Name: Ashley Tweddle
Major: Dietetics
Minor: General Business
Courtesy of Ashley Tweddle
Her Campus (HC): What made you want to become a fitness instructor at the Leach?
Ashley Tweddle (AT): I was a competitive dancer for most of my life before coming to college, so I’ve always been pretty passionate about health and fitness. Although I decided to major in Dietetics, exercise science is endlessly fascinating to me, and I plan on focusing on fitness and exercise nutrition, specifically in my career. Between my gym at home and here at the Leach, I’ve been taking group fitness classes for several years now, and it has become my favorite way to work out! When I found out the Leach was looking for group fitness instructors this past fall, it didn’t even take me a full day to decide that I wanted to do it. I already work out almost every day, so getting paid to share my passion for fitness with others and help make working out fun for everyone sounded like too good of an opportunity to pass up! I had played with the idea of getting certified to become a personal trainer as a way for me to become more involved in the exercise science side of nutrition before but group fitness felt like a better fit for me, at least to start, and the timing just felt right. I had to get nationally certified from the American Council on Exercise (ACE) after being hired, which was great because the certification exam required quite a bit of knowledge about muscle anatomy and exercise science principles, which I genuinely enjoyed learning about. So far, teaching and getting to apply all of that knowledge that I gained from becoming certified has been a lot of fun and it is certainly a valuable experience that I will benefit from later on in my career!
HC: Why group fitness?
AT: Personally, I’ve never really been a runner and I get bored doing machine workouts every day but group fitness classes are a really easy way to keep workouts fun and interesting! Most classes are different every week, so every class is a new challenge. I also love the community aspect of group fitness, it helps to motivate you to exercise while providing a supportive environment to work out in. As the instructor, I love that I get to be that positive and encouraging voice that keeps the participants going throughout the class and pushes them to challenge themselves to reach their full fitness potential. They’re usually stronger than they think they are!
HC: What classes do you teach?
AT: Cardio X2, Total Body Sculpt, Cardio Burn & Firm and Hard Core 30!
HC: Which is your favorite class to teach?
AT: Total Body Sculpt! It’s a strength class that works every major muscle group in the body and it is absolutely a full-body workout that lives up to its name. It’s my favorite because there’s such a large variety of exercises that you can do to work the same muscle group in different ways, so I can design the class to be completely different every time. After taking these classes myself for as long as I have, I know that variety is essential for keeping workouts challenging and effective, so I love researching and learning new exercises that I can incorporate into the class!
HC: As a Dietetics Major with a 4.0 GPA, what is the best way to stay healthy while being busy?
AT: Make your health a priority and plan ahead! It can be really hard to make time to exercise in college, but it’s definitely possible! I usually like to write out my schedule for the week ahead of time and I’ll add in specific times that I’m going to work out on each day too based on my schedule. My advice is to pick out times during the week that you can squeeze in a workout for an hour or so and commit to them like you would a class or an appointment! Snacks are big too—anyone who knows me knows I don’t go anywhere without throwing one or two healthy snacks in my bag first. I’m usually running around all day between class, work, and the library, and I tend to get hungry between meals, so having a snack ready to go whenever that hunger hits helps to keep me energized and focused throughout the day. In addition to helping to keep your energy up, snacking on something healthy (ideally with some protein) between meals can also help you stay on a healthy track by keeping you satisfied until your next meal so that you’ll be less likely to make poor food choices or overindulge later as a result of being hungry for so long.
HC: As a junior with a minor in Business, what are your plans post-graduation?
AT: I plan on going to grad school to get a Master’s degree in Sports Nutrition and eventually, I would love to be able to open my own private practice. My sister and I have also discussed the possibility of one day opening up our own gym, which I could incorporate my private practice into—so that’s sort of the dream that I want to work towards!