What does fitness mean to me?
Well, I would have to say that it is a lifestyle, something that is ingrained into you at a young age. I am not saying that you sit kids down and say now "you will exercise everyday for 1 hour". But it should be fun, the best kind of workouts are the ones that you don't really know are workouts because you are having so much fun.
My earliest memories of 'fitness' are when I was 3 yrs old and I took tumbling class. What I remember about these classes is that it was fun, I got to play, I was with other kids my age. Not only was I active in the sports side of fitness but I was also active in nature. I loved going for hikes and just being outside, swimming, riding my bike or exploring on our farm. I don't have any memories of sitting around watching t.v. as many kids do today, in fact I can't think of any. My mom always told me that soda pop was poison and t.v. would rot my brain, A philosophy that I think a lot more parents today need to adopt.
I continued with gymnastic as I went through elementary. I began competing and becoming very involved in the sport. When I was 8 yrs. old I went Ice skating with my class for P.E. I loved it and began taking lessons. At this time I was active in both gymnastics and Ice skating. After a year of juggling both my mom told me I had to choose one or the other and I chose Ice skating. Ice skating then became my sport of choice, I was competing and even chose my school based on the sport. I need a school that would allow for a flexible schedule since I was training early in the morning and in the afternoon. I attended private schooling until the beginning of my 8th grade year when I decided I needed more of a social life. I then switched to public schools in 8th grade and my priorities changed. I didn't want to spend my life in the rink anymore. I had my eye on more important things like,,, boys:) At the age of 14 yrs. I put my skates away. I still was involved in the rink with teaching classes an d skating periodically for fun. When I entered High school I was still interested in fitness and began taking kick boxing lessons at a local gym. It was me and 2 close friends and we loved it, why? because we got a good workout but we had fun, which as I mentioned in the beginning is the key to fitness! After I graduated H. S. I got married and moved to Hawaii with my husband Zac. Well, being in Hawaii requires wearing a bathing suit on a daily basis, so, this is when I really began kicking my workouts up to the next level. Zac had had surgery the previous year on a slipped disc in his neck and was still trying to gain muscle that had been all but lost. He was picking up the intensity of his workouts also in order to get back his muscle. We were working out hard and sometimes twice a day. I enjoyed free weights as well as all sorts of classes like yoga, kickboxing and cardio classes.
The gym that we trained at was home to several bodybuilders. One of the trainers approached Zac about competing and he was interested so he did. I sat back and cheered him on, interested but intimidated. This is when his competing began. I watched from the sidelines and cheered him on, I was interested but intimidated at the same time. Zac continued with his bodybuilding while we were hawaii and I continued to work out pretty seriously for fun. In 2001, after living in Hawaii for 1 yr. we moved to Montana ( I know big change right?) My mom had been battling breast cancer and Hawaii was just too far away. My parents were opening a bed and breakfast in Montana and we offered to come manage it so that I could be closer to my mom.
We got to Montana in Aug. of 2001 and I got to spend a lot of time with my mom and it was wonderful, unfortunately things ended up taking a turn for the worse and she passed away in January of 2002. My mom did get to see the bed and breakfast completed and she trusted my husband and I to manage it which was an honor for me.
After doing a couple bodybuilding shows while living in montana (they never actually took place in the state) Zac stumbled across fitness modeling at a FAME (fitness and model Expo) event he was competing in. He was interested and thought that this type of competing might be better for his body type. I really enjoyed this category as well and thought it might be more do able for me but was still not ready. Zac began competing as a fitness model and did really well. He was always trying to get me to compete and I finally said 'next year'. Well, we ended up getting pregnant (yeah) so next year didn't happen. When our beautiful daughter Alexis was 6 months old Zac brought up the topic of competing again and needing to loose a little more baby weight I said yes and he found me a show to compete in that was 4 months away. I began dieting and training harder than ever before.
In the beginning the fat melted away because the diet was so new to my body. After a couple of months it became a little harder to take off that last bit of fat so I had to change up my diet and train 2 times a day. When I began training for my first show my body fat was at 16.2% and by show time I was down to 12%. It was all worth it, I did my first show in San Diego at the California championships with musclemania and won! yahh. That was the beginning of new lifestyle for me. For me this was something that I had actually been 'training' for my whole life. I have been dressing up and putting on shows for as long as I can remember. When my parents would have friends over I would make them all come down to the basement to watch me perform. And now I was doing that, dressing up and 'performing'.
I graduated from Carroll College in May of 2004 with a degree in Communications and Public Relations so Television has been my ultimate goal. I always thought it would be fun to host a reality show. My passion is really fitness and especially moms. I recently had my second daughter, Isabella and am loving being a mother for the second time. Staying in shape as a mom is tough but I believe that you must make it a priority.
After my first show I went on to compete in Model America and made top 10. Our next show was the fittest couple contest with Ironman Magazine and we won! yah, so we got to shoot with Ironman Mag and several other photographers. I did a shoot with clothing line as well. I went on to do a series of other photo shoots and competitions.
I had been interested in personal training for a while but hadn't really pursued it other than with friends. When our local paper did a story on Zac and I winning the fittest couple contest I received a couple of calls inquiring about personal training so I decided that now was a good time to start. I have been training for several years and I love the idea of being able to share my knowledge with others and watch theirs bodies and lifestyles change. I am so excited to be working with TLC on the new show ‘Real Simple. Real Life. I love being able to share my knowledge with women who need my help and make fitness a fun part of their lives. It is great to help others achieve their goals that I myself worked so hard for and know how rewarding it feels to complete your goals.
Peace and Love to all.Lana Marie Titus
