Why I Train to Be Strong — Not Skinny
I’m a 31-year-old mom to a wild, beautiful 3-year-old boy who keeps me on my toes. I have never been more inspired in my life to be active and healthy than I do now.
If you looked at me, you might not see your “typical” personal trainer. I have curves. I have muscle. I have body fat. I have stretch marks. And I have a whole lot of strength—not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. That strength wasn’t built overnight. It was earned through sweat, tears, loss, healing, and lifting heavy, both in weights and in life. Wellness to me is about our overall fitness & lifestyle and how we treat our bodies—mind and spirit included.
I’ve lived an active lifestyle for as long as I could remember. Growing up, I was an athlete. I played hockey, baseball, and volleyball. Sports gave me structure, drive, and purpose. But, that chapter closed when my brother passed away. I was 16 and had lost all drive and will to excel in my sports. I was truly lost. The movement that once grounded me was gone, and I didn’t know how to replace it. A few years had passed and my lifestyle was nothing short of unhealthy, my Dad was diagnosed with brain cancer and all hope that was left in me was gone. I was 21 and in the darkest parts of my life. That kind of trauma changes you. It flipped my world upside down, and for years I tried to cope by bouts of overeating and then shrinking myself. I battled eating disorders for years and was disconnected from my body entirely.
I knew something needed to change and I hired my first fitness coach, that’s when I found weightlifting. It started as something I needed to do and it felt like a chore but over time, it became my therapy. It became my healing. It became something that saved my life.
Lifting gave me more than a strong body, it gave me a way to process pain, to quiet my mind and to come back home to myself.
Strength training brought me back. It taught me that movement could be empowering, not punishing. That health isn’t about what size you are or chasing a number on a scale. Your body doesn’t define your fitness level, strong bodies come in many sizes. Health and wellness to me is about being in good physical shape, treating your body with care and fuelling your body with nutritious foods.
That’s why I created BadB Coaching. It’s not your typical personal training. It’s not to push women toward unrealistic standards that society has taught us but to help them reconnect with themselves through movement. Show them they can love themselves again by showing up for themselves. My style of training focuses on overall wellness, strength, confidence, mental clarity, and self-love. I want women to feel capable, energized, and proud of what their bodies can do. Not because they look a certain way, but because they’ve shown up for themselves in the most powerful way possible. Feeling strong and knowing you’re strong is the most incredible feeling and I want all women to feel that. That’s what being a Bad B is all about.
If I can help even one woman feel strong, grounded, and worthy in her body again after being lost then everything I’ve been through has a greater purpose.
About the Author
Morgan Bouma is a certified personal trainer, mom, and the founder of BadB Coaching—a wellness and strength training brand that helps women reconnect with their bodies through intentional movement. After navigating profound personal loss, disordered eating, and burnout, Morgan turned to strength training not as punishment, but as healing.
Her philosophy is rooted in empowerment—not aesthetics. Through customized programs, mindset work, and a whole lot of real talk, Morgan helps women build confidence, clarity, and physical strength—on their own terms.
She lives in British Columbia with her son and is passionate about creating spaces where women feel strong, grounded, and deeply worthy.
