About
Janet Parker
Movement has always been a part of my life. From an early age I did gymnastics and ballet, played school sports and other activities through high school, including volleyball, basketball, track, band, and dance line. You name it and I wanted to play. My Mom knew I was happiest when I was busy. I continued to dance, teach dance, and began to study pilates in college. I moved to NYC after college to pursue a career in dance and also found a love for teaching group fitness classes while there.
In 2006 after getting married and moving to Arlington I began personal training as well as teaching fitness classes and pilates at a big box gym, I later became a Fitness Manager at that gym. I loved working with the clients one on one and created a niche for myself by incorporating pilates, flexibility training and barre work into my private sessions. After having my daughter, my husband and I moved to Ashburn and I continued to work as a personal trainer and was teaching small group training and barre classes before barre was recognized by most big box gyms. I began teaching barre at small studios and started my own classes at a friend's house. I later co-owned my own barre and cycle studio before shutting down in 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions.
I am thrilled to be sharing energy with others teaching classes and personal training again with private, duo and trio sessions. I personally craft each individual workout to suit my clients needs and goals.
The Space Between Fitness Difference
One of the reasons I created Space Between Fitness is that many of us find ourselves in the "space between" at many intervals in our lives. I think about my own spaces between and the stories that are attached to them. After college, before getting married, after having a baby, experiencing a health issue or injury. I have enjoyed helping clients at these different stages of life with their fitness journeys and goals.
I recently had the privilege to help an 18-year-old, in the space between high school and going off to college, by creating a fitness program that will allow him to walk confidently into any fitness facility on campus and workout on his own effectively and safely. I worked with a middle-aged woman living with Rheumatoid Arthritis whose goals were to lift again and build muscle mass, but initially couldn't hold her coffee cup let alone five pound weights. Through deliberate and consistent effort, she progressed and now sends pictures of herself flexing her triceps! Her goals were to feel powerful when she walked into her business meetings and she accomplished that and then some! What a joyful feeling to celebrate the life gains outside of the gym! I have had the pleasure of working with many new moms who are in the space between having their baby and feeling strong again in their own body.
My goal is to provide a safe space for clients to achieve their fitness goals. I use Pilates, barre and other traditional strength training methods because they are so versatile, safe and effective for rebuilding stability, strength, tone, endurance, and increased flexibility at many levels of fitness. Some of my favorite clients to work with are dedicated dancers and student athletes who come to work on overall core strength, conditioning, and flexibility, as well as sport specific exercises. We all need space in our joints for proper kinesthetic movements, we want to move in a full and healthy range of motion that leads to better energy flow, more strength, more power, and can help reduce the risk of injury. Assessing form and posture to correct abnormal movements is crucial to customizing and developing a program for each and every client. Strong alignment is critical to fight height loss as we age and provide the space our organs need to function; we need to create and maintain space with we need to stretch and build muscles in the spaces of our spine and joints to fight height loss to maintain the space our organs need to function properly.
Creating space for movement is my passion. Sometimes just carving out the space and time for the work can make all the difference. Working out with others with similar fitness levels and goals can also add to your accountability and enjoyment. My goal is to create safe and comfortable spaces to get the work done.Lastly, we need to create space in our minds and take care of ourselves in a nurturing way, so that we can take care of others. Come try a class or book a session with me today!