There is nothing to lose in applying for a job you have no experience in. Prior to working at Gravity Laboratory as a Strength and Movement Coordinator, my resume mainly consisted of teaching sports and outdoor adventure activities to children. I had little familiarity working with adults and no experience teaching group classes or personal training. Despite my perceived shortcomings, the owner of Gravity Laboratory, Darren Radford, saw my athletic background, knowledge of exercise theory, and coaching experience as an opportunity to train me as a coach.

Fast forward to the present day and I am on my third work term with Gravity Laboratory and lead group fitness classes, utilizing many modalities I learned in-house from shadowing other coaches. In addition to teaching group fitness classes, I also participate in classes led by other coaches at Gravity to improve my physical and coaching skills. My proactive approach allows me to expedite my growth as a lifelong athlete and as a coach which helps me improve the clients’ experience.

A project I am particularly proud of is my role as a youth calisthenics coach. Gravity Laboratory runs a youth calisthenics program that runs three days a week. During these classes, I get the opportunity to teach various bodyweight exercises like handstands and pullups to children aged 12-15. Having the opportunity to take my previous experience as a Children’s Recreation Leader and teaching the calisthenics I learned from the coaches at Gravity Laboratory has proven to be extremely rewarding and I look forward to carrying these skills into my future career.

Co-op is best thought of as a chance to take seemingly unrelated skills from previous jobs and implement them in a work term to enhance your resume. One of the many benefits to doing a Co-op is that managers are much more likely to take the time to hone the skills of a student than they are with someone applying from the street. The worst they can say is ‘No,’ so what is there to lose?