Laurel Heggernes
Personal Trainer / Fitness Coach

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Certifications & Qualifications

​Bachelor of Arts - Psychology-St. Cloud State University
Master of Arts - Psychology- Boston University
Personal Training Certificate - St. Paul College
NASM - Certified Personal Trainer

About

​I grew up tall, awkward and gangly but eventually found myself developing a passion for playing volleyball.  I was one of very few girls consistently in my high school’s weight room and trained on my own at home, either by serving my beat up volleyball at the garage door or doing plyos in my parents’ driveway.  I was always searching for ways to be better.
 
Like a lot of people, I lost my passion for fitness in my early 20s.  Beer and pizza trumped time spent taking care of myself.  I was extremely self-conscious, unhappy, and felt uncomfortable in my body.  On the rare occasion that I did work out, I gravitated towards treadmill and elliptical machines thinking that long bouts of cardio was the only way I was going to get back to that sense of my ideal athletic self. 
 
It was not until I stepped back in the weight room that I realized that resistance training was a way for me to deal with the stress and anxiety of everyday life.  For me, feeling strong and capable physically is a catalyst towards feeling strong mentally. 
 
My educational background is in mental health and psychology, which has led me to an ongoing understand as to why people do what they do (or don’t do) when it comes to their own health and undergoing positive life changes.  In 2015 I made the decision to move away from helping people in a social services-type atmosphere to combining my passion for fitness with my desire to help people, in the field of personal training.  My goal is to help others overcome self-doubt, fear, and reluctance to change their lives for the better in order to move better, live longer and gain self-confidence.
 
My interests outside of personal training are coaching and playing volleyball, cooking, fitness-ing and searching for ways to be active outdoors.  My professional interests are in functional movement, behavior change and overcoming barriers in order to live the best life possible.