Jess Luepke here. 🙂 When I was 14, my parents brought my sisters and I to the West YMCA in Grand Rapids – this is where I tried weight lifting for the first time. I’d move around from machine to machine, no real plan, but trying out each exercise. I loved how I felt.
Growing up, I played just about every sport but soon realized it wasn’t just the sport I loved, it was training for it. The burn in the muscles, the effort required and connectedness the weights gave me, the ease I felt going into any gym thereafter.
I remember being on a leg extension machine when I was 17 or so and seeing a woman walking around coaching others. I thought – what an amazing job it would be to be a trainer!
I wish I could tell that woman how much that split second moment positively changed my life. 🙂
Whether the West YMCA, Grandville YMCA, Family Fitness, Omni Fitness, The Dow Center, Golds Gyms, countless gyms in South Florida, or Ultimate Fitness…the smell of a rubber floor, the clanging of metal…those smells and sounds became my second home.
Almost three decades later, I realize the impact all of those weight room experiences have had on not just my physical being but on my mental being.
My self confidence.
The healthy neutrality I held for my body instead of the despairing body dysmorphia plaguing so many around me.
The excellence I could bring to my sport in high school and college and the habit of lifting I could continue into my 20s, 30s, and now 40s.
My assurance of my place in a setting largely seen as intimidating and overwhelming.
…I often wonder what would have happened had my parents not brought me into a gym those early teen years. I surely wouldn’t be who I am today.
That’s why I’m PASSIONATE about our new Student Summer Specials.
We’ve got programs for college-age, high school, and middle schoolers to come to Valeo to have their own “Wow, look what I can do!” moments. To gain grit and confidence and learn from our incredible team of coaches.
In these programs, we’ll be instructing students on:
- The foundations of movement
- How to master bodyweight exercises
- Core strengthening exercises
- How to increase stability & power for sport and everyday life
- How to execute loaded movements safely & effectively
- A Core Value of the week
The weight room is more than just a place to sweat. It’s a place to learn to be 1% better every day and to begin a habit of strength and proper movement that will domino-effect into other healthy behaviors.
So, if you’ve got a middle schooler, high schooler, or college-age student, we’d love to have them join us.
You can learn more and sign up at the button below…
It could just change their life.
Jess & Team Valeo
