My name is Jannette La Sota.  I am a lifelong resident of New York with a BBA from Baruch College.  I became interested in fitness over 30 years ago after seeing pictures of the first Ms. Olympia contest, which ultimately became the inspiration behind me joining a gym and starting to work out.  Once I started hitting the weights, I knew that fitness would always be a part of my life.

For the past 26 years I have focused my passion for helping others into a very rewarding career as a civil servant in NYC.  In 2009, I began planning my second career which I thought would be in accounting; but the more I planned, the more I realized that my heart just wasn’t into this type of work.  During that time, I was a member of the gym where the American Academy of Personal Training is located.  It was hard not to notice the AAPT students in class on the gym floor because they always appeared to be having a great time.  After several weeks of observing the AAPT classes, I had an A-HA moment…the best choice for a second career would be one that brought my passion for helping others and fitness together – personal training!

I started researching my options to becoming a personal trainer and was surprised to discover that most programs relied on a self study course and exam.  I didn’t see how I could become a qualified and confident trainer by simply reading a book.  That is when I decided American Academy of Personal Training was the right place for me.

I loved being a student at AAPT because it allowed me to take what I learned in the classroom about anatomy, movement patterns, program design, and nutrition and apply it  hands-on in the gym.  Learning this way gave me the confidence to start training clients immediately after completing the course.

Since graduating from AAPT in May 2010, I’ve been busy!  I’ve continued to build my personal training education by attending various fitness workshops and classes, and have been pursuing a nutrition certification through Precision Nutrition.  In September 2011, I established my own fitness and nutrition coaching business, Enrichment Fitness, and will be opening a training studio within the next few months.  I was recently recognized as a leading fitness expert by America’s PremierExperts® and have written a chapter in a fitness book to be published later this year.  Life is good!

Thanks to my education at the American Academy of Personal Training, I am a successful fitness professional!

Job Posting Announcement:  Two gyms in NYC are looking to hire personal trainers! One is looking for trainers who have experience working with children and would prefer applicants have completed continuing education courses on training children.

Please contact Nazira Bhaiyat if you are interested: nbhaiyat@aapt.edu or 212-242-2278

Results are in!  We had many participants in our April Social Shout Out BUT not one person completed all requested “shout-outs”.  Perhaps the contest was asking a bit much?  No worries, you will all have another shot in our June social shout out so please stay tuned!

Although there weren’t any “winners”, we recognize that many did give it the old college try and for that we are very appreciative; therefor, $50 gift certificates will be awarded to the two who shouted the loudest…David Tineo – NY & Kevin Webb – Boston.  Way to go guys!

Resistance bands are a great way to assist you or your client in developing pull-up strength.  There are several varieties of bands available but the common theme is that they work by reducing the amount of body weight that you need to lift.

As the band stretches further it develops more tension and has the effect of making you feel “lighter”.  As you lift yourself higher the band becomes shorter and has less of a lifting effect.  Depending on how the band is used, such as putting your foot on the band and stretching it further or using your knee (applying less tension) as you get stronger, it will allow you to be more successful in achieving more sets and repetitions.  There are different colors associated with various resistance levels; the greater the tension the easier it is to do.  As you progress you would use the bands with less resistance requiring you to lift more of your own body weight.

Weight equivalent information from Power Systems:

Micro Mini / Orange bands = 2-6 lbs.
Mini / Red bands = 5-25 lbs.
Monster Mini / Black bands = 10-35 lbs.
Light / Purple bands = 30-50 lbs.
Average / Green bands = 65-85 lbs.
Strong / Blue bands = 80-100 lbs.
Monster / Black bands = up to 200 lbs.

The primary target areas for pull-ups (wide-grip & close-grip) involve movements around the shoulder, shoulder girdle and elbow; so in general the upper/mid back and arms will be affected the most.

Some websites that offer resistance bands:
www.rubberbanditz.com
www.performbetter.com
www.fwonline.com
www.powersystems.com

My name is Conrad Sanchez.  I grew up between France and Spain, and graduated with Master’s degree in Management from the University of Bordeaux. After almost a year working in finance in London, I transferred to my New York office to be closer to my younger brother. In 2007, a very bad time to be in finance, I decided to explore something a bit different; I got a job as an Executive Assistant for a billionaire. I always enjoyed helping people and thought this would be a good way to build my skills in the business world. In this new role, I traveled all over the world and worked very long hours and weekends just to find out that the personal trainer who also traveled with us, only worked 2 hours a day earning as much as I did. This got me thinking…

Growing up in Europe, I was always very active.  I played basketball all my life; and my father, instead of grounding me and sending me to my room without supper, would make me shoot 100 free throws.  That kept my skills sharp!  Throughout my childhood, personal training wasn’t even a thought for a career though looking back it was a great fit for me. In 2009, my career came to a halt when I got laid off from my Executive Assistant position.  This turned out to be a blessing in disguise; I had time and savings to pursue personal training, a career combining both things I am passionate about – helping people and being active.

I looked into several certifications but it seemed to me unimaginable to study for a few short weeks and take a test online and call myself a good, qualified trainer. Then I discovered the American Academy of Personal Training, a school I believed would be ideal to get my personal training career started right. I really appreciated the idea of training fellow classmates half of the day and learning about physiology, nutrition, anatomy, and bio-mechanics the other half.   I was sold!

After graduating from AAPT in December 2009, I have continued to keep myself educated and informed taking a variety of classes as often as possible: post rehab training, protective spine exercises, pre/post natal training, training children, marathon training, training older populations. I also got certified by the American College of Sports Medicine, and by Functional Movement Screening.   I am now looking into graduate programs to get a Master’s in Exercise Physiology.  I believe everybody should continue their education.  You can never know enough in this ever evolving industry!

As for my personal training career…after graduating, my instructor and mentor Camille Eroy-Reveles shared with me her idea of creating The L Trainer, a premium in-home training business where the team of trainers meet every week to further their education and share ideas and experiences.  I was on board!  It has now been one year working as both co-manager and trainer.  I am also training both male and female basketball athletes at Hunter College and I recently got hired to train patients with diabetes at the Friedman Diabetes Institute.

I love my job.  I thank the American Academy of Personal Training for getting me off to the right start in my new career path. AAPT provided me with the necessary education to feel confident and knowledgeable to train a variety of clientele.  I couldn’t be happier!

We are excited to announce our Springtime Social Shout-out promotion.

During the month of April, you will have a number of opportunities to help promote AAPT with online “social shout-outs” and win a $100 gift certificate to Paragon Sports in New York or City Sports in Boston!  Here is what you need to do:

1. Like us on Facebook (if you haven’t already)
2. Share an AAPT blog post on your personal Facebook page.  There will be at least four AAPT blog posts featured on our Facebook page over the next four weeks. Catch one of those posts and share! It’s easy—just click on the option to “share” below the post and follow the prompts to share it on your Facebook page.
3. Follow us on Twitter.  Send us a shout-out on Twitter by including @theacademy_pt in your tweet, along with a link to AAPT’s web page www.aapt.edu.

Plus, get bonus points for:

• Adding comments here in our AAPT blog posts. You must say something related to the post. Also be sure to mention that you are or were an AAPT student and when you graduated. Each comment is worth 1 point. Open to both current students and alumni.
• Facebook check-ins. When you go to class, check-in up to 2 times each week. Open to current students only.

Points will be awarded and tracked for each “social shout-out.”  Those with the most accumulated points will be eligible for a random drawing. The winner of that drawing will receive the prize – one in Boston & one in New York.  Winners will be announced in early May.  Please email aaptsocial@gmail.com with questions.

Happy spring socializing!

When you attend AAPT not only do you get the best personal training education, you also get job assistance!  Some of the finest and most exclusive fitness clubs regularly attend the AAPT job fairs seeking our best and brightest graduates and alumni.  Job fairs are hosted for every graduating class at the end of each session; and students and alumni bring their resumes and their A-game to find meet with interested employers.  Check out some photos just posted on AAPTs Facebook fanpage from the latest job fair in NYC.