INShape at IUPUI is a unique experience where I was able to be matched up with a client that I was a personal trainer for during the semester. I met with my client two times a week for eight weeks, and during this time I was creating exercise prescriptions for each workout we did and training my client towards their own individual fitness goals. I also wrote at-home workouts and practiced advancing my client towards the ACSM fitness recommendations. I was able to learn a lot from this experience, including how to properly write exercise prescriptions, time management skills, and a couple other lessons along the way.

One of the lessons I learned was that not everything goes as planned in the real world and it is important to be adaptable. There were a handful of times during training sessions that equipment that I needed was being used or my client was not able to do a certain exercise, so I had to be quick on my feet and think of an alternative. This allowed me to improve upon a skill that I had previously not been the best at and I was able to see myself grow into a better trainer as the semester went on. Learning to be adaptable is a significant skill to have in the future. As a future student and physical therapist i am going to encounter a lot more instances where I will need to think quickly on my feet in order to succeed. I am fortunate enough to have this experience early and learn now.

Another thing I learned was hard work pays off. During week seven of the eight week duration, my client had just finished his last set of an exercise and he looked at me and told me, "there was no way I could have done that when we started." This made me feel like the hard work I had been putting in to create tailored exercise prescriptions and advance my client actually paid off. My client was happy with his progress and I was happy to play a role in his journey. A lot of times we all run into moments where we wonder if all the work we are doing is going to pay off in the end. This experience was able to give me a first-hand look at hard work paying off. This will be something I can reflect back on in the future when I am a physical therapist wondering if all the work I am putting into my patient is going to pay off in the long run. 

Adaptable, challenging, educational, relevant, unique, and fun.
These six words all sum up my time in INShape perfectly. Adaptable describes the skill I had to practice time and time again. Challenging describes how tough writing a well thought-out exercise prescription while working towards different goals and exercise recommendations can be. Educational describes how I was able to learn from each session. I was able to learn things about personal training, things about my client, and discover things about myself. Relevant describes how this experience will help me with my future endeavors. As a physical therapist I will do similar training on my patients. Unique describes how fortunate I am to have this experience. IUPUI does a great job allowing us students to get real world experience embedded into our curriculum unlike tons of other schools. Fun describes the experience as a whole. It was fun to learn new things, meet with a wonderful client each week, and work around great classmates and staff throughout the whole process.