As a long time staff member of the Bond Wellness Center (BWC), Meredith Stephens has assisted in the transition of several BWC members into BWC instructors.
“Maybe they initially came in to increase their fitness, or maybe they had a weight loss goal and the developed a passion for exercise,” she says. “I developed a training program for them that gave them the basic information they needed to become fitness instructors.”
Meredith has been with BWC since before it opened, beginning in September of 2000. Since then she has done a little bit of everything in the Center.
“I have worked in PT (physical therapy), in fitness, I’ve run group fitness and aquatic programming. I managed the Center for a year and a half. I have pulled back now and currently supervise Massage Therapy and work three days a week.”
With a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Physiology, a Master’s degree in Physical Therapy, she is also a licensed massage therapist, certified pilates instructor, personal trainer and group fitness instructor.
Meredith’s fitness career started when her enthusiasm for exercise made her decide to enroll in an 8-week personal trainer certification program back in 1993. “After finishing it I was afraid they would be unleashing me on an unsuspecting public. I learned enough to know that I needed more schooling to be good at this profession; I needed to go back to school and get a degree.”
School led to work in Massachusetts as a physical therapist, but when she moved to New Hampshire she saw an ad for a part-time position in cardiac rehab at the new Wellness Center in Peterborough. Instead, she was hired as a full time exercise specialist and was put in charge of group fitness programming. ” Since there were so few of us then, I taught many classes! And, I helped develop many more, some of which, like the ABC’s class, are still on the schedule today.”
In addition to seeing members becoming instructors, Meredith sees significant transformations every day. She has seen members with arthritis who have been able to put off joint replacement surgery with regular, targeted exercise and good self care. “I have seen some people put off surgery for several years, while maintaining or improving their function.”
“Others I see come in here taking medications for high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol and I have seen it over and over again where they are able to reduce or even come completely off their medications due to regular exercise. They have lost weight and their body is functioning much better!”
Meredith keeps up her own exercise regimen, making sure she gets time on the fitness machines, some weight training and, lately, she’s committed herself to a yoga practice in the early mornings, targeting specific areas like her hamstrings and back. “Believe it or not, I’m not getting any younger and I’m noticing a tendency to stiffen up.”
She’s also recently recommitted herself to a diet that is mainly vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, with small amounts of chicken or fish.
“I was once overweight and have that tendency in my family. Even when I used to teach 10 classes a week, I was always careful about what I ate. I do have a thing for sweets, though, so I have cut way back on my sugar intake. That’s hard, because I love cookies! But, you do get used to it.”
ShareThis