Meet Amanda
Photo by Allison Mundle
Amanda Sterczyk is an author, ACSM certified personal trainer, certified Essentrics® instructor, and creator of The Move More Institute™, an initiative to promote healthy active living by adding more movement/activity/motion to individuals' daily lives. She started teaching group fitness classes in 2010. Amanda has taught men, women and children of all ages, as well as elite athletes. Her slogan is: Move more, feel better.
Background:
Amanda holds a Master's degree in social psychology from Carleton University. Before her career in fitness, she worked in health promotion research and human resources. How did the switch to fitness happen? A university professor who uttered the following statement: “Your generation won’t have one career, you’ll have three to five careers over your lifetime.”
Amanda took his comment to heart and adopted the mantle of “lifelong learner.” So she decided to jump into the fitness world in her early forties as a third career, but not the final one. It was, however, a surprise to people around Amanda. You see, she was not a fan of group exercise. Up to that point, her fitness routines tended toward the solo end of the spectrum: working out in the living room, going for a jog for essential alone time, or long bike rides as a form of transportation.
You read that right: Amanda is not a fan of group exercise. That’s pretty rich, right? Coming from a fitness professional that’s spent nine years teaching group exercise classes. But it’s true. Her thinking went something like this: "I like this workout (Essentrics®) and I feel good when I do it. No one is teaching it in Ottawa. I could complete their distance education, become the first Ottawa Essentrics instructor, and get paid to exercise. The latter would essentially force me to love group exercise. Or kill me in the process."
It didn't kill her, but it opened her eyes to the fitness world and the many underserved populations. And, in 2016, it inspired her to create The Move More Institute™. She has created online courses, workshops, and author multiple books as a result.
Background:
Amanda holds a Master's degree in social psychology from Carleton University. Before her career in fitness, she worked in health promotion research and human resources. How did the switch to fitness happen? A university professor who uttered the following statement: “Your generation won’t have one career, you’ll have three to five careers over your lifetime.”
Amanda took his comment to heart and adopted the mantle of “lifelong learner.” So she decided to jump into the fitness world in her early forties as a third career, but not the final one. It was, however, a surprise to people around Amanda. You see, she was not a fan of group exercise. Up to that point, her fitness routines tended toward the solo end of the spectrum: working out in the living room, going for a jog for essential alone time, or long bike rides as a form of transportation.
You read that right: Amanda is not a fan of group exercise. That’s pretty rich, right? Coming from a fitness professional that’s spent nine years teaching group exercise classes. But it’s true. Her thinking went something like this: "I like this workout (Essentrics®) and I feel good when I do it. No one is teaching it in Ottawa. I could complete their distance education, become the first Ottawa Essentrics instructor, and get paid to exercise. The latter would essentially force me to love group exercise. Or kill me in the process."
It didn't kill her, but it opened her eyes to the fitness world and the many underserved populations. And, in 2016, it inspired her to create The Move More Institute™. She has created online courses, workshops, and author multiple books as a result.