Meet the Coaches
Dr. Jenn burg, DNP, RN
Even today, seeing Dr. in front of my name fills me with so much pride it almost makes me cry… This was a dream of mine ever since I was a child. Although back then, I wanted to be a surgeon… Life is interesting how it moves you through different tunnels, ups and downs, failures and successes. But in the end, if you really pay attention, you end up on the path you were always destined to be on.
I graduated from nursing school in 2008, and moved to Clearwater, Florida to begin my career. I started out on an adult medical/surgical floor, and after a year, I moved to John’s Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg where I worked in a level 1 trauma Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). I absolutely LOVED my job! I got to see it all. But more than anything, I loved those kids and their families like they were my own. THAT is what made me great. I made a life changing, live saving difference, and THAT filled my soul!
After several years, I was recruited by the Pediatric Heart Transplant Team to be a Transplant Coordinator. To this day, I miss this job so much! I tell people all the time how cool I USED to be! LOL I would fly on jets, go get a heart, and be part of putting that heart into a new child. (And yes, that is a real heart in the picture here!) If you have never seen a heart beating in one human being one hour, and then see it start beating again in a different human being a couple hours later, it’s hard to explain… It is a miracle.
The lessons I learned in my years of healthcare will stay with me for the rest of my life. I learned so much about the human body and what it is truly capable of! I have always been completely fascinated how human beings are so complex, and yet so simple and fragile. I will always be dedicated to lifelong learning about the human body, and my desire to help people and change their lives will always be a part of who I am.
Eventually life started happening, and my husband, Brandon, and I moved back to our hometown in Panama City, Florida to start our own family. (Within a year, we had our first daughter, Charlotte!) There was nothing like I used to do here, and I quickly found my way into healthcare leadership. I ran a large home healthcare company for several years, and then I took a larger roll as the Director of and inpatient unit at a hospital. This is when I knew it was time to go after my Doctorate degree! I had big dreams of being a Chief Nursing Officer, and THIS was the way! I was doing great, moving up, winning leadership and performance awards… Everything was moving in the right direction.
Well…that was the plan until the storm…
Category 5 hurricane michael
This was the one I never saw coming…. That life altering catalyst that changed it all. On October 10th, 2018, my home, my children’s schools, my entire community and everything I knew was destroyed… SHIT.
I have never learned so much, so fast. I was drinking insurance claims, debris clean up, tree removal, roofing, and construction from a damn supersized firehose. Overnight, I became a new woman. Everything I knew, I had to leave behind, and that meant my career in healthcare for the time being. My husband was in the first two years of going out on his own and starting his own law firm, so he needed me to handle everything with rebuilding our home, handling our insurance claim, taking care of our children, and being the support pillar he needed with his business as he was busier than ever. Oh did I mention I was in the very beginning of my Doctoral practicum and had to get a minimum of 1,000 clinical hours at the hospital AND complete a massive research project, AND write my manuscript…? Not only that, but I had to drive an hour and twenty minutes to the hospital because our local hospitals were severely damaged from the hurricane… SHIT.
It was during this time, I realized no one was coming to save me… I had to figure this out on my own. I had to dig deep within myself and find COURAGE. I learned you don’t know how strong you are until strong is the only option you have. It was also during this time that I found my “after the storm tribe”. Strangers that became sisters of the storm. And together, we were Michael’s Angels. Within two weeks of forming, I was standing in front of the Appropriations Committee in the Florida State House of Representatives. We had been “forgotten” after Michael, and we were going to change that! I delivered a speech so powerful (so I’m told…), that the entire Committee went up to our district Representative and vowed then and there to give him 110% of their support and asked for the first time in weeks what he need from them. SHIT! We moved the needle!
We got the support we needed and then some! People started showing up! We couldn’t believe it! A few weeks after the Appropriations Committee, we put together the “Rally in Tally” where we went to get the support of EVERYONE there. It was an incredible day, and frankly one I still can’t believe we pulled off… I still remember almost throwing up that morning before we left on one of two large charter busses full of people from Panama City that a local business owner donated to us… We had the support of the people. We were them, and they were us. And off we went.
Through the storm, I gained a level of resiliency that I never could have learned any other way. If I could make it through all of that, I could make it through anything!
What I never could have imagined though, was how this experience would shape the next chapter of my life…
Rebuilding my community - One property at a time
The best things learned in life are usually learned in a “baptism by fire”. And well, that is how I learned construction and design. I had to rebuild our home from the inside out, and when I tell you I knew nothing, I. Knew. NOTHING. But like I said, I became a new woman after Hurricane Michael because that was the only choice I had. I chased dirty contractors, tree guys trying to scam me, and fake roofers out of my yard with a 4 iron in my hand. I WAS A NEW WOMAN. I was hard now… I felt like I could do anything!
But even though I had a new coat of armor, I found that I was really enjoying the work of rebuilding my home… It was a strange feeling… How could I possibly be finding joy in this horrible tragedy? It was then I realized that the storm was actually a blessing; it lead me to my next chapter, helped me become a stronger woman, pushed me to be a leader in my community, forced me to learn new skills, and brought dear friends into my life.
After our home was completed, I knew I had to do more. I started researching investing in real estate and rehabilitating homes. Within a three year time span, I renovated 6 single family homes, a large 136 year old historical home, and two major commercial buildings. One of the commercial buildings was a building my husband and I bought for his law firm. It was an absolute dump! But underneath the dumpiness was pure historical gold! I designed it from top to bottom and still remember sitting at my kitchen counter drawing up the designs for the front and back exterior. That building is by far one of the proudest achievements of my life to date. Heck! I even won an award for the renovation! Our county Chamber of Commerce awarded us the “Apple of Our Eye Award” after it was completed!
I learned through the renovations that one of my greatest skills is project management. I love putting all the pieces together, and building out the teams to get it done! There is always a new challenge that comes up during construction, and I can safely say, I’m pretty addicted to tough challenges…can you tell…?
I LOVE to challenge myself! Everything is a competition! And at this point in my life, I had challenged myself mentally pretty darn good. What I had never done, was truly challenge myself physically. Enter the bucket list item that changed my life and got me here today!
body builder by bucket list
We all have bucket lists, and mine is exceptionally weird… It is also constantly growing! In 2019, I added “Train and compete in a bodybuilding competition” to my list. Something about the whole process was so appealing and fascinating to me. However, it also seemed so out of reach… I was 35 years old, I had two beautiful babies (who at the time were 6 and 3), my body was softer than a marshmallow, and my diet was garbage…
But after a few months of having this idea in the back of my mind, I approached an acquaintance of mine, and her husband, about possibly training me to compete. They were the fittest people I knew, and her husband had competed before, so that seemed like a great first step. What I didn’t know at the time, was that not only would she become one of my best friends, but she would train and compete with me, in not one, but TWO shows! (Oh yeah…she WON the 2nd show!) She lacked the confidence of getting on the stage and going through the process alone, and I lacked…well…everything else… LOL The body, the knowledge, all of it. However, what I lacked in those areas, I made up for in pure drive and discipline!
I turned my “MOM BOD” into a lean, muscular, bikini competing machine! I even qualified for a national show at my second amateur show! My coach, Adam, seriously hugged me and cried after I stepped off the stage at my second show… (He is going to kill me for sharing this….lol) He got emotional because as my coach, he KNEW what I had gone through to get there, and he was so proud of me! There is a reason only a molecular size of the population makes it to the bodybuilding stage… I will never forget that for the rest of my life, because I also knew the gravity of the moment. The whole process and experience of “becoming a body builder” rocked my soul in the best possible way. I had been changed from the inside out.
From the very beginning, I immersed myself in learning as much as I could. I am the type of person that needs to know the WHY behind everything because I want to learn and truly understand. As I built on my medical knowledge of the human body, I started making personal breakthroughs that were changing my life. I became obsessive with developing a deeper understanding of nutrition. I am a true foodie, and I knew there had to be a better way to enjoy the food and flavors I loved, while not compromising my health goals. I experimented a LOT. Failed a LOT. Learned a LOT! And as I learned, I shared. Turned out, a lot of people were looking for exactly what I was discovering!
After a few weeks into my training, the actual shape of my body was changing! This is called body recomposition. I was gaining muscle while I was losing fat. I am so glad I was taking progress photos each week because I wouldn’t have believed the drastic change if I had not been tracking it! As women, we have the misconception that strength training will make us “bulky”… I’m here to tell you that could not be further from the truth! Lifting weights gives you that definition and tone you are looking for. If you have ever lost weight from just diet and cardio, I’m sure you were skinny, but had no shape. Am I right? Strength training is what determines what you look like once you do lose the weight! It’s like unwrapping a present! AND the health benefits and life longevity of women who strength train is a mile long!
Through everything I learned on my road to the stage, the greatest discovery was how I could not only influence, but alter, my own mind. Through the most difficult days, I was able to shift my mind from the OFF position to the ON position when it was time to show up. It was like I was in a Mario Brothers game, and I was reaching different levels in my mind every couple weeks! BOOP BOOP BOOP! But these changes never took place on the easy days…the days when I felt motivated to do the hard things… No, they ONLY happened on the days I absolutely DID NOT want to train. Or during the times I desperately wanted to say yes to something I couldn’t have. I was starting to realize the shifts in my mindset were only happening in times of adversity. And then it made me think about the prior few years of my life and how those events changed me. I was on to something…
I started documenting when I was struggling with my mindset, what I would tell myself, habits I would follow, and the results that ensued. What I discovered left me with a framework that has allowed me to continue to break through barriers in every aspect of my life! I have learned how to run towards the fear, not away from it. Is it easy? Heck no. But is it worth it? You damn right!
My greatest desire is to take all my years of knowledge, first hand experiences, and the lessons I have learned, and share them with the world. I think everyone deserves to live a full, exciting, long, and healthy life full of adventure! Never settle for average when you can truly change your life FOR GOOD!
Let’s backtrack to my Nursing education at the University of Maryland where graduated with my BSN in 2008. I mixed in gym sessions and campus jogs while working part time as a student nurse in the Neonatal ICU. It was here in undergrad where I learned the science of nutrition (one of my favorite pre-requisite courses!) and the anatomy and physiology of the human body. As I sharpened my knowledge, I was able to take it to practice in a wide range of clinical areas while in my rotations throughout the University of Maryland Medical System and John’s Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. In my training I was exposed to all ages, from premature babies to the frail and elderly, and everything in between. It was truly eye opening as a young Nursing student, yet the passion to help people and lead them to health and wellness was instilled deeper within me as I got closer to completing my degree.
Fast forward to 2009, I landed my first nursing job in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL—where I met Jenn Burg! We shared a passion for caring for acutely ill children and their families. The takeaway from this path in our careers was pivotal. We mastered how to carry the weight of hardship for our patients and families when they could not find the light at the end of the tunnel. We spent so many shifts in that PICU mentally and physically breaking down as bedside nurses, only to learn how strong it made us coming out on the other side. I built the beginnings of a mindset of strength and perseverance during this time in my life without even realizing it.
But I knew deep down I had to step away from the PICU at some point in my life. I decided to go back to further my degree and I graduated from University of South Florida with my Master’s Degree in Nursing as a Nurse Practitioner in 2014. I took my certification board exam 9 days before I had my first baby and started my new job as a Nurse Practitioner in the Pediatric Cardiac ICU. In addition to routine ICU care of all ages (including a special population of adults), my role is to assist with managing the comprehensive care of our patients, ordering/interpreting labs and diagnostic tests, prescribing medications and making referrals and connections with different Doctors who can assist in the care of the patient both in the hospital and after discharge home. It’s kind of like being the air traffic controller in the ICU; a demanding yet very rewarding responsibility to have.
Lauren Smith, MSN, CPNP, RN, CCRN
On. The. Go. This is the definition of the phase of life I’m in as a working Mom of four kiddos! As I reflect back on the years prior to having 4 young children, I admit have innately prioritized fitness and healthy lifestyle choices as they were instilled in me in my upbringing. But I’ve had some bumps in the road along the way.
As a high school varsity athlete, I learned the values of leadership and teamwork. My cheerleading days were not just about rallying on the sidelines but also about being a steadfast support for others. I carried this innate quality to raise others up into my recent adulthood as I coached an immensely strong group of women at iStroll Tampa for several years. It was here at this “Mommy bootcamp” workout class where I really learned how powerful and gratuitous it is coaching and leading others to health and wellness. I was able to hone in on my fitness creativity by building workout sets that were fun and challenging, yet customized with modifications to accommodate different levels of fitness and stages of motherhood.
And then I became a Mom :) Talk about demanding strength and perseverance! This is where it’s at!
Becoming a mom comes with a plethora of challenges, no matter how many times over!
One of mine was a 4 month stint of bedrest during my 3rd pregnancy secondary to risk for pre-term labor. This was devastating for me as a physically active, ICU working, fitness coaching, mother of 2 (at that time). But I had to put the baby first, there was no question about that. I watched my body composition change as my muscle mass atrophied. The feelings I felt during those four months were dark and I wasn’t sure I was going to get through it. Many days I pushed those feelings deep down and I admit I became numb to them at times (especially when COVID hit—I think we can all relate to that a bit!)
I knew there was work ahead, heck I had no choice but to get strong in order to manage and chase after 3 kids! Well (Praise Lord!) that baby boy came out cooked just enough, and I set off to put in the work, slowly but surely. With white knuckles gripping the stroller, I was barely making it around the neighborhood block on wobbly legs but I stuck it out. I walked a little bit more each day, worked my way back up to weight training and finally back to my bootcamp classes once the COVID restrictions were relaxed and the rest is history. After maternity leave, I was back to work, doing what I love taking care of patients and focusing on getting them stronger and healthier!
Until…Surprise! Baby number 4! What a rollercoaster my body was on! The lessons I learned in my previous pregnancies led me to accept the setbacks I was faced with in round #4 and I was able to modify my lifestyle to keep a healthy balance, avoid bedrest and keep working!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned up to this point in my life is that sharing experience and habits with other people is a powerful thing. We gain knowledge through the lessons of others whether they learned the hard way or had it easy.
To me, this is the most influential way to make a change in one’s life.
My own day to day routine is madness in this phase of my life. Again, requiring air traffic control to keep up among the chaos. If anyone could witness the manic morning hour in my household getting 4 kids ages 9, 7, 3 and 1 out of bed, healthy breakfast, ready for school, and out the door on time I’d be so humbled. But I’ll be damned if I don’t make sure I lace up my own sneakers, fill up my water bottle and grab a protein bar to ensure I fuel my body so I can get out on the pavement or into the gym to workout. This is my happy place, my self care, my priority to keep me sane in the wild ride of life I’m buckled into with sweat dripping’ and my ponytail whippin’ !
Now, as I embark on the path as a health coach, I’m excited I’m able to share my medical background knowledge and my personal life experiences with others. My mission is to bring that same energetic spirit of support, well-being, and prioritizing health that I create for myself and my family to individuals on their journey to optimal health.
I’m here to tell you, if I can make it happen—you can make it happen and I’d love to share in this journey with you!
