Breaking Free: Tara Garrison on Leaving Mormonism, Healing Trauma & Building True Strength

2025-08-18

Tara Garrison is not your average fitness coach. In this raw, unfiltered episode, we peel back the curtain on Tara’s profound journey from a life that felt out of alignment—being a Mormon stay-at-home mom of four—to a ripped, radiant leader in holistic health and mindset coaching. This episode isn’t just about gains in the gym—it’s about the gains that come from deep emotional work, spiritual realignment, and radical self-love.Tara shares her awakening journey through training, her escape from the Mormon church, the trials of n...

Tara shares her awakening journey through training, her escape from the Mormon church, the trials of narcissistic abuse, and her rise into leadership and coaching. We also go deep on cult-like dynamics in wellness circles, the importance of intensity in strength training, and why building muscle isn't just physical—it's a reflection of inner transformation. Get ready to be moved, inspired, and maybe a little shaken in the best way.

Episode Highlights

[00:00] – Tara’s reflection on cult-like thinking in the keto community
[01:35] – From personal training to full-spectrum health and mindset coaching
[05:07] – Her radical transformation post-Mormonism and the journey of self-realignment
[08:59] – The emotional and psychological toll of leaving a religion and identity behind
[13:01] – Losing it all and the “body slam” from the universe that sparked deep healing
[17:19] – Seeing life’s deepest pain as the best thing that ever happened
[22:03] – The obsession behind body transformation and how it masked deeper trauma
[26:49] – Comparing cult-like dynamics: bodybuilding vs. health optimization circles
[31:09] – When Tara reintroduced carbs and faced backlash from the keto world
[34:05] – Cult-think in spirituality, wellness, and the danger of superiority
[36:05] – Sponsored shout-outs: BEAM Minerals and LightPathLED
[37:19] – How intuition and "the Holy Ghost" became her internal GPS
[41:39] – Why AI can’t replace human coaching and the power of retreat experiences
[50:19] – Tara’s no-BS guide to building muscle: why sleep, intensity, and technique matter
[58:40] – Debunking the steroid rumors and breaking down real gym intensity
[01:04:11] – How to work with Tara (app, coaching, and retreats)
[01:07:27] – The dangers of dogma in diet culture and why she wrote Short Term Keto
[01:08:59] – Tara’s final advice: validate yourself, love yourself, and show up for yourself
[01:10:49] – What it means to be beautifully broken: a rebirth through adversity