Personal Training Team Bios

I have been recreationally involved in sports, weight training and exercise since high school and after I completed my Bachelor of Kinesiology from the University of Calgary, I became a personal trainer in 2013. I have a personal training certification from CSEP and a Pre and Postnatal Fitness Specialist certification from Fit4Two. I am Calgary born and raised, but have travelled throughout North America and Europe. I have travelled to Poland the most since I still have family there.

I have worked with various elementary and junior high schools in the city carrying out various activity sessions with their students, I have worked as a sports camp leader, I worked with cancer survivors through the Thrive Centre at U of C, I led a strength training program for synchronized swimmers with Les Gramantik, and created the Baby and Me Postnatal Fitness registered program here at Repsol Sport Centre.

I am very passionate about the outdoors and spend most of my weekends enjoying them. I snowboard and splitboard in the winters and these two things are the motivation behind my training. I want to participate in these activities as long as I can and I know that fitness training, mobility training, and proper nutrition will help ensure that. My goal as a trainer is to educate my clients about the importance of exercise and physical activity, keep then accountable, and to show them that it does not have to be difficult to maintain. My dream job is to build my own business, where I combine my passion for fitness, helping individuals reach their goals, and my love of the outdoors.​

Ash has been coaching full time since 2009 however has been recreationally involved in the industry since 2003. After completing some studies in Australia, Ash worked under Human Movement Scientist Tom Bruijnen in Amsterdam at a High Performance Training centre and Olympic Weightlifting facility in Amsterdam. There he trained many high profile clients and helped them achieve their body composition goals. The facility was also home to the Netherlands' first athlete to reach the Olympics in 30 years for Olympic Weightlifting and Ash was able to work closely with his coach to learn from his methodology.

Ash then travelled to work in Sao Paulo, Brazil where again he worked in a high performance facility. This training centre was home to Fernando Reis, 2012 London Olympic competitor and Pan-American champion. Ash followed an extensive course under his Cuban coach Luis Lopez detailing cuban methodology and multi year planning and biomechanics. During his stay there, he was also asked to provide a running translation of a course run by the International Weightlifting Federation from English into Portuguese.

Ash is passionate in helping people achieve their goals and he enjoys spending his spare time keeping up to date with new research, practicing olympic weightlifting, travelling and mountaineering, having scaled Mont Blanc at 4800m and Huyana Potosi at 6088m. He hopes to train and plan for some challenging trips to the mountains over the next few years.

Ben is passionate about personal training because he loves helping others and loves the gym. Ben job-shadowed in 2015 with 360 Fitness in Red Deer, was hired in 2016 after receiving his ACE certification and continued into early 2017, all while maintaining a full-time engineering position. His time was spent entirely one-on-one with clients, a format that resonated with him and formed close bonds with my clients.

He finds the fitness industry so fascinating because it’s constantly evolving. This year’s trends may be different from last year, but the science continues to push forward and discover new understanding about the human body.

ABen played, coached and managed a soccer teams over the past 2 decades. He loves to hike, ski or snowboard out in the mountains. He participated in a Spartan Race and Mud Hero, which was a blast.

Fiona received her BSc in Exercise and Health Physiology from the University of Calgary in 1999. Fiona has been working at the Repsol Sport Centre since 2003, first as a weight room attendant, then as a personal trainer. She also worked in the Lifemark Lindsay Park Physiotherapy from 2004-2005 as a kinesiologist. Fiona greatly enjoys working with people who have had injuries, hoping to improve their lifestyle with exercise while alleviating the pain of their injury.

Fiona used to be a competitive swimmer, competing for the University of Calgary Varsity for 5 years. After retiring from swimming, Fiona tried her hand at running and triathlons. Currently she enjoys going cross country skiing, downhill skiing, water skiing and biking with her family.

“I provide my clients with the tools to help them achieve their goals; however I feel that my clients deserve the true credit for their success – after all, they are the ones who put the time and the effort to do the workouts.”

About Me: I am a born and raised Calgarian. I grew up spending most of my time in the mountains hiking, skiing, backpacking, etc. I also played hockey, baseball and soccer. I have also coached baseball and soccer in the past. My love for the outdoors led me to join the ski patrol and I was an active patroller for 15 years and first aid instructor for 12 of those. I was honoured to be on the medical team in Whistler for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Career Goals: To establish myself as a successful fitness coach for both the general public and endurance athletes. I chose this industry to help others achieve their own personal goals and to see them succeed where they thought they couldn’t.

Hobbies: I enjoy hiking, skiing, mountaineering, (really almost anything outdoors). I also enjoy woodworking, leather work, and cooking

Biggest Weight Room Pet Peeve: People who don’t put their weights and equipment away. To me, this is disrespectful to the staff and the other people who use the facility.

Here is the story all about how, my life got flipped-turned upside down, and I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there, I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Cal-gar...y

I want to help you meet your fitness and training goals whatever they may be. My background as a strength and conditioning coach has enabled me to work with a variety of different athletes and clientele. I would like to continue to pursue my education outside of my athletic and sport related goals.

Hobbies: Canadian Skeleton Athlete

Strange Talent: I can touch my right elbow with my right hand.

Biggets Weightroom Pet Peeve: Crossfit

Kat’s background of sport and activity developed though competitive hockey and an array of sports such as basketball, soccer, badminton and snowboarding to name a few. She began her coaching career in high school, coaching girls hockey and continued through university. Since graduating from St. FX in 2011 with a BA in Human Kinetics Kat has gathered experience as an exercise therapist at a physiotherpy clinic and has been personal training since June 2011. Kat puts a strong emphasis on functional weight training so athletes and fitness enthusiasts can develop proper movement patterns and posture to excel their training and prevent any injuries. This past year at Repsol Sport Centre Kat has trained an abundance of clients, small groups and has coached the Aquabelles and Cascade swim groups for drylands training.

The past four years Kat has taken numerous courses to advance her knowledge for her clients. Between strength training, posutural anatomy, program design, TRX R4 Team Trainer, fascia stretch therapy and rehabilitation Kat can use a combination of expertise to challenge and progress beginners or more advanced athletes. In her free time you can catch Kat pumping iron, long boarding, golfing, mountain biking , snowboarding, just about anything to get active and outdoors!

Kat strives to educate people on functional movement patterns for clients to apply to sport and everyday life while motivating athletes to reach their goals faster than they could ever imagine. But let’s have some fun in the making!

I am dedicated passionate personal trainer, coach, Olympian and a 2 time World Championship medalist athlete. In my elite athletic career I have trained with some of the best coaches this world has to offer, during this time I have accumulated invaluable knowledge few will ever attain. I truly know what it takes to succeed and fail. In my bobsleigh career I have won 3 Gold, 3 Silver, 5 Bronze, plus missed the podium at the Turin Olympics by 0.09 seconds. What does this all translate to for you? I intimately understand what it takes to succeed and know how to bring my clients success no matter what their goals or present condition.

Certifications

• Pilates
• Yoga
• Yuma rolling practitioner
• Holistic Coaching

Why do you coach at Repsol Sport Centre?

It enables me to use my skills and knowledge to help athletes preform at their optimum, injury free.

What is your favourite part of Sport?

Sport helps individuals nurture themselves both physically and mentally.

What is on your bucket list of challenges/races and why?

Qualifying for the Boston Marathon!!! Why? I have overcome a few bumps in the road health wise and I want to prove to both myself and others if you set your mind to a realistic challenge it is achievable.

What super human power would you have and why?

Healing touch!  Would it not be awesome to just use a gentle touch and you have healed an injury both mentally and physically.

How do you create the best coaching experiences for your athletes?

By listening to my athletes; understanding their needs and goals and keeping myself informed and up to date.

Loreen earned a Bachelor of Exercise and Sport Sciences and has been working as a personal trainer at the Repsol Sport Centre since 2006. She takes a more holistic approach with her clients by considering their stress levels, sleep patterns, past injuries, nutrition and sources of motivation in creating a more personalized training program. With a focus on proper technique and safety, Loreen strives to make the training environment fun and comfortable, while ensuring her clients reach their goals.

As a former national rhythmic gymnastics team member, coach and provincial level judge, she has always been very active and now enjoys spending her time training and racing triathlons alongside her husband.

Her greatest satisfaction comes when she has motivated a client to push beyond their own perceived abilities to accomplish goals they never thought were possible.

With years of experience and education, Matteo has brought a variety of high performance athletes to their pinnacles, who are currently playing under popular leagues such as: CFL, FIFA, NFL, NCAA, CIS, NHL and the list is ongoing. Not only has he created a positive impression in the world of athletics but fitness as well. He has a passion for creating optimum results alongside with providing positive life changes for any individual looking to lead a healthier lifestyle. “Coach” has experience working with a variety of individuals of all levels.

With respect to athletics, he has played every sport imaginable. One of his favorites is football (soccer). He has had previously played professional soccer in Italy’s second division (Serie B), University-Level for the Mount Royal University Cougars (CIS), as well for the Canadian National Futsal 7 Team (IFA 7). Along with football Matteo has over a decade of Martial Arts experience more particularly in the sport of boxing.

In terms of fitness and aesthetics, Matteo not only had to keep in shape due to his involvement in elite level sports but also a modeling career which he had experience working with Emporio Armani (kids), Sexual Secret Fragrances by Michel Germain, Nike, Aldo, and Adidas. With his personal experience working with fitness and aesthetics, he has consistently been successful been able to assist many individuals in reaching their desired fitness goals.

Some fun facts about Matteo: speaks four languages fluently [Italian, Spanish - Castellano (from Spain), English, and Portuguese (Portugal)], he sings & plays guitar. Weaknesses include: Italian food, wine, and fine pastry shops.

Priti began her education in 2015 with CanFitPro and continued on to Mount Royal University. She will complete her diploma in Personal Fitness Training by June of 2018. She has worked with many athletes and high school groups focusing on performance testing such as VO2max, submaximal VO2, critical power, flexibility tests, muscular strength tests, muscular endurance tests, body composition and much more.

Priti enjoys working with clients who are new to the gym and want to gain experience in weightlifting. I am particularly interested in working with clients to help unleash the confidence and strength that they have!