by Milinda Atallian
You know the old saying: “a couple that sweats together stays together”- or something like that. Amanda and Bob Wardwell’s passion for fitness and taking care of their bodies during this phase of their lives is evident.
Today, they’re not just partners in life—they’re certified fitness instructors who’ve built an avenue for helping others achieve their fitness goals while supporting one another along the way.
Q: What inspired you to become a fitness instructor?
Bob: Amanda was the instructor first, so certainly her being in that realm and seeing the process that she had to go through to get a certification was a huge factor.
Being a fitness instructor is not something I ever thought about as a goal, but as I’ve leveled up in life, group fitness became more the “thing” I wanted to be doing, and I would regularly be attending multiple classes a week. Then, when I started to get encouragement from some of the great fitness instructors at HAC, paired with Greta Fowler’s guidance, I decided to dip my toe in the fitness instructor life.
Amanda: I had always in the back of my mind thought about being an instructor but never had taken the plunge. Greta asked me one day if I would be interested in teaching Core, and that was the little push I needed. It was a relatively easy format to start with, but I was still not sure if I would be able to do it. I have somewhat of a “squirrel brain” at times. After that, I was hooked, and I have trained in 2 more formats with my eye on a 4th.
Q: What’s the biggest difference in your teaching philosophies?
Bob: I’m not sure if it’s a teaching philosophy per se, but I would say I tend to be goofier and Amanda tends to be more composed. Also, although we overlap in some of the things we like, I tend towards the faster-paced exercises.
Amanda: Really I am more composed? Haha. I don’t know if there’s a strong difference in philosophies. We seem to have found new personalities as instructors. Seriously, though, we both want people to personalize their workout. I definitely am not an instructor who is going to pretend that an exercise is easy for me. I want the group to feel like we’re in it together. I do have to adjust my teaching focus since I teach some vastly different things, like going from Step to BodyBalance.
Q: Do you ever give each other unsolicited instructor advice? How does that go?
Bob: Mostly we only give unsolicited encouragement. Sometimes if we’re talking about something that happened in class, the other may make a suggestion of “what I do in that scenario is …”.
Amanda: I agree. We don’t teach the same classes, so there isn’t a lot of room for unsolicited advice.
Q: What’s one fitness wish?
Bob: I wish I could encourage the people who have never taken a group fitness class to try some out. A certain class may not be for you, or a certain instructor, but I would bet there is a place for you somewhere where you fit perfectly and just don’t know it. The hardest part is walking in the door for the first time. (Just come a few minutes early so we can help you out!)
Amanda: It is a long-standing trend among women, I think, that cardio is the key to the kingdom. I really cannot emphasize enough how important strength and balance training is, especially as we age. Yes, cardio is important, but it is not what is going to keep you from falling or losing flexibility.
Q: How do you balance being partners in life and in fitness without burning out?
Bob: When we had younger children, this was never an issue as we were too busy with full time jobs and parental tag teaming. As we’ve startedto transition to mostly empty nesters, we’ve realized that we need some focus on time to ourselves and friendships. We’ve established that it’s always an option, never an obligation, to go to each other’s classes.
Amanda: I agree. Doing things together that we love is important, but so are the things that foster other relationships.
Q: What’s the most rewarding moment you’ve experienced as fitness instructors — together or separately?
Bob: Two things come to mind here. The first would be getting my first certification, Les Mills Grit. Amanda was very helpful with prep and encouraging me through that process, and she did the release many, many times with me. When the results came through of that first “pass”, it was such a moment of relief and excitement. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the work you put in come to fruition. The second thing that comes to mind is more of a general reward. It’s that moment at the end of a class, where you know your instructor game was “on”, the class had good energy, and you can see that reward in all the participants faces when they had a great experience. That feeling is what keeps me coming back for more.
Amanda: It is definitely very rewarding for me to have been able to start my fitness instructor career at my age. It is an amazing feeling when you go from “I am not sure I can do this”, to “Oh wow, I can do this!” It was very rewarding to see Bob and other instructors go through those transformations as well.
Q: Do you find that taking each other’s classes strengthens your relationship? Why or why not?
Bob: I think it’s part of what we do together. I certainly like when Amanda is able to come to my classes, and I enjoy going to her classes. We just also have to balance those days when we’ve already been together a lot, so we don’t get sick of each other!
Amanda: We do a lot of fitness things together, so, as Bob said, we have to balance that out with also achieving our individual goals.
Q: How much do you talk about the classes that you teach?
Bob: We definitely talk about how the classes went, talk about the new releases coming out, what music each of the platforms has, and “interesting”moves that Les Mills has come up with. I think we’re all still sore from that Copenhagen plank.
Amanda: Maybe not as much as people would think. But we definitely do discuss when there are crossover songs or moves among our classes. I’m bringing back the Copenhagen!
Q: What’s your go-to couple workout, and who usually taps out first?
Bob: I think the most consistent thing we do together is Amanda’s Core class. It’s probably one of the most important parts of the body, an awesome class, and I frequently neglect that portion of a workout…. So, yes, that would be me tapping out in the back of the class! We also have done a few half marathons together; with another half marathon coming up at the end of October.
Amanda: Yes, we run together, and I think we’re tied with who taps out first! Sometimes I might tap first in Core if I wasn’t teaching! Lol
Q: How do you handle it when one of you is feeling unmotivated?
Bob: For the most part, we’re rarely unmotivated to work out. Sometimes we feel blah and we remind each other that 99% of the time, you feel better after working out. If anything, we should probably do more rest and stretch days, which Amanda is better at than me. I’m perhaps part golden retriever, so I’m always ready to move, go on a walk, or do something.
Amanda: I agree, we both have stressful day jobs, so working out is our break, and I consider teaching to be my alter ego! I have never regretted a workout! And yes, Bob is part retriever.
Q: How has your view of health and fitness evolved since you met?
Bob: We met in late 1995 (queue that Titanic old lady meme). So we were basically kids; our nutrition philosophies have changed, and we didn’t ultimately have too much concern about health and fitness. We would go to the gym and I would “do my own thing”. I had an ingrained vision of group fitness only being a Jane Fonda type of workout, so I shied away from group fitness. For any men still reading this, group fitness has come a long way since 1985. We certainly focus more on healthy protein now. We now know you can’t outrun a bad diet. We know that nachos are still tasty, and life is a balance!
Thinking back, one of the key moments in my fitness journey was probably HAC’s Lifestyle Challenge with my trainer Dewey. That really helped me understand how you could lose weight, keep muscle, focus on the importance of nutrition, and have some great conversation along the way.
Amanda: I think my view has changed to health and fitness being a priority, rather than just something to do if you have time. I have always gone to group fitness classes on and off since college, I prefer the group or a trainer to being on my own.
Q: What role do rest and recovery play in your relationship — both physically and emotionally?
Bob: Who needs rest? Joking aside, we just have to listen to our bodies. As the body gains experience, there are some things that you learn you can or cannot do. I can’t take Amanda’s Step class after teaching a HIIT class and have my knees be happy the next day. I tend to alternate cardio workouts with strength-based workouts, but I rarely have a dedicated day off where I don’t do anything.
Amanda: Listening to the body becomes more important as you age. I know that after having training and teaching on Tuesday, Wednesday is not going to be a good day to have a heavy workout. I do like to push myself sometimes, but let’s just say that after a half-marathon, I’m not doing much for a few days! I do occasionally have to tell Bob to take just a little break, maybe that’s where being in healthcare comes into play.
Q: Who takes longer to get ready for the gym?
Bob: I probably take less time getting dressed, and more time looking for my keys or workout gloves. I take the longer showers though!
Amanda: I take longer to get ready, it is important to choose the proper attire to get sweaty in! And makeup to look presentable before being covered in sweat! But Bob does have more difficulty finding his keys.
Q: What’s the weirdest place you’ve ever done a workout together?
Bob: We did a virtual 10k running around Disney’s Caribbean beach resort in order to qualify for the two-course challenge. Not sure if that’s weird, but it was fun!
Amanda: Many people would say going to Disney to run is weird! And then doing it several more times on purpose!
Q: Who’s more likely to go to the gym when you are not teaching?
Bob: Probably me? Amanda is more likely to get in a training session; I’m more likely to take in a group class.
Amanda: Maybe Bob. As I mentioned, I do enjoy working with a trainer.
Q: If your relationship were a workout, what kind of workout would it be?
Bob: In the immortal words of Admiral Ackbar (nerd alert) … “It’s a trap!”.
Amanda: We’ve been together a long time, so I guess a marathon? It’s a marathon not a sprint, right? You have to have goals and always be working on it!
It was a joy getting to know the Wardwell’s outside of the studios. Their personalities shine through the playful banter of their answers, but I can honestly say that the same personalities are present when they teach.
If you have not had the opportunity to take their classes, put it on your list of things to accomplish this fall. You will surely work hard, have fun, and be thankful that you took the time to take care of yourself.
