All those that need a little extra push to help stick to a fitness routine, or a kick in the pants to get started, raise your hand! Good health, wellness, fitness and healthy lifestyles are important for all people of all ages. These fitness gurus will not only inspire you, but help you reach your goals.
Shannon All Around, CPT
Founder of All Around Sports Fitness LLC
Milwaukee
aasportsfitness.com
How did your journey bring you to where you are now?
My fitness journey began at 6 years old when I started playing the game of basketball. I played for 20 years straight. Then I almost broke my foot at a pro try out in Boston, MA. After healing, I did the rehab exercises on my own foot, worked through the pain for about 6 weeks. Then I was back on my feet and healthy to play again. This helped me realize that other athletes, and general people are in need of my expertise.
Do you have a special morning routine?
My morning routine: the second I wake up, I pray for about 10 minutes. Then I shower, get dressed, eat an apple or banana every single morning, drink water, take my vitamins, grab my little doggy Vegas, and head to my gym All Around Sports Fitness. There I open up shop for the day, walk my dog, then complete a morning workout for about 45 minutes. After that, I am ready for my first group to start around 8:30 a.m.
What are your top 3 favorite healthy snacks?
My top 3 healthy snacks are apples, bananas, and unsalted raw nuts.
What is your favorite strength training exercise?
My favorite strength training exercise is a tie between over head jerks, and weighted walking lunges. Both are amazingly affective and result in power and speed. (Both also improve your physique).
What’s the biggest mistake that fitness newbies make?
The biggest mistake fitness newbies make is breaking their consistency. Stick to the plan no matter how busy your schedule becomes, just make the proper scheduling adjustments.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help your clients reach their goals?
My personal training style is hard Work + Dedication= RESULTS. I always tell my clients. “Stick to the regimen every day and the meal plan and the results will be amazing.”
What health and fitness app do you use to help you, or your clients keep on track?
I personally don’t use an app because I have an online virtual class to help keep all of my clients on track. Www.aasportsfitness.com
What are your favorite motivational tips?
My favorite motivational tips is my mantra again: Hard Work + Dedication = RESULTS
Shannon Vick
Certified Personal Trainer and Owner of Iron Fist Fitness, LLC.
Wauwatosa
ironfistfitness.com
How did your journey bring you to where you are now?
My journey started back in High School just having a passion for fitness. I played football so it was a requirement to be in the gym. I decided to utilize that passion to help others so I decided to get Certified as a Personal Trainer. I started in the basement of my home in 2014 and now I operate at a 3,000 square foot facility.
Do you have a special morning routine?
Every morning I wake up and say a prayer just giving thanks to God for putting me in a position to help others and just thanking Him for what he’s given unto me.
What are your top 3 favorite healthy snacks?
My 3 favorite healthy snacks are grapes, bananas and any berries especially raspberries.
What is your favorite strength training exercise?
I love functional fitness so exercises like deadlifts, squats and press are among my favorite exercises to do.
What’s the biggest mistake that fitness newbies make?
I would say the biggest mistake I see people make is they become a Personal Trainer for the wrong reasons, whether it be money or ego. I got into this business because I am truly passionate about people.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help your clients reach their goals?
I’m very energetic and I like to entertain my clients by making them laugh to distract them from the actual workout. I kick their butts and they don’t realize it until the session is over due to me making them laugh. I’m also very passionate about results, so I give my clients homework plus what we do in the gym to ensure they’re getting results.
What health and fitness app do you use to help you, or your clients keep on track?
My favorite app is The Lose App. It’s user friendly and it helps clients get results.
What are your favorite motivational tips?
My favorite motivational tips are just do it. Don’t make any excuses just simply get it done.
Christina Outlay, Ph.D.
Group Exercise Instructor
Madison
How did your journey bring you to where you are now?
I’ve been pretty active – mostly in dance and fitness – most of my life. My mother used to be very heavily into taking fitness classes at the gym and although she was a member, not an instructor, even taught classes at her gym as an emergency sub. She always took me with her when I was little. I was in neighborhood dance teams while growing up and often performed in musicals and special performances in elementary school. In high school, I took dance class. In college, I was involved in dance and fitness, including working out at home. After college, I continued participating in dance – mostly Jazz, Hip Hop and African – and taking fitness classes at the gym. Eventually, my fiancé, now husband, introduced me to lifting heavy weights at the gym.
I didn’t actually become a group exercise instructor until 2009, though. I had been taking Zumba classes for a few years and decided to take an instructor training. I didn’t intend to teach. I only took the training to have access to the routines so I could practice more at home. However, within four months of taking the training, I was teaching my first class. A few months after that, I also started teaching Turbo Kick (choreographed cardio kickboxing) and soon after, got CPR-certified and became certified as a Group Exercise Instructor through the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA). Over the years, I added strength training, TRX suspension training, functional training, more formats like WERQ, R.I.P.P.E.D., PiYo, STRONG by Zumba, Spinning, Les Mills BodyPump, Les Mills SPRINT, and Les Mills CXWORX.
Do you have a special morning routine?
I’m not much of a morning person, LOL. I wake up early but prefer to lay around and ease into the day. But, on days when I need to workout or teach, I start with water and breakfast. Breakfast is something like bacon and eggs or oatmeal with a fried or scrambled egg mixed in. I never workout on an empty stomach – it just doesn’t feel good to me at all. But, if I wake up later and don’t have enough time to fully digest breakfast, I just have something small like a small smoothie or piece of fruit.
What are your top 3 favorite healthy snacks?
Cucumbers with lime juice and Tajín or Chilito. Fruit (pretty much any fruit, but mostly watermelon, pineapple, apple pears or strawberries), and yogurt
What is your favorite strength training exercises?
• Squats or deadlifts
• Pushups
• Kettlebell Thrusters
What’s the biggest mistake that fitness newbies make?
Trying to do too much too soon. If you’re just embarking on your fitness journey, start slow. It’s hard to go from minimal activity to working out every day at 5 a.m. as hard as you can for an hour or longer (for example). But, I know lots of people who set initial goals like that and quickly find themselves overwhelmed. Start with once or twice a week and gradually add on. Allow yourself to be a beginner and recognize that you may not be able to do everything at full intensity when you start. Give yourself time to get to that point. And, if you get off track, forgive yourself and keep moving forward.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help your clients reach their goals?
I am a group exercise instructor, not a personal trainer. So, my approach and exposure to gym members is not as individualized and formal as it would be if I were a personal trainer. As a group exercise instructor, my challenge is to deliver a workout that is safe and effective for a broad range of participants with different body types, physical capabilities, fitness goals, etc. I want to provide coaching that will motivate most of the class to keep going and show different levels of exercises, so everyone feels successful.
As far as my personal style, my goal is to deliver training that is challenging, but fun, educational and entertaining at the same time. Also, as a black woman in the fitness world, where we are in the minority, I am committed to being my most authentic self in every class.
What health and fitness app do you use to help you, or your clients keep on track?
I use an Apple Watch for tracking my workouts. Fitbits are also great, especially for participating in challenges with friends. A regular heart rate monitor with a chest strap (Polar brand monitors are popular) works well, too, for tracking workout intensity.
My favorite overall fitness and nutrition app is MyFitnessPal, and it integrates well with lots of other fitness tracking tools and apps. For people who are on low carb or keto diets, Carb Manager is a great app to use.
What are your favorite motivational tips?
Workout with friends and find a gym atmosphere that is warm and welcoming. This makes a HUGE difference and turns your workout experience from a chore to a social activity and stress reliever. I have so many wonderful friends that I met at the gym! We workout together, hang out together, celebrate life events together, etc. We also motivate each other to keep working out. Many of us are even instructors now and attend each others’ classes. Trust yourself and trust your body. You can do more than you think.
Haywood “Coach Wood” Simmons Jr.
Personal Trainer, Holistic Teacher and Owner of Phitness Plus
Madison
phitnessplus.com
How did your journey bring you to where you are now?
I the age of 16 I was diagnosed were hypertension as suffered from obesity. In college I was confined to medication and a regular regimen of physical checkups. During this time I was very afraid that any exertion May be my final exertion. I have a family history of every metabolic disease known to man hard blood pressure diabetes throat who came here pancreatitis and as a major in political science at the University of Wisconsin I learned a history is the best indicator of the future and through conversations with my family members in particular my father mother I decide to make a change. Peace and calm on my morning routine each one awake and I focus on the me that I wish to be dessert to be and was sent to be a damp oak is on what that would feel like and move to what movements and nutrition will support the vision.
Do you have a special morning routine?
I begin each day with a glass of 16 ounces of water. I eat after 10:30 each morning with a goal of 11:00 a.m. I stop eating by 8:00 p.m. each evening with the goal of 7:00 p.m. I finish each evening with the glass of 16 ounces of lime water to prepare my stomach for bed and rest.
What are your top 3 favorite healthy snacks?
During the day I am conscious of my emotions and breath and muscle tension that accompanies them. My top three favorite snacks include: avocado with onions beets, sprouted lentils with all dark leafy greens along Brazil Nuts and prunes.
What is your favorite strength training exercises?
My favorite exercises are functional in nature such as planks, push-ups, lunges, meditation, and Qigong. The key is to enjoy them and to welcome growth and new experiences most is a logically and psychologically.
What’s the biggest mistake that fitness newbies make?
The biggest mistakes rookies make our believing in fad diet and listening to others more than listening to themselves. Most believe that that is their enemy when it is their friend in more ways than.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help your clients reach their goals?
We help down reset their habits and focus on the you that they wish to be. We start by simply a dressing their daily schedule to make Room for the new life this began by a process we call the waters. This is the phase where we introduce proper hydration and an excessive amount of macro nutrients and electrolytes.
What health and fitness app do you use to help you, or your clients keep on track?
MyFitnessPal has been a long time favorite and I have also used an application that may still be around name spark people.
What are your favorite motivational tips?
To be the example that generations can learn from.
Uchenna Jones
Owner of Unique Fitness Transformations and
Executive Director of Madison Gospel 5K Foundation
Madison
How did your journey bring you to where you are now?
My journey began just before my second son’s 2nd birthday. I had a strong urge to make a change in my life. I was not pleased at the time with my health state. So, since October of 2016 I have been diligently working on being a better me.
Do you have a special morning routine?
My morning routing includes either a 3-5 miles run or 3- to 5-mile walk. I try to do this at least three-to-four times per week.
What are your top 3 favorite healthy snacks?
My three favorite snacks are a salad, cauliflower mash potatoes and mozzarella sticks with some baked chicken.
What is your favorite strength training exercises?
My favorite strength training exercises are the kettlebell swings and Kettlebell squats. It is an all-around great workout for both the upper and the lower body.
What’s the biggest mistake that fitness newbies make?
One mistake that many individuals make that are new to exercise is that they go hard in their workouts and exhaust themselves instead of pacing themselves. I constantly remind those that I have worked with that slow and steady always produce the best results.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help your clients reach their goals?
My personal training style is that I like to either work in small groups or do some one on one training. I don’t like to only give instruction and then watch my client workout. Rather, I like to workout with my clients. I definitely make sure that my clients have good form, but I also like to show them that I too am learning and growing in my fitness journey. One of the best reviews I received from a client was from a young woman in her 40s. She told me that she enjoyed the way I trained her because I workout with her. She enjoyed the fact that there were certain exercises that I too struggle with. I recognized from that it is ok to show your clients some vulnerability. It’s ok not to be a master at every type of exercise.
What health and fitness app do you use to help you, or your clients keep on track?
I like my clients to use MyFitnessPal. It is a wonderful app that keep track of nutrition goals. Also, this same app contains excellent blog information that offers great tips on exercise and nutrition.
What are your favorite motivational tips?
When life gets hard, get running. I encourage all my clients to create realistic small and big goals. Next, I ask my clients to create a reward system so as they achieve their small goals they can celebrate their accomplishments as they strive to achieve their ultimate goal. Additionally, I require all my clients to purchase a journal to keep track of their mental health, and their physical accomplishments. Lastly, I encourage my clients to surround themselves with likeminded people. I encourage my clients to workout with their family and friends outside of me. This ensures that they will be able to maintain their fitness goals the longer they stay committed to working out.
Yoshi Barnes
CEO of SPORTMYFITNESS
Wauwatosa
@yoshibarnes
How did my journey bring you to where you are now?
It has been such a journey building this innovative reputation of physical and mental development in Milwaukee. Since I was a kid about 4 years old, I have been active. I played most of all sports growing up but fall in love with one. Basketball. I received a full basketball scholarship to San Jose State. Where I learned that life was a sport and every day we practice to be great at it. It has been 8 years since I became a certified personal trainer and 4 years since decided to go on my own and make a business and brand that people wouldn’t forget. SPORTMYFITNESS. From working out at Lifefitness, LA Fitness, the YMCA, Experience Fitness and other gyms, to now having my own Gym. It has taken a lot of NO’s, rejection, Failure, and quitting. Once I fully understood that wellness was my purpose and mission, there was no turning back. I had to find a way to make it work for me. All people could benefit from wellness. Kids, Adults and elderly. My goal then become to service them all. To use fitness as a tool to teach other lessons. Rather than be physical health, mental health, emotional health, psychological health, and community health.
Do you have a special morning routine?
My first thought in the mornings is to pray and be thankful. I shower, get dressed, and head out to one of my favorite spots called Highland Café for coffee, breakfast, and to read. I have done this for the last 4 years of my life. I go there for the people mostly. They have great energy and welcome me every day. It feels like my little community. A happy place. I’ve got so much work done there. Like, It’s my little office outside the gym. Before I start my day with other people and my clients reading really gets me started. I fill me up to pour into others. Then I have my first client at either 7am or 8am. The day starts for them.
What are your top 3 favorite Healthy snacks?
My go to snacks is apples and peanut butter, Avocado and tomato toast, and a fruit smoothie.
What is my favorite strength training exercise?
Deadlift is my top favorite exercise. It trains the whole body. From your legs, gluts, core, back, and arms. It a highly effective lift to burn more calories and build strength.
What is the biggest mistake fitness newbies make?
I would say the biggest mistake is to stop educating yourself. You must become more than a trainer. You become a nutritionals, a therapist, Friend and coach. Fitness is forever changing and so are people. Staying educated will keep you growing, your cliental and business growing.
How would you describe your personal training style and how do you help you clients reach their goals?
I approach all my clients with myself being open, transparent, and confident about them. I am the type of training that believes wellness starts in the mind. So, I psychologically have to motivate them. I interact with them during workouts, I ask deep questions, and always follow-up. I like to join in on the fun. It helps make the workouts fun for them and go by faster. They say. I love to inspire and motivate so not only am I doing the work with them, I speak it over them. I am old fashion still and like to write goals down. It’s something with, thinking it and writing it.
What health and Fitness app do you use to help me or my clients keep track?
Like I said up top I still love to write things down. I give all my clients the opportunity to meet once a month to write down our weekly or month goals. We schedule follow ups to meet face to face to go over old ones and create new one. I’ve been a trainer for a long time and for me apps don’t do it for me. I have had a Apple, Polar, and Garmin watches and apps. I know some of my clients use there iWatch, nike app, or Myfitness Pal. I found that usually a nutrition app would be more beneficial.
What is your favorite motivational tip?
To gain, maintain, or to lose IT ALL TAKES WORK! That means to me that not matter your circumstances if you want to be better, if you want to keep something, or let go you, must do the work that only you can do. … Chase your purpose and you’ll arrive at happiness.
