Introducing TrainerGirl by Shari Zisk

Trainergirl is an award-winning initiative to cultivate the powerful women of the future by instilling strong health and fitness values in young girls who may otherwise not have the opportunity to get started on the right foot.

How it works

TrainerGirl is a volunteer program. It is a female certified personal trainer who volunteers to spend eight weeks mentoring a young girl (aged 13-17) on leading a physically active lifestyle. TrainerGirl focuses on young girls who have an unusually high number of barriers that prevent them from leading an active lifestyle. There is no cost for a young girl to participate in the TrainerGirl program.

Who are Trainergirls?

A young girl (13-17) with a lack of financial resources to participate in organized sports or physical activities, possibly with a lack of female support in the household plus one or more of the following:

• lack of self-confidence to participate in school-provided physical activity programs
• Distorted body image
• Low self-esteem
• Untrained social skills
• History of physical inactivity
• Obesity

The TrainerGirl Curriculum

By the end of the 8-week training program (8×1 hour sessions), each TraineeGirl will:

• Understand the five components of fitness
• Understand the elements of good posture, and how it relates to how her body looks, feels, and performs
• Understand how different types of physical activity influence how her body looks, feels, and performs
• Know the F.I.T.T.  formula for training each component of fitness
• Know her heart rate training zone, how to check her own heart rate and how it relates to her fitness goals
• Co-create a custom list of affordable physical activity opportunities in her community
• Have a customized fitness program that can be done in the home or community at no cost and with minimal equipment

The full Trainergirl program and manual will be available soon!

How to participate

Trainer girls must be nominated by a teacher, counselor, or church leader who completes a nomination form. TrainerGirls cannot apply themselves or be nominated by a family member, although parental release is required for participation.

TrainerGirls are contacted by their Trainer and meet at a TrainerGirl sponsor facility. (A pre-approved  fitness facility)

TrainerGirls are responsible for their participation. There are no fees whatsoever for participation. TrainerGirl sponsor facilities permit eight complimentary drop-in sessions at their facility when accompanied by a TrainerGirl trainer.

Sponsor Facilities

 

More info

Meet the Trainers (coming soon)

Sponsor Facilities (coming soon)

Info for trainers (coming soon)

Info for nominators (coming soon)

Info for Facilities (coming soon)

Info for TrainerGirls (coming soon)

 

Commentary by founder Shari Zisk

I change people’s lives every day.  As a personal trainer my daily job description includes making people feel better about themselves and how they look, feel and perform.  I reduce blood pressure,  improve posture,  battle depression, lower golf scores and tighten and tone a lot of bottoms. It is truly rewarding work, not to mention the reciprocal benefit where I am blessed with the opportunity to spend a significant amount of time with some extraordinarily successful and interesting clients.

However,  only a select few can take advantage of the guidance of a professional personal trainer.  The clientele of personal trainers, while wholly deserving, are generally in very advantageous lots in life where income is expendable and time is often at their beck and call. Generally, they are over 30 years old, established in a career, and most often seeking the guidance of a personal trainer in pursuit of aesthetic improvements. The classic personal training client is hardly a case for philanthropic attention.

Enter TrainerGirl, which recognizes that a shift in the utilization of personal training resources cannot only alter the course of life for many individuals but also the ability to influence entire communities and even nations. TrainerGirl aims to reach the ‘client’ who has not yet had the opportunity to develop behaviors destructive to their physical and psychological health. The result: strong, healthy & empowered young women. The women of the future.

TrainerGirl is not a smoking cessation program; it is not a weight loss program, it is not a buddy program, it is not a self-esteem program.  It is all of the above.  TrianerGirl is not a parent or a teacher, nor is it a multimillion-dollar Public Service Announcement. It is not an ‘informative website’ or a ‘get active’ poster hanging in the girl’s high school locker room; there are no girly cartoon characters wearing rollerblades or riding a bike. TrainerGirl is a real trainer, a real girl. It is me, reaching out and holding the hand of a young girl and guiding her in overcoming the unusual number of barriers before her to set the foundation to lead a healthy and active lifestyle.  This is how young girls become powerful young women. Women who love their bodies and themselves are in control of their bodies and their life. This is grassroots programming at its best. Anything else is fluff, well-meaning, ridiculously over-funded fluff.

Looking for a TrainerGIrl Program near you? We are working on a program coming soon to a community near you!

TrainerGirl II

Trainer Girl II supports older TrainerGirls (ages 17-19) who developed a passion for their fit and active lifestyle and now want to continue in the field and share their wisdom about healthy lifestyles. TrainerGirl II provides support and education for passionate young women to achieve certification as fitness leaders so that they may gain employment in their communities as fitness leaders. 

This program includes: 

-Educational materials

-Coaching

-Exam Preparation