From dropout to six figures

Maria Sentmanat, fifty five, grew up in a single-parent household filled with chaos. She became a personal trainer and built a successful fitness studio over sixteen years.

The pandemic took it all

When COVID-19 hit, Sentmanat lost her studio and struggled to rebuild. A friend offered her a new opportunity as race director for one of the largest five K races in the country.

Success on paper, misery inside

Sentmanat earned one hundred fifty three thousand dollars a year managing the race for five years. She could have made up to one hundred eighty thousand dollars next year if she stayed.

The job took its toll

Sentmanat dreaded work and suffered constant stomach upset. Childhood trauma resurfaced, pushing her into fight or flight mode. She felt numb and heavy, unable to escape the stress.

“I felt heavy, and my daughters could see it.”

She quit with nothing lined up

In August twenty twenty six, Sentmanat resigned without another job waiting. She had a strong feeling she needed to find purpose and passion again through nature.

“That's where I heal. That's where I can find a place that I feel seen, heard, understood, and held.”

Why Not Wild was born

Sentmanat created a personalized nature business taking people hiking through the Everglades and on motorcycle adventures around South Florida. She aims to reconnect people with nature.

Financially stretched but mentally free

Sentmanat makes no money now but has savings to live comfortably for six months to a year. She pays four thousand seven hundred dollars monthly and helps her daughters and her SBA loan.

She wakes up excited every day

Sentmanat lost income and future security but gained mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing. Her family supports her decision completely and she feels brave for choosing purpose over money.

“I wake up excited about every day. What door is going to open?”