Built for the Long Run: How Fitness Helped Me Reclaim My Life

Ashley Peleckas, Personal Trainer

I’m Ashley — a certified personal trainer, coach, and proud mom to a fearless six-year-old. I’ve worked in fitness for over 13 years, but I’ve learned the most about strength outside the gym. The hardest work I’ve done wasn’t for a race or a physique. It was for my life.

When I Had to Step Away

When I became pregnant, I left personal training. On the surface, it looked like a pause. The truth was more complicated. I was in an abusive relationship — emotionally, physically, and psychologically. What should have been a joyful chapter was shaped by fear and confusion. I spent two years just trying to get through the day.

I didn’t recognize the person I had become. My identity as a strong, capable trainer felt distant. I had stopped moving, stopped feeling like myself.

Finding My Way Back

It didn’t start with a program or a plan. It started with a short walk. A quiet stretch on the floor. A moment to breathe. These weren’t workouts — they were signals. Proof that something in me still wanted to move, to live, to come back.

Movement gave me access to myself again. It reminded me that I still had choices — maybe not big ones at first, but enough to begin. And slowly, I started reclaiming my body, my confidence, and my future.

"You don’t have to have it all figured out. You just have to begin."

Fitness Helped Me Leave

Fitness gave me more than physical strength. It gave me clarity. I began to trust myself again. I could see a future beyond the life I was stuck in. That strength — built one small act at a time — gave me what I needed to leave. To raise my son on my own. To rebuild a life where we could both feel safe and free.

Why I Returned to Coaching

Coming back to training wasn’t just a career decision. It was part of the recovery process. Helping others reconnect with their strength helped me reconnect with mine. Every session, every client, every program I design is a reminder that progress is possible — not just in the gym, but in life.

I work with real people going through real things. My clients are parents, caretakers, professionals, and survivors. They’re not always looking for a complete overhaul — sometimes they just need a place to start. I build programs that support that. That meet people where they are and help them move forward.

What Strength Really Means

Strength isn’t just about lifting more or moving faster. It’s about what you’ve lived through. What you’ve healed from. It’s the ability to keep showing up, especially when things feel hard or uncertain.

To anyone starting over, or just starting to think about starting — I want you to know that it’s not too late. You don’t have to go back to who you were. You get to become someone new. Stronger. Wiser. More in control of your life.

If any part of this feels familiar, come see what movement can unlock. You don’t have to have it all figured out. You just have to begin.