Transformed to transform others

Rebeca Gonzalez was working the night shift at the hospital when a patient “coded,” signifying emergency care was necessary. She and her team immediately started compressions to resuscitate the patient. “Compressions have to be fast and deep enough to be fully effective in saving a life,” the registered nurse says. “Within minutes, I became tired, sweaty and was breathing heavily. Luckily, my fellow nurses were there to help.”

That night she left work but what had happened stayed with her. “I thought to myself, ‘What if this person didn’t survive because I could not effectively do my job?’ My job is to save lives.”

She was confronted with how unhealthy she had become. She was so overweight and out of shape that she struggled to apply compressions to save her patient’s life.

“I felt I was such a hypocrite. I had to tell my patients to eat healthy, quit smoking and exercise. That was everything that I didn’t do. So, I decided I didn’t want to be that person anymore.”

Gonzalez not only quit smoking and lost 60 pounds — she also changed careers. “I now help people before they go into the hospital,” says Gonzalez, who owns FitLife Studio.

She began her journey by seeking out a trainer, not knowing at the time that he would help her do more than lose weight. Joe Barker helped her to change her “life in every way,” she says. (The two are now engaged to be married!)

“I lost 60 pounds by replacing my unhealthy meals with the ViSalus nutritional program and exercising. After the weight loss, I decided to go a step further and start weight training.”

She gained 10 pounds of lean muscle and now is “in the best shape of my life. I went from 205 pounds to currently 145 pounds.”

“This journey will teach you many things about yourself that you never thought were possible. We forget about ourselves. We put our jobs, children, family, and careers before our health, but you must make yourself and your health a priority. Our health is our greatest wealth. Take the step to get healthy, you’ll never regret it.” — Rebeca Gonzalez

She has capped her weight-loss and weight training successes by completing several runs: Spartan races, 5ks, and most recently her first 12k.

“I am looking forward to achieving much more,” she says. “Changing my health has been the best decision I ever made. It has become my way of life.”

Rebeca’s story is similar to many others who over time have gained much more weight than they ever imagined they would and have tried multiple times to shed the pounds.

“My unhealthy journey began while in nursing school. I gained approximately 60 pounds. I was a smoker and not active. Like most people, I would begin exercising with family and friends but would never stay committed. My eating habits never changed so I never succeeded in my weight loss.”

Rebeca, who was born in Durango, Mexico, but grew up in Gulfport, started nursing school at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College after graduating from Harrison Central High. Her associate’s degree in nursing helped to land her a job as a registered nurse at a local hospital. Her unit specialized in orthopaedics and neurology.

“I absolutely loved nursing, but after three years of 12-plus-hour shifts on nights, it just began to take a toll on me,” she says.

Her fiancé, Joe Barker, suggested she take a break. “Taking a break turned into a new career that allowed me to find a different way to help people,” she says. “During this ‘break,’ I obtained my personal training (ACE certification) and I also became certified in Pound Fitness and R.I.P.P.E.D. (Resistance Interval Plyometrics Endurance Diet). Obtaining these certifications gave me the opportunity to educate myself about living a healthier lifestyle, choosing healthier eating habits, and teaching a variety of exercise programs.”

She and her fianc. recently opened a personal training studio called Fitlife Studio in Gulfport. “Our mission is to change lives through health and fitness,” she says.

“Health and fitness gives me the opportunity to transform other people’s lives. I feel that I found nursing in a different form!”

Rebeca now shares her personal transformation story and her love of fitness with all of her clients.

And her clients appreciate the gift she offers.

“Even after I get the results I’m looking for, I will continue to train with her just because of who she is and what she continues to do to help me in my life,” says client Shannon McNair.

Rebeca’s mentor Anita Yarborough adds, she “is a leader who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. Her main goal is to make a difference in the life of others. She is a transformational leader.”