My journey in the fitness industry has now entered its 37th year. During this time, I have worn – and continue to wear – a variety of hats. My experiences have enabled me to have leadership in many roles: Group Exercise Instructor for both land-based and aquatic exercise classes; Kids’ Fitness programs; Personal Training; competitive bodybuilding; freelance fitness/wellness writer; public/motivational speaker; and the incredible honor of being selected to the St. Louis Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Throughout this colorful career, I have witnessed many fitness trends come and go, and have seen many fitness/wellness-related products and supplements reach a pinnacle, only to fade away as new research debunks myths and challenges the status quo. The same holds true for trends in Group Exercise music choices and clothing fashions, including the multi-million- dollar athletic shoe industry.
At the beginning of my foray into the fitness world, I strived to emulate those fitness icons who came before me, mistakenly believing that their way was the only way. If I did not fit these professionals’ definition of athletic idealism, dress like them, teach like them, I believed I was doomed to fail. Regardless of the knowledge I possessed – including a Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology – my impression of the fitness world was one based solely upon appearance.
As I further enmeshed myself into the industry, I realized the untapped potential for helping others achieve their fullest potential regardless of whether they fit some exercise icon’s definition of perfection. This realization more than any other defines what I wish I had known prior to entering this field.
Our industry, much like that of the Hollywood scene, tends to favor youth: the young, fit, flexible dancer; the young, rugged endurance athlete; the young, poised and holistically-minded yoga guru; the young peppy aerobics participant. Yet what happens as this population ages? Do we cease meeting the definitions of “healthy and fit”? Of course not…yet this argument has taken decades to win.
As I reflect back, I can honestly say that I wish I had understood how this is an industry for all bodies. Perhaps it might not have taken me quite so long to realize that, at 64 years old, I still have a tremendous amount to offer the field of fitness: to my clients, my students, my faithful readers, and others whose lives I have been blessed to enter. When I set out on this path, nobody ever shared with me the joy I’d find in working with a very senior population, ages 60-98. Yes, fitness is possible at any and every age…but nobody let me in on this cherished piece of information when I achieved my first of many national certifications. This was precious knowledge I arrived at all on my own, and is has forever changed my perspective of our industry.
What the young, eager and newly-minted fitness professionals fail to recognize, either out of ignorance or out of fear, is that if we are fortunate and blessed, we will eventually reach these older years. Rather than living for the hot moment, we can spend our fitness careers ensuring that our bodies and those of our clients/students remain as fit as possible through the years, so that we may still find ourselves actively participating in meaningful movement at the ages of 70, 80 and beyond. Might we slow down? Most definitely. Might we choose different activities at 60 – yoga, Pilates, low-impact aerobics, strength training – than we did at 25? Of course…but there is nothing wrong with this! Fitness and wellness paths share a well-kept secret, one that nobody dares to mention in their 20’s: we can and should cultivate ways in which to listen to our bodies, honor their capabilities, work within limitations — all while staying active and having fun.
I cannot begin to describe the joy in my heart at seeing my 95-year-old client performing kicks and knee-lifts while holding onto her walker. Or the tears that spring to my eyes when my client with MS tells me how, for the first time ever, she possesses the ability to step into her jeans without holding onto her dresser for stability. Then there are my 60-70’s clients who can, after years of our training together, climb the steps to Masada in Israel, and hike the Great Wall of China. THIS is what I wish I had known as I entered the field of fitness…that these milestones could fill me with such a sense of satisfaction, knowing all of our hard work and training had paid off.
If you find yourself considering a career in fitness education, I would like to leave you with one of my favorite quotes, told to me as I was deciding if Personal Training would be a prudent choice. My colleague said, “People do not care how much you know, as long as they know how much you care.” Truer words have never been spoken!
