My name is Mona Siebler, and I am part of the front desk team at Imagine Fitness and Yoga, and one of our best clients! This is my fitness journey.
My fitness journey began even before I was born. My parents met at the local gymnastics club in Kornwestheim, Germany. I was barely able to walk when I joined a gymnastics club, and continued to do so until I was around 6 years old. I discovered that Gymnastics was not really my thing, so I decided to take up horseback riding. We soon bought our own horse, and I ended up basically growing up in a stable. I went to many competitions, and did horseback riding acro for about 2 years. Unfortunately, when I was 13, my horse broke its leg while I was riding, and I was absolutely heart broken. My parents were very concerned about me, so they introduced me to swimming and skiing.
For years I taught swimming lessons, trained as a lifeguard, and I remember always staying after our training to mess around on the diving boards ( 1 meter, 3 meter and 5 meter).
During my high school years, I participated in almost every sport there is. I played volleyball, basketball, tennis, and squash, and even took up gymnastics again. For at least 3 years I did jazz dance and also tried some karate.
I learned wind surfing and after earning the money to buy my own board, I went with a friend to the Mediterranean in France. This carrier ended early, I got frustrated and a bit scared after a fisher boat had to tow me back to shore.
Sports have always been a passion of mine, and as I grew up I became especially fond of skiing, both downhill and in the water. The great thing was, we lived so close to the Alps, so for years we went skiing almost every single weekend.
Skiing is actually one of the things that brought me and my husband together, as he was a ski racer, and was also very athletic and passionate about sports. So I’m sure it comes as no surprise that we spent our honeymoon together with two of our close friends skiing in the Alps for two weeks, this was almost 25 years ago !
After taking a high level German test, the Abitur, and furthering my education, I started working for a freight forwarding company at the Stuttgart airport and unfortunately had very little time for sports. When I did end up having some spare time, I always tried to fit in some squash or tennis. We also had pet dogs, so we kept moving by going on hikes through the vineyards in Germany.
At age 30, I was pregnant with my first child, and we moved from Germany, here to Ann Arbor. The move was a workout in itself with all of the lifting and heavy boxes to move around. The next two or three years I didn’t really have the time participate in any sports- and that had to change.I started doing cardio kick boxing,and really enjoyed it for over two years, what a great work out !!
Then my family and I joined a local fitness club, and it was absolutely the best decision ever. I became
addicted to the bootcamp classes, and 2 years later, about 8 or 9 years ago, I heard about Janice Hallquist, an instructor here at Imagine, from a few of my friends. I heard people talking about how Janice was great yoga instructor, and I thought to myself, why not give it a try. It did not take long before I was doing all sorts of
different kinds of yoga classes. With instructors like Janice, Sam, and Andrea, all amazing teachers, I was hooked. I could feel myself getting better, and it also helped me mentally get through some tough times. The breathing aspect of the practice had a completely calming effect on me, and it really just fascinated me. I loved yoga, but at the same time I wanted to keep my cardio up, so I started running. My husband is also a runner, so I was able to keep him company. I signed up for a half marathon with some friends in Baltimore, and it was a great experience. The next year I ran another half marathon in San Antonio, and also ran in the Dexter- Ann Arbor run.
After an injury and getting busier and busier with four daughters and a job, there simply was not enough time to do it all, so I gave running a break!. For now, yoga was more important, and more of a priority. I always try to fit in a pose in my daily life (though, some people think I am crazy), twists on a long car ride, fun poses while canoeing or hiking
My four girls are also all very active. The oldest is a passionate synchronized skater, (just like Maggie Maier – our front desk gal and trainer at Imagine) and the others participate infield hockey, ice hockey, basketball, and the little one is still finding the sport she likes, and is currently doing all of the five sports that her middle school offers.
Besides being active, we also try to keep a healthy life style by eating right. I admit, that’s not always easy in a busy life. We have at least 5 home cooked meals a week,luckily, I really enjoy cooking. There is always lots of fruit in the house for on the go.
Through sports and fitness, I have met some of my best friends, the most fun people, and now I have even found a wonderful job!
