Melissa Merkle is #MadeForKnoxville.
Using her own struggles as fuel, Melissa is teaching body confidence to women who want to experience “freedom from the scale.”
As a young woman, Melissa didn’t feel comfortable in her own body. Through her personal experiences, she discovered that obsessing over food and weight loss plans wouldn’t do the trick. A natural born teacher and entrepreneur, Melissa now coaches other women to have confidence in their bodies using her holistic healing formula.
“Get a great coach and follow a proven process.”
In Their Own Words…
Hi! I’m a Speaker and Health & Weight Loss Coach with over 20 years working in the fitness industry. After overcoming my own eating disorder, excessive exercising, and uncontrollable binge eating episodes, I’ve discovered and continue to practice both the mental and physical aspects that go into sustainable weight loss.
I now help other women who have tried countless diets and exercise plans go from feeling uncomfortable in their own bodies to mastering their relationship with food so they can find freedom from the scale.
My new program – The Body Confidence Formula: The No-BS Guide to Weight Loss & Empowerment for Women – launches in January 2024.
What led to entrepreneurship:
I was living in Florida at the time and had just recently competed in 2 fitness competitions. I was also working full-time as a corporate trainer in the insurance industry. I found that I loved teaching and education, but that I wanted to teach on a different topic. I wanted to teach women how to eat to lose weight, not insurance.
Even though I had achieved my own success and was certified as a personal trainer, I thought I needed additional education. Not long after that, I enrolled back in college in my hometown in Ohio, quit my job, moved back in with my mom, and was determined to figure out how to grow my own business as a nutrition coach.
It was years later that I actually started my first business with my husband.
We didn’t know what the heck we were doing. And after 4 years, we ended up closing the business for other opportunities.
The entrepreneur was still in me though, and I was determined to start another business one day.
Since that time, I’ve continued to work with clients on a part-time basis. And just recently, I’ve shifted my full-time attention back to growing my own coaching business…the same thing I set out to do over a decade ago.
Lessons learned:
There are so many lessons! Three of the big lessons I’ve learned are:
- Get a great coach and follow a proven process.
- Network and build relationships
- Choose a business model that will allow you to build the lifestyle you want.
Interested in sharing your “Made for Knoxville” story? Submit here!
