I was honored to be the member feature a couple years back for the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) whom I hold certifications with.
I have also been lucky enough to be featured in a few news articles including the Victoria News and the Goldstream Gazette as well as an interview with a radio station The Zone 91.3 so far.
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CSEP Member Feature: Corbin Bednarik
Elate Fitness – Founder, CSEP-CEP, CSEP High Performance Specialist™, BCAK - Practicing Kinesiologist
Tell us a bit about your day job, what inspires you and how are you coping during COVID-19?
I operate Elate Fitness which is designed to improve individuals' mental health by improving their physical health, primarily focused around physical activity.
Elate Fitness was created in part as a way for mental health professionals, who recommend exercise to their clients, to have a place to refer them.
Elate Fitness is completely virtual. My day is filled with 1:1 sessions with clients and check-ins/monitoring everyone using Elate Fitness. Our mobile app records when workouts, meals, and habits are entered so I can see how clients are doing and who may need more support. Most clients have direct messaging with me to increase accountability and motivation.
In 2017 my sister died by suicide and this now empowers me to create easily accessible programs for people who are wanting to improve their mental and physical health. I am inspired by the ability to genuinely improve people's lives and make them more secure, healthy, and happy with everything they do.
I have been lucky not to have been too negatively impacted by COVID-19 mostly due to working virtually. With the growing concern surrounding everyone's mental health during COVID-19 and in isolation it is more important now than ever to have access to mental health services, supports, and resources.
What contributions or achievements are you most proud of?
I am proud and lucky to be growing a network of counsellors and psychologists who are happy having somewhere to refer their clients to when recommending exercise.
I am also proud to have the Elate Fitness App going which has greatly helped with client accountability and engagement.
How can CSEP members add mental health check-ins to their programs?
First, I would strongly recommend getting more of an understanding of mental health such as taking a course like Mental Health First Aid offered by the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).
Second, if your job allows, creating check-ins with clients between sessions to ask a few basic questions around what they did and how they feel, for example, is a great way to get a sense of how they're doing and if they might need more support.
Lastly, don't be afraid to open up the conversation around mental health. I was surprised how much more information was shared with me and in turn how much more invested in the program they became.
Any interesting projects coming up for you?
Currently, I am working on building a more accessible program that teaches the basics and benefits of exercise, healthy eating, and how living a healthy lifestyle improves our mental health and boosts our feel-good chemicals.
I am also currently taking a graduate certificate in mental health and addictions to further my knowledge and experience.
Find Elate Fitness on social media!
Facebook: ElateFitnessCanada
Instagram: Elate_Fitness