Yet she was hesitant as a young athlete to pick up an oar or get on a machine. “I never saw anyone who looked like me in rowing,” Pryor said. “My mom wanted to make sure I was part of something that was diverse. She didn’t want me to be a part of a space where I’d be the only one like me there.”
This scene was a stark contrast to what happened only moments later as she suggested I hop on for a mini training session. I attempted to mimic what I observed in her demonstration, but with terribly awkward and clunky movements. Despite her incredibly patient coaching, there was nothing graceful about what I was doing, or rather, attempting to do.
“It was one of the hardest but also one of the most rewarding experiences,” she reminisced. “You're waking up at 4 a.m. You're rowing in all conditions, in rain as long as there’s no lightning, in snow as long as it's not icy. When you think about understanding grit, this was it. I was giving my blood, sweat and tears, getting blisters and calluses on my hands while learning about patience, discipline and routine. It was the hardest I've ever worked, but I loved it.
Pryor drew on that grit and perseverance just before enrolling in that fitness instructor certification program back in Ohio. Shortly after graduating college, she experienced an onslaught of life-changing events. “I had been diagnosed withdisease, my boss who I was very close with had just passed away, I was going through a terrible break up and felt like I was slipping around,” she said. “I needed an outlet that would motivate me to get back to who I was.