Aggies With Personal Training: Where Strength Meets Support
Students across campus are teaming up with trainers to turn fitness goals into lasting routines
Most walk right past its doors, making a beeline for the dumbbells or the squat racks ahead. A few steal curious glances from the turf, trying to peek past its doors. But right across the entrance, inches away from the DIY routines of the weight room, is the Student Rec Center’s Personal Training Suite — a room where great expectations meet even greater results. From students training for a specific event to those just trying to get into their best shape, the personal trainers have seen it all.
“We have clients that are training for powerlifting competitions, one girl [was training] for Miss Texas, [and] we also have professors and staff that are coming back from injuries, wanting to pick up their grandkids,” graduate assistant Jeran Aguilar ‘27 said. “Simple things like being able to develop people’s abilities and help them progress through life is a big thing.”
Grace Shoop ‘26 had similar goals in mind when she tried personal training at the Rec.
“I had never lifted a weight,” Shoop said. “I didn’t even know how to walk into a weight room and know what I was looking at. So, when I moved to college I did what most people do — going on hot girl walks and group fitness classes with my friends. I started competing in the Miss America Organization the year after I graduated [with a bachelor’s degree].”
With Miss Texas on the line, Shoop kick-started her fitness journey with personal trainer Bayley Otto ‘26 in the spring of 2025. Grounded by the framework of her personal training plan, Shoop began working out with Otto twice a week and following a holistic nutrition plan to prepare for the competition. But that wasn’t her only goal.
“Grace is so busy conquering the world, it is not a realistic expectation that she meets with me for every single workout,” Otto said. “From the very start, we worked on growing her understanding of why we do each thing we do and deepening her knowledge so that she can still make progress even when we aren’t together.”
Trainers can guide your steps, correct your form, and tell you where to begin. But the real story starts when the track stretches out and you realize you have already run miles past where they left you. For Nathan Scott ’25, that support system was what kept him grounded through senior year and continued to guide him long after it ended.
“I started meeting with Dylan [Mihealsick] and by winter I had lost close to 20 pounds,” he said. “He would send me workouts on the side, basically increasing the amount of sessions that I went to the gym. If I felt like I needed to cancel for the day, I always knew that would be okay because I would come back next week, ready to work again.”
Ultimately, it all comes down to consistency — hitting the gym, eating right and living healthy until it just becomes part of who you are. Personal trainers guide that journey, one breath and one rep at a time.
With packages starting at $95 for three sessions, Rec Sports keeps pricing reasonable for college students. Spots fill up quickly, so sign up today and get a head start on fitness goals before 2026 rolls out.
Additionally, Strength & Conditioning will be hosting a Personal Trainer Certification Prep Course this spring semester. If you’re interested in becoming a certified personal trainer but haven’t yet taken the leap, this course is designed to help you overcome those certification jitters. To learn more about personal training opportunities with Rec Sports, visit recsports.tamu.edu/strength-conditioning.
Written by: Angeline Nappoly
