Over the weekend, the industry honoured personal trainer and QLD grazier ‐ Joy McClymont
Joy McClymont, a personal trainer and grazier, took Fitness Australia’s highest personal trainers’ honour at last Friday’s (14 October) Awards Dinner at Sydney’s Royal Randwick Racecourse – the Queenslander taking the #ActiveAchievers title.
Standing onstage as part of an inspirational class of 2016 State and Territory winners, Joy’s effort to bring people in remote communities together to train via technology resonated with judges and all those present alike.
“I was humbled to be on stage with all of those other finalists,” said Joy. “To be announced as the national winner was a total shock, but a huge honour.”
The 2016 winner described the impact of her training on people in rural and remote place around QLD and other Australian locations as providing a ‘massive amount of connectedness and a feeling that they’re not alone on this fitness journey’.
“We make the impossible become possible by reaching people that can’t access gyms because of location, lifestyle or time, with live workouts.”
Wendy Hick, Joy’s client, who lives hundreds of kilometres outside QLD’s Mount Isa nominated her for this Award, describing Joy as positive and empowering influence during a time of drought.
“She gave me an outlet for hope through exercise,” said Wendy. “It’s a lovely feeling, to think that what I do is recognised on a wider scale,” Joy said. “It all helps my message that you can achieve fitness wherever you live, that distance is no barrier.”
Wendy was supported by her trainer remotely via podcasts, live internet workouts, phone calls and printed materials.
#ActiveAchievers recognises the outstanding work that fitness trainers and instructors do to help their communities live a more active, healthy lifestyle.
Fitness Australia CEO, Bill Moore said the awards represented everything that is good about the industry.
“Joy is making the best use of technology and bringing it to people in remote areas,” Bill said. “Together they bridged the gap of isolation. Joy and Wendy’s story is the pinnacle of how a trainer and client connection can be so effective and supportive, even from hundreds of kilometres away. We’re extremely proud of the impact Joy has had on her clients.”
Watch Joy’s interview right after she won the National #ActiveAchievers Award:
Watch Joy’s video about her and her client training: