Conference 2009 Speaker Biographies
Paul Aspinall, BPE, MES, CPTN-CPT
Paul is the Director of Personal Training for Mayfair Racquet and Fitness Clubs, a CPTN Certified Personal Trainer, CPTN Practical Assessor and Course Conductor, and a Medical Exercise Specialist. He teaches program design at Seneca College and lectures at various corporations and fitness facilities in Toronto. His educational background includes a degree in Physical Education with a major in athletic therapy and a diploma in Fitness and Lifestyle Management from George Brown College. For more information, please visit www.mayfairclubs.com.
Jeff Boris, BPHE, CPTN-CPT.M
Jeff has been pioneering the concept of Holistic Fitness Trainer for 20 years. Jeff also serves as Nutrition and Health Research Educator to the natural health products industry. As former Chair of Professional Development for CPTN, author, and teacher at University of Western Ontario, his expertise is often sought after by the media. In 2005, Jeff was among the first to receive CPTN’s Award of Merit for outstanding contributions to the fitness industry.
Graham Brown, BPHE, NCCP
Graham is a 10-year veteran of the fitness industry and holds a degree in Kinesiology. He has worked as a personal trainer and athletic coach nationally and internationally with general populations, individual athletes, and provincial-level sports teams. He specializes in coaching, sports specific training and couples training. Graham owns and operates New Heights Fitness & Wellness Centre in Hanover, Ontario.
John Paul Catanzaro, BSc, PFLC, CEP, CK
John is a certified kinesiologist and professional fitness and lifestyle consultant with a specialized honours Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and Health Science. He owns and operates a private studio in Toronto, Ontario. For more information, please visit www.bodyessence.ca.
Celeste Shirley, BKin, CPT
Celeste is a yoga teacher and owner of Better Built Bodies Fitness Consulting for the past 26 years. Celeste teaches for organizations such as Canada Life, The Toronto District School board and T.D. Waterhouse as well as her private clientele in her studio at the east end of Toronto. Her enthusiasm for the body’s wisdom is contagious. Celeste teaches in an informative manner demystifying the philosophy of yoga and how it can be practically used in your life. For more information, please visit www.theyogahouse.ca.
Judy Chu, BPE, CPTN-CPT
Judy is a senior staff member at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, where she has worked for the past 22 years. In her role, she recruits, supervises and trains individuals to provide exercise classes (land and water) for seniors 55 years of age and older. She also conducts exercise classes for people with chronic conditions (arthritis, stroke survivors, osteoporosis, diabetes, auditory/visually impaired, joint replacement).For more information, please visit www.baycrest.org.
Dixie Douville, BA, RN, BSN
Dixie has been a nurse specializing in cardiovascular medicine for the past 23 years. She is the Owner of Pursuit of Wellness, LLC, a health and wellness consulting company and is the Founder of Girlfriends in Training, a women’s athletic group. Also as a certified fitness professional for 23 years, Dixie has been recognized for her knowledge in the areas of heart-rate training, female athletics, special populations, and weight loss. She is recognized by the American Council on Exercise and the Aerobic and Fitness Association of America as a continuing education specialist. She has served on the Editorial Board for the Certified Professional Trainers Network and is a USA Track and Field certified coach.
Dawnelle Hawes, MEd, RYT, CPTN-CPT.M
Dawnelle has been involved in the fitness industry for more than 20 years in a variety of roles that include fitness director, instructor at the secondary and post-secondary levels, certified Yoga teacher, certified Group Exercise instructor, and certified CPTN personal trainer for cardiac post-rehabilitation exercise and people with spinal cord injuries. Currently, she is a Medical Education Research Coordinator at McMaster University involved in producing Continuing Medical Education modules for family physicians across Canada.
Karsten Jensen, MSc, CHEK Practitioner Level 2, CHEK HLC L3
Karsten is a Strength and Conditioning Coach with over 15 years experience working with World class and Olympic athletes. His focus on individualized training programs for athletes at the national and international level involves a variety of sports including judo, waterskiing and racquet sports. He is a published author with four e-books on training for health, fitness and peak performance, and he lectures in various international settings. He holds a Masters degree in Exercise Physiology, is a C.H.E.K Practitioner – Level 2, and a C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 3. For more information, please visit www.yestostrength.com.
Marc Lebert, BA, CPT
Marc is a certified personal trainer, entrepreneur, published writer and speaker and certified NLP practitioner. He is proprietor of Personal Strength Fitness Inc., training clients at home and in corporations for over 10 years and co-owner of Fuel Fitness Club in Mississauga specializing in group exercise, personal training, and fitness. Marc is also the inventor of the Lebert Equalizer, which is fast becoming the hottest new fitness tool. For more information, please visit www.lebertfitness.com.
Susan Lee, MPE, MA, CPTN-CPT
Susan is President of the Certified Professional Trainers Network (CPTN) and is committed to the ongoing realization of the organization’s core values: education, certification, leadership and advocacy. Concurrently, Susan also manages the personal training and equity programs at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Physical Education and Health. As a Toronto-based trainer, Susan specializes in exercise and pilates programs for fitness goals, post-rehabilitation and health conditions.
Peter Morel, CSEP-CFC, CAFS, CPTN-CPT
Peter has devoted the past 12 years of his life to helping person’s with disabilities reap the benefits of health and fitness. As a well-known and award-winning fitness professional, he has been recognized as one of the best Adaptive Fitness Professionals in the world. He continues to lecture and to give presentations to persons with disabilities on how to get fit and stay that way. His expert consulting services have been sought by corporations, private and commercial fitness facilities, government agencies, and disability advocacy groups. For more information, please visit www.topshapeinc.com.
Shawn Mozen, RKC
Shawn has worked in the fitness industry for over 15 years and is the owner of Agatsu Inc. Shawn was the first Trainer to introduce Kettlebells to the Canadian public. Through his company he created the first Kettlebell Instructional DVDs, workbook, and instructor certification programs in Canada. Some of the top Trainers from the U.S. and Canada have attended his certification program which is known as being one of the toughest and most complete programs available. For more information, please visit www.agatsu.com.
Ed McNeely, MSc, CSCS, CPT
Ed is the Vice President and Education Director for StrengthPro Inc. He received his Masters degree in Exercise physiology from the University of Ottawa in 1994 and has been involved in the strength and conditioning industry for 18 years. He has been a consultant to 17 Canadian National and professional sports teams and is the author and co-author of five books. He has published over 130 articles on training and athletic conditioning covering topics that include strength training, plyometrics, making weight, assessing fitness, speed and power development, planning and periodization, and aerobic fitness. For more information, please visit www.strengthpro.com.
Joanne O’Donnell, PTS
Joanne is a Certified Personal Trainer, ISKA Associate Trainer for the Fitness Kickboxing Program, Vice President of Fitness Kickboxing Canada Inc. Trainer-Course Conductor for canfitpro accredited CEC Fitness Boxing & Kickboxing Instructor Fitness Boxing Instructors Course. She is a Black Belt level Kickboxing Instructor through the CASK. For more information, please visit www.fitnesskickboxingcanada.ca.
Ross O’Donnell, BA, PTS
Ross is president of Fitness Kickboxing Canada Inc. (FKCI) and oversees operation of the Fitness Kickboxing Certifications program and Continuing Education courses across Canada. Ross is an experienced fitness and martial arts presenter, a fitness columnist with over 250 published articles, 15 instructor training manuals and authored The Ultimate Fitness Boxing & Kickboxing Workout. Ross is also a Certified Boxing Coach through the Canadian Amateur Boxing Association (CABA-Ontario) and a Certified Coach and competitive Kickboxing club owner through the CASK. For more information, please visit www.fitnesskickboxingcanada.ca.
Sheldon Persad, MSc, CSCS, NCCP, CPTN-CPT.M
Sheldon is a co-founder of the CPTN, and co-owner of Personal Best Health & Performance Inc., a company that focuses on corporate wellness and individual coaching. He has over 20 years of experience as a coach to professional, national team, and Olympic athletes from several sports. Sheldon’s passion for education motivated him to teach many courses, including The Business of Personal Training which he developed for the curriculum at a local college. For more information, please visit www.personalbest.ca.
David Sandler, MSc, CSCS, *D
David is the President and Co-Founder of StrengthPro Inc. He is a doctoral candidate at the University of Miami where he was the former Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach and head of Baseball during their 1999 National Championship season. David has published more than 20 scientific abstracts and articles and more than 75 articles in power and strength training for various magazines. Sandler was lead Sports Physiologist with National Geographic’s Super Strength and Fight Science shows dealing with Special Forces, Mixed Martial Arts, and the newest show about Steroids. He is currently working with Fox Sports on the 11 episodes of the super series, Sport Science.
Scott Sonnon, PhD
Scott, Celebrity Hall of Fame Coach, Mensa International, Graduate Faculty, Virginia Commonwealth University and former Physical Education Professor at Penn State University, is the creator of the Circular Strength Training® System, the Intu-Flow® Longevity System, the patented Clubbell® and Prasara Body-Flow Yoga. Author of seven books, including a best-seller, and producer of over 50 videos, he continues his prolific speaking and writing schedule worldwide, currently reaching 68 countries with his "health-first fitness" approach. Scott overcame several childhood disabilities (dyslexia, dyspraxia, anomia, osteochondrosis and obesity) to become the 1st Westerner to intern behind the "Iron Curtain", studying their performance enhancement technologies, earning their highest athletic distinction: Honourable Master of Sport. His vision has become synonymous with reversing an accelerated aging process. For more information, please visit www.rmaxinternational.com.
Peter Twist, MSc
Peter coached in the NHL for 11 years. An Exercise Physiologist with a Masters degree and a specialization in Coaching Science, Twist published over 400 papers, authored 10 books and 19 DVDs on athlete development, while coaching over 700 professional athletes. Twist is the President and CEO of Twist Performance Inc. For more information, please visit www.twistperformance.com.
Caron Shepley, BPE
Caron has worked in corporate fitness for over 10 years and is currently Corporate Director of the Toronto-based corporate health company, Personal Best. She has been practicing Yoga for 15 years and has become a renown yoga instructor for high performance athletes. Caron is the founder of Blue Dog Yoga and has produced her own video titled “Power Yoga for Endurance Athletes, Volume 2” which is featured at the 2008 CPTN Conference. Caron is also a five-time Ironman finisher and has won a silver medal for Canada at the World Triathlon Championships. For more information, please visit www.bluedogyoga.com.
Alison Wells, BA, BJ, CPTN-CPT
Alison owns and operates New Heights Fitness & Wellness Centre in Hanover, Ontario. She is a certified CPTN personal trainer and is a sponsored fitness competitor. She has been working in the fitness industry for the past 11 years as a marketing director, personal trainer, nutrition specialist, fitness instructor and most recently, fitness model.