Krissie

“I’m not a person who likes to go on committees; I like to be a doer. I’m somebody who wants to be practical; and to be kind and generous to the people that I’m meeting and interacting with in the community. 

I started my “Move it or Lose it” classes for older adults  just after the earthquakes, because I felt that some people were isolating themselves; some of them just didn’t want to go out. They didn’t feel safe, felt they’d lost the city and I thought, well, I would like to help people find strength socially as well as physically. So I became qualified as a group fitness instructor. Some of my clients are in their 90s and are still living independently. I love that.

I do a range of activities to make it fun, stimulating and to keep their minds active. Not just for strength, balance and flexibility, but I do breathing techniques with them; I do some mindfulness and brain games. When I take the classes I want people to feel like they belong to the little group that they’re in. It’s about bringing people together. Making connections is very important to me. 

I’m just passionate about people. I’m passionate about respecting people regardless of who they are, whether they are an older person, or a person who’s got a disability, or a person who is feeling anxious. They are who they are. “

-Krissie