Tim Benjamin - Olympic British Athlete

Tim Benjamin has established himself as one of Britain's best athletes. Tim's success began at a young age and his success continued through his senior career, winning the British AAA title and running in the successful GB squad at the European Cup in the Commonwealth Games in 2002. He reached the semi finals in the Athens Olympics in 2004, came 5th in the 400m at the 2005 World Champions and he gained a silver medal in the 4x400m relay in the European Championships in 2006.

Injury prevented Tim from continuing his athletics career and he announced his retirement in 2009…so Tim turned to Fitness Industry Eductaion to start his new career in Fitness as a Personal Trainer.

I choose Personal Training because... I had a huge passion for fitness, and a total respect for anyone who set goals they would like to achieve. I really wanted to use my knowledge that I had build up about training and more specifically how the body works, to help people achieve their fitness goals.

The reason I chose Fitness Industry Education... It was fantastic value for money, and very flexible, which meant I could continue to study in and around outstanding commitments.

I found the course... to be great, the instructors at the Saturdays course really helped me turn my existing knowledge into being far more user friendly to the public. I particularly found the nutrition element of the course very interesting, and felt that I was well equipped when it came to me sitting my exam.

My plan for the future is...I am in the process of opening my own gym, after a smooth transition from professional sport into the world of personal training. I am loving every minute of my career thus far in the fitness industry, and can't thank FIE enough for assisting me with my own goals.

Click here to visit Tim's website.

Richie Byrne – Professional Footballer

The Irish born defender has represented his country and played for football clubs including Shamrock Rovers, Dunfermline Athletic, Aberdeen FC, Oldham Athletic, Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Darlington and he currently plays for Hungerford Town. In 2004, Richie helped his team Dunfermline Athletic to reach the 2004 Scottish Cup Final against Celtic and in 2007 helped Aberdeen to the last 32 of the UEFA Cup playing against Athletico Madrid and Copenhagen.

I decided to get into Personal Training... as I suffered a re-occurring hamstring problem which severely stifled my football career. After seeing many Physios and specialists, I decided to become a Personal Trainer so I too can pass on knowledge which will help people to stay fit, healthy and mobile.

I chose the FIE Personal Training Intensive Course... as it was cost effective and although intensive, could be completed in such a short time.

I found the course... fantastic. I learned the course material, but also extra information to help me in the industry. All the Fitness Industry Education staff have been superb in supporting me during and after the course.

I am now working as a Personal Trainer and my plan is to... help athletes and the general public to achieve a healthy lifestyle, mind and body by eventually having my own gym premises which offers exclusive client services.

Click here to visit Richie's website

Lydia Greenway - England Women's Cricketer

Lydia made her England Women's Cricket debut in February 2003 against Australia in the Ashes Series. She helped England reach the semi-final stage of the World Cup in South Africa 2005. She went on to help England retain the Ashes in 2008 and 2009 and win the World Cup and T20 World Cup. Lydia was named the 'player of the series' in the One Day International series tour against New Zealand in 2010. Lydia is also renowned as being the best fielder in the women's game, which has also ensured England of many victories.

I decided to get into Personal Training...because as a professional cricketer I spend a lot of time on tours and wanted to do something that I enjoyed that I could fit alongside my professional cricket career

I chose the Fitness Industry Education...because they offered fantastic value for money and flexibility compared to other companies who offer the exact same qualification.

I found the course... perfect for me and I have been able to work through it at my own pace and when it suits me. I found the course material absolutely fantastic, it is very interactive and easy to learn. Fitness Industry Education have been a great help in my new career path and have offered me great advice. I would like to thank Fitness Industry Education for everything and I have already recommended friends to do this course with you, absolutely brilliant!

Jojo Head

After having worked in the Music Industry for 14 years, I had started to think about changing career and becoming a Personal Trainer. I thought about it for 6 months before I actually did anything about it, but I'm so glad now that I finally picked up the phone to talk to a few companies about training courses! I locked myself in my office for an afternoon calling up 8 different companies. When I spoke to Lauren at Fitness Industry Education about the course she was so helpful and inspiring that I signed up the next day. I trained after work and at weekends for a year and a half and passed my Personal Training Level 3 in April of this year. I quit my job and now run my own training company and private studio, and haven't looked back!

Jojo was featured in BodyFit magazine, click here to read the article.

Click here to visit Jojo's website

Graeme Welsh

Having worked in the same job for a number of years, I decided two years ago that I wanted to gain a fitness based qualification to help improve my prospects and employability. I decided that a Personal Trainer course would be a great qualification to work towards, as this would open many doors regarding a brand new career. After much research, I found that I had several options regarding who exactly to do the course with. I chose FIE because after speaking to your highly professional marketing team and navigating through your impressive website, I'd be crazy to go anywhere else. The enrolment process was quick and hassle-free, and all of my questions were answered fully and effectively.

Throughout the full duration of my course, I found every single member of staff to be extremely knowledgable and professional, and eager to help regarding issue or query. From the staff in head office, to the assessors on exam/practical assessment day, I was given the impression that everyone would bend-over-backwards to help, support and guide all candidates. Not only that, I was also given the impression that all staff members actually WANT to help, which sadly cannot be said for all training providers (speaking as a vocational trainer within the contact centre industry! - one who does care though!).

The course was also my first experience of distance learning, something which before my time with FIE I was rather sceptical of as I had potential issuess around being able to self motivate after a hard day at work. However, these concerns vanished immediately once I got started. I believe this was due to the structure and layout of the learning material i.e. the large modules are all broken down into separate sections, which are then easy to fit into a short space of time. I also loved the challenges of the end of section worksheets, again something else which is an effective motivational tool.

I used the LA Fitness gym in Sale, Manchester for all of my practical/exam assessment days. I found the venue to be fantastic in every sense of the word, regarding facilities, design and staff. A big thank you goes to them too!

All in all, I cannot thank FIE enough for what I have been able to achieve. I will not hesitate to recommend FIE to ANYONE who is thinking about gaining a qualification in the fitness industry, because my experience with FIE has been so enjoyable in every way.

I'm now planning to set up my own PT 'Boot Camp' style company (as these seem to be all the rage at the minute!). I'm going to be initially doing it on a part time basis until it takes off properly. I am also now enrolled at East Durham College to do my Certificate of Education, with sport and fitness being my specialised subject. This will hopefully lead to my goal of working as a college lecturer/teacher in sport and fitness.

I will also be keeping a regular check on FIE's website for other courses that may interest me, because the next time I'm looking to gain another fitness related qualification, there's only one place I will look!

So, thank you once again to all of you. I couldn't have done it without you.

Claire Bloom

For nearly ten years I was working happily as an interior designer with projects in London and Europe. But with the fluctuating property market of recent years I was finding it harder than ever to secure work and get paid at the end of a project. I had always really enjoyed working out and found the gym to be a positive and lively environment. I'm very much a people person and love being able to promote a healthy lifestyle. So at 34 I decided to have a complete change of career and retrain as a Personal Trainer with FIE on their Intensive Level 3 Personal Trainer Course.

The programme is very intensive but within a short space of time you are able to get fully qualified and start working in your new profession. Which is great for a mature student like myself. Since graduating in March I now have my own personal training company in London and am running boot camp retreats in the English countryside.

www.loveyourworkout.co.uk

Justin Crawley - Isle of Wight

I found the course to be very good, I'm very happy with how it all went, all the staff and tutors were all very friendly and helpful.click here to visit Justin's website