Fitness Professional turned Dessert Mommy: from the beginning

I am a sweets lover through and through. For as long as I can remember, dessert has been my companion, my comfort and my favorite thing to eat. Originally from the Midwest, I was lucky enough to grow up in a pretty “traditional” household. My parents were married, my dad was the primary bread winner and my mom loved being a mom. I have one older brother that I was very close with growing up, and we even had the family dog.

During the school week we would always find time to have dinner together as a family. We would sit down in our regular spots, turn the tv off and talk about our day. We would go out to eat on the weekends as a special treat, or sometimes get together with my parents friends and spend the evening eating and making memories. No matter what was on the menu for dinner, one thing was for sure: there would always be dessert! More times than not, the dessert was something homemade like a cake or baked treat with ice cream on the side. My mom still loves to bake to this day! She would make me homemade birthday cakes every year, bake cookies on a regular basis, and we had our fair share of grocery store sweets stocked up in the pantry. Some of my favorites were cookies and milk, gooey butter cake, brownies and lots of ice cream. I hardly remember a night growing up where I didn’t have dessert before going to bed.

Growing up I was naturally athletic, participating in team sports and playing in the street with the neighborhood kids. Despite my very active youth, I spent the majority of my adolescent years overweight & obese. It wasn’t until my early 20’s that I started to prioritize my health and fitness and began my weight loss journey. Throughout my 20’s, I was able to lose over 90 pounds and keep it off - all while incorporating my favorite desserts into my diet on a regular basis.

In 2014 I began my journey as a fitness professional. I coached a variety of classes in person like CrossFit, bootcamp, and 1-on-1 training. I created and led a youth program for a few years and taught at a boutique strength training facility in Hollywood. I’ve trained and competed in Olympic Weightlifting for over a decade, and have coached the sport for nearly half that time as well. In 2019, I pivoted from fitness training to nutrition coaching, and that’s what really changed the game for me and my clients. Following and teaching a flexible dieting approach through counting macros has changed my perspective on the word “balance”. I finally learned that you can eat foods that you know are good for you and eat foods that just plain taste good. I am someone who eats for my soul on a regular basis, so there’s no shortage of ice cream or cookies over here.

In 2023, I found myself yearning for more. I wanted the opportunity to connect with more women, entrepreneurs, business owners and people who wanted more out of life, too. So I decided to create my own community! Inspired by my personal love for all things sweet and my 9+ years in the fitness industry, Dessert Mommy was born.

This brand is my attempt to merge all of my passions into one place. I want to continue to teach others that you really can have your cake and eat it too. Achieving balance through nutrition, exercise, and the sweeter parts of life is possible! I’m living proof!

I’m so excited to have you here with me as I navigate through the endless opportunities that Dessert Mommy will bring. If you want to learn more about local dessert spots in Phoenix and what it’s like to build a business from the ground up, make sure you subscribe to my Podcast and follow me on social media! You can find the Dessert Mommy Podcast on Apple Podcasts & Spotify, and make sure you’re following me on IG @dessert_mommy_ for all of the latest updates!