Day 20 of 132

I think it was in Friday's post I mentioned that I was considering a new career path, or should I say, a career path in general because what I've been doing, I don't want to make a career out of.

Anyway, a few years ago I had thrown around the idea of becoming a fitness class instructor, likely aerobics but I had other interests too, which I could do part time and conveniently would help me stay in shape. Well, I hadn't been able to stop mulling over that idea for the last week now. I really do not want to go back to doing data entry/clerical work and I want to find something that I am passionate about, when it hit me on Friday morning; maybe I should be a personal trainer?

I remember when I first started down my weight loss journey in 2005 the dietician and the nutritionist/personal trainer I went to see. I was very disappointed in both and felt royally ripped off.

The dietician, first recommended to me by my general doctor was of no help at all and cost $100 for the half hour visit. I hate to say this and I am ashamed that I had these thoughts running through my mind when I went to see her but I couldn't get around the fact that I was paying to get nutritional advice from someone who was a good 50 or more (I was in the high 170's at the time) pounds heavier than me. (Please don't take offense, I really did/do feel bad about it.) And what sort of put the nail in the proverbial coffin with our meeting was that all she did was hand me a photocopy of the Canadian food guide pyramid and then rambled off what was written on the paper and basically sent me on my merry way.

I had such high hopes when I booked an appointment with a nutritionist/personal trainer at the gym near my Husbands work. I thought that this person would know what they were doing, would give me great advice and encouragement, that I would end up making it to my goal in no time.

Well, not so much. Although she did give me a good general idea of how to portion my meals by fiber, protein, carb, veggie, fruit, dairy, (you get the idea) that was about it. That was only for the first meeting, the second was to go in and give her an update on my progress and nothing else (really? I paid $75 to go in and read off my results for the month?) but I tried to get advice on how to deal with my Hypothyroidism where it concerned my diet. Guess who had to do all the research for that? Not her, which is why I cancelled the third meeting; I wasn't about to lose another $75 just to give her all the information I took the time to find. Not to mention that it's hard getting counseling from someone saying they know what it's like, when they have not been over weight themselves.

Ultimately, given my experience with my own weight loss journey, my losses, my stumbles along the way and my accomplishments, I feel like I could really understand and truly be able to help someone in the position of just starting out on their own weight loss journey. (I don't mean this in an egotistical way.) I love the idea of mapping out a fitness program and meal plans to help someone attain their goal. I'm good at planning and organizing and at least I'd be willing to do the research for any perspective client on health conditions to better serve them, than the people I had to deal with. I like the idea of going on the journey with them, since a personal trainer can actually be there to help with their workouts (if they so desire) rather than just handing out a food guide and sending you on your way.

I spent all weekend looking into it. I'm planning on e-mailing some gyms this week to see which companies they prefer their trainers to be certified from, whether or not it has to be University training (which I could only find at McGill in Montreal and I can not afford McGill courses by any means, forgoing a lottery win of course) or whether they are ok with correspondence training as long as the final certification comes from the company of their choice.

I feel really good with the idea of becoming a personal trainer; I kind of get little butterflies in my stomach at the thought of it.

Anyway. So, there's my news, as promised from Friday's post. Any thoughts or opinions you have, please feel free to share. I'd love to hear them, good or bad, just lay 'em on me. :)

Exercise:

CE BC3
Routine: 32 mins
In Zone (127-167bpm): 14 mins 45 secs
Average Heart Rate: 125
Max Heart Rate: 159
Calories Burned: 194

Meals:

Breakfast - 450 calories

Snack - 65 calories

Lunch - 330 calories

Dinner - 435 calories

Snack - 50 calories

Total Calorie Intake - 1330