Aesthetics and the peach bum selfies.

Becoming a personal trainer (PT) opened up the subject of the body to me and wow, what a battleground it can be. The way we look at our bodies gets in the way of how we look at our health, and I work in an industry where success as PT is often rated not only on your own physique, but on those of your clients too. My body has changed a lot since I became a PT but I didn't set out with this as a goal. I began training to improve my mental health and the changes happened because my inner world changed, slowly over five years, moving outwards to the surface layer of my body. It's been a weird experience entering a profession where despite working to improve mental health, physical shape is looked at and commented on, both postitive and negatively. But a person's true phsyical strength and health can't and shouldn't be judged by the shape of their body. Measuring good mental health is subjective and can't be shown in centimentres, kilograms or in muscle definition. That’s why you won't see me selling programs to get 'toned' arms, a big peachy bum, shapely quads or (heaven forbid) a six-pack. I like those things and appreciate them for what they are, but they are only surface level in terms of strength and wellness.

My approach is more holistic. I am interested in you and your mindset, your self esteem, accountability, and I am led by what you need. We won't take before and after photos, and we can talk about whether to weigh or measure you over time. Why? Because these measurements aren't accurate ways to gauge our overall health. Humans don't fit into numbers.

You are a person inside a body which is why I want to make sure you can develop a sustainable relationship with training that suits you and makes you accountable to yourself, for yourself - and not some projection from me or the fitness industry of how your body should look.