Angie Carlson
2021 People's Choice Finalist
Hello! My name is Angie Carlson. I live in Big Lake but have lived in the Elk River area for most of my life. I am a graphic designer, real estate agent and my husband and I own a business flipping houses. I'm also the mom of a recent high school grad who will be following in his parents footsteps and attending Bemidji State in the fall. This is my transformation story.
I've always battled the scale and the world's idea of a healthy weight. For as long as I can remember, weight and body image have always been a struggle for me. Whether I was fit during my athletic years or overweight because ya know... life, I always had a very warped idea of what healthy should look like. "Healthy" always involved a specific number on the scale. Over the years my self esteem and confidence suffered because no matter what I did, it just seemed I could never achieve that number.
I've always been a strong girl, however, I learned as a teen that strength was not what I should be striving for. Thin was the goal, skinny was "in". Even the BMI charts (you know, the ones that don't take muscle mass into consideration) said my healthiest weight was unacceptable. The body image I was learning was very damaging to my self worth. I started on a losing path, the number on the scale went up and down for years and the literal "weight" of it all just broke me.
In 2010, I had enough and decided to get serious about my health again. I threw out fad diets, quick fixes and pills. I started committing to doing the hard work of exercising at home daily and changing my eating habits. On my own, I managed to lose around 80lbs and I felt great. Life has a way of throwing you curve balls.
In 2016, I was in a car accident and broke my neck. I spent 5 months in a neck brace, unable to workout at all by doctor's orders and I slowly gained back 35lbs. I was devastated because I had worked so hard. I found myself starting over only now I was now in my forties and losing weight felt impossible. I was extremely depressed and discouraged.
At the start of the pandemic, I decided I would workout six days a week with one rest day for as long as we were in lockdown. Slowly, two weeks turned into months and while I stayed committed to my personal challenge I saw very little change. I was in a pretty dark place during the pandemic, isolation was rough on me and my survival plan wasn't working.
Then in September 2020 Snap FitClub did a charity bootcamp for the non-profit that I'm a part of Community Table (CT). As part of the leadership team, I was encouraged to participate in the bootcamp and represent CT. It sounded awful! It was just about the last thing I wanted to do on a Saturday morning but I was committed to the cause and showed up ready to HATE every minute of it!
To my surprise, I LOVED getting my butt kicked by one of the toughest trainers around (Coach Connor); I knew immediately I was hooked! The bootcamp was the kind of workout that I was built for and needed to experience. The old "strong girl" in me was itching for more. The next day, I signed up for my first challenge (Fall Breakthrough).
Meeting Coach Nicole and my Results Coach, Coach Carly was life changing for me. Nicole and Carly showed me what strong and healthy looked like and I wanted it! These two ladies broke down my messed up beliefs about weight and health and what that was suppose to look like and it didn't involve a number on the scale at all! They challenged everything I thought I knew, and I walked away feeling completely empowered, ready to embrace my strength and make it work for me. They have both been such an incredible source of encouragement and wisdom throughout this journey.
The coaches at Snap FitClub are truly the best in the business. I know without them pushing me to lift heavier, do more reps, run another lap or "add a little hop to that" I wouldn't be where I am now. Sometimes it feels like torture but its so good to have someone believe in your ability when you can't see it yourself.
The people I have met at FitClub are some of the best people I know; that makes coming for these tough workouts so much fun! It's such an amazing community of people. I am constantly encouraged and motivated being surrounded by people who are absolutely crushing their goals and working hard every day.
We are all on a different journey. Fitness is an individual/personal path and comparing yourself to anyone else can be discouraging but at FitClub we are all just cheering for each other's victories. I love that about this place! Looking around seeing strong ladies all around me doing amazing things has been so empowering!
I feel fantastic, strong and my confidence has improved so much. I am no longer looking at the scale to determine my worth and that has been a huge step for me. I am so glad that I was dragged into that bootcamp. That bootcamp set me on a new course and I know the road I am on now is a lifestyle that I can and will continue because I was built for this and I'm loving every minute of it.
I've always battled the scale and the world's idea of a healthy weight. For as long as I can remember, weight and body image have always been a struggle for me. Whether I was fit during my athletic years or overweight because ya know... life, I always had a very warped idea of what healthy should look like. "Healthy" always involved a specific number on the scale. Over the years my self esteem and confidence suffered because no matter what I did, it just seemed I could never achieve that number.
I've always been a strong girl, however, I learned as a teen that strength was not what I should be striving for. Thin was the goal, skinny was "in". Even the BMI charts (you know, the ones that don't take muscle mass into consideration) said my healthiest weight was unacceptable. The body image I was learning was very damaging to my self worth. I started on a losing path, the number on the scale went up and down for years and the literal "weight" of it all just broke me.
In 2010, I had enough and decided to get serious about my health again. I threw out fad diets, quick fixes and pills. I started committing to doing the hard work of exercising at home daily and changing my eating habits. On my own, I managed to lose around 80lbs and I felt great. Life has a way of throwing you curve balls.
In 2016, I was in a car accident and broke my neck. I spent 5 months in a neck brace, unable to workout at all by doctor's orders and I slowly gained back 35lbs. I was devastated because I had worked so hard. I found myself starting over only now I was now in my forties and losing weight felt impossible. I was extremely depressed and discouraged.
At the start of the pandemic, I decided I would workout six days a week with one rest day for as long as we were in lockdown. Slowly, two weeks turned into months and while I stayed committed to my personal challenge I saw very little change. I was in a pretty dark place during the pandemic, isolation was rough on me and my survival plan wasn't working.
Then in September 2020 Snap FitClub did a charity bootcamp for the non-profit that I'm a part of Community Table (CT). As part of the leadership team, I was encouraged to participate in the bootcamp and represent CT. It sounded awful! It was just about the last thing I wanted to do on a Saturday morning but I was committed to the cause and showed up ready to HATE every minute of it!
To my surprise, I LOVED getting my butt kicked by one of the toughest trainers around (Coach Connor); I knew immediately I was hooked! The bootcamp was the kind of workout that I was built for and needed to experience. The old "strong girl" in me was itching for more. The next day, I signed up for my first challenge (Fall Breakthrough).
Meeting Coach Nicole and my Results Coach, Coach Carly was life changing for me. Nicole and Carly showed me what strong and healthy looked like and I wanted it! These two ladies broke down my messed up beliefs about weight and health and what that was suppose to look like and it didn't involve a number on the scale at all! They challenged everything I thought I knew, and I walked away feeling completely empowered, ready to embrace my strength and make it work for me. They have both been such an incredible source of encouragement and wisdom throughout this journey.
The coaches at Snap FitClub are truly the best in the business. I know without them pushing me to lift heavier, do more reps, run another lap or "add a little hop to that" I wouldn't be where I am now. Sometimes it feels like torture but its so good to have someone believe in your ability when you can't see it yourself.
The people I have met at FitClub are some of the best people I know; that makes coming for these tough workouts so much fun! It's such an amazing community of people. I am constantly encouraged and motivated being surrounded by people who are absolutely crushing their goals and working hard every day.
We are all on a different journey. Fitness is an individual/personal path and comparing yourself to anyone else can be discouraging but at FitClub we are all just cheering for each other's victories. I love that about this place! Looking around seeing strong ladies all around me doing amazing things has been so empowering!
I feel fantastic, strong and my confidence has improved so much. I am no longer looking at the scale to determine my worth and that has been a huge step for me. I am so glad that I was dragged into that bootcamp. That bootcamp set me on a new course and I know the road I am on now is a lifestyle that I can and will continue because I was built for this and I'm loving every minute of it.
