Dr. Stephanie Gerlach looks on as student Taylor Houx works with Aubry Carpenter ’14.
If you are learning how to be a personal trainer, it might work better if you have a personal trainee, right? And if you’re an employee, wouldn’t you like a free guidance from a student learning personal training?
That’s exactly what happened last fall when Dr. Stephanie Gerlach, assistant professor of health, physical education and recreation (HPER), matched seven students with seven employees for her Principles of Strength Training and Conditioning class.
The students met in the Baker Family Fitness Center two days a week and spent the time one-on-one with their trainees. And one day a week, they all met in HPER’s Personal and Commercial Fitness Lab in the Looney Complex for group workouts. Students were responsible for planning the group workouts, Dr. Gerlach said, and activities included step aerobics, working with resistance bands, stretching and more.
She said the goals of the class included helping the students understand what a long-term exercise program was, how to set appropriate goals for a client and how to have a successful exercise session. Dr. Gerlach said all seven employees stayed through the semester.
Aubry Carpenter ’14, marketing coordinator in the Marketing and Communications Office, was one of the employee trainees.
“I loved being a part of the class,” Carpenter said. “It definitely got me out of my comfort zone, and was a great learning opportunity for the student. I was also happy to learn how to use many pieces of gym equipment that I had never touched before. I had a lot of fun.”
Student Tarell Strader works with Shaina Spooner ’17/’19.
Shaina Spooner ’17, also a marketing coordinator in the Marketing and Communications Office, said she had used most of the equipment in the fitness center but had never went into the free weight area because “it was intimidating. But Tarell (Strader) encouraged me to try new machines and exercises. I feel more confident when I walk into the gym now.”
The class, new in fall 2019, is a required course in the personal and commercial fitness concentration in the physical education major that began in fall 2017.
Senior Giana Butler enjoyed the hands-on experience and was especially glad to learn how to create workout prescriptions for clients.
“It was super fun to get to know the clients,” she said. “It was cool to see the differences in backgrounds and skill levels.”
Senior Justin Rhodes has a goal of opening a cross fit gym and is already a cross fit coach, but he believes the class gave him a more rounded experience. He liked working with a client one-on-one and helping them figure out their goals and needs.
Dr. Gerlach noted that personal trainers have to work to obtain clients, so the class helped the students gain a lot of self-confidence. She said by the end of the semester, she could just step back and observe rather than giving her input and guidance.
Carpenter and Spooner said they definitely wants to participate next time the class is offered.
“My end results were fairly unexpected,” Carpenter said. “We did a pre-test and a post-test, and I was amazed to see the weight I lost and strength I gained.”
“My favorite part was working with the students,” Spooner said. “You could tell they wanted to succeed.