The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Jennifer Seay is a powerful quote by William Shakespeare.
“Though she be but little, she is fierce.”
Standing at just 5’4” Jennifer, age 48, is a powerhouse in all aspects of her life. She is a wife, mother of two children and also owner of a thriving business on the east side of Austin, Art + Artisans Consulting. By day, she is a successful creative, designing meaningful, artistic spaces for her clients. By night, she is a loving mother, cooking and providing for her family with her husband, Michael Seay, who is also a Central Athlete client.
Jen heard about a Central Athlete from a friend and eagerly joined because she “was ready to take her fitness to the next level.” Four days per week you can find Jen attentively completing her training session at Central Athlete’s on-site training facility. She is the first to arrive in the early morning and gets to work without distractions. Her focus and determination have led to extensive progress that continues to amaze the entire Central Athlete coaching staff.
“I love this program. I always found it very difficult to commit to personal training because my schedule can be very erratic. I was constantly late for my training appointments, which was very frustrating for me and my trainer. And I frequently felt like I would plateau. With CA I love that I can work out on my time but still get feedback during coaching hours or by asking questions via TrueCoach. The coaches are all extremely educated and have helped me to continue to advance. After 3 years I am accomplishing things in the gym that I never would have believed when I started.” -Jen Seay
Some of Jennifer’s accomplishments include:
- Back Squat: 6 reps at 105 pounds to 185 pounds
- Strict Dips: 5 reps to 15 reps
- Weighted Dip: 0 to 30 pounds
- Weighted chest to bar pull-up: 0 to 25 pounds
- Deadlift: 8 reps at 110 pounds to 250 pounds
- Strict pull-up: 0 to 9 reps
Jen’s objectives are to “feel great, increase my flexibility, and age gracefully so that I live the highest quality life that I can for absolutely as long as possible.” Coach Amanda emphasizes the importance of progressive overload in order for Jen to reach her goals. Jen’s program has components that build off each other, in a progressive format, which have created:
The acquisition of new gymnastics skills
- Increased lean mass
- Decreased fat mass
- Increases in strength
- Increases in mobility
Now that she has the prerequisite strength, she has begun implementing gymnastics skill work into her training. She is currently working toward a strict handstand push-up and strict muscle-up!
“My biggest accomplishment has been pull-ups!! I couldn't do unassisted pull-ups or dips when I started. I am amazed at how far I have come. Also one-legged squats and handstand shoulder taps. I would watch other people do them when I started and it looked completely impossible. It is so cool to accomplish skills that seemed completely out of reach to me.”
These feats in the gym did not come overnight nor from a solid training plan alone. Jen has always been focused on her nutrition, but over the past year, she and her husband have become even more aware of occasional habits that were not serving them well. One example: their evening recap of their days over a glass of red wine. While experimenting with eliminating their evening glasses of wine together, they both noticed a major shift in their sleep quality and energy levels throughout the day. By gaining this insight, together they have shifted into a healthier evening routine together enjoying an occasional glass of wine every-so-often instead of every evening.
Quality sleep is essential for the body's ability to recover and perform at its best both inside and outside the gym. Unlike the sleep assistance many people think they receive from alcohol, it turns out to be quite the opposite, causing sedation rather than inducing natural sleep. Alcohol is one of the most powerful suppressors of REM sleep (rapid eye movement, also known as dream sleep) which is essential for cognitive, emotional and mental health.
By choosing a different nighttime routine and gaining more awareness around her daily habits, Jen’s performance in the gym has been monumental. We are excited to highlight her hard work and continuous progress since starting at Central Athlete several years ago. She has improved in every capacity from strength to aerobic capacity to gymnastics and power without experiencing the frustration of a plateau. This is one of the many benefits of personalized fitness!
Although Jen is coached by Amanda O’Brien, all of the coaches of Central Athlete have nothing but remarkable things to say about her attitude and performance in the gym.
If you are interested in taking your fitness regimen to the next level without the constraints of specific workout times and with the nutritional and behavioral support necessary for continuous growth, schedule a strategy session with a Central Athlete coach here!