Every obstacle is an opportunity to make you stronger. Our next High Riser Emily Reynolds takes that mantra to heart. After facing a set of debilitating health issues, Emily became a certified fitness nutrition specialist, coach, and business owner. It’s her mission to help those facing setbacks overcome their health challenges and thrive.
Originally hailing from Connecticut, Emily moved to San Diego after a post-college summer road trip. She started out working with children who had special needs, but after a stint in sales, she decided that the work in that field wasn’t for her.
It was around this time that Emily felt pains and aches all over her body. She gained weight and felt sick and exhausted all the time. After a variety of diagnoses, including lupus, fibromyalgia, and celiac disease, she finally learned that she had Graves disease, an autoimmune disorder that affects the thyroid gland. She reluctantly and now regrettably had surgery. Emily became only sicker so she scrapped all medical doctors & decided to take charge of her body and focus on fitness as well as natural healing.
“Having had my health stripped from me for so many years made a huge impact on me,” Emily told Rise Bar. I will never forget the lifeless feeling of being sick. I will never let myself be that person again and learning that it is 100% in my control motivated me to by my best me every single day!”
Her focus is to coach people with all kinds of goals, whether it is eating better or achieving their optimal level of fitness. Emily’s true passion lies in helping people that have suffered devastating health issues, just as she once did.
“The biggest thing that I feel people need to know about any aspect in life is that successful people do what unsuccessful people are unwilling to do. If you want something, anything in life, it is in your full control to make it happen,” she said.
When she’s not in the gym, working with her clients at The Center For Advanced Healing, or coaching, Emily enjoys exploring the outdoors. “Nature is quite simple yet so beautiful and pure. I feel it helps to ground me and put life in perspective,” she shared. Another passion of hers is in supporting animal welfare. She helps in the adoption and rescue of homeless, shelter, and meat-trade animals.
Her inspiration comes from within herself, and then friends. “I do not rely on anyone to light my inner fire. It is my responsibility to stay motivated and find that inner drive that never ends!” she told Rise Bar.
As for her fitness routine, she changes her workouts every 4-6 weeks and makes sure it’s the first thing she does every morning. “I make the fitness routine top priority and don’t think about anything else until I get that done. I do not check emails or answer messages until I am back from the gym,” she emphasized to Rise Bar. Her diet staples are veggie juice, homemade kefir almond milk, hempseeds, soaked nuts and seeds, and vegan Rise protein bars.
