Community Highlights: Meet Lisa Hoke of Flow Aquatic Wellness

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Hoke.

Hi Lisa, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I am a 51-year-old mother of two, step-mother of one, Meemaw of four, wife of one amazing man and daughter of one amazing father. This is who I truly am, but somewhere in life you have to decide why am I here, what does God want from me, what is my mission, and how do I accomplish it? My mission is to help people through love and kindness.

Many things have brought me to this point in my life. I think the largest contributing factor was watching my mother die from Parkinson’s. There was nowhere to take her for help. She was just in her 50s when she started having issues, and by her early 60s she was terminal. At the time, we had a pool in our backyard and when she could, I would try to take her in the pool and walk her around. Because she was a fall risk, pretty immobile, and couldn’t walk alone the pool was a blessing. Eventually, though she got too sick and it got too hard to get her in and out and it just got too cold for her, even in the hottest part of the summer. My mother died at 67. During that time, my brother also became ill. Because of his illness, his weight skyrocketed and he wasn’t able to exercise because of severe lung disease. Again, there was little to no place for him for help. His weight and lung disease made it impossible for him to get around. He couldn’t walk or use exercise equipment, but if there had only been a pool we could have gotten him too could he have gotten better? My brother died at 34. Then there was my own personal journey. At 38 years old and 220 pounds, I went through a divorce. With that, I made a fresh start in my life. I started watching my diet and trying to exercise, but at 220 pounds most things hurt. The one thing that didn’t hurt was water. I started going to classes and getting in the pool at the YMCA. It was then that I found my true love for water and my purpose in life. During that time, I got my weight off, got my group fitness instructor certification and silver sneaker certifications and started teaching water classes at the YMCA. I loved the people so much that came to my classes. Every single person in that class told me how much the water helped them, I heard their personal stories, how they were limited to water activities because of their health issues, and what a blessing it was to them. The one complaint I always got was it was too cold and too crowded. How they wished they had other options and how I wished I could give it to them.

So, how did I get here? The grace of God, a lot of love and support from 2 amazing men – my husband and my dad – and the love of water and helping people. I also had a circle of great friends. There were some bumps along the road, I took some wrong turns, I made some shortcuts and tried to do things my way first – the safe way, the easy way, but that didn’t work. So I put on my big girl pants and with some pretty great advice from friends created FLOW AQUATIC WELLNESS. I was scared to death – the financial investment alone, leasing, equipment, supplies, buying a pool, where to even start. There were so many obstacles and so much requirement. I had to have a sponsoring physical therapist, I had to have my ACSM certifications, my ATRI certifications, people who would insure me, a building that would allow me to put 5000 gallons of water inside. I had no idea how I was going to make it happen. The question was how do you eat an elephant – one bite at a time. Once I found a therapist and a facility that would allow me the pool, everybody joined in. Friends came and painted, they helped me find things at yard sales, they scoured online marketplaces, they cleaned, they set up websites, and gave me suggestions on logos and software. With a lot of hard work and long hours, FLOW was born. A place where people could get help when everything else seemed to fail. I started bare minimum – 1 pool, a tiny set of exercise equipment, and me. I had a great friend who worked from home, who came and took care of my front desk without pay until I got on my feet. I had two great friends who were massage therapists and I had enough space in the back for them to come and help me pay my rent. They worked their normal jobs and then came here and worked outside of their regular jobs to help me support FLOW. Without them, I don’t know if I would have made that first year. After that first year, we had built enough business that my massage therapists were able to come work here full time, we added a second pool, a second ATRI-certified trainer, with our third starting in August. We increased the exercise space. We added a Peloton, a foot detox, a red light sauna, 2 PTs, an acupuncturist, and the list of amazing people keeps growing and we all work as a team. The most amazing part is I didn’t do any of it, it just happened how it was supposed to happen, the way God intended for it to happen, and I am in awe of what it has become. A refuge, a home, a family, and a blessing.

This year is the end of our 5th year and we are renewing another five years lease next month. I will keep this facility going until I can’t physically do it anymore, and then I hope to pass it on to someone who cares for it and the amazing people who come here as much as I do. What does FLOW stand for? It means “For the Love Of Wellness,” and it grew for the love of people.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Is it ever a smooth road? Of course, there are the regular struggles, finding a lease, buying everything, getting it all setup and figuring out how to run it smoothly. The learning curve in running a business, learning quickbooks, how to attach invoices, how to make deposits, how to keep correct records, finding a good accountant that you can afford who is patient with you and helps you file EVERYTHING is so hard.

I think opening a place of service is always the hardest. You have to have a heart for servitude. You have to have love for all people, especially people who are in pain and are suffering from disease processes and injuries. These people tend to be the most vulnerable and scared. You have to go to them with the right heart and comfort so they can heal. If you add into that we don’t sell packages or memberships and we survive here on the good old honor system that people will show up for their services and pay us, it makes it a little less secure. You have to find the right staff of people who work together well and have the same heart as you.

Then there is working and managing. You have to learn to avoid burnout. You have to remember why you started it all and where you need it to go while still allowing yourself some personal space and time.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Flow Aquatic Wellness?
FLOW is an aquatic reconditioning facility. We have two warm water pools, a functional training area, three massage therapists, two PTs, an acupuncturist, two aquatic reconditioning trainers, a red light sauna, and a foot detox.

We specialize in reconditioning people post-physical therapy, post-injury, post-surgery, or with disease processes that need specialized care.

I think what sets us apart is the love, the caring, the kindness, the patience and the commitment of the people who work here. What started out as a sole idea became a group effort.

I think I’m most proud of the fact that all of my clients send their family here. They recommend us to friends, they share the word of our facility within the community so much so that we do not advertise, we do not market, we do not have to look for clients, they find us here and once they do, they become part of the FLOW family, and we all work together toward helping each other.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Opryland. My dad used to buy us good time passes that were good on Sundays and we used to go every Sunday. I loved Opryland, it was such an icon of Nashville and the community. It was back in the day when you could go with your parents and they could let you run all over the park. Everybody was so friendly and it was so kid safe and such a happy environment. It represented family and fun and love and time together. I don’t think we get enough of that anymore.

Contact Info:

• Email: lisa@flowaquatic.com
• Website: www.flowaquatic.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FLOWAquaticSmyrna