Sylvia Nasser is a self-employed personal trainer—and much more! She had a summer job at a gym, partially to get a free membership, until one day her boss gave her a surprise audition to lead a class. She never thought of herself as being an instructor, but she quickly fell in love with it.
While working to build her business and brand, Sylvia became very early to the live streaming game—and it caused her business to grow quickly, and she had to hire on trainers to meet all of the demand she was faced with. She felt a lot of pressure to look a certain way because she was the face of the brand, which led to some serious body dysmorphia. Along with that, the pressure to make her business work, and planning her wedding, her health really started to decline. When her daughter was born and eventually diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, she was in a state of complete depression. She stressed her body out so much that she triggered a lupus reaction in her body.
One day she had an a-ha moment. She still struggled with feelings of insecurity with her body. She was at the gym with a friend and everyone—including her friend—were rocking their sports bras. And they all looked good! Nobody was ashamed, they all looked and felt confident and powerful. So Sylvia was filled with confidence too, and she took off her tank top and worked out. That one moment gave her so much freedom that she knew she had to make it a thing, and she started the #IRockTheSportsBra hashtag, which turned into a movement. Now she tries to inspire others, not through macro counts and diet plans, but with confidence and strength of character.
Resources:
- Learn more: sylvianasser.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/thefitfem
