We recently connected with Chelsea Garcia and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Chelsea, thanks for joining us today. How did you get your first job in the field that you practice in today?

I was in Wichita at the time working at one of the local out-patient physical therapy clinics. My boss knew I had just graduated and needed to sit for my ACSM Exercise Physiologist exam to become certified. He knew I was dragging my feet and hadn’t started applying for jobs yet. So, he sat me down in his office and gave me a verbal kick in the butt. He told me that I could stay here forever and help out and I would be welcome to do so, but that he knew I was meant for bigger and better things. He preceded to tell me he would be firing me at the end of September and that it was for my own good. It was late July since I had just walked in May and finished up my internship just a few days prior. I was shocked and pissed off, but mostly because I knew he was right. Immediately I started applying for jobs, I scheduled my exam, and really started studying. Within 2 weeks I had sat for my exam, passed it, and was scheduling phone interviews all over the country.

I ended up taking a position out in Santa Monica California. Mostly because I wanted to get out of Kansas and experience somewhere new AND because I knew I had a family support system nearby. I ended up staying with family in the South Bay and driving up to Santa Monica everyday for 3-4 months. It was about 2-2.5 hours each way with all the crazy LA traffic. The first day I cried afterwards because it was such a culture shock with the commute, all the new changes, and new people. It was a stressful first few months in that job, but the two years I was there, I learned so much! I got to meet famous musicians, actors/actresses/producers/directors, etc. I even got to work with some well known professional athletes! Even though I knew I wouldn’t be in that job forever based mostly on not being able to move far upward within the company, I am grateful for all the knowledge I gained and the skills I was able to develop.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I get to help people for a living using movement. I first became enthralled with this idea of helping people feel and move better after having knee surgery in high school. I was placed with a young physical therapist in her mid 20’s. Even though she was 10 years older than me, I really connected with her. She was a safe place and was helping me in a very vulnerable time where I wasn’t sure what movement, activity, and sports would look like for me in the future. This PT really helped me put my active life back together and allowed me to get back to doing the things I truly loved! Ever since meeting and working with her for 6+ months, I knew I wanted to be like her someday.

After I finished my undergrad, I started my masters program in Exercise Science while I was applying to Physical Therapy doctorate programs. I was waitlisted and went through 2 cycles of applying. As I finished up my masters program, I decided I didn’t want to go back to school for another 3 years and knew I had learned a lot and would still be able to help people feel and move better with my degree.

I pride myself in educating people about what is best for their body and physiology based on their specific needs and goals. Everyone is different and should be given an individual approach to helping them reach their fitness goals. With my metabolic testing background, I can really help people get in touch with what their body actually needs and what kinds of foods, exercise, and movement will work best for their personal physiology. We are all very similar, but we are made up of different pieces and those pieces need to be treated uniquely.

One of my favorite parts about what I do is continue to learn. There is constantly new research coming out about movement patterns, nutrition, recovery, etc. I love to continuously keep learning so I can best help my clients. I’ve worked with a lot of people that were stuck in their ways and used the “If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it” method. When they’ve been doing that for 30-40 years, they are doing their clients a huge disservice by not incorporating new and now proven research.

Over the last few years, I have continued to learn and complete a new certification almost every year!
-Certified Exercise Physiologist (2018)
-Pelvic Floor & Core Instructor: Pelacore (2019)
-Precision Nutrition Level 1 Nutrition Coach (2020)
-Certified Stretch Practitioner (2020)
-200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification (2021)
-250 hour Pilates Comprehensive Instructor Certification (2024)

I believe in approaching problems creatively with more curiosity on why it became a problem in the first place. How can we go to the root of it and fix that behavior in order to fully change the big picture outcome.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Getting too absorbed in the new job, project, client, etc. I have a tendency to really go all in, which can be good, but I can also get swept up and other things can be neglected in the process.

My first job, I jumped all in and really took to their way of doing things and the processes. However, when I tried to start branching out with new ideas based on new research and things I had learned in school, I was met with a ton of pushback. That really stifled my creativity and it took me a while to get that back once I had moved onto a new role.

My best advice is yes, go all in, but make sure you keep track of what got you there in the first place and don’t lose your creativity and what makes you uniquely you!

Have you ever had to pivot?

Moving away after college to the second biggest city in the US was scary, but there was a lot of opportunity out there for the services I provide. When COVID happened, I was still “working” everyday and going into the performance center since we were blurring the lines of medically necessary and recreational. Once my hours were decreased enough where I would not be able to continue living in Santa Monica on the salary I was getting, I knew I had to leave.

It was sad to leave, but I did feel like I had run my course there being there for a couple of years already. I knew there was no more upward movement for me and I was ready to explore other options. However, moving back to the Midwest where there was not as much opportunity for my very niche skill set, it was tough to find something that I truly wanted to throw my whole weight behind.

I chose to keep an open mind for whatever I ended up doing and decided to start my own personal business on the side. Allowing myself to keep doing what I like on the side helped me fill my cup while I was in other more permanent roles. I would be working for myself full time if it was fully able to help me pay my bills and afford health insurance, but so far it has not. I also haven’t put my whole self behind working truly for myself due to many reasons, one of them being that I am scared I won’t be able to sustain it and that it won’t be something I can do for the next 10+ years. Running a small business is extremely hard and I have done it for other people and know what it takes. Doing that completely on my own is not where I am just yet, but I do hope to get there one day and find the combination of work/life balance that best works for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.movementwithchels.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/movementwithchels?igsh=MTg4Znp6YjQ5OHl2Yw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelsea-garcia-med-acsm-ep-cyt-690124163/
• Other: https://movementwithchels.substack.com/

Image Credits

@Pics_by_spence – Spencer Ellsperman