Listen to the full interview with Michele Sotak above.
As Michele Sotak stood on a soccer field as a young child, she knew that God had gifted her with unique athletic abilities and a passion for fitness. It was something she carried forward into adulthood.
Today, Sotak is a staff member at Chicago’s Holy Name Cathedral. She also is a certified personal trainer, Master Trainer for equipment manufacturers Life Fitness and Hammer Strength, fitness speaker and author, who has taught fitness routines to everyone from church members to sports superstars. She also created fitness curriculum that has become mandated for law enforcement officers in Illinois.
Just like praying and reading her Bible every day, fitness is a discipline that she can’t imagine living without.
“It’s really been a major part of my journey because I couldn’t imagine my life without it,” Sotak reflected. “And that is why I want to be persuasive enough to (tell others) it’s worth it.”
Sotak said leaning into her faith and pushing herself to be active, helped her overcome setbacks in her life, and she implored others going through difficult times to challenge themselves to be active in their faith and in fitness.
“There’s always hope,” Sotak said. “Even if I wasn’t feeling good, I’d still maybe go outside and go for a walk and that got me through. You’re always one workout away from a good mood, so at the very least, you could do just a walk or some dynamic stretches and it’ll make you feel better… God meets you on your fitness journey.”
Once a month, between 50 and 75 people of all faiths, come to Holy Name Cathedral for Sotak’s Faith and Fitness program.
There, they delve into Scripture and faith themes and fitness routines such as High Intensity Interval Training. The programs are modified for participants of all fitness levels.
She said the feedback she receives from participants motivates her and helps her stay on mission.
“People talk about what’s helped them—the spiritual life and the physical life—and they can now understand how the combination of the two has really helped make them a better version of self and helped them get through the setbacks in life,” Sotak said.
A key focus of the Faith and Fitness program is creating a regimen that is sustainable while acknowledging that there are “no quick fixes.”
“It’s easier than people think but you have to go out of your comfort zone to do it,” Sotak said. “It’s not about perfection, it’s about consistency… Have a vision and promise yourself you’re going to work on that and you’re going to stay on the path.”
Sotak added that people need to afford themselves grace if they fall short of their goals.
“We can’t be hard on ourselves,” Sotak said. “We can do the best we can and try our best, then God will do the rest. There’s going to be grace there. Just never give up.”
Learn more about the Faith and Fitness Program at Holy Name Cathedral here: https://holynamecathedral.org/spiritual-life/faith-and-fitness/.
