It’s official, we now open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! – read more
We recently caught up with our resident personal trainer Sally Hunter about all things Paragon Gym and she gave us an insight into her professional and personal life..
After deciding to explore pastures new after my 15-year career within the police force as an officer I qualified as a PT back in 2015. I just felt that I was at a period in my life where I needed to follow my passion and found a real drive in supporting other women to find confidence and self-belief to become the best version of themselves. I am a 48-year-old mother of two fabulous daughters and I have always prioritised staying fit and healthy throughout my career, fitness has been such a huge part of my life for over 30 years and it has spurred me on to compete in several marathons, events such as tough mudder and I have even competed twice within a pro body building formatted event. I also have a passion for horses and being fit and healthy really supports me within my hobbies.
I have been a PT at paragon for 7 years after being introduced to the gym by a friend. I first started training there on the off chance then decided to base myself there as a PT as there weren’t any other PT’s offering this service. I have seen a lot of changes the past two years since Ty has taken over the gym and the transformation has been fantastic. We now have a spacious, clean and friendly environment with a great range of equipment to use, there truly is a special atmosphere out on the gym floor that welcomes people from all backgrounds.
Paragon is my gym family and gives myself and my clients a feeling of belonging, I have real confidence that my clients will always be well looked after even when I’m not there as the staff and other members are always willing to offer help, support and encouragement. Most of my clients were members of other gyms after and after a short while they have decided to solely use Paragon for one reason or another, this is testimony in itself to what Paragon offers. The welcoming atmosphere really helps to put nervous first timers at ease and that’s very unique.
My best advice I can offer to aspiring PTs is remembering every client is an individual and you must be able to cater to their needs, in most cases I am not just a PT, I’m a councillor, an advisor, and even a motivator at times, so there are many important mental as well as physical aspects to cater for within the role. I truly as a PT you are changing people’s lives for the better so providing advice that is individual to them is very important, your knowledge comes from training yourself and learning off others within the industry, you cannot be naïve in any instance and every day is a learning curve. Always be open to learning as the fitness industry is forever adapting and changing.
Social media was always very scary to me but the support I have had off Ty to develop my own social media base has been essential for the growth of my own business. The collaboration with Paragon has enabled me to use a wider platform to showcase myself and my client’s progress. This has also been encouraging for my clients seeing the support they are getting from the gym and seeing their achievements celebrated on Paragon’s social media platforms as well as my own, which has been great motivation for them.
My go to cheat meal has to be fillet steak and chips with tiramisu for dessert.
