ISSA Certification Propels Jessica Roach to Fitness Entrepreneurship

Jessica Roach's fitness journey is truly inspiring. She went from being a regular gym-goer to owning her own Outlaw FitCamp franchise, all thanks to her passion for health and the skills she gained through her ISSA certification. 

Jessica has always been into staying active. She played soccer for 15 years growing up and was always the kid who'd choose a banana over a candy bar.

"I was that child of the 80s," Jessica recalled. "My parents would take me to the gas station and say, 'What do you want?' expecting you to choose a candy bar, but I would pick a banana. My dad would ask, 'Who is this kid? Are you sure you don't want a candy bar?' And I'm like, 'No, dad. I have a soccer game. I'll have a banana.'"

This early commitment to health set the stage for her future career, even if she didn't know it at the time. "I've always had a passion for helping people and being healthy," she added.

Life's Unexpected Challenges

But life threw her a curveball when she had a health scare in her late 30s. "I was hospitalized for three days. They thought I had had a stroke at 38," Jessica shared. "I had full numbness, tingling, and a speech impediment. I had all of it."

This scary experience led to a tough year of doctor visits, weight gain, and depression. Jessica described the difficult period: "I gained weight and suffered from depression. Everything that comes with that hit me. I depleted my savings trying to find out what was wrong with me. I had dizziness, I couldn't do anything, and I was miserable."

Finding Her Way Back to Fitness

Jessica's turning point came when her husband signed her up for personal training at Outlaw FitCamp. At first, she was hesitant. She remembered thinking of her husband, "I don't like you right now, and let me be miserable." But once she started, there was no looking back.

"It took me probably a good month to get in the door after signing up," Jessica admitted. "And it started again and you get that spiral, it can be a spiral up or spiral down, which I went through and then it was a spiral up."

From Client to Certified Trainer

After experiencing the benefits of personal training and fitcamps, Jessica's journey took an unexpected turn. "I started with personal training. I ended up doing fitcamps. And then my husband was like, what do you think about buying one?" Jessica explained. Talk about a major plot twist!

After deciding to buy an Outlaw FitCamp franchise, Jessica knew she needed to level up her fitness knowledge. That's where ISSA came in clutch. She chose to get certified through ISSA because of the great continuing education options.

"I think there were definitely some things that were more challenging," Jessica admitted about her ISSA course. "You spend enough time in a gym, you get some lingo, you pick up things, you're learning, it's on-the-job learning. And when the course started talking about the muscle fibers and the biology behind it, I was like, 'I had no idea we were gonna go into this.' But now, it makes perfect sense."

Building a Thriving Fitness Community

Now, Jessica's Outlaw FitCamp in Hickory Creek, Texas is rocking it. They've got clients ranging from 12 to 70 years old, proving that fitness is for everyone. "I think this location really does have a very diverse community," Jessica proudly stated.

As a certified trainer and franchise owner, Jessica is all about sharing knowledge and fostering a learning environment. "We have our own library," she said. "We've started collecting books about fitness, nutrition and wellness... we want to be sticky to our clients, but I want to be sticky to my trainers too. I want them to be as excited about this."

She's also passionate about educating her clients on the 'why' behind each exercise. "We want you to get your heart rate up, we want it to stay in a certain zone. However, those pauses are where your ligaments are going to grow, where your tendons are gaining strength. This move is going to help out the joint as opposed to just throwing it up there and praying for the best."

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Never Stop Learning

Jessica's thirst for knowledge didn't stop with her initial certification. She's currently taking ISSA's Exercise Therapy course to better serve her clients. "I have a lot of clients that need that base work," she explained. "They need the work for joints and ligaments."

This commitment to ongoing education extends to her staff as well. "We'll do challenges all the time," Jessica shared. "When we do a challenge, we do a challenge with all of the trainers, not just for our clients.”

Jessica's story shows how passion, hard work, and the right education can totally change your life. From dealing with health struggles to owning a successful gym, she's proof that with an ISSA certification, you can turn your love for fitness into an awesome career.

"We want to be proactive," Jessica emphasized. "As opposed to just receiving the workouts from corporate, we want to push ourselves to learn what more we can do.”

With an ISSA certification, you too could transform your fitness passion into a thriving business, just like Jessica did.