Training for health, Training for life: Personal trainers are availbe in the Rec Center to keep you healthy and in shape
Tracy Johnson, staff writer

Day in and day out, many college students are trying to get in shape. It’s not a secret that working with a trainer nearly guarantees results, and it’s more apparent than ever that most celebrities are getting those rock hard bodies with personal trainers. Now, if only we could ALL have a trainer to help us reach out fitness goals. Believe it or not, you can whip yourself into shape, losing that infamous “freshman 15” or bulking up with a personal trainer at our very own Rec Center.

Normally, a trainer would cost in the high hundreds to maybe even thousands of dollars. At the Rec, it’s a fraction of that cost, with the same million dollar results. As part of the Body Works Personal Wellness program, students can have a number of assessments done, along with personal training sessions.

The first option is a nutritional assessment, offered for $12, which is a nutritional analysis based on past eating patterns and amounts, body composition and exercise regiment. The caloric value from the data is then configured based upon the client's goals. For a body composition assessment, which is also $12, skin folds on various parts of your body are measured to find the percentage of body fat versus lean mass. A combination of both body composition and nutritional assessment costs only $18.

Then, of course, there is the fitness assessment/ personal training. Body Works personal trainers will utilize the fitness assessment along with medical history and individual goals to design, implement and monitor a fitness-training program. The fitness assessment consists of body composition assessment, finding your blood pressure, a range of motion test, muscular strength assessment and the nutritional assessment. This assessment, along with personal training sessions, costs between $72 and $150, with a minimum of four sessions and a maximum of ten. Each additional session is $12.

There are three trainers: Travis Sleighter, Charley Alejos and Yael Mourad, all of which are students here at SSU, either majoring in Kinesiology or Pre-Nursing. Being trainers helps them apply the skills they learn in their kinesiology majors, and allows them have a hands-on learning experience in their field.  You can pick which trainer you want, or have one given to you.

Now, just because this is the Sonoma State Rec, and these are students, don’t be fooled; the trainers are all well trained. Travis Sleighter said, “[The trainers] are required to take certain classes before being eligible.”  “I spend time with them teaching them practical hands on experience in all aspects of training from cardio-vascular training to proper program design,” he added. “Before being allowed to work with a client, they are required to go through a 15-hour training period with myself where they have to demonstrate proper knowledge through teaching me, dealing with specific case studies and taking sectional tests.”            

Each trainer is also qualified in other aspects.  “The trainers must be on top of their stuff. Having someone who can't keep a good handle of their schedule and flakes on people won't fly,” says Sleighter. “These are people who exercise themselves and have a love for fitness and who seem like they have a good knowledge base. Lastly, the most important aspect is their optimistic personality because this is a people job you have to be flexible and capable of communicating and meshing with a wide range of individuals.” 

Although a lot of what the trainers learn in their kinesiology classes is applied to their programs, many of the exercises are picked up from other professional sources.  Along with being a trainer at the Rec, Charley Alejos works at 24 Hour-Fitness and has trained with certified trainers, from which he picks up different exercises and ideas.

Alison Hughes, a junior, has been working out with Charley for three weeks.

“I’ve been trying for a while on my own to get in shape, and I never seemed to get the results I wanted. So finally, I decided to whip my butt into shape and try it out,” she said.  “If I was going to get rid of that ‘freshman 15’ and get it tight, I was going to do it right. So far, it’s been great. The workouts are killer, but I’m doing exercises I never would have known about before, with stability balls and so forth.”

Another huge benefit to these programs is making friends. “Charley is great. He’s super friendly and we get along really well, which takes a lot of the intimidation off. I don’t feel like I have a trainer there making me feel weak, he’s my friend. It’s a lot more fun when you can crack jokes back and forth, but he also encourages and pushes you,” Sleighter said. “Trainers are not just repetition counters; we are also friends, motivators, counselors and life changers.”