What is one of your biggest passions?
“One of my biggest passions…can I say eating? I love cooking, I do it with my mom all of the time. I’m passionate about food in general: I love to cook, I love to be cooked for, with my family, for my family.
My sister and I always bake together, and that’s always fun for me. Food kind of ties in with a bigger passion though: total wellness of the mind and body.”
Have your passions influenced your career?
“Yeah, absolutely! I’m actually a fitness instructor here on campus. I have a Tabata class that I instruct with my roommate. We did it all last year, and we’re doing it again this year and that was, and still is, tons of fun for us.
I also worked out at a studio for all of summer this year, and I picked up some additional exercises there. I also learned how to do yoga, which was huge for me. And that sort of stuff is what I want to do with my life: I want to run a studio. I specifically want it to focus on both physical and mental wellness.”
What advice would you give to someone taking steps to better their wellness?
“Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself. I think one of the most common and defeating misconception is that you’ll see results overnight, especially with mental wellness.
This summer, I started out pretty solid and went 6 days a week; now I have a much more positive view of myself, and much less nervous view of my life after college because I was patient and kind to myself.
I learned to appreciate what my body could do for me instead of taking it for granted. I began to appreciate even the simple things, like being able to get out of bed in the morning and drive my own car.
Our bodies and minds are incredible things, and if you take the time to appreciate and exercise them, you can do great things.”
Beneath The Crown was created by Nick Theisen (‘15). It is inspired by Humans of New York (HONY) and aims to bring the community of Gustavus Adolphus College closer together by providing the perspectives of the many different people who live and work at the school.