Jeff Wettschurack Owner & Personal Training Coach Contact Jeff

 

About Jeff

Fowler, Indiana was the first place I called home. I grew up on a hog farm, so it wasn't that I lived in Fowler. That was just the closest town amidst the corn and bean fields. I was born the middle child, with a younger brother and older sister, on August 10th of 1977.

Being born a farm boy was a great advantage. A strong work ethic is a natural by-product of such an upbringing. I was also fortunate enough to have a father who would let me cut the work day short, so long as I had a practice or game. Thus, my involvement in sports began at the age of 5, with tee-ball.

I kept up the sports through elementary, middle, and high school. It was at the age of 14 that I had my first taste of weight training. I was instantly hooked. I should have seen it coming however, as I constantly strove to lift larger and larger things around the farm when I was young. I even gave myself a hernia at the age of 5 while trying such feats.

After high school, I decided that I would make more money with my brain, than with my brawn. So I attended Purdue University, and received my Bachelor's Degree in both Industrial Technology and Industrial Distribution. Although I graduated with honors in 1999, it was my passion and knowledge of weight training and fitness that expanded exponentially. The accessibility to coaches, athletes, and information was such that I could garner so many lessons.

After college, I left Indiana and went to Detroit, Michigan to work for McNaughton-McKay Electric Co. I was to be on a team of 20 people, tasked with using business knowledge to design a new information system for all 23 branches of the company. It was a tremendous challenge and great opportunity for someone right out of college. I worked with the top minds of the company's 700+ employees. In doing so, I also was moved from state to state, spending time in Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, and South Carolina. I eventually settled down in Charleston, South Carolina towards the end of 2001. I took a position as the Operations Manager for the four Coastal stores of the company.

It was during this time that I also began to train numerous people. Because my passion didn't lie with my profession at the time, I couldn't help but share what I had learned with others. I continued to learn more and more about physique enhancement and human performance by meeting or talking with highly renowned individuals in the field. What I could attain from them was then applied to my own training. Application of the numerous courses of action is the only way to truly become proficient as a trainer.

I also met my wife Heather in Charleston. We were married on June 28th of 2004. Our first child Mikah came soon after. She is a Daddy's girl which I love, and even did an impromptu lift of a 5 lb. plate when she was 18 months old.

During the fall of 2005, my conventional thinking still had me climbing the corporate ladder. So I uprooted the family from the beauty of the Carolina coast, and planted us just south of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. I began work there as the North American Operations Manager for York International. A company of International presence, and some 23,000 employees. While that may sound great to the average corporate employee, it only served as a wakeup call for me. It was time for a career change.

We spent about 18 months in Oklahoma. All the while, I continued to train people in my spare time, some out of my garage and some on line. And then that fateful day in April of 2007 came. The day that I found the Athletic Nation website. I immediately picked up the phone and also sent an email to Grant and Dennis.

It was so refreshing to find people who prescribed to the same philosophies that I did. People who stripped away all the superfluous, money driven, empty promises, and simply hit you between the eyes with the cold hard truth. It just takes hard work. You have to earn your results, not buy them. I also didn't want to be just another gym owner. I could see the opportunity to be on the ground floor of a brotherhood, a foundation so much larger than any one man, a way to separate one's self from the pack.

Within a week of seeing the website, I had turned in my resignation to York, and started making arrangements to move to Scottsdale, Arizona. My wife was without a doubt the pillar of support. It was she who, without hesitation, told me to go for it. She believed in me enough to make such a statement despite the fact that we were only 5 months away from having our second child. I thank her every day for allowing me to pursue my passion.

By the end of June 2007, I will have my first Athletic Nation store open in Fountain Hills, AZ. It's a suburb of Phoenix that borders Scottsdale. It's been a great ride thus far. And I also have to say, I have always been thankful that I was blessed with the ability to be good at many things. However, it's a pure joy to find that which you are great at.