Hi, I'm Aja! 

I’m Aja, founder, creator, and head coach here at ATTAGIRL. I am an only child and was born, raised, and still live in Queens, NY.  In 2014 when I first launched AG, I intended to simply produce apparel with strong, female-centric sayings. My market was women who were into the things I was: fitness, health, social causes, empowering other women, and general badassery. The road that led me to ATTAGIRL was a winding one...

 

Growing up I was always pretty athletic and involved in sports, but after college, while trying to acclimate to my post-college new job and juggle life, I stopped being active and instead buried myself in work. I wound up letting my nutrition suffer, and became depressed. I turned to drinking and eating to help me cope with the life changes I was experiencing. I was in a (really) dark place. 

 

I was no longer happy with the person I was becoming, both mentally and physically. Not all of my unhappiness stemmed from my body image, but I knew that it played a major role in how I was navigating my now-life. 

 

I started seeing a therapist.  She encouraged me to try something active, where I was led by a professional and held accountable for showing up. Now that I was taking care of my mental health, it made getting serious about my physical health more approachable.

 

As petrified of the idea of working out in front of people as I was, I joined a CrossFit gym and took up weightlifting. I cried after my first session because I couldn’t do a situp. But then I realized that I had not thought about ANY of the things that were causing me anxiety. It was like someone opened the door to the room I had locked myself in. 

 

 So I went back the next day, and the day after that. The feeling I got deadlifting my bodyweight or throwing a med ball around got my mind off of a lot of the things that were causing me such massive amounts of anxiety. I found my release, my “Aja” time. I lost close to 50 lbs, gained a ton of strength and confidence (most importantly!), and loved the feeling of reclaiming my life -and my health. I wanted to help other women feel the same way. 

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I started taking steps to become a certified trainer. I’ve now been a Strength Coach and CrossFit Coach for 6 years and then became a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. In 2018 I was a part of the founding team of the Sports Medicine Department at the local all-girls high school where I also serve as Strength and Conditioning Coach. Empowering women isn’t just what I like to do, it’s my passion and my career. 

 

In 2019 made the decision that I wanted ATTAGIRL to pivot. I wanted the brand to reach beyond apparel and help women rediscover their inner badass by offering them the tools to reclaim their fitness, establish positive and sustainable habits, and a discover network of other women looking to improve themselves and provide support to one another. 

 

I’ve worked with and trained women of all walks of life, pro athletes, mothers, daughters, cancer survivors, women who have survived some of the most unfair and challenging things life could throw at them-  and was once myself a woman who just needed a plan and the tools to put my hard work in and get the outcome I knew I deserved. They deserved that too.

 

Now we are in 2020 and in the middle of a pandemic (I dont know if you heard). Right now,  I’m taking my time to develop and test some new programs, workshops, and make sure I continue to provide accessible, science-based, no-nonsense content. 2021 is going to be a GREAT year. 

 

Welcome to ATTAGIRL, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Let’s have some fun.