Meet Nextfit Trainer Desiree Summers

Born and raised in Athens, GA, Desiree is an accomplished jazz, ballet and theatre performer and also skilled in voice and tap. At age ten, Desiree auditioned for “The Nutcracker” and won the leading role as Mary with the Atlanta Ballet. A childhood pastime blossomed in the following years into an intense desire to advance her skills and pursue the performing arts as a career.

Desiree Summers received a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts from the Oklahoma City University. She enjoyed studying and training under the leadership of director and founder of the American Spirit Dance Company, and nationally known master ballet teacher and performer, Jo Rowan and where Desiree won awards and dance Scholarships at OCU. 

During college, Desiree was being prepared for a career in the entertainment industry, and radiated in the spotlight. Work and play were one in the same, and within no time, her off-Broadway credits ranged from “Guys and Dolls”, “Oklahoma”, “Grease”, “Chorus Line”, “Camelot”, “Hello Dolly”, and “Cinderella”. 

With the pressures of maintaining a petite dance figure, Desiree’s aspiration for perfection led her into a delicate situation, which led to hospitalization. Analyzing her anxieties and motives allowed her to pick up the pieces and come back even stronger and more inspired. She came to terms with her own weight and eating disorders, and realized that millions of women were going through the same thing, whether it is anorexia or obesity. She became determined to commit her life to health and fitness and thus “Vessel Fitness” was born.


Desiree became an advocate for a healthy lifestyle as she began heading fitness programs for chains across the country. From Athens to LA, she worked with women, not only assisting with their fitness needs, but their emotional and spiritual needs, teaching women how to find balance in their lives. She motivated women of all ages to combine health, fitness, and faith, to exercise their mind, body and spirit to find true beauty. 

In order to reach the millions that are affected daily by this weight epidemic, Desiree began “Vessel Fitness” to encourage the public to take time for themselves. She stresses the cascade effect that treating your inner and outer being has on your family, work and life. Desiree gives hope and instruction so that the average woman can attain their best body health for their genetic makeup. 

Desiree’s mass media appeal is evident. As a mother of three children all under the age of nine, devoted wife, and executive producer, host and co-creator of “Vessel Fitness”, she is an everyday woman with a strong head on her shoulders. Desiree says, “’Vessel Fitness’ is about my heart for women, and I want to be there for them. Women are pulled in 900 directions, and I want to be their encourager. Health is about mind, body, and spirit”. 

Desiree is the featured health and fitness writer for Everyday Woman Magazine as well as Charlotte Health And Fitness Magazine and has appeared on ESPN Radio as well as other major market stations.