Fitness coach seeks to show clients a ‘smarter way’

The owner of TrainSmarter fitness studio in Mountain Brook, Susan Finley, didn’t start out as a person likely to become a workout guru.

Growing up in Gadsden, Finley “was uncoordinated and hated P.E,” she said.

But she later discovered the benefits of exercise and found a career.

A certified personal trainer and corrective exercise specialist, she’s spent 35 years in the industry.

Finley also believes she can teach clients to work out very effectively.

She presents her knowledge about fitness and healthy living in her new book, “The Smarter Way.” It promises readers a better way to exercise, move, eat, think and live.

“The Smarter Way” describes what Finley believes is the best way to exercise, as well as strategies for long-term weight loss, managing back pain and cultivating a healthy, optimistic mindset.

The book is designed in part to show people “that so many of the things they think they know about exercise and wellness are just plain wrong,” Finley said.

She seeks to help debunk what she sees as myths propagated by the diet and fitness industries.

For example, she said it’s a myth that you need to do cardio to lose weight or that cardio is the most important exercise.

Another common belief she disputes is the importance of stretching. “We don’t advocate stretching,” she said.

For example, “too often, people stretch muscles that aren’t tight, they’re taut— so they’re making things worse, and certain people should not stretch at all,” Finley said.

She also said the fitness industry “has been its own worst enemy by selling exercise as the ticket to weight loss.”

“Exercise is unrivaled for its positive effect on health — you’ll feel better, look better, and move better — but it doesn’t burn a lot of calories,” she said.

Her career in fitness has been a huge transformation for Finley, because her family was not very health conscious.

“We did no recreational activities or exercise,” she said.

However, while Finley and her husband were living in North Carolina, her best friend talked her into going to some exercise classes, and she also tried aerobics.

“I was amazed to discover it made me feel more energetic, and I was actually good at learning routines,” she said.

Her fitness career started after she and her husband moved to Washington, D.C., in the early 1980s.

“One of the owners of the studio where I was taking classes singled me out to ask if I’d be interested in teaching,” she said.

In 1987, after she and her husband moved to north Shelby County, Finley discovered strength training.

“I discovered how empowering it was to feel strong,” she said. “I started to discover the therapeutic side of strength training, how it could alleviate and prevent injuries. I found myself on a mission to make a difference in the lives of as many people as I could.”

She opened TrainSmarter in 2014 in the Crestline Park retail center before moving to her current location at 1102 Dunston Ave.

“We do fitness and nutrition coaching and specialize in working with people who have knee, back, shoulder, hip and neck pain,” Finley said.

TrainSmarter seeks to empower clients through teaching. “We are a coaching center; we don’t just deliver workouts,” Finley said.

People should not expect instant results from their exercise programs, she said.

“It’s about long-term progress and making a series of small changes increases the chances of success,” she said.

For more information about TrainSmarter, go to wetrainsmarter.com.

Finley’s book, “The Smarter Way,” is available at Amazon.