Today we’d like to introduce you to Crystal Mathis.
Crystal, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
It’s difficult to explain, but I’ve spent most of my life feeling like a was meant to help people in some way, but I was never quite sure HOW I was meant to help.
I spent most of my early adulthood following the path that was expected of most young people during that time, I went to college. My entire college career, I began noticing that most of the paths laid out for me were paths that would lead me to work and create for other people’s or corporation’s visions and purpose. I remember thinking to myself, I have so much to say, say many more things to contribute than what fits into this “formula” for my future, but I also remember being scared to speak up and feeling so overwhelmed by the idea that my entire future might hang on every single grade, decision &/or mistake I made in college.
So rather than follow my passion & my heart, I followed the formula. I graduated from Sam Houston State University in 2005 and soon found myself working for Enterprise Fleet Management.
Fast forward five years. The year was 2010 and I was still working in the corporate world, still feeling unfilled with my career and still longing to find my own personal way to make a difference in this world.
I knew I was meant to help people, educate people and, dare I say it, be a leader, a coach of some kind, but I was still unsure of how and in what capacity I was meant to help!
After years of research & soul searching I found the field of Neuromuscular Massage Therapy and suddenly, as if hit by lightening, I knew that this was how I was meant to help; this was how I was meant to make a difference! I would help people heal.
While still working my full-time job, I studied General Massage Therapy at night and soon became a proud graduate from the Houston School of Massage. Upon graduation, I immediately sought further education more specific to the Neuromuscular Massage field and continued my education by training side by side with therapists who had worked with professional & Olympic athletes. By 2012 I had build a strong client following and was able to fulfill my dream of leaving the corporate world behind and pursuing Neuromuscular Therapy full time!
After years of specialized training & cultivating my own unique brand of Neuromuscular Therapy, I worked towards opening my very own practice and proudly opened Crystal Mathis: Real Health for Real People in 2015.
As of 2017, with a growing practice and having helped hundreds of clients heal through Neuromuscular Massage Therapy, I found myself wanting to do still more. As a Neuromuscular Therapist I understood that there were more aspects to muscular health & healing, other than massage, and I understood that many of my clients were not incorporating those aspects into their health & recovery.
Health & Recovery requires proper nutrition, functional fitness training, rest, as well as many other underutilized healthy living practices. Again, I felt called to help my clients, so I went back to school! I studied with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition & proudly graduated as an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach in 2018.
As part of my goal to provide guidance, education, encouragement and accountability to those looking to move towards every aspect of healthy living, whether that be Neuromuscular Therapy, Nutritional Counseling, etc… I wrote and published my very first healthy living guide titled: “F*%# You Diet Culture: The Unapologetic Approach to Healthy Living” (A Crystal Mathis Workbook) in November of 2019!
Today and everyday I strive to help people create and implement positive, sustainable lifestyle changes everyday.
Great, 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?
LoL, it most definitely has not been a “smooth road,” but I think there is so much that can be learned and gained from the struggles that come along with any journey.
The most challenging obstacle I faced on my journey was that most of those people close to me didn’t really understand what I was looking to accomplish with my work. Anytime you do something different I think you can expect a lot of opinions as to why it may not work and what can go wrong, and while I think it’s important to carefully plan and weigh all the pros & cons to a course of action, I also think it’s important to follow your instincts, know what you’re capable of and in the end, do what you know in your heart to be right.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
As a company, as an Entrepreneur, as a Health & Wellness Coach I’m most proud of how dedicated I am to making all aspects of health & wellness accessible and easy to understand for ALL DEMOGRAPHICS.
Unlike some, my main concern is HEALTH! I’m not interested in quick weight loss, specific size goals or unrealistic diet plans. I understand that HEALTH comes in all shapes in sizes. I understand that what works for one person may not work for another! I know that there are a myriad of Health & Lifestyle Factors that affect every aspect of our health journey and I work to help my clients and my readers understand that there IS NO ONE WAY TO BE HEALTHY!
Every health journey is just as unique and special as the individual experiencing that journey and it is my goal to help people focus on their journey, rather than compare themselves to others.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Definitely spending time in the kitchen with my Grandmother’s. I come from a large hispanic family and my entire childhood my grandmother’s were always in the kitchen cooking for myself and my cousins. The smells, the spices, watching all the love my grandmother’s put into the food they prepared for us and then seeing the smiles on their faces as we gobbled up every single bit of food we were given. Those memories will forever live in my heart!
Contact Info:
- Address: 629 W. 22nd Street (suite 1) Houston, TX 77008
inside Shana Ross Fitness - Website: www.crystalmathis.com
- Email: crystalmathis@crystalmathis.com
- Instagram: @crystalmathishealthcoach
- Facebook: @crystalmathishealthcoach
Image Credit:
Harold Emmers (photos) Design Riot (logo & book cover)
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