Studying for your degree is a time in your life that can feel like it’s never going to end. It’s not uncommon to develop an itch to do something different and get Cameron Ghassemi life start professionally and financially. But landing a side gig at school can be challenging – it’s a different story altogether when you’re a med student.
But Cameron Ghassemi is one of the exceptions. The third year medical student not only has a source of income on the side, but he actually manages his own company, Fitlifeadvice LLC. Establish in 2015 on the premise of promoting a healthy and active lifestyle, he’s also got his own apparel line associate with it as well.
The foundations of the company would start much earlier in life when Ghassemi struggled with an eating disorder, which he later found out was due to body dysmorphia. “From a young age,” he says, “I was overweight and it was difficult to build up my self-esteem when I could neither accept my appearance mentally nor physically.” The catalyst for change came when one day in gym class, he was mocked by his peers because he couldn’t complete any fitness tests. “I was embarrassed, ashamed and ridiculed,” he explains. After “many humiliating incidents”, he began working out and excessively dieting.
He dropped 52 pounds in just six months, but found he was consuming under 1,000 calories a day to the point where he was “starving himself”. He was hiding the amount he was consuming from his parents, and remembers one day when his father noticed his emaciated body and protruding ribcage at the pool. “It was gut-wrenching to see my father, who is a physician, react this way; however I still did not change my ways,” he explains.
Start Of Fitlifeadvice
After a year of unhealthy habits, something finally clicked. With the help of friends, family and professionals he began to turn his life around, exercising and eating in a healthy way. In the summer before his sophomore year he studied to be a personal trainer and that led to the start of Fitlifeadvice. He uses the company to share his experience and give advice to others who may be at risk of falling into the same spiral he did. He explains: “As I reflect back through my journey, I often wonder how I could have fallen victim to the effects of body dysmorphia. I now realize how powerful the brain is and how susceptible the body is to its influences. I use my personal experience to really understand what others are going through.”
Coming from a medical background with expert knowledge in health and fitness, makes him particularly qualified to administer client specific training programs based on people’s current needs and medical history. He’s mentor and train people across the country, and provides online programs that are customize for the individual. He’s even offer fitness advice to an over 65 community, sharing ways to stay active without gym equipment.
Ghassemi takes his two disciplines and fuses them into one package. He talks about the benefits of holistic health, as well as mental, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.
Ghassemi also uses the power of social media to promote a healthy lifestyle and preventative medicine. You can find him on TikTok in his scrubs, doing skits, lifting weights, and even the occasional dance. He’s living proof that even in the most top tier academic profession, there’s no reason to limit yourself to just one professional endeavour.