From YouTube to Spartan racing to motherhood, entrepreneur Ashley Keller is proving you can have it all.
By Kait Hanson, Army Spouse
See the full story in the Feb/Mar issue of Military Spouse Magazine.
One cursory glance at Ashley Keller’s social media presence will tell you this veteran and military spouse is passionate about two things: fitness and motherhood. But like most things, Keller’s online presence only tells part of her story.
The 31-year-old mother of three became passionate about fitness and nutrition in her teen years, but not in the traditional way.
“My original interest in nutrition was twisted — I struggled with anorexia for years, using it as a way to cope with issues that were going on at home,” Keller says. “It wasn’t until I was saved and became healthy that I had a breakthrough in my running and triathlon performance. I learned quickly that solid nourishment is an absolute game changer in how you feel, look, and your motivation.”
Fueled physically and spiritually, Keller attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. During her time as a cadet, she trained, competed and was named a Half Ironman World Champion in 2009, giving her the opportunity to race professionally on Team USA for a year before she graduated. Two days after commissioning, she married her college sweetheart.
“You can’t get married as a cadet and I was so excited to finally be able to marry my now-husband,” Keller shares. “But then I came to a big crossroads where I had to make a decision. The Army offered me the opportunity to train at the World Class Athlete Center [part of the World Class Athlete program for military personnel] in Colorado instead of going to Fort Bragg to be a platoon leader. They were going to pay me to train to make the U.S. Olympic team for six years to qualify and race in the 2016 Olympics. Knowing all of this, I just wanted a normal Army life and to stay with the man I just married. Moving across the country and being separated for our first six years of marriage wasn’t what I wanted our life to be.”
In light of Keller’s decision, she continued to Fort Bragg, where she deployed to Afghanistan, started her family, and became involved with Spartan racing, ultimately landing a spot on an all-Army roster to compete on NBC’s “Ultimate Spartan Team Challenge.”
“Spartan racing demands a level of all-around fitness that is invigorating,” Keller explains. “You’re not just a runner. You don’t just lift weights. You have to react to each obstacle and unpredictable situations in a calm manner — just like mom-life — and do your best in challenging scenarios. There is no pressure of racing to achieve a certain time, because no two races are the same. It is a very primal, motivating feeling to just be running through the woods and seeing what you are really made of.”
At the same time Keller was pushing herself physically, she was also realizing that her professional passion was a different kind of service — one that involved more face time with her family and developing tools for other women to thrive.
“Becoming a mom changed everything,” she says. “I started GlowBodyPT because when I was pregnant with my first child I was frustrated by the lack of challenging prenatal workouts on YouTube. The prenatal workout videos I found were too slow and basic. The few hard workouts I did find were alarming and not smart for baby’s safety in 2nd and 3rd trimester. So I dug into as much research and women’s personal stories as I could find, got certified as a personal trainer and pre/postnatal specialist and started experimenting as much as I could on myself to see what exercises and workout combinations were the most effective. During my second pregnancy, I’d rush home on my lunch break, change out of my combat uniform, slapped on some mascara and workout clothes and quickly recorded my favorite workouts. A cheap camera was set up on my kitchen counter with index cards to hold it in place. I thought maybe there might be some other women out there who also craved more intense — yet safe — prenatal workouts. I wanted to serve those women, no strings attached and share what I was doing.”
Inspired by the online community she was building and with her military obligation fulfilled, Keller separated from the Army to dive head first into fitness, both personally and professionally. But that goal came with its own setbacks. Racing in her first Half Ironman since having babies, she suffered a devastating injury.
“I got into a horrific crash — my first ever — on the bike,” Keller explains. “Four of the top competing women all slipped on a metal, grated bridge that was drizzled with morning dew from the ocean water below it. My upper lip, lower lip, and chin were slashed open. My four front teeth were shattered. Over 20 stitches closed my ripped-open palms on both hands. I went home with a broken elbow, sprained wrist and no front teeth. Waiting for me was a just-turned 2-year-old who I was potty training and a 4-year-old, who put on my socks for me the next morning.”
Keller’s perseverance through recovery, all while raising her children, maintaining her own physical fitness and supporting her husband through multiple deployments, allowed her business to flourish.
“I offer so many free workouts, like the 21-Day 8 Minute Workout Challenge or Free Prenatal Training Schedule,” Keller says. “The most popular plan is my 12 Week Post Pregnancy Plan where we focus specifically on closing the ab gap (diastasis recti) that occurs while you are pregnant. What’s sad is that most women are never checked for diastasis recti at their postpartum checkup or warned about what exercises NOT to do postpartum. So they jump back into their pre-pregnancy workout routines and unknowingly make their ab gap worse! As diastasis recti becomes exasperated, it makes a lower stomach pooch more noticeable no matter how much weight you lose. I designed the 12 Week Post Pregnancy Plan out of demand from women on YouTube, tested it on a trial group of 50 women, collected and monitored their progress and exactly what worked best, then edited and re-recorded the Post Pregnancy Plan before it ever was released for sale.”
Today, GlowBodyPT offers free fitness videos, as well as prenatal, postpartum and high-efficiency home or gym plans, to women worldwide.
“I just launched my new 10 Minute Plan in November 2019 and I’m following it myself right now,” Keller says. “[There are] 42 different workouts, all 10 minutes long and you do three per day, so 30 minutes total time, for four days per week. The plan gets harder over the course of three phases with challenging booty finishers, progressive cardio series, muscle hypertrophy to sculpt shape, and mobility to prevent injuries.”
Keller maintains that through all her successes, setbacks and the ebbs and flows that come with military life, she has the utmost respect for, and is continually inspired by, her fellow spouses.
“Know that when you are going through the motions of Groundhog Day — making breakfast, kicking kid toys out of the way, folding laundry, wiping butts, preparing for a deployment or a homecoming and all the emotional turmoil in between — you are seen. I know your struggles and you’ve got a sister in me who gets it.”
Subscribe to GlowBodyPT on YouTube here.
