This past weekend marked the one-year anniversary of when my fiancé Eric and I closed our training facility in Boston, Iron Body Studios.

Bittersweet, this was one of the most challenging life decisions we had to make, but when we fast-forwarded the movie to five years into the future we knew it was the right decision. We both knew we did not still want to own and operate a training gym in our future five-year plan.

When we started our business in 2011, it was what we both wanted and what we thought was the path that the universe wanted us to follow. We put marriage and our personal lives aside to put everything into starting our business.

We encountered numerous challenges along the way, one right after the other. Some hit us harder than others. Some knocked us right down. But each time we got right back up, dusted ourselves off, and persevered.

The universe will show you the path that you should follow, you just need to tune in. It’s normal to encounter an obstacle here and there, but sometimes those obstacles are so great and so abundant that they are sign from the universe that you are on the wrong path.

By the last year we were in business we were both fried. Sometimes I look back on that last year and I have no idea how I managed to keep my head up, travel as much as I did, teach so many workshops and speak at so many fitness events without losing my shit.

I could tell that Eric was ready too. He was ready to get back to what he loved the most, helping people as a Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC).

When we made the decision to close our business that was not the end, but rather, the beginning. The beginning of a whole new adventure, a brand new chapter. It was cathartic, exciting, and insanely petrifying.

Despite the fears we had, we knew it was the right decision, the right path, because as soon as we made the decision, everything for this next chapter started to fall into place with ease.

We could say that we failed, but you only fail if you do not try. We briefly followed a path that, in the end, was not meant for us and during which we learned priceless life lessons that we would not have learned any other way.

Ultimately we learned that like the saying “a reason, a season, or a lifetime”, owning and operating a training gym was both a reason and season for both Eric and I.

One year is not a long time, but a lot can happen in a year. It doesn’t happen all at once, but those days and months add up, and then you look back to one year prior and say,

“Remember one year ago, I was living in the Candlewood Suites on the Las Vegas strip, basically unemployed and now settled into a home, employed, enjoyed a beautiful Hawaiian summer vacation, engaged to my love and best friend, and grateful to have overcome everything that we have overcome to enjoy an easier, more stable, and better quality of life and truly grateful for everything we have as a result of the challenges we survived.”

As you make a big life change that scares you shitless, remember that those days and months add up quickly and a lot can transform in one year.

Our experiences, whether uplifting or challenging, shape us. They make us who we are as humans. They may bring out the worst in us, or the best, and they can be a test of our resiliency.

Listen closely because the universe will show you your path. If you choose the wrong path, have no fear, because there are always valuable lessons to be learned and soon enough the door to the right path will open up and everything will fall into place just as it should.