We were lucky to catch up with Samantha Wallace recently and have shared our conversation below.
Samantha , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I grew up in a divorced home where addiction was apart of my parental up bringing. Coming from a childhood that embodied a lot of deep rooted trauma, I found an escape through studio dance that I had been doing since I was 3/4 years old. As I grew into my teen years I learned that the only thing I truly had control over in my life was my body. I had began to struggle with compare and compete in my own body image when it came to dance. I am petite at 5ft tall. I was surrounded by girls who were tall and thin I always felt short and stalky. I had developed a very unhealthy relationship with food and struggled through an eating disorder for many years. When I graduated high school I was terrified of gaining weight and struggled to find ways to stay active. Until I fell into bodybuilding.
I started going to the gym not knowing what I was doing and was shortly after introduced to body building after meeting my first coach at 18 years old.
I began competing at 19 years old and a little over into a year into my competition journey I ended up in an emergency appendectomy surgery that not only almost cost me my life but led to the diagnosis of stage 4 endometriosis. Through my post op recovery I truly felt the impact of what it was like to feel helpless. I couldn’t take a shower alone. I couldn’t get off of a couch alone. I remember being so sick from the medications and feeling so helpless in a body that could once do everything to being in a body that couldn’t perform basic functions like sitting up.
I remember thinking to myself, “if I am struggling this bad as a 20 year old healthy individual, I can’t imagine the battle others who don’t have their health are experiencing. I want to help them in any way I can so that they don’t have to struggle like I am.”
During my post op recovery and remaining confined to my couch as I healed, I began my certification process to become a personal trainer, corrective rehabilitation specialist, and nutrition certified. I set out on a mission to help men and women regain their health and lives.
Through my experience I learned early on that you can look really fit and healthy on the exterior but the exterior doesn’t mean that the interior is equally healthy. Today I help men and women heal their mind, body, and relationship with food through sustainable processes, so they can embody a full 360 lifestyle of health and wellness.
I believe if it weren’t for my experience with learning how to harness my own health and hardships, I wouldn’t have ever found a purpose that is so much greater, which is giving back to others. It’s a privilege I never take for granted. That I hope can inspire others to go after their health as I have.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am the founder and owner of Sam Wallace Fitness. A personal training and nutrition company that helps men and women find lifestyle sustainability. We meet you where you’re currently at and help you grow from there. So you can ditch the fad diets and excessive training regimens that leave you rebounding in weight gain time and time again. This is where health meats lifestyle. Myself and my teams registered dietitian take a unique one on one approach as we understand every client experience and life is different. Which requires unique solutions. Fitness and nutrition is not a one size fits all which is why we aim to curate a training and nutrition plan for each individual that provides the joy and healthy relationships with food first while allowing you to focus on what really matters, living your life to the fullest.
The most exciting part of working with others in their health journeys is watching mom’s and dad’s run with their kids for the first time. Seeing clients lose over 160+ lbs and live like they’ve never lived before. Seeing women embracing and loving their bodies and breaking free of the shame and guilt they once carried. Being apart of clients journeys as they save their marriages, gain back the confidence to go back to school or change careers. Seeing women and men regain their sense of selves. I could go on and on. These are the moments that feel so special. Having the privilege to be a small part of our clients big journeys is an indescribable feeling, seeing someone take their health and their life back it’s truly again, indescribable.
We focus on a three phase approach that rebuilds the foundation and habits that bring our clients to us in the first place. We then start rebuilding the freedom and flexibility while maintaining structured balance in our clients journeys, then bring our clients back to a place of intuitive eating and training so that they can maintain their results for life.
We not only work with your everyday individual we also work with athletes of all walks. Which has been a blast to help bring back the joy and balance of athletes of all walks.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The most impactful skills I learned early on in my training career were discipline, delayed gratification, becoming strong in finding solutions in adversity. If anyone is embarking on a journey of health and fitness learning how to becoming strong in our foundational habits and creating obtainable consistency in those habits compounded over time is what helps us reach our larger goals. The faster you can get out of the perfectionism execution mindset and connect to the enjoyment of the process to reaching those goals the more enjoyable and sustainable that journey will become.
If you are struggling with obtaining these my best advice would be circling back to your why. It is such a simple and powerful tool that can help you reconnect to the reasons you are choosing to embark on a health journey. Focusing on the perfectionist mindset is the quickest way to the bottom. Be courageous in taking imperfect action and if you are struggling have the courage and humility to reach out to a trusted coach for help. This is where growth truly begins and if you are truly wanting and ready to change your life these are the foundational pieces that are going to allow you to accomplish that.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I am always looking to connect with other like minded individuals in the health and wellness space. I believe we are stronger together and the power of community can be a positive impact in helping others. Whether that is collaborating on social media to help another person along the way or hosting in person community events to inspire and encourage others to take charge in their health I am here to help, inspire, and support in any way I can. Fitness was so freely given to me and changed my life in ways I can’t even begin to put into words. I am passionate about helping others achieve the same.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.samwallacefitness.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/samwallacefit
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/samwallacefit
- Other: Tik Tok: @samwallacefitness
