Seeing other people pushing themselves may help you push yourself.
Mirrors everywhere make it too easy to focus onbody hangupsand pick apart one’s flaws.
And constantly feeling like other people around you look better can take a serious toll on self-esteem.
Courtesy of Dani Tsukerman
I wanted to create a place for people like me, who feel stuck, she tells SELF.
There are no mirrors.
Initially, most of her clients come in with the goal of losing weight, she says.
Courtesy of Dani Tsukerman
But she helps them hone in on goals focused on confidence and feeling good.
People have anxiety because they dont think they look good or know what theyre doing, Tsukerman explains.
There are a lot of people to look at, he says.
Founder of Very Personal Training, Dani Tsukerman
There is ample opportunity for comparison and competition.
But environment does matter.
But Tsukermans approach has helped her push herself and grow in a way thats made her feel comfortable.
Courtesy of Dani Tsukerman
When I first started working with her, it was the first time I really exercised, she says.
Now Im to the point where if I take a class, I just do the best I can.
She was the person who made me realize its about you and challenging yourself.
Courtesy of Dani Tsukerman
As she got older, she continued to be severely uncomfortable in her body.
When she started to go through puberty around 11, she started dieting by limiting her portions.
This turned into diligently counting calories and then obsessively weighing herself.
By the time she was 15, Tsukerman weighed 100 pounds.
She knew that she was in trouble and needed to change, but couldnt bring herself to do it.
The 1 percent of me that couldnt let go kept winning, she says.
After she was released, she started binging and purging.
I felt so alone because I couldnt share my secret with anybody, she says.
She even contemplated suicide, but knew that wasnt what she wanted.
She wanted to live a happy life and a family one day.
She decided then that she had to fight.
I forced myself to be so afraid and try anyway.
I forced myself to do the thing I feared the most, which was eating, she says.
At this point, Tsukerman was in her second year of college.
She says she started exercising, at first as a way to counteract the calories she was now consuming.
She startedexercising obsessively, and eventually hired a trainer at the gym she was going to.
That was the spark that changed everything for her.
[My trainer] started training me and my whole world opened up.
Something shifted for me, I didnt realize this was what I needed, she says.
He would give me these exercises that I thought were impossible and couldnt do.
He said, Try it anyway.
As a perfectionist, Tsukerman was petrified of failing.
She recalls one specific time she was trying to complete an exercise that she could barely do.
After slowly progressing over time, she eventually could do the whole thing.
I felt so proud of myself and confident, she says.
She even went home to her boyfriend (now husband) and showed him because she was so psyched.
This feeling is what led her to decide to become a personal trainer.
After working in a few different gyms, Tsukerman realized the environment wasnt exactly healthy for people like her.
All the mirrors everywhere,scales, measurements that people take.
I dont care if you run an 8-minute mile, I care if youre doing it out of punishment.
I dont care if you ate brownies, I care if you feel guilty, Tsukerman says.
They want to give clients a sense of accomplishment and help them see that they are progressing.
So many people dont work out because they feel like they cant.
They set themselves up for failure because they feel they have to be perfect at it.
For beginners, Tsukerman will just set a goal of coming in once a week.
Starting with something doable and attainable helps clients start building their confidence.
And, the fact that shes actually kept up with exercising.
I cant believe I started working out with her and havent stopped, she says.
Its one of my biggest accomplishments.
Instead, the naming is straight to the point: HIIT, yoga.
We work with people who have a toxic relationships to food and themselves.
And we show them how to get out of that toxic relationship, she says.
Ultimately, Tsukerman wants to ensure no one feels alone like she did.
I want to share the burden with them, Tsukerman says.
And Im not just teaching something in a textbook, its something that Ive lived.
I can help you.
If I can do it, you’re able to.
