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Being active in sports and fitness all my life, I naturally evolved into endurance sports, marathons and triathlons in 2007. Like many athletes, I loaded up on refined carbohydrates, consumed sugary sports drinks, and protein bars. I used my training as an excuse to eat unhealthy, over-processed foods.

I have an Autoimmune Disease?

I was oblivious to how much stress the combination of poor diet choices and long hours exercising had on my body. Then, in 2012, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism; an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the thyroid. I was shocked and scared, and the only recommendation my doctor offered me was to take thyroid medication; likely for the rest of my life.

An Inner Knowing

A deep intuition inside of me knew that although taking the medication may alleviate the symptoms, it would not treat the root cause of the Hashimoto’s. I felt that this disease was my body signaling to me that it needed healing, so I set out to explore what could help my body heal itself.

Our Health is in Our Hands

I devoured books about Hashimoto’s and hypothyroidism, and slowly made lifestyle changes as I learned. Gradually my thyroid levels came back into the normal range, I lost weight without focusing on it, and I had more energy.

This experience made me realize that we can strongly influence our health through our daily diet and lifestyle choices. Since our current medical system is not equipped to guide and support people to making lifestyle changes to improve their health or eliminate disease, we need to be advocates for our own health.

Using the knowledge gained from my own journey, to help athletes take a wholistic, mind/body approach to their training.

Through diet and lifestyle choices you can feel better physically, emotionally, and mentally, and reach your peak performance. I want to help you reach your ultimate health and wellness goals. I know you can do it!

Jean Gillis during 2012 Ironman
2012 Ironman before Hashimoto’s diagnosis
2015 training run, three years after diagnosis
2015 training run, three years after diagnosis

My Approach

I do not subscribe to the “no pain, go gain” mentality. My training program provides plans personalized to each athlete, taking in to account their experience, goals, physical fitness, time constraints and more. These comprehensive plans guide athletes week by week, with detailed workouts, and drills, as well as reminders for critical, but often overlooked, things like hydrating, eating and sleeping more. In addition to the technical training knowledge that I provide, I draw on my health coaching education to assist athletes in finding balance in the areas outside of training that hugely influence training, such as work stress, poor eating habits, and overbooked schedules.

Interested in Learning More?

I’d love to connect with you to learn more about your experience, your goals and how I can support you in achieving them.


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