Financial Perspective - Victoria Lymburner
Living a healthier life might seem like a tall order but having some friendly advice and a support system at your disposal is key. I caught up with Victoria Lymburner of VictoriaGetFit to hear about her journey to wellness, gain her perspective on financial literacy and delve into what it’s like to be a top partner at Herbalife Nutrition.
Our ZOOM conversation was really fun, she was full of energy, excited to share her story and true to form, she was fresh off of a conference call with her team and planning her next fitness challenge.
1- Where did you learn about money?
“Growing up, we really did not have any food rules, and good nutrition was not a daily conversation and because of this I was a heavy child. But I was also an active child. Case in point, at 8 years old, I was in competitive dance and dancing about 20 hours a week. During that time, I recall the dance instructor telling my mom that I was too heavy and that I did not fit into the “dancer look”. But it came to a point when dancing was not fun for me anymore, so I stopped.
When I was 16 years old, I became a dance instructor – teaching at a variety of dance schools. During this time I learned that I was not able to rely on others to buy me things that I wanted, or needed; and I realized that if I wanted something, I needed to make it happen – so I started working hard at my job and started saving money.”
2- What is your earliest money memory?
“When I was 16 years old, I got certified to be a Zumba instructor, this was a few years ago when Zumba just started! When I completed the certification, I started my teaching Zumba to 2 customers – a mother and daughter and also was also teaching other classes. I was teaching 12 hours a week and thought that if I can just teach as many courses per week as possible, my extra weight would “melt away”. This approach led me to burn over 4000 calories a day and I was not eating very much. Unfortunately, my body could not handle this strain that I was putting it through, and one day I was rushed to hospital. It was there that I learned that my thyroid and immune system was out of whack. I spent the next 4 months in bed, and during this time I was able to sit with myself, reflect, and I decided to treat my body better. I started studying everything I could get my hands on about healthy eating and fitness.
When I got back on my feet, I received certifications as a personal trainer and group trainer.
What is sad, is that during this time, my family lost our home and from this dramatic experience, I moved in with my grandparents. This is when I learned that I needed to be financially independent. I realized that if I wanted something I could not rely on someone to help me, so I decided to continue to work hard, treat my body well and if I needed something, I needed to save the money to purchase the item.
During university, I continued to work part-time at a gym and was introduced to Herbalife Nutrition. When I combined Herbalife Nutrition supplements with healthy eating and an active lifestyle, I lost 55 pounds. While I was at the gym, people were taking notice of my weight loss and I started to gain more customers who wanted to participate in my health challenges and start a fitness program. Fast forward a few years, and I have over 100 clients and working with a Herbalife Nutrition team of 150 coaches.”
3- Proudest financial achievement
“First thing that comes to mind was a $5,000 scholarship I won when I was in high school. Since I had to pay for my own university tuition, this was very much welcomed and another example that proved that if I worked hard, studied hard the universe will pay you back.”
“The second thing that I am most proud of is building my business and touching so many people on their journey to fitness. My team is known as the ones that work hard and save their money to build wealth.”
4- View on financial literacy?
“Like fitness, we need to make saving money a habit. I really enjoy learning about finances, and I look at every purchase and before I buy, I think about what I need. Also, learning about stocks, TFSAs and retirement is essential. I work closely with my grand parents on these topics, it’s good to learn from their experiences.”
5- What’s next?
“I love what I do for a living. I really enjoy meeting and working with people to help them on their fitness journey.
As I continue to run my business, I am looking to save more to ensure that I will have a good retirement – yes I know that it is far away (I’m only 26) but it’s never too early to start to think about retirement and put a plan in action! I believe in working smart, so I will continue teach more people about nutrition and collaborate with my team, as I feel that it is my duty to help more people who are in fitness achieve their business and financial goals.”
To learn more about Victoria and her next fitness challenge, you can catch her on Facebook and Instagram.