My dreams and ambitions have lead me on a long journey. I moved to Virginia 14 years ago. At that point, I was 250 pounds with little motivation. School was unimportant and exercise was a struggle. My dad decided to send me to a Military School, Fork Union Military Academy, which changed my life forever. We were on a strict regimen of going to sleep at 10 and waking up at 5:30. If you did not play a sport during a season, you were required to participate in Physical Training. At first, I hated the idea of always having to play a sport because of my inability as any type of athlete. I was slow, overweight, and uncoordinated.
Exposure to sports like Football, Soccer, Lacrosse, and Track and field stuck with me for life. Not that I was an amazing athlete when I played, but how much better some of the other kids were than me. Working out was another major component to the school experience. If we had free time, which was rare, we could go to the weight room and workout. You can only imagine what teenager’s think a good workout program consist of. Well, they must know something I didn’t because they were my teammates and they could play much better and were faster. Poor genetics must be the answer! I believed that for a long time.
This was the start to my 14 year learning experience to now. After 3 years at Fork Union, I was a member of a local Gold’s Gym. Egos and testosterone ruled program design. How much you could bench, curl, or sweat were most members’ standards for a good workout. Inexperience and misunderstanding what exercise should really be, I “drank the cool aid.”
Massage school was the turning point for becoming self aware. My dad actually talked me into giving it a shot. When he first suggested it, I laughed and replied “Dude, I’m not rubbing people for money!” Little did I know how much my point of view would change. I was in college unsure what to focus on. There were 3 years of credits to my name in Chemical Engineering, Computer Science, and then some focused in Liberal Arts in an effort to transfer to the University of Virginia. The transfer degree was going to take two more years because I needed 4 semesters of a foreign language. This was my motivation to try something different and take a break from basic core classes. I wanted to make money in a different way other than serving food. I felt like I was destined to be more.
One year later, I graduated and passed the Nursing Board exam and officially became a Massage Therapist. I was still working out at Gold’s Gym. A Trainer there wanted to trade massage sessions for training sessions. He was a true athlete and embodied the results I was looking for. He was one of the top ranked wrestlers at UVA and was built like a power house. We exchanged like this for 2 months before he told me about his plans to leave Virginia. “What a bummer,” I thought. He followed that with a question that had been somewhat of a dream of mine. “How would you like to take over my position as the athlete based trainer?” I was blown away! He thought I could train athletes? I said yes and got a certification from the American College of Sports Medicine – Personal Trainer.
Two weeks later I started. This was the year 2007. From there, I grew and applied my knowledge as a Massage Therapist to my clients. My journey continued as I found new sources of information about Physical Therapy, Chiropractic Services, Surgeons, Strength and conditioning for college athletes, Myo- fascial release. Like a sponge, I absorbed the knowledge from the leaders of many different methodologies. Each time something new came along, I had to understand it and apply it. After working with thousands of people and applying the different methods I practice many variations of methodology which I have termed; Functional Sports Movement Therapist.
Latest posts by Renae Chiovaro (see all)
- Last Minute Batgirl Costume - October 22, 2016
- Agnes & Dora: Comfortable & Affordable Clothing - September 19, 2016
- Life is a Highway - September 17, 2016
Leave a Comment