Hey everyone! My name is Caroline Juster and I am a personal trainer and online fitness coach living in Chicago, Illinois. I provide strength training and no-nonsense nutrition information for former misfits and creative people. I help you use the gym to live your strongest life.
I started training clients back in January 2014. Since then, I’ve spent thousands of hours working with hundreds of clients both face-to-face and online.
I am proud to be a Certified Functional Strength Coach (CFSC). I also have active certifications from DVRT (Ultimate Sandbag Training), NASM CPT and CES (National Academy of Sports Medicine, Certified Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist), and OTC (Online Trainer Academy Certification). I have a nutrition certification from Precision Nutrition and I am a Certified Moderation 365 Nutrition Consultant.
My Story
Many trainers have always been athletic and fit. Not me. My journey into the fitness industry happened by accident.
I wanted to be a musician since I was a girl. I was terrible at sports and always felt awkward around athletic kids. I much preferred to absorb myself in the arts.
Unfortunately, I also learned to use food to soothe difficult emotions. This combination of overeating and dislike of exercise caused me to rapidly gain weight.
By the time I finished my freshman year of college, I was clinically obese. I hated myself and what I saw in the mirror.
At a check-up that summer, I got the shock of a lifetime when my doctor informed me that I was prediabetic. I was terrified and realized I needed to make real changes to protect my health and avoid a future filled with preventable chronic illnesses.
I started reading everything I could find about nutrition and exercise. I taught myself how to cook and started counting calories. I also started hitting the campus gym every morning to lift weights or take spinning and kickboxing classes.
Over the next six months, I lost nearly 70lbs and felt confident in my own skin for the first time. I rang in my 20th birthday at a healthy weight for the first time in over five years.
I felt like a totally different person and had laid the groundwork for a completely different lifestyle. And I can honestly say that getting in shape changed everything about my life:
- I gained the confidence to pursue hobbies and passions that I never would have explored when I was overweight.
- I was able to overcome my shyness and insecurity enough to approach strangers in social situations, leading to many wonderful friendships with interesting people.
- I discovered a passion for health and fitness that ultimately blossomed into an exciting, meaningful, and totally unexpected career.
However, I would be lying if I portrayed this first successful diet as the happy ending to my story. The years since have brought numerous challenges:
- I regained and lost weight multiple times.
- I tried and bombed out of nearly every fad diet.
- I developed a serious eating disorder, from which my recovery is ongoing and will likely be a lifelong process.
- I dealt with pain and injuries that made it challenging to work out.
Despite all this, I’ve never given up on myself since that fateful doctor’s appointment nearly 10 years ago. My personal fitness journey is ongoing, and I believe that makes me a better coach.
I share my story so that anyone struggling with similar issues knows they are not alone. I’ve been where you are and I know what’s possible for you, even if you can’t see it yet.
I often say that weight loss is simple, but far from easy. This same could be said for the other goals I help people accomplish, such as getting stronger or improving their relationship with food.
Embarking on a health and fitness journey is so much more than a 12-week transformation contest or a 30-day challenge. You have to keep showing up for yourself consistently week after week, year after year.
Along the way you will encounter struggles and challenges that will push you to think deeply about who you are and what you truly value. You will have to make difficult choices in order to stay true to yourself and build a healthier, happier future.
Thankfully, you will also learn just how strong and powerful you truly are. By making the choice to take back control of your body and your health, you will unknowingly open countless doors for yourself that you never dreamed possible.
Fitness gave me a new life, and my goal as a trainer and a coach is to help you figure out what you can do for yourself to experience similar confidence and success.
Check out this page and this page to learn more about the different ways I can help you.