In this episode of Founders Future, with host Zach Young, we’re joined by Erica Lugo, nationally recognized trainer, entrepreneur, and women’s health advocate best known online as EricaFitLove. Erica shares her powerful journey from working in HR and Jenny Craig to losing over 160 pounds, surviving thyroid cancer, and building a fitness platform that inspired millions—before ultimately redefining her mission around sustainable, self-compassionate wellness.

The conversation explores Erica’s evolution from traditional fitness into functional women’s health, hormones, and longevity, driven by her own early experience with perimenopause and unanswered health struggles. She breaks down how her business operates today through a fully customized, biology-driven approach that blends functional coaching with Western medicine, why “normal” lab results don’t always mean optimal health, and what it really takes to scale a mission-driven brand while letting go of ego, embracing change, and staying aligned with long-term personal and professional goals.