Happy New Year Fit Fam! Today we reintroduce ourselves. First Up Stephanie Lopez “Coach Slo”… #thereal #2018 #findyourfocus #thesweatshopdallas
Life before I became coach_slo was like this…. I was a first time mommy to my son Ian Riggs who was born on November 21, 2013. Although I felt blessed to be a mother to my baby boy, I also felt depressed and ashamed. I wasn’t working and I had this tiny little person who needed me at all times of the day. This job was the hardest job I’ve ever had to do. I felt like I was having to do everything on my own and no one cared about how I was feeling. I hated the way I looked when I looked at myself in the mirror. No matter how tight or loose my pants were my gut hung over my pants.
I would cry when I had to get dressed to go out somewhere because I didn’t have anything that fit me. I needed to escape my everyday life and do something to keep my sanity. In July of 2014 a friend of mine invited me to the gym, this was the first time I stepped foot into The Sweat Shop and into my fitness journey. The hardest part was showing up to a place that I didn’t know. Given the fact that I never worked out and I didn’t know anyone I felt very intimidated. I attended the Kwiksweat class lead by Denise Corona every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday for 6 months. Most people had something to say about how much time I was putting in at the gym, but what they didn’t realize was how the gym helped me find the person I wanted to be. Instead of backing away from the gym I leveled up and started personal training and attending bootcamp classes with Joshua Corona, let’s just say I went into this kicking and screaming. I committed myself to this change for 1 year, and honestly I questioned myself after my first bootcamp class but realized I lived through it.
What began as a way for me to spend time with a friend and get my shit together turned into a love that I didn’t know I was missing. Since then you can guarantee that you will catch me putting in work on the turf or in the weighted area. I’ve grown to love what I’ve gained from pushing myself to the next level, I love it so much that I am no longer just Steph I’m Coach_slo. The hardest part for me now is being so driven to keep going that I get in my own way. Guys, life happens. No matter how much you stick to a plan or how focused you are you have to know that things happen. I have my own family, a full-time job, my own workout times/days, and I teach classes just about every other day. Now I know some say it’s easier for me to go to the gym and continue on this path but it’s not. I choose this path because it allows me to be the strongest and happiest version of myself. To most the gym is just a place you go to workout, but The Sweat Shop is a home to me. I thank you Denise Corona, Joshua Corona, and The Sweat Shop for this up and down roller coaster. I went from being a student to a coach and its been a huge blessing. I do know that through the process of becoming coach_slo I’ve had to allow multiple barriers that I have to come down, this being the hardest. As I reflect back to how this journey started, I see where I was, where I am, and where I want to be.
Coach_slo “I will never ask you to do something I wouldn’t do myself.”