Terje Snow became a personal trainer because they loved the fitness feeling.
Now they’re working to share that as a volunteer trainer at Edmonton’s first transgender-specific fitness training program, Fitness: Trans Formed.
“To see someone reconnect with their body and remember that they’re really strong and powerful,” Snow said.
“It makes me feel like I have a purpose that goes beyond myself.”
The free, volunteer-run program was launched in January by Action Potential Fitness – an inclusion-focused facility in West Edmonton.
Registration was full – more than 30 applications – within a week of opening.
“It has always been my goal to create programs for people who didn’t feel safe or didn’t belong anywhere else,” said Toni Harris, who co-founded Action Potential Fitness three years ago.
“A lot of trans people are completely distancing themselves from their bodies because we’re born into bodies that don’t feel like they fit us,” they said.
Halfway through the program, Harris and Snow see how the participants feel comfortable in a gym – some for the first time.
meet people where they are
The considerations that go into a trans-specific training program are lengthy, Snow said. The transition process means physiological changes.
Binding, for example, involves the use of tight-fitting sports bras, bandages, or specially made “binders” to create a flatter chest, which can restrict breathing and cause muscle pain and soreness. It’s a common practice for transgender people who seek solace in their bodies.
Other participants use hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, which can affect thermoregulation and dehydration.
“Everything is informed by this physiological lens for transgender people,” Harris said.
That’s one of the reasons transgender trainers like Snow are involved: to provide a deeper understanding and to support participants, no matter where they are physically located.
“From own experience [with transition]you growl a lot of yourself and hide and shy away,” Snow said.
“To open up the body and break some of these bad habits, it takes a lot of different mindsets that regular gyms might not even know about.”
Find the connection between mind and body
The program aims to minimize nerves and anxiety so participants can focus on body and health. It’s designed to be less stressful than the average gym environment.
Unlike most gyms, Action Potential Fitness does not require clients to provide their gender on signup forms.
Locker rooms can also be a point of discomfort or embarrassment for transgender gym-goers — here, the facilities are more private.
“These are amenities that should be available to everyone,” Harris said.
“Most people I know who have gone to mainstream gyms don’t last very long because they feel like they’re going out.”
Parker Poithier signed up for the program not knowing what to expect but was surprised at how comprehensive the classes are.
“They taught us a lot about pain in the body and what actually goes on there,” they said. “From my own perspective as transgender, it’s really hard to find that mind-body connection.”
It’s part of the holistic nature of the program, with trainers going beyond the muscles to address mental health and mobility.
“It also only teaches you are safe here,” said Pothier. “Everyone comes with a ‘this is a room for us’ mentality.”
community profits
Action Potential Fitness is asking for donations to enable additional sessions of the program later this year. The waiting list keeps growing.
It speaks to another hope of the Fitness: Trans Formed program – building a community among trans Edmontonians.
“Having that moment with people who are like you and understanding the jokes and how your body feels and some of the things that you’ve been through,” Snow said.
For participants like Pothier, who are in a transgender fitness environment for the first time, the program’s benefits of newfound muscle and meaning will last longer than six weeks.
“It’s nice to be in a space where you’re all accepted,” Pothier said. “My body is welcome here, as is everyone else’s.”
