Although I didn’t have a specified project throughout my 72 hour internship. I got the chance to experience multiple different jobs within a fitness related career. I followed alongside my mentors to learn the fundamentals of different positions including, a gym supervisor, sports director, and community planner/ class leader. Starting with my first mentor, I was tasked to help teach a rock boxing class for elders. I had to watch training videos on the equipment that would be used and had to learn the basics of working with clients. On my first day working with the clients, I learned that all of them were above the age of 60 and all were diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease attacks the central nervous system and makes it hard body movement while also causing tremors and other problems. Using the rock boxing class, we helped the clients preform full body stretches and exercises. Along with small forms of cardio activities. I spent time working with the clients one-on-one and got to know them. I learned that when working in a small class, you should get to know your clients. Find out what they enjoy and how they like to spend their free time. This way you can connect on a personal level and make the exercise feel more exciting and less bland. People often preform exercises better in a room full of people their comfortable than not.

 

I assisted the teacher with setting up equipment for the class, and helping with certain exercises. Each client required some help with exercises that required balancing, I often assisted them while doing them. It was important to keep a positive attitude and be happy through the entire class. Because those clients were there by choice, and in order to truly help them, they needed to come back each week. Maintaining there positive attitude toward the class was a big factor in the workout. It’s hard to do any time of workout when your upset or distracted.

 

While staying with this mentor I learned the basics of the facility and how to work one-on-one with clients. With my next mentor, I got to spend more time in the gym. I was taught how to clean the gym equipment and how to maintain working order in the machines, even how each machine worked. Although this job was more sitting around and cleaning, I still enjoyed it as much as my other job. During some of the gym’s slower days, I got the chance to talk with my mentor. She told me how she got involved with the YMCA, and how it has benefited her life in a positive way. I learned that she felt exactly how I fell now about fitness and helping the community. I was able to learn from her exact degree would aid me in getting a job. On our busier days I helped customers use the equipment, told them what muscle group they would be working, and regularly cleaned equipment. I learned how each machine works and even learned how to fix a few of them.

I learned how to be a helpful and positive presence in the gym and how to aid customers with the machines. Knowing how to clean the equipment the right way will be a very valuable skill for any gym that I work at later in life.

 

After being trained in the gym I moved on to my next and final mentor. This is what I was most excited to do, working with the sports director to assist in smaller sports activities including soccer, baseball, basketball, and volleyball. My first day was spent organizing through an outside storage shed that held equipment for the sports. After cleaning the shed I worked behind the scenes to clean the storage and grab huge amounts of soccer balls to inflate. While my first day of helping was kind of dry, we were preparing for a soccer tournament that would take place the next day.

 

As promised the following day, we began to set up the soccer nets and cones. I was excited for the soccer game that would soon begin. Turns out, all of the soccer teams were composed of 4 year olds who were more focused on digging holes rather then kicking the ball. Through the first game I struggled to maintain the children’s interest in the game. But during the second game I got more excited and more involved and felt les nervous. At the end of the day I was able to co-ref three soccer games and learn how to maintain interest in the game.

 

By the end of the internship I was able to learn different positions at a facility that all dealt with fitness in different ways.