Powering up

Maegan Moore is the true definition of an athlete. With numerous track titles under her belt from the time she was in elementary school, she has gone on to be a record-breaker at her college alma mater. Now, she’s a rising finalist for the cover of a fitness magazine. She lives in Bossier City, but her fitness success all started in Ville Platte.
Starting at Ville Platte Elementary, Moore became interested in fitness when her P.E. coach had her class do fitness competitions like shuttle run, push-ups, and sit-ups. When she was in high school, she was the only fifth-grader who made it to the track varsity team where she went on to win numerous awards during her track career, running the 100m, the 200m, the relays, MVPs, all-district, and making it to state every year.
Moore graduated from Ville Platte High in 2013. In 2017, she obtained her bachelor’s degree in science with a concentration in athletic training and a minor in psychology from McNeese. She continued at McNeese, getting her master’s in exercise physiology in 2019.
Moore’s athletic prowess soared in college from the start when she was named the 2014 Track and Field Freshman of the Year. On McNeese State’s track and field/cross-country squad, Moore and her teammates landed in the 2015 Southland Conference Men’s and Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field All-Academic teams. As the senior sprinter of the Cowgirls, Moore and four other teammates received eight first-place finishes. She won both the 55m and 200m dashes, with a school record of 7.08 seconds to win the 55m, beating her own personal indoor record of 7.11 seconds which she set the season before. Winning first place in the 200m with 25.16 seconds, she broke an eight-year record of 25.59 seconds, held by McNeese’s Christi McRae. In 2018, when she was running unattached as she prepared for the outdoor season, Moore set an indoor complex record in the 200m with a time of 24.58 seconds, breaking the old record of 25.01 seconds held by Ashleigh Wells in 2012.
When asked if she wants to compete professionally, Moore said she would rather give back by training disadvantaged youth. “I didn’t have guidance and help, so I had to find my own way,” she said, adding she wants to help those who are like her. She would like to coach any sports, like strength-training, football, basketball, track, etc. “I would want them to get the experience of someone guiding them and letting them know what they need to do and how to make it. Just giving them the ins and outs of how things are going to go.”
She did credit Simone Johnson who ran track for Pine Prairie High School. Moore saw a Gazette article where Johnson obtained her doctoral degree. “We were close friends. The only reason I started running track at McNeese was because of her.” Moore and Johnson used to compete against each other in high school. Johnson remembered how fast Moore was at track and encouraged her to try out for the McNeese track team. “I gave it a shot,” said Moore. “I didn’t have any scholarships or financial aid. I knew I had to find something to help financially. I just did something that I love to do. After my freshman year I got offered assistance with books. Sophomore year, I got books and tuition. By junior year, I was on full scholarship. I kept getting points at conference and working hard. By the time I graduated college I was on full scholarship. I worked all the way up from the bottom.”
With her collegiate days behind her, Moore is working at a wellness and fitness center for Willis Knighton Health Systems, teaching aerobics and other classes. She is working on getting her nutrition, personal trainer, and group fitness certifications. She hopes to have her own gym one day, but for now she is taking notes from her fitness center so she will be prepared to create a business plan.
Moore is also competing to be Ms. Fitness on the cover of Muscle and Fitness Hers magazine with the chance to win $20,000. “At first I wasn’t going to apply for it, but I saw my other fitness friends promoting it. I filled out the application and got approved.” Moore is now in second place in the top five in her group. Voting for the top five ends tonight at 10:00 p.m. Votes are decided by the public, and you can vote every day. Votes are free, or the candidates get more votes when someone donates to the Wounded Warriors project, which helps wounded military veterans. If she wins, Moore said, “I would invest in getting my own fitness gym started and help those who have fitness and health goals accomplish them, and also donate to a charity.”
Moore, 25, is the daughter of Shabby Moore and Felicia Scott. To vote for her to be on the cover of the magazine, www.mshealthandfitness.com and enter Maegan Moore in the search menu.