"If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got!" ~NLP Adage
Meet your Boot Camp Babes' Trainers!
All of our trainers are here to help you reach your goals!!!
Jamie is the proud mother of 2 kids, Caiden and Callie, who keep her very busy! She is an active member of her church and is currently a youth sponsor for teenage girls. She loves Boot Camp, hiking, running, traveling, playing games with her family and thunderstorms. She enjoys racing in half marathons and reached her goal of walking 60 miles with several of her fellow babes in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer walk last fall.
Jamie’s story begins as a typical trainer’s journey: Athletic all her life, with a love for jogging, playing tennis and running track, she had a passion for fitness and self-studied Nutrition/Exercise and Health and Wellness while completing her BA in Sociology at the University of Washington. But her journey took a different turn when she became pregnant. She was blessed with two pregnancies but also the daunting task of losing 60 pounds after each birth. Like many of us, she struggled each time to get the weight off. After she had lost most of the weight from her second child, she started bringing along her friends and her mother to the gym while she trained, teaching them the correct form for exercises and healthy workout habits that she had learned. She not only got herself back into better shape but helped her mom complete her first 10K as well. Then the little ones started to grow up, and like many of us, she got busy being a mom... she started neglecting herself, and lost sight of who she was. Unfortunately, she soon found herself in the worst shape of her life as the pounds crept back on. Even though she knew what exercises to perform and what to eat for better health, she was too wrapped up in being a mother and didn’t take time for herself. It was at her worst point when she found Boot Camp Babes. At that point she was ready... and she never looked back! Her determination and go-getter attitude was admired at camp. She lost 35 pounds and 32 inches, but more importantly, camp re-ignited her passion for fitness! It also helped her re-discover her gift for helping others to achieve their fitness goals. Fellow babes frequently commented that having her for a partner at camp was like having your own personal trainer for the day. Her hard work ethic is infectious and as a client in her class you leave feeling motivated, inspired and ready to face the day. Those of you who know Jamie can see her determined attitude and self discipline shine through at camp. It is hard to imagine she was once without these traits. She understands what it feels like to want something more for yourself and is ready to push each of you to get you there, too!
Jamie's passion in helping others reach their fitness goals ran so deep, that she is now an owner in Boot Camp Babes!!! If you ever need someone to relate to you or have any questions about health, fitness, or Boot Camp Babes in general, Jamie is always a perfect place to start.
Jamie Mikla
ACE Certified Group Instructor
Owner
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It's
probably not common to see many electrical engineers become trainers,
but with Marnie, it's really no surprise. Marnie has always been an
athlete. She started softball and skiing when she was seven years old and
up through school added snowboarding, golf, and field hockey (where she
was recognized as MVP her sophomore year). While in school, Marnie was
also a lifeguard, swimming instructor, and youth sports camp
instructor. Through teaching youth sports camps, Marnie discovered two
of her passions: teaching and fitness! At this point she had a choice
to make, and fitness gave way to academics as Marnie moved from Calgary,
Canada to Arizona to attend ASU. She went on to graduate summa cum
laude with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and continued with her
Master's degree. If you ever wonder where she learned determination,
ask her about that thesis.
After graduating from college, Marnie continued to stay active playing
recreational and competitive Ultimate Frisbee. Marnie is an amazing, well-rounded person, both intellectually and physically. Her drive to succeed is contagious!
Marnie's level of fitness was not always at its peak, however. Between sitting at a desk all day and her love of good food and wine, she found herself in new territory as her fitness level declined. Add to that the emotional turmoil of struggling to have a baby. She was frustrated and worn out, and like most women, used food as a way to feel better. Then in December 2008 , after years of trying, Marnie had her son, Kace. Although she was completely overjoyed with the new little boy in her life, she also gained 50 extra pounds from the pregnancy. She tried to get back into playing Ultimate, but she found that all of her speed was gone and her endurance had suffered from inactivity. She was feeling terrible about herself and needed help! Fortunately, a Google search brought up Boot Camp Babes and started her on a path she never expected. Not only did Boot Camp help her drop that baby weight and get her speed and endurance back, she started setting new goals. She was inspired to run the Nike women's half marathon and walk the Susan G. Komen 3-day for the Cure in 2010 by some fellow Babes. Marnie had never been a fan of long distance running or walking and really did not believe she was capable. She completed both, with impressive finishing times, and loved them. Since that race she's gone on to run many more, improving each time and is now even considering triathlons!!!
Marnie Wong
marnie@bootcampbabes.com
ACE Certified Group Instructor
Owner
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Apryl is no stranger to hard work, beginning her impressive running accomplishments at the very young age of 10. If you can remember way back to the fifth grade, all students are required to participate in the Presidential Challenge of Physical fitness. It was then that Apryl ran her first mile, did very well and has never looked back! Her love for running was born. She ran track and cross country throughout high school and was a highly competitive member of the Northern IL University Cross Country team during college. At this time, she helped ignite a spark for running in others as well, coaching a high school distance team and an AAU summer track team. Weight training and interval training were also huge parts of her repertoire, as she molded and shaped her body into a running machine and taught others to do the same.
Here are just a few of her many races ran:
First marathon, 2000 in Chicago
Qualified and ran the Boston Marathon in 2002
Completed the Avon 3 Day in Chicago
Just 3 months after having her second child, ran a 10K and finished second
Completed the Mini Marathon in Indy (the country’s largest half marathon) & averaged a 7:01 pace
Placed first in a local 10K just one week later
Participated in the Quad Cities Marathon and finished first in her age division
Competed in an Olympic distance Triathlon here in AZ
Came in at an impressive 3:26:29 for the Tucson Marathon
Placed 7th in the AFLAC Iron Girl
Completed the Rim to Rim hike of the Grand Canyon in October
Apryl and her family were led out west from Illinois when her husband, Brian, was relocated by his company. They packed up their two young boys, Vaughn and Grady, and left their friends, family and all the security they knew back home. As if the change of moving wasn’t enough, Apryl also left her job of 10 years in sales behind and was now a stay-at-home mother. Understandably, the stress of not knowing anyone in Arizona and the transition from working to staying home took a toll on Apryl emotionally. She was very down and her network of friends and her motivation were left in Illinois. She joined a gym, hoping it would help to meet people, but it didn’t. She stopped running, began gaining a bit of weight and remembers trying to make light of the situation stating that, “just because I could button my pants, didn’t mean I should be wearing them!” She needed to find an outlet where she could be encouraged, motivated and pushed physically to get herself back on track and in the right frame of mind to begin making friends. She found Boot Camp Babes at an ICAN charity event and decided to go for it and enroll. At camp she was challenged in a good way and began to feel her competitive edge creeping back. She started running again outside of camp and with the support of her fellow Babes at camp, found herself again and with a new network of motivation.
Over the months as Apryl trained at camp, everyone could see her love for fitness, her amazing drive to succeed and her exceptional fitness level. She would even ride her bike to and from her workouts at camp! It wasn’t long before Apryl was asked her to join our training team. As a certified ACE trainer, she is an exceptional asset to our staff and she will transform each of you, as she trains her own classes and helps women find themselves again... just like she did... one day at a time.
apryl@bootcampbabes.com
ACE Certified Group Instructor
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All of her life, Cherith has been a competitive person, never wanting to lose or fail. She grew up playing a variety of sports and enjoyed basketball, track and field, and volleyball. Basketball eventually became her true love and she excelled at it. She played on the varsity team throughout high school and traveled with an AAU team every summer across the United States. Looking at her amazing photo, you may be surprised to know that back then she was known as "the big girl". This wasn’t a bad thing when she was playing basketball, or any other competitive sport, but it was not very appealing otherwise. As time went on, Cherith became very successful professionally and opened her own beauty salon. But with the success came the need to sacrifice her time and, eventually, she became sedentary. Within a year, she was almost 45 pounds heavier than she is now. She spent her days making others look good instead of focusing on herself. As luck would have it, one of her clients was a female body builder who owned her own gym. They began talking and with her encouragement, Cherith joined the gym. She decided to get her body and her life back! Her client was instrumental in her success, as she showed her proper lifting techniques and went over healthy eating habits with her. Cherith went from eating three square meals of fast food each day and working countless hours, to being successful at the gym. In a short time, she started to see her body transform and began to reap the benefits of living a healthier lifestyle. As she fell more in love with her new self, she vowed that she would never go back to the way she was before.
All went well over the years until two pregnancies took a toll on her body. Like many of us, being thrown into the role of mother engulfed Cherith’s sense of self, and she found herself overweight once again. She bought a treadmill and started running at home. She fell in love with running, but it just wasn’t fulfilling enough. She heard about Boot Camp Babes through a friend, and decided to give it a try. Once she started, she began to see a difference, not only in her body, but her mind as well. Camp reignited something in her that she had lost. It reminded her that she needed to take care of herself again, which was easily forgotten as a busy mother and wife. During camp her amazing athleticism and competitive drive would shine through. She finished first on cardio drills and worked diligently each class as she perfected her body. It wasn’t long before Cherith joined our team!
Now Cherith wants to transform people from the inside-out! She loves to see how far people are willing to push themselves and how amazing they feel when they have accomplished something that they didn’t believe they could do. That is what camp is all about, and she is excited to share your journey with you!
cherith@bootcampbabes.com
ACE Certified Group Instructor
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Nicole is an energetic and enthusiastic mommy to two fun loving boys named Cayden and Cody. She loves spending time outdoors with her boys and her husband, Chris. She is so fulfilled and inspired watching her sons and husband play sports - she loves cheering them on! Nicole feels that proper nutrition and fitness is a key component in regards to raising healthy children and maintaining a healthy family.
Nicole’s educational background consists of a BS in Business Administration from Arizona State University and a Masters of Arts in Education. Her master’s degree was focused on elementary education and she especially enjoyed teaching physical education. Right after she graduated she joined the Chandler police force. She was a police officer for three years, and then decided to pursue a career in education and physical education. With the police force, Nicole learned to be disciplined and used her love of fitness to excel. With her love of learning, both inside and outside the classroom, Nicole is always open to new ideas and experiences that she believes helps keep her mentally and physically young!
As a stay-at-home mom, Nicole had the opportunity to discover her passion for working with individuals and helping them see the possibilities available to them in regards to health and fitness. She has been a group fitness instructor and personal trainer for five years. She has her pre and post natal certification and ACE group fitness certification. As a trainer she stresses to her clients that individuals that take care of their bodies are rewarded by increased well-being and self-confidence. To reach an individual goal an individual must have a well-balanced approach to maintain good health. Nicole gained 70 pounds with both her pregnancies due to bed rest. With determination and hard work she was able to lose all the weight both times. She always tell individuals the best way to accomplish a goal is to set smaller goals in pursuit of the larger overall goal. After her second son she set a goal to finish a marathon, which in return helped her lose weight and stay healthy. Nicole loves to compete in triathlons and marathons; her goal for the future is to finish a full Ironman! She is currently training for her sixth marathon and third triathlon. She began swimming at the age of four and was the swim captain in high school and also a member of the cheer squad, until she tore her ACL cheerleading. She rehabbed her knee and continued swimming all the way through college. Nicole found her true passion for running while she was in the police academy. All the grueling long miles actually paid off and now, to her surprise, she loves to run for fun! Nicole hopes to inspire Boot Camp Babes and encourage each Babe to feel amazing about themselves, both physically and mentally.
Nicole Cooper
nicole@bootcampbabes.com
ACE Certified Group Instructor
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Alisha is a very passionate person when it comes to fitness and health. This has been an attribute all her life starting with her love for competitive sports. In high school Alisha lettered in soccer, basketball, softball, and track & field. Alisha was a leader in every sport she played, especially as a three-year soccer captain to receiving 1st team all state in her junior and senior year. Unfortunately, Alisha tore her ACL in a basketball injury; however, she bounced back strong with her determination to continue her sports career into college. This love for soccer gave her an opportunity to play soccer at YUBA College just outside of Sacramento, CA. She then took her health endeavors to Weber State University in Ogden, UT where she majored and graduated in Physical Education and Health Promotion. She met her husband at Weber State who also loves sports and played college football. Needless to say health and competitiveness resides in the Nischan home. Along with Alisha’s physical fitness, she is very avid about a healthy diet routine and knows that this is a crucial element to a healthy and fit lifestyle. Alisha then moved on to pursue her Masters Degree in secondary education and decided to work with the physical education department during her student teaching at Queen Creek High School. Alisha graduated with her Masters in the spring of 2009. After having her first child, she quickly realized that she needed something to achieve her desired physique. She found this with a local mommy fitness franchise where she shortly became one of their fitness instructors. Alisha was able to relate well with the local moms and their struggles as she went through similar struggles after her pregnancy. As Alisha continued to stay fit she found herself pregnant with her second child and was determined not to lose her physical peak even being pregnant again. She found that by staying in shape while pregnant her pregnancy and recovery went noticeably smoother than the first child.
Alisha enjoys spending time with her two children; Anya-5, Parker-3, Mack (American Bulldog)-2, and her other kid Jordan-28 (the big kid she married). Alisha’s family is very active and enjoys hiking, sports, camping, swimming, and anything competitive.
Goals are very important to Alisha and one of the most recent goals she set for herself was to train and participate in an Olympic Triathlon with her husband. She is looking forward to participating in 5k races within her community whether it is charity or competitive runs. Her ultimate goal is to get her physique to a point she has never seen before in order to potentially compete in a fitness pageant.
Overall, Alisha enjoys the camaraderie that Boot Camp Babes has to offer and is enthusiastic to share her excitement with other women that are also trying to reach their physical potential.
Alisha Nischan
alisha@bootcampbabes.com
Certified Group Instructor
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Trudi excelled in sports early on, beginning in elementary school with track meets and fast pitch softball. With a competitive spirit even then, Trudi prided herself on running faster than the boys, and that drive and enthusiasm for physical fitness followed her into adulthood. During college, Trudi discovered rock climbing, a sport that has taken her on many adventures in nature across the entire United States while feeding her love for physical and psychological challenges. After college, Trudi and her husband moved from Missouri to Arizona so that Trudi could pursue her passion for helping others by earning a Masters degree in Counseling from ASU.
After the birth of her first child, Trudi made the difficult decision to leave a job she loved to be at home with her son full-time. Four years and one more son later, Trudi found herself faltering in her chosen role as stay-at-home mom of two intense and energetic boys. A lifelong learner with a passion and drive to pursue career and education, Trudi struggled to strike a balance between her commitment to children and family and her own need for professional stimulation and identity. Trudi found herself dealing with unhealthy stress and isolation. She longed for that mind-body connection and feeling of well-being that exercise and fitness had brought her throughout her life. She hoped to find a fitness program, for women only, that would challenge her physically and reconnect her with that strong, confident aspect of herself that she felt she had lost.
Though a dedicated and loving mother, as a counselor, Trudi knew, all too well, that being a successful wife and mother meant making time for her to feel healthy and balanced… something she hadn’t done in over four years! Trudi found Boot Camp Babes at the end of winter 2010. Braving the 20° weather and burning lungs, she set her first goal as “Learning to love running… again”. She accomplished that goal by running her first half marathon less than one year later, and she never looked back. Trudi’s knowledge of mind-body wellness, passion and dedication to helping others, and her love for exercise and fitness make her a great addition to the Boot Camp Babes training staff.
Trudi McClure
trudi@bootcampbabes.com
ACE Certified Group Instructor
