Goulburn personal trainer Tess Wharton celebrates 20-year-long career despite challenges

Having just turned 60, Ms Wharton is celebrating 20 years as a personal trainer.

Reflecting on the years, she put her success down to her support systems and trusting herself.

"When I started, people told me I didn't have the right body shape, I was overweight and way too old," Ms Wharton said.

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Ms Wharton's journey into personal training began when she injured her back at work. She was told by a surgeon that the nerve would have to be removed to relieve the pain.

Wanting to avoid surgery, Ms Wharton instead joined the gym.

"My husband bought me a gym membership and I started training and I met a really nice trainer there and she helped me through it," Ms Wharton said.

"I now have no pain and I thought, well, if it could work for me, why can't I do it for others."

At age 40, Ms Wharton dived back into study and within a few years received a Master's degree in personal training. She is also accredited with the Lung Foundation Australia, Arthritis Australia and last year became fully accredited with Fitness Australia, allowing her clients to claim sessions through their healthcare.

Describing herself as a "perfectionist", Ms Wharton said she had struggled with self-doubt throughout the years but thanks to the continuous support from her husband, children and friends, she had successfully opened a private studio in Goulburn.

"If I had listened to the negative comments people said to me I wouldn't be where I am now," she said.

"It was a big learning curve that you have to believe in yourself, have a go and trust yourself."

In the past several years her private studio has attracted a range of clients, all at different stages of their lives.

Ms Wharton believed her clients kept coming back for her "realness".

"If you don't know it, don't make it up, you have to keep it real and get an understanding of your clients," she said.

Ms Wharton's youngest client is 16 years old and her oldest is 90. She sees her age as an advantage when it comes to understanding how different bodies work.

"I turned 60 this year and it's good to have somebody that age who understands what goes on," she said.

"We want to be fit and healthy but we can't exercise like we could in our 20s or 30s, it's different."

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Previously Ms Wharton worked in several Goulburn gyms, training athletes and running intense boot camps however, she said she was happiest in her studio where she could focus on helping people with chronic illnesses.

"This is different because it's affecting everyday life," she said.

"I like it when someone comes in and says 'guess what, I walked up the gutter today, or the step, and I could do it,' whereas before they had to hang on to something."

Ms Wharton said it was important for her to be able to connect to her clients and to understand that each day was different for everyone.

"There's no way you're going to make someone do 20 push-ups if other things are happening," she said.

"When someone is under a lot of pressure and they can't do the workout, they feel like they're failing, but if we change it and make it achievable, they walk out feeling good because they actually had a good workout."

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This Winter has been a difficult period for Ms Wharton's studio due to the lingering impacts of the pandemic and many clients falling ill with other colds and the flu.

She said she believed people were still on edge as the country tried to return to some kind of 'normal'.

"Everyone's a bit more stressed, a bit more angry," she said.

"But by coming here and exercising and trying not to think about it, that just gives them a little bit of a breather which I think everybody needs."

Ms Wharton said she was "lucky" to have the clients she did and was thankful for those who had "hung in with her".

Planning a celebratory lunch to thank everyone for the past 20 years, Ms Wharton said she had no plans of slowing down just yet.

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