Meet Trailblazer Merdiana Spaiju

Today we’d like to introduce you to Merdiana Spaiju.

Merdiana, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
The interesting part of my journey is that if you told me six years ago that I would be into fitness as much as I am today, I would have laughed hard because I never saw myself into anything like that. I never considered myself overweight, however, about seven years ago, I wanted to save some money so I worked two jobs for a while and even took on the third one at one point, which for me, it meant I didn’t have time to cook so I ate mostly fast food. All of that brought in the weight gaining and a decrease in my immune system, so I became very self-conscious and started researching what I can do to improve my health. I started my fitness journey with a hula hoop as my first equipment, at the end of the day, before going to bed, I would spin for 30 to 40 minutes and started to watch what I eat a little bit more carefully. And then, after a year of doing that, for the first time in my life, I joined a gym, which in the small town I lived at that point, was a very tiny gym but it had dumbbells and some cardio equipment which was more than enough for a beginner like me. At first, I would just do random workouts I found online and then slowly started getting interested in what training every muscle means and how to get the most results with each workout. The more I was working out, the more I was getting hooked to the feeling of accomplishment after every workout so I wanted to learn more which made me pursue the career of personal trainer, I studied and took my certificate mostly because I wanted to know more and also because I always wanted to be able to help others too. After that, I knew I had to keep going so I took my fitness nutrition exam as well because health starts with nutrition and is backed up by being active.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road, but honestly, life wouldn’t be fun if it was a smooth road. You need the challenges to make you stronger, for me, at the beginning, the challenge was to get to the gym, I kept feeling discouraged because I didn’t see results right away (which is impossible to do) or that I wasn’t able to lift more, or that I wasn’t able to do a certain workout. But I just kept pushing irregardless! My advice is to have at least one person who will be your accountability partner, for me it was my boyfriend, on a day when I didn’t feel like working out, he pushed me and reminded me of all the positives I’ve gotten from it and I would do the same for him. But even if choose to do it all on your own, you’ve got this because it is your future, you are doing it for and you have nothing to lose if it is your passion you’re fighting for!

What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I am a personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist certified by the American Council on Exercise. I love being an advocate of health by showing people everything fitness and nutrition offer to give them a better quality of life. I also strongly believe that even 30 minutes of physical activity per day can bring great benefits to everyone. What sets me apart is the fact that when you train with me, I won’t tell you you’re doing a good job but I’ll keep pushing you until you’re doing an amazing job and until you see the results you’ve always wanted to see.

So much of the media coverage is focused on the challenges facing women today, but what about the opportunities? Do you feel there are any opportunities that women are particularly well-positioned for?
Yes unfortunately we still have to face a lot more challenges than men, we keep getting underestimated on the strength we carry, we still get discriminated with some job opportunities, however we are stronger than ever before and that is mostly because we’ve learned how to support each other and how to help each other grow, we know when to raise our voice and ask for what we deserve! It makes me so proud to see so many women proving how important it is to have diversity at the work place in order to build a successful business. And as a personal trainer, I coach my clients on life too and one of my biggest goals is to teach my female clients how important self care and confidence are and that they can be successful in any field they desire! So if there are any women out there that are afraid to take that next step to whatever is challenging them in life, please email me and I would love to help you out!

Contact Info:

• Email: merdiana.cpt@gmail.com
• Instagram: @meri_diana
• Facebook: @merdiana.cpt

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Image Credit:
Merdiana Spaiju