Last month, “Fit Fest” was hosted in the UWO Student Recreation and Wellness Center from the 26th to the 29th. Fitness professionals and aspiring fitness professionals were encouraged to attend.

Fit Fest is hosted by the National Exercise Trainers Association, a nonprofit organization recognized by the NCCA, the National Commission for Certifying Agencies, in which trainers can get certified in different areas of fitness, while continuing to receive education credits and expanding their knowledge and expertise.

At Fit Fest, one can get certified or earn credits in different areas of fitness like personal training, group exercise instructor training, wellness training, yoga foundations, indoor cycling and more.
There were also more specific events like exercises for arthritis, trauma-sensitive yoga, a kettlebell specialty certification, foam roller pilates, senior fitness and more.

Many of the SRWC trainers and instructors attended the event because of the value it provided. Jordan Mooney, the fitness services coordinator at the SRWC and the host of Fit Fest, said the event was important and a rare opportunity.

It only happens once a year in each area, and normally events of this size with this level of educational opportunities happen in larger cities like Chicago or the Twin Cities.
As Mooney and the SRWC are the hosts of this event, his 20 employees got to attend workshops free of charge.

“Without these comped registrations, many of my students wouldn’t have the means necessary to attend an event like this and obtain their Yoga Foundations or Personal Trainer certification,” Mooney said. “I get to send students to these awesome workshops where they develop professionally in the fitness industry.”

Rachael Cupp, student and yoga instructor at UWO, received insight into a higher level of training at the event.

“I did a 20-hour training but it was a peek at what the 200 would look like,” Cupp said. “I now know that it will be worth my time to go for my 200-hour certificate in yoga and I will gain even more knowledge.”

For students at UW Oshkosh that don’t work for the SRWC, it is still very important to see that their personal trainers or the leader of their workout class has gotten proper training to instruct them.

Mooney says that after SRWC employees attend these workshops, “they get to put those certifications to use here at the SRWC, which in turn enhances our program offerings for the UWO community and ultimately leads to a healthier campus.”

Cupp believes that having certifications like those offered at Fit Fest show she is committed to teaching proper techniques and invested in the well-being of her students.