About the Trainer
Photo by Teresa DeAmicis
Allison (Putnam) Bradford, CPT
ACE Certified Personal Trainer SFA Certified Senior Fitness Instructor ACE Certified Group Fitness Instructor 
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My life has taken an untraditional path.
After attending a competitive high school and getting accepted to a great university, I became very ill during college and was unable to finish. I spent years incapacitated from my illness, watching the lives of others go by while mine was standing still. It took more years regaining my strength and independence, primarily on my own, learning how to exercise very slowly and patiently. It was a trying but enlightening experience, and once I regained my health it did not take long to realize I needed to use what I had learned to support others in finding their own strength and independence. I am now a Certified Personal Trainer and Senior Fitness Instructor and work to help older adults discover, regain, and maintain their independence just as I did my own. And here my personal health experience has become an incredible professional strength. I can understand the multitude of confounding emotions health and aging changes can have on a person and it’s my passion and goal to help others find strength and confidence in their bodies again. I believe in the importance of taking every client as an individual, exercising at his or her personal pace, and celebrating every achievement along the path to a healthier, more functional and active life. Everyone has different goals, lifestyles, and abilities, as well as different cultural, racial, identity, work, economic and social backgrounds. That is what makes everyone unique and what makes my job so wonderful. I get to help people find a way to incorporate exercise, movement, and healthy lifestyle choices into their lives right where they are today. It often feels like we live in a world where people see being "too nice" as a weakness, but I don't believe there is such a thing. Kindness and compassion are an incredibly important part of my job. They are the foundation of establishing trust, building rapport, and developing and achieving goals. And every one of those goals, and the smaller achievements along the way, should be celebrated! I've had a diabetic client excitedly share with me that he no longer needs his medication. I've had a knee replacement client show me she can power squat 30 reps in 30 seconds (NOT a goal, but a fun achievement). Their joy was indescribable, and their motivation to move forward even stronger. 5 years ago I couldn't walk around the block. Today I can say I am many things: a contemporary dancer, an active volunteer, a friend, sister, and daughter, and a personal trainer who is gets to help others achieve milestones like I have. I am honored to be able to support many in the older adult community and excited to help make quality exercise programming for older adults the new norm. |