDEFORD, ME
I was a Street Outreach Worker for people struggling with severe emotional and behavior issues for 20 years - until I was diagnosed with a bipolar illness. My life came shattering down around me, s...
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Valetta Stewart
WASHINGTON, DC
My name is Valetta but everyone that knows me and are not family, call me Su'Rae. This is: My Life before and after the ACE Certified Personal Trainer course through the SALUTE YOU Scholarship 2013...
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Kris Cameron
Coralville, IA
My name is Kris Pritchett Cameron. I became a Personal Trainer to help those who were afraid to step into a gym. Their fears may stem from age, ability, weight, income, or lack of self-confidence. ...
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Sara Hauber
OAK PARK, IL
With metal bars attached to my spine, from T1 to L4, I never thought I'd be a fitness pro or a yoga teacher. In fact, for years I told myself I couldn't be a yoga teacher because I can't do a back ...
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Kimberly Silvia-Pare
Swansea, MA
I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 30. I had no risk factors, so I was completely caught off guard. It was an aggressive cancer, and I fought it aggressively with surgery, chemotherapy and r...
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Cortney Raubenstine
MECHANICSBURG, PA
Growing up I was always thin and even had a hard time gaining weight. Since I was thin already, I never put much thought into exercise or being healthy. That is until I went off to college. The fir...
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Virginie Breuer
PUNTA GORDA, FL
I was a 35 year old successful restaurant manager and I was proud of the fact that I had never worked out in my life! I was overweight but I did not know my weight as I always refused to weigh myse...
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Anthony Phillips
COOKEVILLE, TN
I am 33 years old from a small town in Tennessee called Monterey, about 15 minutes from where I currently reside in Cookeville. I am an ACE Certified Personal Trainer, ACE Certified Heath Coach and...
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Teresa Ma
KATY, TX
To say that fitness is a way of life for me wouldn’t do it justice. To give credit where it’s due, fitness saved my life.I started running at the age 12 and was forever on whatev...
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Karen Woodmansee
Lebanon, CT
When I first thought about telling my story, I wasn’t sure I would have anything remarkable to say. I spent a great deal of time reflecting upon what I’ve done that could be called &ldq...
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John Byrne
WILMINGTON, DE
Exercise has always played a huge part in my life. Even as a child, I devoured books and articles about the methods used by my favorite football players to improve their conditioning. I emulated th...
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Gina Crome
Glendora, CA
Five years ago, at the age of 34, I found myself at my heaviest weight: 312 lbs! In the prior years leading up that weight, I was finding it increasingly difficult to live a somewhat normal life. E...
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Elizabeth Kovar
SEATTLE, WA
From athlete to fitness professional, I was born to move. However, my story began in 2006 where I found stress and disease taking over my life as a newly certified fitness instructor in college. At...
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Brett Klika
San Diego, CA
The health and fitness laws that govern being a kid are centered on “Playing is fun” and “Dessert is awesome.” No child embraced this mantra more than I did, growing up in O...
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