Biography
I started my fitness journey back in 2009 when my career and life put me on a path of bad health. I was overweight and my cholesterol started shooting through the roof. At this time I made a decision to get back on track with my health. Like most people, I decided to seek out help and hired a personal trainer. It was a very educational experience but I realized that I wasn’t training enough on my own and when I did, it was very boring. I later sought out other sports and group training that I would find more enjoyable. This led me to finding Boxing, Muay Thai Boxing and other forms of martial arts. Down the rabbit hole I went, learning as much as I could, anywhere I could, since at the time I traveled for work and was working in many parts of the country. At this time training had been a huge part of my life and incorporating it to my daily routine was a necessity for me, not only because it was fun but it was also my stress release, my meditation time, my time with my team, and always a learning experience, it was no longer just a work out. I started to seek out more knowledge on the fitness side and became a certified group fitness instructor through ACE. I also became a qualified TRX trainer and Functional Fitness coach. In 2013 I had a horrible appendicitis that left me hospitalized for over a month and limited to any physical activity for about a year. This caused a lot of weight gain, anxiety and a case of depression, since the one thing I enjoyed the most was no longer available to me. This time was also a bad time for my nutritional health, because of all the antibiotics I was on, it destroyed my gut microbiome. This led me to seek out nutritional help with a nutritionist and gastroenterologist. This taught me many things about my gut health, how to properly fuel my body, understanding calories, macronutrients, and how food affects my mood and fitness ability. With these tools I was able to get back in shape once I was cleared for physical activity. This also lead me to create the non-profit organization HERO&S Foundation to promote health and fitness to our community in 2014. In 2016 I started the Muay Thai program at Alliance BJJ Houston and have been here since. Currently I run the kids Muay Thai and Adult Boxing and Muay Thai programs here. I also assist with the Adult Fit Camps and new member Orientation classes. When time allows I assist with the new membership consultations, event planning, and day to day operations. I feel fulfilled when teaching, I think that my most of my life that I have always been placed in a role as a trainer or instructor in most of my careers, as a student I was a tutor, as an engineer I would develop training programs and train new engineers company processes and also clients to run our product. I think this has helped with my development as an instructor to work with different types of learners.
Accolades
12 years as a Muay Thai Practitioner
7 years as a Group Fitness Instructor
6 years as a Muay Thai Instructor
6 years as a BJJ Practitioner
2. Certifications and Education
Muay Thai Instructor under Kru Izzy of Muay Thai Corner
ACE Certified Group Fitness Instructor
Weight Management Specialist
Youth Fitness Specialist
TRX Functional Fitness and Suspension Trainer
4. Important and Interesting Facts
Fencing instructor and Head Armorer of UST fencing club from 2003-2008
5. A Pinch of Personality
I love food
