By FRED PETRUCELLI
LOG CABIN STAFF WRITER
Call Sherri Lachowsky the “physical fitness trainer of the year,” and you get only an iota of this outgoing personality who illuminates the Conway Regional Health and Fitness Center with her stimulating essence.
Lachowsky flits among the array of people who jam the gym searching for good health and among the scads of equipment designed to help them acquire it
It was inevitable that she would be tapped for the honor, given the reality of her charisma and skills. Hers is a winsome attitude that seems to connect especially with seniors who are working out, sweating and struggling to bring their bodies up to snuff
Amanda Castillo, the marketing coordinator of the fitness center on Salem Road says of Lachowsky: “She loves working with seniors who might need a little extra motivation and encouragement to become physically fit for the first time or to continue their ‘walk’ of fitness in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.”
There is no question that Lachowsky assures that the exercise experience will not only be fun and motivating but will also make an individual anticipate coming back to gym for additional workouts. While using the bevy of equipment is absolutely essential to the process of bringing about a vigorous and spirited core in an individual, it is the trainer like Lachowky that generates the willingness to instill incentive. And she does it with a surprising skill
She came on board at the center some four years ago after working as a physical therapy technician and later at other fitness factories and at the Arkansas Educational Television Network before that. Her vitae lists jobs in gyms and wellness centers, among those a position at the Hendrix College wellness center. She became certified as a trainer shortly thereafter.
Her presence was felt almost from the start at the Regional Fitness Center as she gave of herself to win clients.
It may be a hackneyed expression, she admits, but she sounds sincere when she says: “I like people; I like working with people. I couldn’t have a better job.”
Those who seek her out for physical training seem amenable to her skills. She has a way with the senior cult and they respond by accepting her therapeutic skills.
“There are people who need specific kinds of training; for example like people with disabilities,” she says. “And not merely athletic benefits. So that’s where my passion lies. I love what I do and I wish I’d gotten certified sooner. Unfortunately I didn’t, but I’m at this point now as a certified trainer and there’s no looking back for me.
Her award as trainer of the year was something she had not anticipated. “But I feel great about it; I love it. Working with all kinds of people, all kinds of personalities. I’m very proud of the award as is my husband Ralph and my two kids. But I couldn’t have done it without the help of my co-workers and my clients.”
“Working with 33 clients at the moment and keeping abreast of their physical progress is a job, but it s a job that I cherish,” she said.