I had met Berta when she taught some classes at Now and Zen Studio. I decided to Spotlight her when she began her own business B-Fit Training, an innovative fitness that includes workshops, in-home and small group workouts.
As a way to keep these wonderful people and businesses on our minds. I wanted to re-share her Spotlight from last year and check in with what she has been up to lately.
Tell me about B Fit, the faith-based business you are starting?
It’s Berta’s Faith Integrated Training, B Fit for short. I offer in-home personal training, one on one, and small or large group fitness. I want to offer customized fitness experiences adding faith-based as an option. For example, I just did a pilates party by a client pool along with Christian based yoga. I go through all the fitness parts of the event first and in the end, I might share a daily devotional or scripture to focus on for the week.
When did you start getting into fitness?
The seed was planted when I started playing volleyball in High School. I have a lot of energy and love to be active. After graduating and moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico, a local gym I had been going to offered weekend training to their members to become instructors for their style of classes. I decided to go for it and that’s where the group fitness aspect started for me, that was about six years ago. I started to teach classes part-time and found a passion for it. I love helping people and feeding off of their energy in classes.
After the gym closed I decided to continue with my fitness education. I met a friend who teaches Holy Yoga and Revelation Wellness which is a faith-based group fitness certification, so I took that and then got my National Accredited Group Fitness certification too.
What brought you to St. Augustine?
We knew we wanted to live by the water at some point. I was born and raised in Las Vegas Nevada and from there we moved to Las Vegas New Mexico to a mountainous region of Northern New Mexico (the original Las Vegas apparently). I went from a class of 500 to12, needless to say, it was a small town. After I graduated I migrated south to the closest big city Albuquerque, where I eventually met my husband. Two years ago, we had the opportunity to move to St. Augustine through my husband’s company. The timing seemed right and we wanted to do something different. We chose the St. Augustine area because my aunt and uncle lived in Palatka and my husband’s best friend lives in St. Augustine. We ended up buying a home in Green Cove Springs because we wanted a little more property.
Did you get right into fitness when you moved here?
When we left Albuquerque, I had to quit my full-time job with a premier beverage distributor. I knew I didn’t want another desk job, so I decided to just focus on fitness and moving here allowed me to dive fully into it. I was already Group Fitness certified so I got my Personal Training certification and then found Florida Get Fit. I went there for my own workouts and loved it so I asked if they were hiring and it turned out they needed someone. I’m now certified in Yoga, Pilates, Kickboxing, Spin, Foam Rolling, and Barre.
Do you have a favorite workout that you like doing?
For me, my personal favorite is lifting weights and doing yoga. I need to have those two things in my life. Yoga is my prayer time too, I need that balance.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
My husband and I love being active and going to the beach. We are still exploring the area since we’ve only been here for two years and have enjoyed the winery when they have live music, fishing on a friend’s boat, and playing volleyball.
Update:
What have you been up to lately?
Well I’ve been home mostly, as many people are, so in an effort to help keep everyone healthy and moving through this tough time. I created a Facebook group “Berta’s Fitness Friends” where I’m hosting live classes for the time being. Here’s the link, so come check it out.