Background
Nathalie is originally from Wales, UK, and currently lives in California. She graduated from Loughborough University with a BSc in Sport and Exercise Science, where she also completed her teacher training in physical education. She taught in the UK for 7 years before moving to Toronto, Canada, where she worked as a sessional lecturer in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education at the University of Toronto. Nathalie joined the Performance Redefined team in 2022, and has since been instructing classes in addition to working with International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) staff to apply her expertise/experiences in the development of resources for the new F2T program. She has been enjoying learning about the fire service, and has especially relished meeting and learning from so many inspirational individuals. Nathalie is excited to continue sharing her passion for wellness and fitness with members across the United States and Canada. A life-long learner, she is also currently completing a Master’s in High Performance Sport at the Australian Catholic University.
Activity Habits
Outside of work, Nathalie enjoys watching various sports, travelling and experiencing new cultures, being active outside, and enjoying the sunshine with her husband and dog. She regularly follows an exercise routine, and usually alternates between running (roughly 8 km), and doing circuit style workouts at the gym. Nathalie also plays Netball, which is a fast and physical game that she likes to describe as a combination between basketball and handball. Surprisingly, she has found a team where she lives in California and is thrilled to be back playing regularly.
A large part of Nathalie’s motivation to be active comes from her up-bringing. Sport was (and continues to be) a big part of her life, not least of which because both her parents worked in sport and were teachers. Family life was very active, and exposed her to many sports at an early age. Although sampling many sports, she found her passion lay in team sports, particularly Netball. Nathalie feels fortunate to have had the support of her parents, who drove her great distances for competitions and training, which cultivated her development as an athlete. Sport is still a family affair, as Nathalie’s husband works in sport, and so engaging in activity together is something that also motivates her every day. The feeling she gets when she moves is indescribable and now that she lives in a sunny climate it makes it even easier for her to maintain and solidify activity habits for the future. Nathalie is happy to report that factors which were once barriers to her being physically active are no longer a concern! Working from home, and living in a climate that is always warm and dry affords her ample opportunities to move often.
Perspectives on F2T and fire fighter wellness and fitness
In Nathalie’s opinion, the F2T program is unique because it addresses the pursuit of getting more fire fighters active by considering how all aspects of a fire fighters life interact to shape and influence their movement behaviors. This approach affords the individual, department, PFTs, all stakeholders, really, the ability to make long-lasting changes in fire fighter wellbeing. For Nathalie, the value of the program stems from its commitment to make physical activity and exercise matter for each and every fire fighter. This investment is critical, since even the best program will be ineffective if one can’t connect how it will make them, and the things most important in their lives, better.
Nathalie would like departments and fire fighters to know that this program is tailored to suit their needs, but at the same time can be structured and implemented in many different ways. In other words, the systems and principles that the program are built on can serve fire fighters regardless of where they currently are in their wellness and fitness pursuit. The two words she would use to describe the value of the program are changing behaviors. Nathalie would advise fire fighters thinking about investing in their wellness and fitness that their pursuit doesn’t have to look a certain way and that the F2T team is committed to supporting them achieve their goals with flying colors.
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