Extol Sports August 2017 | Page 46

GET A GLIMPSE How can you positively impact people’s lives? Amy Wilson knows. AMYWILSON LONG TERM CARE CONSULTING PHARMACIST/GROUP FITNESS DIRECTOR/FITNESS INSTRUCTOR/MASTER TRAINER FOR R.I.P.P.E.D. I found the Louisville Athletic Center (LAC) when I moved to the area from Chicago. I knew I wanted to be part of the instructor team when I first walked in to the Westport LAC facility 11 years ago. Since then, I have become the group fitness director at the Taylorsville Road location. The members and staff are my second family. Everyone is so positive and encouraging. I love seeing my regular group participants encouraging and helping new students. I love helping people get healthy and fit. As a pharmacist, I don’t want people on medication because of being sedentary. At LAC I can positively impact people to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. I am proud at the age of 46 that I can do more push-ups and jump higher than I could when I was in high school. The biggest challenge for me is taking a day off. As an instructor and master trainer, I am usually working out most days. When I was 29, I ruptured my L5 disc and had to have back surgery. So, it is very important for me to keep my core strong and stay flexible. My goal is to do more recovery workouts such as yoga to increase my flexibility. Photo by David Harrison 44 EXTOL SPORTS / AUGUST 2017 My biggest supporters are my husband, Drue King, and my general manager at LAC Taylorsville, Stephanie VonTrapp. If you are looking to go on a journey to reclaim your health, just know you have to start somewhere. It’s OK to start slow. The most important aspect is you show up. Don’t do it alone, come to class, introduce yourself to the instructor and your fellow classmates. The things I hear the most are: “People will be staring at me and I need to be in shape first.” No, people will not be staring at you. They are concentrating on the instructor and what they, themselves, look like, and you do not have to be in shape first. That is what the class is for – to help you on your journey, to get you out of your comfort zone. I stay fit by doing R.I.P.P.E.D. two to three times a week. It is both cardio and weights, which is so important because as females, we do way too much cardio. Lifting weights increases muscle which increases metabolism. It’s a win-win. I also teach other classes, including Dance Fitness, Cardio Kickboxing, Muscle Sculpting and Pop Pilates, which all help me stay in shape. As for diet, I follow the blood-sugar stabilization program and limit the amount of sugar intake and drink lots of water.