One day while on my long commute to work, I heard a faint voice from my car stereo cutting through the morning ambiance. For no particular reason, I felt inspired to turn the volume up loud enough so I could concentrate over the hum of my engine and the clank of Michigan potholes.
At seemingly just the right moment, I heard the voices of Terry Gross and her guest that day, Lin-Manuel Miranda, talking about how his childhood shaped his life as a writer. Not a minute after I serendipitously cranked up my stereo, I heard Miranda say these words: “If you want a recipe for a writer, have them feel a little out of place everywhere.”
I typed that just now without even looking it up to confirm it – and I’m sure this quote has found its way into transcripts on the Internet. His words struck my heart deeper than any I had read in the hundreds of books and articles I’ve consumed across several years of higher education. Those words reverberated in my rebellious, punk rock heart – the one that has been beating my entire life with the purpose of being unequivocally me.
Years ago, it was this feeling of being “a little out of place everywhere” that made the fitness industry a difficult space for me. I didn’t look like the trainers I worked alongside each day – my stomach wasn’t flat, my abdominal muscles, while strong, never felt the need to peek through my skin. My legs are short and I have an awkward limp when I do high-intensity workouts (thanks Multiple Sclerosis). And yet, while I knew I belonged there with everyone else, I never felt like I belonged.
I was called (affectionately, I hope) a rebel because I refused to do the 30-day diet challenges, the “Biggest Loser”-style weigh-ins, or register for the grueling 10-15 mile obstacle course races that I knew (for me) were more likely to injure me than they were to boost my confidence in fitness and health. I knew who I was then and I know who I am now. I am the girl who marches to her own rhythm. I am the girl who wants fitness to be a means to discover your body’s most joyous movement and for that joy to enhance your life, not define it.
Rebel Cycle Studio is the physical manifestation of the mission I’ve lived my whole life – to be unapologetically me. My story is the blueprint for a fitness trainer and business owner who decided enough was enough – it’s time that we all felt included and welcome in fitness. In a time when it’s all too easy to feel like we are not enough for this world, Rebel Cycle Studio invites you to be you no matter where you are on your journey.
So whether you’re feeling rebellious or you’re just down for some badass indoor cycling (or maybe both!), we look forward to riding with you now and for years to come.
Yours in the Rebellion,
Dr. L
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