Meet The Team | Carla Gilder Fitness

MEET THE

TEAM

Hi, I'm Carla Gilder; business owner and fitness expert at Carla Gilder Fitness, CG Activewear and Fun Fitness Holidays.

I have lived and breathed fitness all of my life, from starting dancing at a young age and PE lessons at school, I took every opportunity to fit in more activity. Luckily my PE teachers pushed me to try more sports and get fitter and more skilled in netball, tennis, hockey, athletics, cricket and rounders.

My amazing parents helped me take sport to the next level and drove me all over the country for Cheshire and then England Netball where I was on the development squad for several years.

I loved tennis and played for Macclesfield Tennis Club, here I found a love for fun fitness drills and variety: this is where my signature freestyle style comes from.. I rarely teach the same class twice, I love to keep things fresh and keep everyone on their toes.

At 16 I went to college to study Sports Science and I loved trying out nutrition, sports massage, fitness instructing and sports coaching. I decided then to become self-employed as a personal trainer and sports therapist. I practised for a few years and quickly realised that I loved the fitness side with clients the most and began teaching group classes.

From here my passion for sharing my love of fitness grew and I am extremely proud of the vision we deliver within CGF, encouraging real people that they too can love exercise and feel HEALTHY, HAPPY, FIT!

Hi, I'm Kim. I am a Fitness Instructor, Personal Trainer and the CG Activewear Shop Manager here at CGF.

I first started teaching classes for CGF in 2012 after being a regular at classes for nearly 2 years. I hadn't exercised at all before joining but soon found a love for fitness and will never look back.

I first qualified to teach Zumba, soon followed by Zumba Toning, then went on to do my Level 2 Excersize to Music and Level 3 PT so I could go on to teach more specialised classes and do one to one and group training.

I love being part of the CGF team of instructors and giving back to our clients the experience I got when attending my first class. I love being able to bring Fun Fitness into everyone's life, helping them to Keep It Real and stay ON IT.

I was once that person terrified to walk through the door, I hid on the back row and had no confidence in myself at all, but I found exercise that I actually enjoyed, I had fun and got the results I was wishing for. I loved it so much it became my job!!

You can learn to love fitness too with CGF!

Hi, I'm Shelley, an Instructor here at CGF.

I have always exercised, on and off, throughout my whole life but really got into a religious fitness regime attending Carla Gilder's community classes after having my second child 11 years ago. I found more than anything, that at the time, it really helped me destress and made me make time for myself. I was a busy working mother of 2 small boys.

The more classes I attended the more I became addicted to that feeling of achievement and personal progress after each class. The physical results were an added bonus.

In January 2013, Carla encouraged me to take the Zumba basic training course and I haven't looked back.

In June 2016, I was made redundant from my job at Astrazeneca (after 16 years service). This gave me more time to focus on my fitness education.

I love the confidence CGF has given me as an instructor, as a class participant and in my personal life too. We are constantly learning from eachother and alwasys value the opinions of other instructors and class members.

CGF is a fantastic, fun way to exercise with great community support from the members whom we call our "Fitness Family"

Hi, my name is Fran and I am a Fitness Instructor and Personal Trainer at CGF.

I first attended one of Carla's classes almost 10 years ago. I had never enjoyed exercise and hated sports at school. But as my youngest child started nursery I began to have some free time and wanted to lift my body confidence. I met people in my first class who are still CGF members today and it was the friendly atmosphere that encouraged me to try other classes. Within no time, I was hooked on exercrise. I loved the poeple, the high I got when I had worked hard and the change to my body was a boost to my confidence.

Just over 6 years ago, Carla suggested I train to be an instructor and it has been the best decision of my life. I have a truly amazing job, full of fun and positivity. I meet people everyday who all inspire me in one way or another. Members become close friends and every time I teach or attend a class, I always leave feeling better than when I came in. The mental benefits of exercise are crucial to me. I find it hard to switch off and not let my mind run away with me. But who can think of anything else whilst a CGF Instructor is pushing you to work harder or you are dancing and singing your heart out at one of our many fab classes.

I now teach a variety of classes and qualified to be a Personal Trainer 2 years ago. I enjoy being part of a multi-talented team who all bring something different to our CGF Family with their own unique personalities. There's nowhere like CGF and you have to experience it to believe it.

Hi, my name is Louise I am CGF's run leader.

I’ve been an a member at CGF for for five years, previous to this I had been a member of several gyms and tried various classes feeling very self conscious and uncomfortable so not returning very often.

At CGF though, things were different, there was always a warm welcome and a smile to greet you which instantly puts you at ease. Fitness really became fun, the energy in class is contagious and you always leave feeling uplifted and energised.

I qualified as a leader in Running Fitness in 2018. My running journey started when my three children were young. I found it hard to get to the gym and running seemed appealing as I could just put my trainers on and go as and when I had time.

After several failed attempts, coming home fed-up disheartened and deflated as things weren’t going as I hoped - it was really hard and I couldn’t even make it round the park! I came across the Couch 2 5k programme and I finally got going!

I’ve been running for several years now: it’s my therapy, time to clear my head and de-stress, I’ve ran numerous 5 and 10ks, several half marathons and the London and Manchester marathon.

In September 2018 I started to lead both a Running Group and 0-5k group for CGF and I’ve loved every minute! It’s amazing seeing people progress, members have progressed from 5-10k and half marathon distance, with the right support and a little self belief it’s amazing what you can achieve.