Rewriting the Fitness Story: Kerri’s Path from Discipline to Healing

I still remember the very first aerobics class I taught back in the 90s.

No pre-choreographed classes, tape decks for music… and yes, those leotards. 

It was during this time that I first met Don and Rhonda Bacchi, the owners of Onfit Training College.  They were introducing Nautilus training equipment into the gym where I worked, and out paths naturally crossed. What began as a professional connection grew to much more as I became a student and an employee of Onfit, and over the years we’ve developed al long-lasting friendship that I value deeply

I moved quickly into personal training and eventually managed several gyms. I loved the connection with people and the community that naturally forms in fitness spaces. On the surface, I looked confident and capable, but privately I was navigating body dysmorphia. My own training was driven by how fit I could become, how much I could lift, what the scales said — and most of all, what I saw in the mirror. Looking back, I can see how distorted that mirror truly was.

Even at 50, when I competed in a fitness figure competition, echoes of those old patterns were still present.

As injuries began to surface and life took an unexpected turn, I found myself working with people who had acquired brain injuries. I was grateful to still be of service, and while this work taught me so much, I deeply missed the sense of community I’d always loved in the gym.

During this period, I began taking real responsibility for my inner world — my beliefs, my self-talk, and the stories I held about my body. I also started exploring ways to heal my injuries, always choosing to experience modalities myself before recommending them to others. I tried massage, acupuncture, neurotherapy, and a range of emerging therapies.

What fascinated me most was discovering how closely the body, emotions, and energy are linked. I began to understand how chronic stress and a dysregulated nervous system impact our health, and I learned that talk therapy alone is often not enough to shift deeply held patterns. I saw the connection between stuck emotions and physical stuckness — and how gently addressing both supported my healing.

Around 2011, I returned to the fitness industry, purchasing an outdoor group personal training franchise and rebuilding community once again. Training outside, in all weather, softened something in me. I became less of the “push harder” trainer I once was and more interested in letting the body lead, respecting injuries, and honouring the nervous system.

I also noticed how many people use exercise as a form of punishment rather than nourishment. That realisation sent me deeper into studying belief systems and how they shape every area of our lives.

From there, I discovered yin yoga — learning to get comfortable with the uncomfortable and to find stillness and peace.

I found breathwork — a powerful doorway to release what the body has been holding and reconnect with the healing intelligence of breath.

I found Spinal Flow Technique — deepening my understanding of how physical, chemical, and emotional stress is stored in the body.

I found Reiki and energy healing — bridging the physical and energetic body.

And more recently, I’ve integrated PEMF (Pulsed Electromagnetic Field therapy), supporting cellular energy, nervous system regulation, inflammation, pain, oxygen delivery, and tissue repair.

Today, you’ll find me teaching group fitness in the gym, guiding breathwork and energy healing sessions, and offering Spinal Flow treatments. My curiosity continues to expand, and my path keeps unfolding.

More than anything, my journey has taught me this:

Approach life with curiosity.

Be open to new possibilities.

Listen to your body — it holds an innate wisdom far greater than we realise.

Sometimes we have to unlearn what we thought was true in order to remember who we truly are.

Life is a mirror.

What reflection will you choose?