Here’s how a fitness guru built a lifelong career out of a college football injury

CSUF alum and fitness coach Sean Foy discovered new motivation after an injury. (Photo courtesy of Sean Foy)

In 1982, Sean Foy chose to attend Cal State Fullerton for one reason … to play football.

(Yes, Cal State Fullerton fielded a football team for several years until the program was scrapped in 1992.)

Foy’s ultimate dream was to play in the pros.

“I couldn’t have cared less about college,” said Foy, a 1986 CSUF alum who grew up in Placentia and attended El Dorado High School. “I was in college to play football. I was not a student coming out of high school. I could care less about it.”

Then, a twist of fate early in his junior season rerouted the trajectory of Foy’s life.

During the first game of his sophomore season, Foy blew out his knee in a game against Boise State.

He would miss the rest of the season.

“What am I going to do with my life if I can’t play football?” he recalls thinking. “Like, the dream is gone, right?”

During the downtime, a conversation with a physical therapist caused Foy to experience an illuminating realization.

“He came to me and he said, ‘Sean, you may have injured your knee, but that doesn’t mean you can’t train other areas of your body and mind,’ ” Foy said. “So, he was the one that got me thinking that there’s a mental side to your performance. I actually became a student.”

Foy discovered that he loved nourishing his mind and feeding his spirit as much as building his body.

He returned to the field and became a student-athlete in the truest sense of the word.

“I could move again and play the game that I love,” Foy said. “But I actually became a student. I actually began to love to learn, and that was because I was mentored; loved by my teachers. They cared about me.”

Foy went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in exercise physiology from CSUF and played professional football in Europe for two seasons.

“It was such a blast to travel all throughout Europe and just really have a taste of being overseas,” he said.

As a devout Christian, Foy earned a Master of Divinity degree from a bible college and embarked on a long career in field personal wellness, helping clients to maximize and maintain their personal potential.

The husband and father of two has started several businesses, including the Personal Wellness Corp., an international health-and-wellness education and consulting firm, and Stronger U Academy, which offers health and wellness services for corporations and individuals.

Foy has also authored a series of exercise books and is coauthor of the No. 1 New York Times bestseller, “The Daniel Plan,” which offers a holistic approach to a healthy lifestyle by focusing on five key essentials of faith, food, fitness, focus and friends.

Foy is now collaborating with the American Council on Exercise and is the principal contributor to a recently launched course titled “Mindful Movement: Coaching Clients to Become More Active.”

The American Council on Exercise is a nonprofit education and certification provider for health coaches and exercise professionals throughout the world.

Aimed at educating professionals in the health and wellness space, the Mindful Movement course equips health coaches with innovative techniques, key concepts and resources to help clients find purpose and enjoyment in movement and in building a stronger mind-body connection.

“So, we’re giving the coaches a toolbox on how to help individuals sit less, move more, and ultimately thrive,” Foy said.

Foy and his colleagues are hoping to reverse the findings of a World Health Organization study revealing that 80% of U.S. adults and adolescents are insufficiently active, making physical inactivity the fourth-leading risk factor for mortality.

Fox becomes emotional when reflecting on the epiphany he experienced as a CSUF student.

“They really cared about me,” he said. “And they helped me to find what my passion was and what I really wanted to do with it. I’m forever grateful. I owe a great debt to Cal State Fullerton.”