I grew up in a village of 300 people in rural Finland.  I enjoyed being active but lacked the resources and available programs to participate in most sports, so I was mostly active on my own, working out in my room through the winter and downhill skiing.  During the summers, I would go biking, running, swimming, rowing,  or climbing on a huge cliff on one side of the town.  In middle school I did judo and started lifting weights and eventually fell in love with the results I was getting through resistance training.  

I had good grades throughout middle school and high school and won a scholarship at 17 to study as an exchange student in Rockledge, Fl for a year.  After returning to Finland, my adventurous spirit and an almost irrational amount of faith in myself, led me to resign from high school and move to Florida permanently. 

I graduated with a B.S. in exercise and sport science from the University of Florida in 2001 and moved to Los Angeles, where I worked as a program director for a corporate wellness and fitness center.  I also held positions as a trainer at a few commercial gyms and eventually began to train private clients in Beverly Hills and the Southbay area.  I started to run, roller blade, and spend more time outdoors hiking, while maintaining a 5-6 days a week gym schedule and taking classes at a local community college.  During those years, I began to wonder why some people were extremely motivated and found all the time and energy to work and accomplish their wildest dreams while others seemed to lack the motivation to even get out of bed in the morning, much less do pushups in the afternoon.

My question led me to graduate school to study for my doctorate degree in kinesiology and health focusing on motivation and behavior modification. While in graduate school, I began to see that many people never make decisions based on what they truly would like to do.  Not knowing what they want, they rush from one goal to another, losing interest not accomplishing much.  After completing my research at Louisiana State University and Georgia State University and graduating in 2011, I knew that in order to really understand motivation and to motivate others, I needed to focus on understanding individuals, and the unique challenges that each person faces when trying to accomplish their goals.

I have always had the ability to set goals, the foresight to make and stick to a plan that works, and the motivation to reach my goals ranging from juggling to moving to a new country. If you want to reach your goals—be it to get in shape, lose weight, or another plan that you are not sure how to get moving on, I offer you my services. Now, at 36, I am working on my first book, practicing my stand-up comedy skills, learning how to do parkour, and enjoying every minute I work with my clients who continue to amaze and teach me more about the factors that motivate humans to be the unique indivuals that we are.  

I will not take you on as a client if I don’t believe I can help you because I don’t like wasting your money or my time. If you feel like I might be the right trainer or muse for you , please email me or call me and we’ll set an appointment for a free consultation. No matter what your goal in life is, the chances are that I can help as long as you have a little bit of passion and an open mind.