Functional Fitness Training for Seniors

A half century of participating in and coaching sports was the perfect training ground for Blake Ferris to perfect her skills on proper joint and muscle alignment. Numerous injuries sent her down a life-long path of learning more about anatomy and kinesiology. She is always seeking out more knowledge about functional aging, corrective exercise, self-myofascial release (SMR) and preventing injuries

Blake knows very well what it is like to become frail and lose your independence. In the early aughts, she developed a neuroimmune disorder after being sick with a virus—similar to those with Long-COVID. She went from being extremely active year-round in multiple recreational sports to being bed-ridden for months. She as was unable to walk or stand for more than a few minutes. The mysterious disorder confounded family and friends who thought tough love would motivate her to get up and get back out into the world. She slowly worked to regain her stamina for everyday activities like dressing, bathing, cooking, and cleaning. It took her nearly 10 years to find the right balance between being active and getting regular rest to avoid reoccurring, weeks-long bouts of debilitating symptoms. As she become more stable, she started working with a personal trainer to slowly rebuild her endurance, balance and stamina to broaden her sphere of living. Eventually, with the encouragement of other personal trainers, she became a certified personal trainer who focuses on decreasing limitations and increasing dedication to personal goals in fitness.

As a plus-sized trainer, Blake is an inspiration to others in our no-judgement community. She incorporates the most creative and fun, up-to-date, results-driven exercise routines to every class she teaches and every personal training session she leads. Her dedicated clients rave about their increased overall strength, more stable core, better balance, and feeling more agile while they experience less pain and stiffness in their daily lives.

Other notable accomplishments:

• NASM Certified Personal Trainer
• NASM Certified Corrective Exercise Specialist
• Whole and Natural Foods Cooking Instructor
• Co-founder of Agile 4 Life Fitness
• Champion and coach in Swimming, Softball, Volleyball, Shot Put & Discus, Rugby, Triathlon and White Water Canoeing.Loves Pickleball, cycling and hiking where ever possible
• Emotional Intelligence Life Coach and Support Group Leader
• Disability and LGBTQI+ Public Speaker & Advocate
• YWCA ISMs Public Speaker and Instructor (Exploring internalized racism, classism, ableism, sexism, ageism, etc.)