Teacher Spotlight- Sarah Gorman, creator of Blendfit
Sarah Gorman is a fitness and wellness educator who has been working within the fitness industry for the past 20 years. She is a personal trainer, class instructor, fitness educator and presenter with a social media presence to influence and guide people on their fitness journey.
Her background in dance and acting led to her training as a Pilates instructor over 20 years ago and Pilates has stayed firmly rooted at the heart of all the disciplines that she teaches.
Whilst living in the USA, Sarah trained under some very influential fitness gurus in LA. She has trained actors and celebrities in fitness, prepping them for roles as well as a number of sports men and woman to improve their capabilities in their individual sporting fields.
Sarah has created and developed her BlendFit Method over the past 15 years to provide an eclectic approach to training; blending disciplines to create energetic and fun classes to get people strong, fit and healthy.
Her drive is to continuously create new and inspirational classes that are at the cutting edge of the fitness industry, with the focus, very much, on strength and fun. Her aim is to bring her love and passion of movement to the widest audience available to her.
She wants to inspire people to feel empowered, strong and find joy in movement.
How would you describe your style of teaching?
I would describe my style of teaching as Blended! It really depends on the class and the clients that I have. I teach everything from a beautiful, gentle breathe work class that’s all about continual movement and flow, to high energy cardio Boxing and Barre! I make sure that my classes focus on strength and look at how you can add weights and body weight training into sessions. I also teach tutorial style classes to focus on technique – all these styles I feel are equally important.
My clients nickname me ‘the machine’ because I can be very hard core, but I also have a gentle side as well!
What is your client base like?
I predominantly teach online classes via two apps that I have created. One is my BlendFit App; this is my solo project and my own methodology. I have also created another App called Move Collective which is myself and three other fantastic trainers – we have come together to create a diverse and refreshing approach to group training online.
I am also a personal trainer and I teach 1-1 sessions throughout the week. I also do lots of talks, run my own BlendFit Retreats, work on fitness events and festivals and am currently the Fitness and Wellness Expert on the P&O Lifestyle Cruises.
My clients are a real mix – I teach mainly woman, although I do have some male clients, both young and old, and a real mix of ability. I have taught actors and sports men and woman – my favourite being a group of American footballers that I taught my Barre classes to – you can imagine how they felt about this at first! All giggles and imagining that it would be easy peasy, floating around…little did they know! Tears and sweat were shed and after 12 weeks of training with me they had a very different impression of what barre classes were all about!
Do you have a favourite client base and if so why?
I don’t have a favourite – I love how eclectic my client base is and I believe that if you can reach people, whatever their age or gender, and help them to become strong, confident and gain an understanding of how they can make their bodies work for them then this is success. I love the lightbulb moments when you see a client get it! Or when someone who says they really dislike fitness begins to love training sessions – this is what makes me ridiculously happy!
I have managed to create a community, even though we’re on line, of incredibly supportive and engaged woman that are all ‘in it together’ It’s really inspiring.
What is your most favourite move and why?
My favourite move changes on a daily basis! I’ll be doing a move and suddenly find a new way to teach it and think – oh I love this move! I like to mess around with moves and find intuitive functional movements that look and feel great on the body. If I was pushed I would say working and moving in and out of plank is probably my favourite. The possibilities here are endless.
What is your least favourite?
Inverted Plank (Leg Pull)- my arms always feel that they are too short to do it properly! I still do it though and I have improved – maybe my arms have grown!
You have created an incredible online platform and a unique exercise combination- can you share some of your secrets to success?
I created BlendFit in order to allow people of all fitness levels and abilities to have access to really great classes that challenge but are still accessible. I know from experience that people are generally short on time and so I created the Blend to allow people to be able to train in multi disciplines within one 45 minute class! I think staying consistent is key – I am always looking for ways to grow my business and my own skill set. Being aware of what is happening within our industry is vital as you have to move and develop with the times.
I am not a fan of social media and I struggle with using it to market myself however I made a decision a long time ago that I would make sure that I was always authentic and honest in anything that I put out on socials. I think this has meant that people feel they can trust me. I don’t take myself too seriously and I have a balanced approach to all things in life. Fitness and exercise should be a fun, integrated part of our lives, not something that we feel forced to do and that we ‘should’ do. I try and never use the word ‘should’ as it gives many negative connotations.
Eat well, move your body, be kind and have a laugh. That’s my approach.
How are you setting yourself apart in the industry?
I am trying to teach people that all you need to do is move your body. And that there is no right or wrong in that. I think that I am breaking down the idea that fitness is something that has to be endured but rather that it can be something that brings us a sense of community and joy. My classes are not easy in any way…but I try and make sure that someone who is 70 years old will get the same out of the class as someone who is 30. I am also all about strength, not in the aesthetics of the fitness industry. I never talk about the body in terms of weight loss or changing shape. I talk in terms of being strong and feeling confident.
What is the most rewarding aspect of being a Pilates instructor?
I love that I can bring the principles of Pilates into all the disciplines that I teach across the board. But when you teach Pilates you can really get to the heart of movements, teach people control and help them to learn about how to use their bodies. I love that when you use a visualisation you see people suddenly understand their own movements. It’s a simple joy, but it never gets old.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
Still here!
I want to own a space that allows me and my team to run retreats, events, classes and instructor training. I want it to be a centre of excellence, learning and education that is open to everyone, young and old. I want to help educate the younger audience to the importance of movement and help them to become passionate about this kind of movement rather than the simple school sports that our education system delivers. It is important to me to be part of a team that works together in a collaborative way, who support one another and have each others backs. This is the way to build a brilliant business that makes you happy and fulfilled. This is how I see myself developing within 5 years time.
If you could give one piece of advice to a new instructor what would it be?
Never stop learning. You will never know it all. Have a hunger to improve and thirst for knowledge. Take your work seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously!
To connect with Sarah:
Websites: www.sarahgorman.fit
www.movecollective.uk/
Instagram: @sarahgormanblendfit
Apps:BlendFit
Move Collective
To watch back a recent Insta live Sarah & I did about all things Pilates & the C word, click here.
