Melisa
Hello There!
My name is Melisa Paglini {Melisa Valencia Paglini… I’m now an “M.V.P.” as I was married recently in October 2020!}
I have been a member of Eupraxia since 2016 and trainer at since June 2020! (You may have seen my creative side too! I have done a couple of Eupraxia shirt designs and I’ve painted the murals/quotes at the La Crosse & Holmen locations!)
As far as my fitness journey goes… it has been quite all-over the place! I grew up doing some sports in middle/high school – I stuck with Volleyball, as I was a “backrow” player, because I am “shortish” and didn’t jump very high… I tried Track and ended up with severe shin splints, then ended up in shot-put & discus for a little while…When I got to college – the ever-infamous “Freshman 15” hit me as I thought I could “eat whatever I wanted because I was in college” and it developed into emotionally eating out of comfort. I then spent lots of $$ on a 24-hour gym membership that I barely used and I just couldn’t get into the swing of a fitness “trend”. I tried all of the “at-home” workouts, bought all the DVD’s, purchased a lot of different meal replacements, only to end up hurting my insides. Very discouraged, I needed to try the “team” effort again. Motivation is what I couldn’t find by myself! I joined Zumba classes and fell in love with group fitness! After several years in the Zumba world, my shins were still bothering me! So, fast-forward to 2016 where my sister nudged me to go with her to Eupraxia through their promotion of the 6-week challenge!
I was very apprehensive, but open to the idea of trying something new! I knew I needed something – as I am 5’5” tall and I was at my heaviest I had ever been in my life. I was over 200lbs when I did my first weigh-in at home before Eupraxia. The feelings of being uncomfortable in my own skin and not wanting anyone to “see me” workout almost paralized me from going back into Eupraxia. I literally could not do ANY of the exercises – I cried when I left Eupraxia Onalaska that first time… BUT, I kept Linz Bonnar’s words close to my heart: “We all start somewhere, Stay with it, We are here for you & You’ve Got this!”
I stayed steadfast for the weekly workouts! {Back in the day: 5:30p/6:30p Ona!!} I was determined to commit to myself, my trainers and be held accountable by others in class! I was especially motivated by my “OG” trainer Kevin Bonnar {YAY for Kickboxing!} and my accountabil-li-buddy/Bestie whom I met through Eupraxia, Lauren Moe!
I also learned that food is FUEL for my body and to eat WHOLE foods through Dr. Steve Czy’s nutrition classes, recipes and “bare-bones-basic” information he teaches us about food and movements that keep us strong and healthy. I did complete the 6-week challenge back when I started in 2016 and my sister and I were two of the top winners of that challenge!
For me, it wasn’t all about “winning” the challenge, but being blessed with an amazing community that has kept me going!
So my advice to you is, keep at it! There may be setbacks or discouraging things that may happen in your fitness journey & life in general – but I ALWAYS say that we should be THANKFUL that we are ABLE to workout and CHOOSE to fuel our bodies! Your BODY, MIND & SPIRIT will thank YOU! Also, don’t be afraid to let your trainer know what’s goin’ on if you need modifications! I will encourage you to keep reminding yourself with those wonderful words of wisdom from Linz: “We all start somewhere, Stay with it, We are here for you & You’ve Got This!”
So – super long blurb, short: I LOVE Eupraxia! {I even got my husband to join to keep each other accountable!} From the workouts, to the comradery, to the fellow trainers – I am grateful to be a part of the Eupraxia Team! I am continuously learning and growing to be able to assist, motivate and challenge you to be STRONGER THAN YESTERDAY 🙂 One workout at a time – one round at a time – one rep at a time! Eupraxia STRONG!
Thanks for reading… I’m pumped to see you at the gym!
