About
Two former Marines, one, an entrepreneur comes to New Orleans, the other, the love of her life, a bodybuilder follows her to the Crescent City, the two came together and Be Fit NOLA, LLC was born. Read more about our vision and undertakings.
Management Team
Ann Bernard – CEO
Ann fell in love with the Marine Corps when she was a freshmen in High School – she enlisted the day after her 17th birthday and left for boot camp two months after her High School graduation in 1995.
Ann served on active duty for ten years and served a few additional years on ADOS orders. Ann was enlisted for the first four years, and then in 1999, she was commissioned through the Meritorious Commissioning Program. She was stationed in 29 Palms, Quantico, Okinawa and New Orleans.
Ann left the Marine Corps for three years while she pursued various business endeavors – a Coaching Agency and launching a social network. After learning some tough entrepreneurial lessons, she returned to the Marine Corps temporarily on Active Duty for two years.
Ann is an entrepreneur at heart so she departed from the Marine Corps again in 2009. She loves the life of a start-up and is extremely passionate about making it in the business world while making a difference in peoples’ lives. The Marine Corps brought her to New Orleans where she discovered a plethora of opportunities awaited people with ideas, ambitions and desires to make a difference.
Ann is combining her love for her soulmate, entrepreneurship, health and fitness and changing peoples’ lives into Be Fit NOLA.
Aaron Williamson – COO
Aaron graduated from high school in Daytona Beach, Fl and immediately joined the Marine Corps. In 1998, he traveled around the world as a Marine Corps infantryman (0311) participating in several large scale training evolutions. In 2000, Aaron was then screened for the Marine Corps World Famous Body Bears where he spent nearly 4 years conducting funerals out of Arlington National Cemetery, and again, he traveled around the world assisting joint service events. In 2003, Aaron was screened, once again, to become personal security for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), General Peter Pace; here he spent the remainder of his Marine Corps career before he ended his active service in 2005.
Immediatley after departing the Marine Corps, Aaron was offered a contractor job in Iraq assiting in the biometric operations mission; Aaron stayed in Iraq as a contractor contributing to the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) for 4 years. In 2009, Aaron’s contract came to an end which is when he finally made the decision to return to the United States to be with his soulmate. Throughout his Marine Corps and contractor career, Aaron’s passion has been bodybuilding, and health & fitness.
Once Aaron arrived in New Orleans, he noticed the lack of education regarding health & fitness. With Ann’s business savvy background they created BeFitNOLA. Aaron’s health & fitness highlight is his 2nd place finish in the 2009 All Forces Bodybuilding Championships. He is also a member of Team Body Tech and is coached by world reknown bodybuilding coach, Tim Gardner. He’s finally making his dream a reality and pursuing health & fitness endeavors.
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Bloggers
Lauren Futrell Dunaway, MPH, RD, graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in Dietetics. She then completed her dietetic internship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. After becoming a Registered Dietitian, she began to pursue a Master of Public Health in Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Lauren currently works at the Tulane Prevention Research Center as a program manager for their core research project focusing on the built environment and how it affects obesity. Lauren’s interests in the field of nutrition are childhood obesity prevention, how the environment around us effects what we eat, lifestyle nutrition, and making the healthy choice the easy choice. She enjoys cooking, trying new foods and restaurants, and staying active by chasing around her puppy.
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Steve J. Roch Jr.
Steve J. Roch Jr., RD, LDN, CFT is a registered dietitian, licensed dietitian/nutritionist and certified personal trainer. Steve graduated from Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge) with a B.S. degree in Dietetics/Human Nutrition. He is the owner/president of BestRD Wellness LLC, a local company that provides nutrition counseling and consulting as well as wellness services to members of the community and companies throughout South Louisiana. Steve has worked in the health and fitness industry for over 10 years. He is an active member in the American Dietetic Association (ADA) and many health promotion groups of the ADA.
Steve also volunteers his time working on the education and outreach committee of the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum, a non-for-profit organization whose sole purpose is to improve the health of the people of Louisiana. His area of expertise include: corporate/worksite wellness, health promotion, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, functional medicine and holistic health and physical fitness. In his spare time, Steve enjoys working on and showing his classic 1960’s Ford Mustangs, staying on track with current trends in nutrition/health and exploring new and little known local eateries in New Orleans. Steve can be reached by email at steve@bestrdwellness.com.
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Emily Eoff
Emily Eoff was born in New Orleans and grew up in St. Rose, LA; she attended Destrehan High School. Emily found her way back to New Orleans, a city she truly loves, after being away for 7 years. As soon as her house is built, she plans to reside in the Lakeview area of New Orleans.
Emily received her M.S., in Health and Exercise Science from Louisiana Tech University, as well as, her B.S. in Kinesiology and Health Promotion. She also holds her personal training and group fitness instructor certificates from some of the leading certification programs in the country, the National Academy of Sports Medicine and the American Fitness Association of America. As a Performance Enhancement Specialist (NASM, PES) specializing in training athletes, she has helped shape and inspire the lives of many.
As a motivator, role model, and leader, Emily brings nine years of experience in the health and fitness industry to her XLR8 Fitness business. During this time, she has provided innovative fitness programming for two Louisiana Universities (LSU and Louisiana Tech) and has excelled in the development and implementation of effective nutrition plans and efficient training programs. She has an approach to total fitness that is based on solid psychological methods, proven research-based fitness principles, and hard work.
Emily recently competed in the INBA (International Natural Bodybuilding Association) www.naturalbodybuilding.com Gulf States Natural Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships and won 1st Place in the Sports Model Division, 2nd Place in Novice Figure and Open Figure Divisions. She has received her Professional Sports Model Card and will be competing in competitions both locally and nationally this year.
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