For my community connections project I interviewed Lisa Gervais. Lisa is the owner of the Tri Cities TWIST performance and wellness. I chose to interview Lisa because I am an up and coming athlete and was interested in personal training and how it can help athletes achieve their goals. I have attended the TWIST that Lisa owns and it is run very well with all the classes targeting muscles all over the body. Lisa was a high level athlete and I was wondering how she turned into a personal trainer. So I emailed her to find out more about her journey from high level athlete to personal trainer.

Why are you passionate about your job?

“I am passionate about my job because I get to affect change in peoples lives on a daily basis. I get the chance to meet and work with people who are seeking assistance in achieving their own personal goals. Some of the people I meet have wanted these specific goals for many years and have struggled along the way. It is truly rewarding to watch them strive towards this for the duration of the process.”

What obstacles have you faced to get you where you are today?

“I have struggled with several things along the way. As a new trainer, it was challenging to find clients  that wanted to work with me as I was new to the industry. A lack of clients meant a lack of income for me, but I was diligent, and I worked hard at meeting people. This allowed many people to see my coaching skills in action and how much I truly cared for my clients.”

What advice would you pass on to someone interested in what you are doing?

“The best piece of advice I can give anyone looking to get into this industry is to learn as much as you can, and to practice what you learn on yourself first. Once you feel you have mastered an exercise, or a specific training technique, then you can introduce it to a client. Never try to teach an exercise to someone if you haven’t done it yourself and you can do it without thinking about it.”

Would you be open to further contact from Riverside students and if so, how can someone contact you?

“I would absolutely be open to further communication from Riverside students. The best way to contact would be through this email (lisa@twisttricities.com). I would be happy to meet with students in person if they wanted to schedule an appointment in advance.”

What type of training do you need to complete for your job?

“To become an elite level coach you should have a university degree in Kinesiology to start. As well you should have a specialty. That could be something like experience with rehabilitation, strength and conditioning, power lifting, etc. The more practical experience the better as it will compliment your degree.”

What inspired you to do this job?

“My inspiration to do this job came from my experience as a high end athlete for the majority of my life. I played high level hockey until the age of 40 when I was side lined by an injury. My passion for exercise and fitness was always foremost in my life and I wanted to affect change in other peoples lives. So I went back to school to follow my passion of becoming a trainer.”

To check out TWIST go to http://twisttricities.com

This interview gave me a lot of information about being a personal trainer. It was interesting to find out that to become a personal trainer you need to have a university degree, this was something I did not know about. This interview has made me realize that there are going to be many obstacles to get to where you want to be, but if you persevere you can get there.

Sources:

Obstacles: https://www.google.com/urlsa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.defense.gov%2Fphotos%2Fnewsphoto.aspx%3Fnewsphotoid%3D15196&psig=AOvVaw2vp3nRF7lxh3dXL1LV6Z6g&ust=1582761532807000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCKiOr6b07ecCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Riverside:

https://www.google.com/imgres imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sd43.bc.ca%2Fschool%2Friverside%2FSiteAssets%2Friversidelogo.png&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sd43.bc.ca%2Fschool%2Friverside%2FPages%2Fdefault.aspx&tbnid=XtvkU7eGaPhk9M&vet=12ahUKEwiP04369O3nAhVzAjQIHcV6B1sQMygAegUIARDiAQ..i&docid=_wVvMvgWrUPEYM&w=500&h=383&q=riverside%20secondary%20school%20logo&hl=en-US&ved=2ahUKEwiP04369O3nAhVzAjQIHcV6B1sQMygAegUIARDiAQ

Inspiration:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thebluediamondgallery.com%2Fhandwriting%2Fi%2Finspiration.html&psig=AOvVaw1wZjM_XmQO6x9qhQd_js5Q&ust=1582762177804000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCIjdidj27ecCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAQ