Anton Joseph has trained over 40,000 people and is one of the go-to strength and conditioning coaches in Canada, attracting clients from all over the professional sports spectrum.
Joseph chairs the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Task Force for Hockey Alberta. He was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 and also teaches life strategy and business acumen.
“I was actually going to be an engineer growing up,” describes Joseph. “Someone suggested I get certified as a strength instructor. Then I got my aerobic certification. Then it just blossomed.”
Joseph became part of the Frappier Acceleration Program, a revolutionary program at the time. He utilized different forms of technology, including scanning and running treadmill to work on improving stride length and frequency, getting athletes stronger and faster.
He was asked to be a part of the CAP Corporations safety standard program for preventing concussions. For Joseph, while it helped mitigate the exposure and effects of concussions with his athletes, it was a perfect fit to also addressed the means to bring a concussed athlete along as it related to rehab.
After 30 years in the fitness industry and running Strive Fitness, there have been many changes.
“Gone are the days where you just have a muscle-bound guys in the gym working out. Gone are the days where gyms would open and hope their clientele wouldn’t show up because they just wanted to sell as many memberships as possible and not facilitate those memberships. Gyms and organizations are now creating true community, so individuals take part in activity, both in and outside of the facility.”
Overall, fitness is universal. It doesn’t fit in one box for a one type of individual. Fitness is mainstream. It is okay to instruct remotely and look at a holistic experience of full-body health.