LIFTing Spirits | Nate Moreland
/LIFTing Spirits
How Fitness Trainer, Nate Moreland, is keeping people motivated and in shape amidst COVID-19
LIFT owner and Fitness Trainer, Nate Moreland
For Nate Moreland, sports is more than something you do, it’s a way of life. A P.I.L.(Portland Interscholastic League) Hall of Famer, and former Olympic qualifier, Moreland finds the principles of training, “discipline, determination and dedication” to be guiding lights for the values he seeks to pass on to his clients. He’s the owner of Life Improving Fitness Training and Speed (LIFTS), a gym he uses to get people, of all backgrounds, from the "no’s to pro's" to help them realize their fitness goals in life.
He says he trains in the same way he was taught. It was men in the community, like Phil Walton and Leon Lincoln, who he refers to as legends that taught him the value of sports beyond the court and field.
“What Phil did was inspire me to take whatever I could do athletically and use my mind, my body, and my soul to get the best out of me that I could, regardless of where I was at,” he says. “Whether that was in school or out of school.”
Moreland shined as an athlete and a student at the now defunct Jackson High School in Southwest Portland, where the hurdles in track & field and the game of football certainly tested what Walton had taught him. A Northeast Portland native, he was bussed to the Westside of Portland in the 70's making him one of only a handful of Black students in Jackson’s halls during the time.
The world surrounding his home on Northeast 14th and Going Street (where his mother still resides today) was his “Village”, a place where neighborhood kids would play every game together, not for gain, but for love.
However, the hills of the Westside weren’t so welcoming.
“To be honest with you, it wasn’t acceptable being a Black man in the Southwest part of Portland back then,” he says. Moreland accepted the hostility as a challenge — an opportunity to represent the Village. “It was a transitional period for me to not only be who I was and be around people who didn’t accept me for who I was, but to create friendships, and relationships.”
He won over many of his peers and racked up some honors while doing it, earning multiple letters in football, basketball and track. Going All-State and being named an All-Star also contributed to his impressive portfolio.
After a brutal hamstring injury threatened to end his sports career for good, Moreland headed to Lane Community College to continue his education to get back in shape. It was a rough time for him.
“The only person that believed in me was my mom, God, and myself,” he says. His dedication would pay off. After months of training he was able to earn scholarships for both football and track at the University of Oregon. Despite the naysayers, Moreland succeeded in becoming one of the top-10 track and field athletes in the country, all while earning his degree in Business Administration and Science.
Now he’s able to flex both lessons learned from the schoolroom and the schoolyard as the owner of LIFTS. After decades of managing retail chains at companies like Fred Meyer, he has now reignited his passion for fitness in order to “help people help themselves.”
From the gym to the park, he’s helping people of all abilities reach their athletic goals through specialized training. This is as much about muscle as it is about, as his website says, “starting a new relationship with yourself.”
He has trained folks who just need to give their heart a jumpstart, up to serious athletes who work for the NFL. He gives them all the same push.
And while the onset of COVID-19 threatened Moreland’s business, Moreland has been able clear this hurdle with support from The Oregon Cares Fund for Black Relief and Resilience, some of the only financial relief his business has been able to secure during the pandemic.
These dollars have acted as a critical lifeline for LIFTS. He’s been able to purchase new equipment that allows him to be socially-distanced and financially viable. He’s picked up some new technology that allows him to offer online sessions and still remain connected to his clients. As for LIFTS headquarters in NE Portland, he’s also picked up some weights and cleaning materials so that he can offer the in-person classes for folks who want to go beyond the screen and still remain safe.
Nate prepares for a virtual workout with clients
“Thank God, I couldn’t have made it without their help,” Moreland says of The Oregon Cares Fund support dollars.
Now as he continues to push through the uncertainty of the pandemic, he rests a bit easier, with the cushion these dollars being underneath him has afforded.
And while much is unknown about the future in the face of this virus, for Moreland, this is just another challenge he’s ready to accept. He’s not defeated. He’s focused.
For him, this is about changing lives. “It’s not just training. It’s training for purpose, fun and meeting goals.”
To connect with Nate Moreland check out https://www.liftsfitnesstraining.com
