During the last part of the 80's and for most of the 90's I was a freelance fitness professional, personal trainer and national workshop presenter, officially retiring on Wednesday, April 23, 1997. During my 8 1/2 year career, I maintained a Certified Fitness Appraiser (C.F.A.) designation through the Ontario Association of Sports & Exercise Sciences. During the same period, I held certifications with the American Council on Exercise and the Ontario Fitness Council.
In 1990 I was selected as The Sports Clubs of Canada's Instructor of the Year and in 1991 I chose to compete in the Reebok Canadian National Aerobic Championships, where I placed 9th in the Men's Singles Division.
I took a keen interest in running upon retiring from the fitness industry (something I thought I would never enjoy) and to my surprise became quite good at it. In 1997 I competed in my first 5k race, The Pride & Remembrance Run, and to my complete surprise, placed in the top 20 from over 450 entries!!
In 1998, I placed 35th overall—from of a total 568 runners (17th in my age category)—and bettered my time of 20:02 from the year previous by over 1/2 minute, finishing in a time of 19:27:20!! I even garned the glory of appearing on the front cover of Toronto's fab Magazine in promoting the 1998 event.
My keen interest in the Run led me to become involved on an organizational level. In 1998 I joined the Pride and Remembrance Association as I member of the Board of Directors and served as their Communications Director until the Fall of 2000.
These days you can find me swimming at the Jimmy Simpson Recreational Centre and working out at The Training Room, located in downtown Toronto.
