My Fitness Journey

watch my fitness journey below

I'm Amina Zena, Master Body Transformer. Since 2009 I’ve trained hundreds of clients 1:1, taught over 20,000 fitness classes, and helped thousands of women ages 20-50 transform Their bodies, feel confident, and live their best life. So how did I get started?

My fitness journey started in high school. I was 14, I had been overweight my whole life, over 250lbs, size 22 (us) and by age 7 the doctors were telling me I was at risk for diabetes and heart disease. I was the fat kid in school, I hated how I looked, I avoided mirrors, I would hide during gym class, I wanted to hide 24/7. I hated being overweight, but what pushed me over the edge was not making 3 different sports teams in a row, meanwhile, my twin brother was everyone's first pick. I was so tired of being sick and tired that I knew I had to tap into my inner athlete and make my health and fitness my number 1 priority.

I asked one of the coaches why I got cut and he said it was because I couldn’t meet the requirement of running 2 miles under 20 minutes. And that became my first fitness goal. I started running on the track after school every day, and at first I couldn’t run more than 30 seconds without gasping for air. But I stuck with it and every day I would get a little farther until I finally reached my goal.

I didn’t get into running to look better or lose weight, but that’s what started happening, and once I met my goal I kept setting new ones and finally joined the cross country team by my senior year in high school. I had dropped 5 pants sizes in 7 months and boys started noticing me, at 16 years old I got my first compliment, a kid in the lunch line told me I was “actually hot.” I never knew how it felt to be seen as attractive by someone else, I never knew it would even matter.

After a year of running on my own, I joined the Cross Country team and I was even picked first in gym class for ultimate frisbee. Once I got the running down I incorporated pilates and weight lifting into my regimen. I would go to the library during lunch to research the food I was eating and started logging what I ate every day. I created my own training schedule and people started asking me to help them do the same.

So I got to work and developed a system, that I still use with my clients to this day. That same system is what led me to working as a trainer in New York City's best gyms + teaching corporate wellness workshops, co-hosting countless podcasts and giving children's fitness classes for the non -profit Wellness in the Schools. I got my first fitness certification in 2009 while I was in college and once I graduated in 2011 I moved to NYC to run my training business full time.

It’s been an exciting journey, and it’s far from over. Fitness is the best thing that’s ever happened to me and it’s my mission to share what I know with as many people as possible. And if you’re still reading this I want you to know that you are capable of truly amazing things!