Human Performance Program Internship Experiences

Ryan’s Internal Practicum

Congratulations for making it to the internal practicum! Through the internal practicum, you will build “hands on” experience that will prepare you for a future in the fitness industry. The internal practicum has allowed me to shadow professionals in the field, design and teach a full body resistance training class, conduct metabolic testing, conduct health and fitness assessments at local health fairs, provide wellness information through the employee wellness program in what we call “office calls”, and be able to build an outstanding resume! So, be proud as you start your internal practicum and try to learn as much as possible while at ACC. “We have only one life to live, let’s make each day count!”

Ryan Human Performance Program Intern Spring 09

Shawna’s Internal Practicum

My advice for future interns is to have an idea of what you want out of the internship!

Time management skills are critical; a day planner is very helpful.

Always be prepared to answer questions when working with your clients, by working with a variety of clients, you will figure out what is your niche and the type of clientele you enjoying working with! Take full advantage of ACSM workshops offered for CEC’s throughout the internship, many can be free or at a student discount! And finally, take a breathier now and then – I did it and so will you!

Shawna Human Performance Program Intern Spring 09

Jenn’s Internal Practicum

This internal practicum has been a great experience! The type of experience you never forget. During these four short months I probably have never worked as hard or long in my life to achieve the things that I have achieved! This learning experience was filled with meeting new people, working as a team and challenging myself both academically and physically. You never realize how much you can accomplish until the tasks are placed in front of you. This internal practicum is designed to help you become successful in the work force. Words of advice to future interns, plan, organize, and communicate. This program is here to help you and your career goals. Take full advantage of the resources at hand.

Jennifer Human Performance Program Intern Spring 09

Sarah’s Internship

I like to think of my internship experience as a long distance relay race. The internship takes a lot of hard work and energy to complete but you have all the people on your team to lean on, work with and depend on, as well as yourself, to make it a complete success. You do not have to float around completely lost and confused the entire semester. Throughout my internship I had so many people helping and supporting me and that made it so much easier and enjoyable then I could ever imagined.

When I came into the internship I didn’t know what I wanted to do with five months until graduation. I didn’t know if I wanted to just be a personal trainer or do group fitness classes or even go on and get my bachelor’s degree. Being completely confused about my future actually helped me out. I was able to incorporate so many different aspects of the fitness world into my internship that now I know exactly what I am passionate about as well as what I dislike. I found out that I love teaching group classes and especially children and seniors. I spent a large part of my internship with these two special populations: designing lesson plan, teaching, figuring out what worked and what didn’t work. The hard work all seems worthwhile when a child hugs you at the end of class or a senior member tells you that you gave them the best workout of their week. These are the rewards that make this internship and the field of fitness so great.

I think the most valuable piece of advice I have is to learn to be flexible. I don’t know how many times we had to change our plans at the last moment to accommodate our guests and clients. However, being flexible made things run so much more smoothly and allowed for so much fun as well as a good lesson for what happens in the real work force.

Overall, I just want to say, enjoy your internship. Make it the best it can be. Like I said before it is a long distance relay. This is your internship but that doesn’t mean you have to run it alone. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice or help. Now is your time. Are you ready to step up?

Sarah – Human Performance Program Intern – Spring 2008

Matt’s Internship

The internship is a totally different experience than I ever imagined. The amount of time needed for the internal practicum is a lot but at the same time it is only a small portion of what you could be doing out in the work force. Take everything in the internship as a learning experience. I found out quickly that if you do not stay on top of your schedule it can get away from you and you can quickly get behind. Time spent in the office and in the computer lab is very important. It allows you to get assessments done, prepare for your next client and to get ready to teach class.

One of the best parts of the internship was my chance to create lesson plans and work with the children in the movement exploration program. The children are fun, they are willing and try new things, they want to be your friend and to hear them all yell “thank you Mr. Matt” as they left was a good feeling. I have seen them around the campus after our sessions were done and they all want to say “hi”, they even talk to their parents about me. The feedback when the classes ended from the parents and staff members has been awesome!

My advice would be to keep all of your books and homework because you never know when you are going to need to revisit that important information. Save every email you get, you never know when you need to go back and retrieve information about a client or event. Lastly, make up a plan on a calendar. Sophie gives us a general idea when we are applying for the internship but if you take everything that needs to be done and break it down to smaller projects on a calendar then life will be a lot easier with time management. Finally, reward yourself for those small projects getting done, looking forward to graduation is awesome but having those small rewards along the way are very enjoyable.

Matthew - Human Performance Program Intern Spring 08

JoNell’s Internship

Every encounter is a chance to inspire someone. My internship was busy to say the least. I was in the office as soon as the facility opened and stayed late into the evening. I put as much time into this experience as I could. The whole process is like a workout session, you only take away as much as you put in. My advice is to take this internship by itself and allow it to be your full time existence. The members get to know you and build bonds, your clients enjoy the fact that you are available when they are, and you get all the work done that you need to. It is well worth your time.

For every headache caused, there is a breathtaking moment worth more in the end. I designed and implemented a wellness contest for the employees at the college and it was a huge success. I had so many clients I would have been lost without my planner. I personal trained each and every one of them, I created and lead their weekly group classes, I conducted metabolic tests on all of them, and I completed physical assessments as well as nutritional assessments. The relationships built will last a lifetime, and the reputation you gain will follow you…MAKE IT GOOD.

I was constantly at the fitness center, allowing me to take on other projects as well such as: co-teaching several classes and learning how to lead SilverSneakers© classes. As I said before put in as much as you can, trust your advisor they will not lead you astray. I know now how I want my work day to be and what I would like to do for my clients.

My tips for you: Keep all of your textbooks and notes/presentations from class. You will use them. Know yourself and know when to take a break and relax. Do as your mother told you and try everything once…if not twice. You might discover that you like it. The things that you thought you liked may just be that, a thought. I found out that I did not like many of the things I thought I did. Everything pays off, so give it a go.

Enjoy your time, its gone too soon. I wish I could extend my time here, this experience has been wonderful.

JoNell - Human Performance Program Intern Fall 2007

Molly’s Internship

The Human Performance Program as a whole provides an extensive base of knowledge to “get your feet wet.” Throughout the internship, you will use one aspect or another of every class that you have taken including the general education classes. With the variety of projects and classes, one can get a feel for what they will like and what they will excel at.

My internship involved assisting the Police Academy. It confirmed my goals of wanting to have my own academy some day. I was also involved with performing fitness assessments, calculating nutritional needs with the use of software and personal training. It was a unique experience in that you actually have a hand at designing your internal practicum.

Be prepared to spend long hours at the computer. Always be aware of your schedule. Allow plenty of time for first, second, and third revisions.

It is a lot of work, but it is worth it! You can see your results in front of you, which makes you strive to be your best and do more.

—Molly, HUP Intern, Fall 2007

Courtney M’s Internship

My internship experience gave me a lot of insight to the world of fitness and health and helped me to discover how my knowledge, skills and talents fit into that world as well. My internship was a little different than the typical Human Performance Internship. I have never had a huge interest in becoming a personal trainer so I did not make that my main focus. I actually did not have one main focus; I just tried a little of everything! My internship program took many of my interests, goals and passions and developed several very diverse projects. I have a passion for dance so I taught Creative Movement to pre-school age children. I have a goal to become a Pilates certified instructor so I co-taught the Pilates class offered at the college. I had a desire to promote employee wellness at the college so I taught an employee only fitness class and developed an “Office Call” program to promote healthy lifestyles at work. I was interested in learning how fitness centers are run so I had the opportunity to work at the front desk of ACC’s fitness center. These are really just a few of the things I took on in my internship and during this time I discovered the things that I truly enjoy doing and excel at but I also discovered the things I am not quite cut out for in this profession. This internship program helped me discover just what kind of fitness professional I would like to be. I now have a much clearer idea of where I am going in my career and how I can contribute to the health and fitness world.

My advice to future interns is to really consider the projects and activities you want to take on. Definitely take on the things you are passionate about and want to do more of but also, don’t be afraid to try some new and different activities. Try everything that is offered to you and keep in mind that every challenge you take on is making you a more experienced and well-rounded professional for your future career.

— Courtney M., Spring 2007

Courtney’s Internship

My internship put to good use many of the classes that I had completed for the Human Performance program. My internship was geared mainly towards personal training, but I did a variety of things. My internship hours were from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday. There was a lot of work that I did outside of the office. For the most part this included the calculations of fitness and nutritional assessments. I taught a variety of classes: Pilates, SilverSneakers®, weight training, and body toning and sculpting. This introduced me to many kinds of fitness that I hadn’t worked as much with.

I learned quickly that you get out what you put in to this internship. You can do the minimum that is required of you and just make it through your internship. Or, you can give it all you have. You can do more than the minimum; you can do as much as possible. This is what I did, and I feel because I did this, I learned a lot more. I am taking much more away from my internship than I would have if I had just done the bare minimum.

I have some advice for future interns: get as much work done at the beginning of your internship as you can. The workload will increase and become more challenging. Getting the early stuff done as soon as possible will allow you to concentrate on the more difficult tasks.

I also highly recommend leaving text books at your desk. You will rely on them a lot especially when it comes to assessments and choosing exercises for clients, so it’s good to have them handy. I also bookmarked pages I used most frequently so I didn’t have to search through the book to find what I needed. As you go through your internship, begin compiling your portfolio. Make sure to save every assessment you conduct. You can start adding these to a notebook as you go through the semester.

Also, get to know the members! They really like when you are able to greet them by name and have conversations with them! This is also a good way to get your name out there and introduce yourself to more people! My last piece of advice is to HAVE FUN!! It is a great experience and it will be even better if you are able to have a good time!

— Courtney, HUP Intern, Fall 2006

Larry’s Internship

My internship experience as a personal trainer has taught me how much the fitness industry has evolved since the mid-1980’s. The internship requirements were approximately six hours per week, but I quickly realized that to be prepared for each event at the Fitness Center I needed an average of one to two hours of preparation for every three hours of scheduled work. This outside work schedule included calculating the results of fitness and nutritional assessments and researching appropriate exercises for clients based on their health history forms, goals and time limitations, while still developing a sound fitness program.

The clients and members I served were from a diverse age range. For some, extra caution was needed in my approach to their training programs, assessments and interpersonal communications skills. Serving this group has been very rewarding, for they have made lifestyle changes that improved their health and expected longevity. When someone has decided they’re working out because they want to, the pleasure of working with the client increases!

My Internship Tips

Some of the other advice I would like to share with future interns includes:

• Build a library of information to help you be a successful intern (i.e. school books, fitness journals, articles, fitness magazines)

• Keep all homework derived from the HUP program! Those assignments will serve as templates for future clients and classes (i.e., FITTES programs, fitness testing/assessments sheets, food logs, nutritional assessments, labs).

• For every three hours spent on the job, expect to spend one to two hours for preparation!

• Put together a binder of every piece of information that will help you be successful (i.e., 10-second count for heart rate, BMI chart, reference charts for body composition, measurements, sample fitness/nutritional assessments and worksheets).

• Set a good, professional example to the members by being on time, adhering to the dress code, exhibiting a well-groomed appearance, and demonstrating exercises and their forms correctly with clear explanations.

• Be a good listener! Many of the older clients come to the Fitness Center to be social!

— Larry, HUP Intern, Spring 2006