Wake Up The Sun

I met Shelby in 2017 while she was training and prehabbing a knee injury that would require surgery in 2018. This injury alone would have stopped most people right in their tracks. A tennis phenom from a young age in South Carolina, she competed and turned pro in 2010 with the (WTA) Women's Tennis Association. She has reached the ranking of 40th in the world this year with the defeat of several highly ranked players with no signs of stopping heading into 2022.

We sat down right before her departure to the Australian open to kick off the 2022 season and discussed the importance of routine, rituals and consistency. We spoke of the challenges of pursuing a professional sports career while balancing life and finding joy in every day things.  It's not always fun and games and she spoke of how many times the thought of quitting crossed her mind throughout the years of training and competing.

Faith, gratitude and developing a well rounded lifestyle has led to more experienced joy. Please enjoy the show and follow along on instagram @shelbsrogers, Facebook and twitter Shelby_rogers_ for details and highlights in Shelby's 2022 life and tennis career. 

I met Hayley through her brother Jeremy.  She had watched his downfall and struggle with addiction. Through those challenges she created The Dreamer Project for her doctorate in nursing which focused on mind , body and spirit of those in recovery. Watching her brother change his life through a strong South Florida community of sobriety, fitness and fellowship, it became her mission to bring that to life in her nursing program and carry the message for years to come. 

During a recent trip down to South Florida via Arizona for the yearly Temperance Training fundraiser, Hayley stopped by with her husband Chris to share what she is up to. Having graduated and packing a lot of life into a short amount of time she connected with a leading doctor who shared common values and ideas about how to treat people that are sick and suffering. From the assessment of vital signs to improve peoples daily life, Hayley aims to be of maximum service and value. She holds herself accountable daily by having a set routine for home, work and quality time with her family. 

I hope you enjoy the show and if you want to learn more, there are several ways to reach Hayley directly. @hayley_avino_ @thedreamer_project_@thebarbellsaves
@prevenewellbeing

Through a strange encounter at PUBLIX, I met Rebecca several months prior to actually introduced by personal friends and walking into her gym in Delray Beach. I was standing in the checkout line and as a snack maker I saw that she was getting some baking materials. I started firing off questions and I was clearly doing too much. When finally meeting her we laughed about It and got to try one of her amazing baked creations. Rebecca is an avid runner, Crossfitter and fitness enthusiast all while balancing school and becoming a nurse. Her passion to help others, push herself to new limits and hit goals is among many of the reasons I wanted to invite her on the show.

She firmly believes in never having a plan B. Get out there and get It done and adjust as you go If you plan to succeed you will and that's been her experience from her early days of fitness to completion of her nursing degree. She loves to push herself forward and enjoy as much as she can in life all with a smile on her face. Please enjoy the show and you can connect with her @reebs.campbell.np on instagram. 

I met Kristina through mutual friends and she instantly became one of my favorite people with her sassiness, raw truth and ability to speak on any topic. What I love about her is that she is unapologetically herself and when I finally had the time to sit down and hear more of her story I thought she would be perfect to share It on the wake up the sun show. 

We spoke about finding beauty in the mess that is life, sobriety, life changing events,  challenging childhood to succeeding in finding her true passion. Please listen in as she talks about overcoming almost insurmountable odds to find peace, happiness, love and doing what she loves on a daily basis. Kristina is very involved with helping other women entrepreneurs, speaking out on what she believes in and changing the lives of others in the process. Enjoy the show and follow her @kristinalakehair and @beautybar on instagram.

Back in 2015, I began training for the 2016 NYC marathon and one of the best parts about the training was connecting with the South Florida running community. Fleet Feet was the local running store and I asked the owner to help me properly train for the race and he invited me to the running groups that were hosted there. I met Melissa Perlman at one of the weekly group runs. Through social media we stayed in touch and I was blown away by the focus and determination that Melissa exhibited on a daily basis. She shared her life through her daily morning runs, workout regimen and balancing her personal and business lifestyle.

As someone who enjoys doing many different things in my day finding balance can be challenging. I have tried to get Melissa on this show for quite some time but between her busy training schedule, her own rapidly growing PR business she has limited time. It was awesome to hear about her balance and approach to training as she gets busier with life. She uses the calendar as her go to and dictates everything from the early start to her day until the end. Please enjoy the show and feel free to reach out to her @blueivycommunications and @melrunsfast. She is an inspiration to me and has a lot of helpful tips to keep going and fit all you love to do in one day. Enjoy!

With it being National Recovery month one of the local legends down here with one of the best stories I've ever heard is Chris Finley. With close to 30 years sober his story starts with no high school education, a union job and most of his time drinking and trying to get through another day hoping It would be different.

I met Chris through mutual friends, social events in the community and the gym. I'm a big people watcher and watching him be a great husband, dad and person in the community was inspiring. It left an imprint so when I was invited to a planning event for charity in Delray Beach, we connected for the first time. Chris is soft spoken, direct and shares with us his journey of sobriety and what It took for him to seek help. He states that happiness is a byproduct of action and that action is needed every day we get to become the person we were created to be. From humble beginnings and many years of sobriety, Chris now lives and enjoys a happy, full enriched life in South Florida.  A new grandpa, a thriving law office,a healthy marriage and the pursuit of celebrating a great day is his goal. 

If you or someone you know is struggling please reach out to Chris simply by typing Chris Finley, Delray Beach in google. He's an amazing person here to spread the message that anyone can get help anywhere if they want It. Enjoy the show!

With It being National Recovery Month, I found important to invite a good friend on the show that is a true patriot and has served this country. My friend Big Juicy aka George is a military man who served overseas and been deployed in several intense combat situations. His respect for this service and out of respect I do not ask for details but understand how these experiences has changed his life. Upon returning stateside he had some legal issues which landed him in prison for close to 3 years where he focused on doing his time. During that stint he stayed clean and sober, found his passion for cutting hair in his cell block but upon his leaving prison to return home to his family It wasn't long before his obsession returned and he fell hard. 

The next couple of years were a combination of hard times at home and difficult conversations with family, friends and loved ones. Trying to get some clean time, balance family, job and everything else he wanted to accomplish was finally brought to a head when several of his closest friends spoke to him in a loving and direct way to get help or find himself without anything. One of the hardest things to hear, George did just that and is celebrating 2 years this month. He changed his life around to focusing on being the best father, husband, business owner and friend one could imagine. If you are looking to connect with him regarding sobriety, one of the finest haircuts you could imagine or have any questions you can reach him @bigjuicyfadez on instagram or @classic_styles_boca. Enjoy the show!

I met Julianne on a trip out west to visit some friends and was immediately immersed in some awesome conversations about life, love and her experiences. During a quick trip to South Florida, she dropped into the studio to dive a little deeper into her journey to where and what  she is up to now. She is a licensed/experienced fitness trainer,  Somatic Sexologist, trauma specialist, holistic health coach, avid outdoor enthusiast and liver of life.

Her experiences with training, fitness, coaching and some challenges led her to explore connecting to others that were going through the same thing. Through social media and several different platforms she was able to connect to those going through some of the same challenges and bring them some relief. She knew at that moment that online coaching, sharing her own journey and helping others overcome challenges in their life was her purpose. In her coaching she speaks about the true connection to oneself, sexuality, exploration, reclamation, experiencing and embracing pleasure, intimacy and bragging (which is a pretty awesome technique).

She is a truly awesome woman with an amazing message that can apply to anyone. Please enjoy the show and connect with her on her website www.juliannevaccaro.com, on instagram @juliannevaccaro and her own podcast @trppodcast. Enjoy!

Community is a wonderful thing and one of my favorite parts about living in Florida. There are so many people that end up down here for various reasons. I met Ryan through mutual friends and kept running into him at the gym and we ended getting to know each other a bit better over the years. During the pandemic he and his family left town for an opportunity elsewhere and that is what led me to finally ask him what he did for work because he could work from anywhere and on his terms. I found out that he does some amazing work with individuals, companies and strives to improve their life through various techniques with mind, body and spirit. 

Fast forward to post pandemic and Ryan and his family are back in the community and he has landed a great opportunity with an amazing company to help countless people in the mental health and wellness field. Ryan has a tremendous background in coaching, therapy, advocacy and this South Florida community is very lucky to have him. He has also begun a podcast which links certain clients and their journey to BREAKTHROUGH things that stand in their way of personal development. Please enjoy the show and you can reach him via LinkedIn, Facebook, his BREAKTHROUGH podcast on major podcast networks and his website www.ryansoave.com.