Today we’d like to introduce you to Tanner Brown.
Hi Tanner, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have been an active person my whole life, growing up playing sports and always moving with friends. As I entered college, I realized I wanted to keep moving but wasn’t sure exactly how I could make that into a profession. I eventually landed on strength training (personal training) as a profession that would allow me to keep moving and, much more importantly, help others move—more specifically, helping others experience the benefits of movement that I continued to experience and helping them reduce pain and continue doing the things they wanted to do in life. After attending a trade school for personal training, I realized, on a much deeper level, the benefits of strength and movement and the profound ways they can help people in many facets of life.
After a couple of years of coaching people in Portland, I moved out to Bend, Oregon, and found a whole new way to look at strength training and how to help people for the long term. I focused on practicality and longevity to make strength training approachable with a realistic goal in mind. Through this way of coaching and this mindset, I’ve seen individuals completely change their lives for the better and for the long term.
I have now been coaching in Bend, Oregon, for more than 8 years and have loved watching individuals rediscover their bodies, learn how to manage and prevent pain, and, most importantly, improve their lives outside of the training realm. However, through all of this, I have noticed more and more how much our mind is connected to our body. I’ve always emphasized the importance of the mind-body connection in training, but more recently, I have realized it is much bigger than that.
When starting Rooted Strength, I decided to take a very intentional approach to helping individuals not only physically but also with their mentality and lifestyle. This meant helping clients learn how to understand their bodies and how to feel and move, but also learn that the mind is just as important as the body. Rooted Strength started as just strength training but has since transformed into a holistic way of building strength—a strength that embodies health and is expressed through movement and mindset. It involves drawing attention to the way we think and feel, understanding why we think and feel that way, and then developing skills and tools to help regulate and integrate those into daily life. It pairs mindfulness and awareness with regulation and integration.
The word “strength” is far more than just physical. It is more than how much weight someone can lift or how good they look. It is more than mental toughness and tolerance. “Strength” is having capacity, durability, resilience, capability, awareness, intention, connection, and adaptability and then being able to integrate all of that into our lives. It is the sum of our physical and mental strength, awareness, regulation, and integration. This is something I teach clients, as it helps create a more holistic lifestyle practice that can be utilized in every part of our lives.
As I continue to build and grow Rooted Strength, I will soon begin graduate school to become a licensed counselor. At that point, Rooted Strength will take a newer and more mature form, clinically addressing mental health while utilizing strength training as a primary modality of care. This will truly meld together mental health care with physical health care, empowering individuals to take control of their lives in every way and create a holistic lifestyle. This will give individuals the skills and tools to take on any challenges and hardships that life will inevitably bring their way.
There is nothing more rewarding than helping individuals take control of their lives, watching them become strong and capable and practice self-love, and then seeing how it is expressed in their personal lives and relationships.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, I wouldn’t say it has been the smoothest process, but it has taught me so much along the way.
For me personally, I have had many moments of reassessing whether this is truly the career and direction I want to take. The nature of this type of job is that it is not always predictable or financially stable. This has created some tough times. However, my passion for helping people always overshadows my need/want to make more money.
Strength training or personal training is not the most profitable job, especially when taking a newer, more holistic approach.
Sometimes it takes learning and practicing before individuals truly understand this type of holistic approach. Furthermore, the industry of exercise and health is very diluted with tons and tons of opinions and information, without any major restrictions or specific guidelines. This, coupled with individuals’ basic knowledge and understanding that is taught in school or self-taught, can be overwhelming and misleading. These factors create a bit of a barrier, challenge, or hurdle for individuals to understand what Rooted Strength is all about.
The reality is, I’m in the business of helping people, not in the business of making money. And sometimes, that creates very real challenges to make a living.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Rooted Strength is a holistic strength training and wellness practice. I help individuals build the strength and capacity to live an active and healthy life. I coach them on how to build awareness in their body, as well as their mind and emotions. Practicing tools and skills to help regulate their nervous system and manage stress, physically and mentally. And then most importantly, and most difficultly, integrating these practices into daily and recreational life.
What sets me apart from others is the regulation and integration aspects of the process. These are things I do not see many strength coaches or trainers emphasizing, nor is it something that is easily practiced. However, in my opinion, they are some of the most important parts to make strength and awareness really improve our lives for the long term.
I am proud to know that this methodology is without a doubt effective and truly meant to empower individuals to take on the world and whatever challenges life throws at them. Rooted Strength is one of the few holistic practices that embodies the definition of holistic. Addressing the mental, emotional, and physical aspects of ourselves.
The thing I want readers to know most is that the word “strength” is far more than just physical. It is more than how much weight someone can lift or how good they look. It is more than mental toughness and tolerance. “Strength” is having capacity, durability, resilience, capability, awareness, intention, connection, and adaptability, and then being able to integrate all of that into our lives. It is the sum of our physical and mental strength, awareness, regulation, and integration.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
Over the next 5-10 years, I plan to expand Rooted Strength past just strength training and wellness coaching into clinical counseling. A practice that uses strength training as a primary modality to help facilitate the most holistic, longevity-focused lifestyle change and way of living.
It is widely accepted that exercise has numerous physiological benefits that can affect the central nervous system and neurochemical regulation. It only makes sense to combine the physical training side with the mental health side. Both parts are synonymous and can help and benefit from the other. By combining both of these, I hope to create a space where individuals feel safest, most secure, and most empowered to tackle life’s challenges and develop a lifestyle that continues these abilities for longevity.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rooted-strength.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/root.in.strength/
