Estevan Barragan is enjoying life right now.

The 2018 Central Valley High School grad/former NCAA Division-I football player has no complaints.

Barragan started working as a certified personal trainer at Get Better Fitness in his hometown of Ceres on June 5.

“I have a strong faith in God,” said Barragan, 23, who earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with a concentration in exercise science from Fresno State in May. “I believe he put me here on Earth to help as many people as I can.”

Barragan works 50-plus hours a week at Get Better Fitness, which is located at 2140 Pine Street.

He specializes in personal training for athletic performance, muscle development, aesthetics and weight loss.

He also provides nutritional guidance.

“Every day, I get up and go to work happy,” said Barragan, who arrives at the facility at 6 a.m. and leaves at 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. “I love what I do. I’m blessed to do what I do. It’s something I don’t take for granted.”

Barragan offers individual and group training.

He provides instruction to youth, high school and college athletes.

“Right now, I train more than 30 people,” Barragan said. “I’m blessed to have as many athletes that I have. They believe in me. They’re here to get better.”

“I’m going to teach them everything I know,” he added. “I want to instill the work ethic I have in all the athletes I coach and hopefully see them have success. The passion of mine is seeing the growth. It’s a great feeling to see the excitement they get out of it. It definitely makes me happy.”

A host of Central Valley and Ceres High football players signed up for Barragan’s six-week program to help prepare for the 2023 season.

“This is my first year doing this,” he said. “I try to use everything I’ve learned from the coaches and mentors I’ve had. I’m going to teach them everything I know. I want them to be the best possible versions they can be. I want to produce Division-I players. I’m giving them the blueprint.”

Athletes focus on skill development, compound lifts, explosive movements, advanced plyometrics, speed and agility, and power training.

“I got a good workout program I developed over the past year,” Barragan said. “The workouts aren’t easy. They’re hard for a reason. It pushes them past their limits. You can’t have fear. You have to put it aside. You embrace it and attack it every lift and every run.”

Barragan provided an update of his athletes’ progress in the max bench press on Instagram.

“The guys have shown remarkable progress, with a total power gain of 320 pounds and an average strength gain of 40 percent,” he said. 

“Their dedication and hard work, combined with our training program, have led to outstanding results,” Barragan added. “It’s gratifying to see their progress and the positive impact we’ve had on their fitness journey.”

Central Valley junior offensive/defensive lineman Andrue Olivas increased his max bench from 225 to 250 pounds in a six-week span.

“I’m so happy he decided to do the program,” Barragan said. “He got so much stronger and faster. If he decides to take it seriously, he can play Division-I. There’s so much potential in that guy. The sky’s the limit.”

Barragan offers speed and agility classes from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.

Barragan’s three-year-old brother can be spotted cycling through drills and running on treadmills some days.

“I love training little kids,” he said. “I did that a lot at another facility in Fresno. I make it fun for them.”

Get Better Fitness relocated from Modesto to Ceres in March of 2023.

Margarito Barajas, Barragan’s uncle, co-owns the business.

“He’s been doing this for 24 years,” Barragan said. “He’s been training me since high school. He’s a big reason I got to where I was.”

Barragan gained valuable experience in his field of work this past school year when he filled an internship coaching position in Fresno State’s strength and conditioning program.

“I got to sit down with coaches,” said Barragan, who previously worked as a personal trainer at T1 Sports in Fresno for one year. “I was using cutting-edge technology with the athletes. I learned a lot. I built great relationships.”

Barragan made history in 2019 when he became the first student-athlete from Central Valley High School to make a NCAA Division-I football roster.

He earned a spot on the Fresno State team as a walk-on player in 2019.

He suited up at running back on the scout team during practices. He helped prepare the Bulldogs’ first-team defense for games.

He earned Scout Team Player of the Week honors leading up to Fresno State’s 35-16 win at Utah State. He was rewarded for his contributions on special teams.

Barragan dressed for all of the Bulldogs’ home contests.

Fresno State compiled a 4-8 overall record and tied for last in the Mountain West standings (2-6).

“A lot of work goes into being an athlete,” Barragan said. “Not everybody can go Division-I. It takes a lot of dedication. You’re going to have to sacrifice a lot of things.”

Barragan accomplished another first this past spring when he earned his B.A. degree.

“I’m the first one in my family to graduate from college,” he said. “It was definitely a lot of work. It was all worth it.”

Barragan starred on Central Valley’s varsity football team for three seasons.

He was named the Western Athletic Conference’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player his senior year.

He rushed for 1,111 yards and 13 touchdowns.

He hauled in 31 passes for 503 yards and two TDS.

Barragan earned second-team all-league honors on defense.

He had 110 tackles, one interception, two pass deflections and one forced fumble at safety.

Barragan was a first-team all-league defensive selection his junior and sophomore years.

He totaled 304 tackles, three interceptions, 13 pass deflections, one sack, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries in 32 career games.

Barragan’s teams at Central Valley also experienced success.

The Hawks amassed a 21-11 overall record, won one conference title and qualified for the playoffs twice from 2015-17.

Barragan treated every practice and game like it was his last.

“I set goals every week,” he said. “You have to stay committed and disciplined. You have to put the work in every single day. You have to take it seriously. I never went out in high school. I did everything I could to put myself in a position to play at a high level.”

For more information about Get Better Fitnesss, Barragan can be reached at 209-809-8057.

“There’s a lot of great things I have planned for Ceres,” he said. “I love this community. I love the people I got to get coached by since Pop Warner up until I was in high school. I’m going to do as much as I can to give back.”