Kimberly Lipe’s Inspiring Fitness Transformation Journey

Share Your Journey

Share Your Journey

Kimberly Lipe’s Inspiring Fitness Transformation Journey

This is how Kimberly Lipe transformed her body—and found her dream career in the process.

Beginning of Transformation

Kimberly Lipe, a saleswoman from rural Illinois, dreamed of being featured in fitness magazines. But at age 45, she was at her heaviest weight, other than when she was pregnant. “I hated how I felt and I had no self-confidence,” she admits.

Kimberly needed a catalyst for change, so she set a goal to be featured in Oxygen magazine’s Future of Fitness section. Little did she know that her desire to get fit would overhaul her entire life.

Once she had set a goal, her next step was to join a local gym and hire a personal trainer. She worked out for 10 months but wasn’t seeing the results she had hoped for. Kimberly needed another incentive, so she booked a photography session 10 months out.

That’s also when she factored diet into the equation. “I had never made a healthy choice in my life,” Kimberly recalls. “We had so much junk food in the house!” She also struggled with Hashimoto’s disease, a thyroid auto-immune disease that left her feeling tired and influenced weight gain.

Diet and Fitness Transformation Journey

“I started studying and learning about food and how to make healthy choices., ”Kimberly says. “That’s what made the difference in my transformation.

”After Kimberly learned to make healthy food choices, her transformation accelerated. Her energy returned, her weight was under control, and she earned a six-pack that she had never seen before! Kimberly hit her goal of 12 percent body fat in six months, and she was featured in Oxygen magazine in March 2011.“That led to a total career change,” Kimberly reveals. “Ladies in my area had seen my transformation and wanted me to help them.”

She opened up a gym in her basement in Coffeen, Illinois, a small town of 600 people. Soon enough, 80 women were coming to work out in her basement every week. She was even attracting women from surrounding towns. Bolstered by her initial success, Kimberly left her career in sales to open Fit Bodies Personal Training Studio. “I have such a strong passion to help others feel good, look good, and just be a better version of themselves,” she says.

Beyond Personal Success

By 2017, she had expanded her business to include an online training service now used by hundreds of women across America. Now, at the age of 57, Kimberly feels better and has more confidence than she did in her 20s. “Never in my wildest dreams would have thought I could do a bikini fitness competition at the age of 48,” she chuckles. “I was the oldest one in my category, a mom of three, and a grandma of two. I placed third among the 20 and 30-year-olds.

Now, at age 57, I have competed in over 20 shows! ”Kimberly is still moving the goalpost and pushing herself to accomplish more—that, along with helping others achieve their fitness goals, is what drives her passion.

“I STARTED STUDYING AND LEARNING ABOUT FOOD AND HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES. THAT’S WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE IN MY TRANSFORMATION.”