Choose your challenge.
Achieve your dreams.
Sea kayak Coaching & Fitness Coaching in a supportive, constructive, creative and positive environment.
About me:
My passion and commitment can be summed up in the phrase “She believed she could, so she did”. I have a firm belief that we can all do anything we set our minds to, if we work hard enough: as a coach I see my role as a facilitator, helping clients reach their goals that little bit faster or with greater ease than they otherwise would.
Sea Kayaking & Coaching |
Fitness & Coaching |
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I have been kayaking since 2003, and pursued the sport with characteristic enthusiasm- or what some might call obsession. After thousands of miles in a sea kayak I took the plunge in 2013, and turned it into my job, coaching and guiding clients, collaborating with other coaches and travelling to symposiums around the UK and beyond. I am also very proud to be an Associate Instructor at Glenmore Lodge, the Scottish National Outdoor Training Centre.
In 2015 I kayaked, walked and cycled ‘Right Round Scotland’, raising £2000 for Scottish Mountain Rescue in the process.
In my own time, I also enjoy paddling white water and surf, and have recently begun competing in my surf kayak; I was delighted to be selected to represent my country as a member of the Scottish Surf Kayak Team. In 2017 I became the first woman in Scotland to achieve the combination of British Canoeing Performance Sea Kayak Coach award (UKCC Level 3), and Advanced Water Sea Kayak Coach award. The Performance Sea Kayak Coach Award (UKCC L3) certificates a coach to work with students in an individualised manner on a long-term programme. It involves profiling, goal setting, working with each student on their own goals, understanding how they learn and respond to coaching, and equipping them for long-term development beyond the programme. The Advanced Water Sea Kayak Coach award assesses a coaches ability to work with students over a series of progressive coaching sessions in the Advanced (5 star) environment. The two awards combined result in a remit similar to the (now discontinued) 'old' BCU Level 5 award. I have recently qualified as a Nutrition & Weight Management Advisor, and Level 3 Personal Trainer.
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I’m not like many Personal Trainers out there. You won’t find a paragraph in here telling you that ‘my life has been all about fitness’; nor will you find any photos of a perfect body.
I’m a human being, and I’ve struggled with my weight and fitness all my life. As a result, I’ve picked up a lot of understanding along the way, about nutrition, about exercise, about fitness, about how hard it can be feeling overweight & unfit, and how tough - but rewarding - it is to improve your strength and fitness, reduce body fat, build confidence and achieve your goals. I’m 44 years old, and live just north of Inverness with my partner Mark, and our Border Collie Riof. I’ve been active for most of my life, but I wouldn’t describe myself as having been fit until relatively recently. My fitness and weight has fluctuated over the years. I'd dabbled with gym-going, but never really enjoyed it. Then a couple of years ago, a friend who had qualified as a Personal Trainer offered to train me: you can read more about this personal journey in my other blog, thebiggirlblog.wordpress.com 
Eventually I began to lose patience with my local, council-run gym: the half-hour drive each way; the waiting around for others to finish their sets. I decided to set up a small gym in a shed, in our garden.
Two years on, and the shed has grown somewhat... Then one day it occurred to me that I could pass my passion for movement on to others. Using the same coaching skills that I employ every day on the water, I could help other people use their bodies more efficiently, to build strength and to be fit for life. I love running & cycling, kayaking, paddle boarding, lifting weights and enjoying the feeling of moving well. I also have a weakness for cake and a good cup of coffee. If you've read this far, the chances are you're interested in Personal Training. Don't be put off if you hate gyms (I did) or don't have access to a gym: training can happen anywhere.
(Qualfications gained through Future Fit) |