Meet the team: Andre
- Fitness By Night
- Aug 24, 2019
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 14, 2023

Andre is one of our founding trainers here at Fitness By Night. We caught up with him before one of his late night training sessions.
Fitness By Night: How long have you been working in fitness for?
Andre: Five years and counting! Not sure where the time went but couldn't imagine working anywhere else now. While I did take some courses in the mid-nineties (yes, I've been training for that long) I finally decided to change career and live a passionate life instead of an easy one - fitness seemed the most obvious way to do that. In some ways it was quite tough - culturally it was a completely new set of rules to learn in the workplace but being in my late forties was an advantage as the industry is very youth focused and has a massive turnover of younger people who buy into the dream. Fortunately I'm an old dog that can learn new tricks and was always interested in my passion for fitness more than gym management politics, so moved into group exercise -I love the razzle dazzle of standing in front of a class over chasing membership sales leads - a very fast way to lose your love of gym life!
Fitness By Night: What made you decide to take the leap into the fitness industry?
Andre: I was working 7 days a week with very long, often unpaid hours in my last job for a health start up. The culture was very, "Get the job done: whatever it takes; no excuses." I learned a lot about workplace health in my role, and the difference between what an organisation says and what they actually do, and the practical ways you can support colleagues in such environments. Fitness has always been something I've done to help me deal with high levels of stress - changing career to the Fitness industry seemed like an obvious next step towards something positive and affirming. I like waking up excited and sometimes feeling " Ohhh, can I actually do this?" With some of the classes I teach. I think it's important to feel that sense of trepidation and challenge daily. Easy isn't always good.
Fitness By Night: What are your particular interests in the industry?
Andre: [laughs] So many! I have quite a wide range of fitness interests and obsessions - they just seem to have piled up over the years! I'm a qualified water fitness trainer (I design high intensity aqua classes), but I also teach fitness meditation - I am a qualified Les Mills Body Balance trainer which no one really expected from me as I'm more known for very high energy and full throttle hiit classes. I love coming up with high intensity/ low impact moves that makes classes as inclusive and challenging as possible at different levels. I also picked up a minor MyZone addiction thanks to one of my former PT colleagues signing me up! I'm particularly interested in post 40s (I'm qualified to train Older Adults 50 years and above) and finding ways to persuade people to try new things or even just keep going when they're at the beginning of their fitness journey. Out of shape and out of hope are my favourite client group - as I love helping people get in touch with their fighting spirit and start that battle to become more.
Fitness By Night: What should clients expect from a session with you?
Andre: I like to joke around in classes whenever I can, as I don't really understand why fitness has to be serious - and if I can make a game/challenge out of pushing clients harder I find that most people have that competitive streak that makes them want to go further. I'm generally quite upbeat, so my classes also have that same feelgood vibe and music. But while I do play around I do make sure those clients are working hard even through the laughter. I love that moment when a client somehow digs deep and finds that will to push through and get that tough job done. For me the pleasure is showing someone who they could be or helping people to discover sides of themselves that they've forgotten or not even realised they have. To me, fitness is about becoming more than you are.
To book a session with Andre or one of our Fitness By Night Trainers, or to try one of our classes click here.
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