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I had the opportunity to sit down with Chelsea and learn about her journey through loss to finding joy. Chelsea exudes so much love for life and helping other women whether preparing their bodies for pregnancy, already pregnant or mamas who need assistance with nutrition and wellness coaching after pregnancy or loss.
1. Tell us about you. Who is Chelsea Mercado, passions and interests?
I am a woman who is obsessed with empowering others. I'm a professional working mother of two boys (15 and 2), a wife, a sister, and someone who is always trying to be better than I was yesterday. Addicted to seeking personal and professional growth, constantly learning, and working toward new goals in life.
2. How do you relate with women preparing their bodies for pregnancy? Or those experiencing infertility or miscarriage?
I want to help empower women to take control, and build solid exercise, nutrition, and self-care habits before pregnancy, so that when they are in the thick of it, they can feel like these things come naturally.
My first child was stillborn at 37 weeks, and there is so much fear in pregnancy for so many women who have experienced miscarriage and stillbirths. Connecting with women on these issues is so important, and bringing this fear to light helps to disarm it. It did for me anyway. I talked about my experience all the time when I was pregnant with my next child. The more power we can find in the process, the better.
3. What led you to nutrition and wellness coaching? When I was 20 I decided to take a huge leap and move to Portland, Oregon to become a personal trainer, without a certification or any experience. Or really without any money for that matter. Kind of crazy at the time, but somehow I did it, and thanks to some amazing mentors, I succeeded at it! I fell in love with the possibility of helping others get to a better and healthier place. It was magical. I did that for about 6 years before moving back down to the Willamette Valley (in Oregon) to be closer to family. From there I got a job as a fitness center manager at SamFit, and after another 6 years of doing that, I've decided to go back to my roots.
I've missed the one on one connection so much. But this time I've made my focus on pregnancy, nutrition and wellness. Mostly because after my pregnancies I wanted to help women find strength and power in it. We are such amazing beings, and we have so much more control over our experience than we think we do. I also feel like there is a lot of confusion and misconception around having a healthy pregnancy. I am doing what I wish I would have had someone do for me when I was going through it and afterwards. I wanted clarity around nutrition, what my baby needed and when, as well as support after baby arrived. I didn't know what I didn't know, and I didn't have the energy to sift through all of the information out there and try to determine what was correct. Now I do, and I'm so excited to offer this service.
4. What inspires you? How do you find motivation on “bad” days?
There will always be bad days! I'm often inspired when I look back and see how far I've come. How much I've grown over the last year. But most importantly, I've learned to give myself grace on bad days rather than feeling guilty. Have the donut without guilt, girlfriend! Listen to your body when you are needing to relax, or when you're having cravings and think more about what it is that your intuition is telling you. What does your body need in this moment? The bad days can help us understand that our bodies will tell us when we need something, and as long as we have our good habits down, and we are making good decisions most of the time, we should feel fine with having a "bad" day or a "bad" moment.
5. What is your favorite quote.
"Whatever you want in life, other people are going to want it too. Believe in yourself enough to know that you have an equal right to it." - Meryl Streep
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“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
–Marianne Williamson
If you would like to receive a pdf version of Chelsea's virtual program, please reach out to her at:
Email, text, call! Chelsea.ann.mercado@gmail.com or 503-953-6197 or @chelleeeslife