Health and Fitness Magazine: Article on self
Dennis trains Jonathan Ross along with other celebrities.
But his is most famous for his role in the body transformation
of TV presenter Vanessa Feltz. His naturally motivating,
warm personality would make the most reluctant exerciser
enjoy working up a sweat.
'I've always been into sport; I played football and basketball
and sprinted for my country. But I couldn't be a professional
footballer or sprinter because of a leg fracture. So I
got a job managing a children's gym and started teaching
20 aerobics classes a week.
'I've been a personal trainer for about 10 years, but
was struggling when I first started. As well as personal
training, I teach aerobics, boxercise and dance at a couple
of gyms. The turning point in my career was when I went
on a motivation course around six years ago. Before, I
never knew whether I was pushing too hard or not pushing
enough, but this gave me the confidence to know I was
doing the right thing.
'I met Vanessa through her sister who does yoga at the
gym where I work. She told me her sister could use some
help. So I started training her in October 1999.
'We started off with gentle mobility and stretching exercises
to ease her in and then started walking on the treadmill,
doing gentle aerobics and weights. The secret with any
client, celebrity or not, is to be enthusiastic, keep
them laughing and make them smile. It doesn't have to
feel like exercise if you keep it varied. I also get people
to visualise what they want to look like. Even if they
won't end up looking exactly as they imagine, it's great
motivation. I incorporate lots of sport-related fitness
into my sessions. For example, we'll throw a ball around
or I'll get my clients to run around on the squash court;
like a busy game without the ball. We do step-ups and
tricep dips on the bench in the park, and I do lots of
fartlek training.
'Since Vanessa, my client base has gone up by 100 percent.
I could work every hour of every day. Celebrity clients
are no different from others, though I did once train
a male pop star who asked me not to make him sweat because
he had to go on to a hairdressing appointment!
'I'm also a qualified masseur, so I sometimes include
a pre- and post workout massage. I work 10-12 hour days.
Sometimes I train with my clients; I'll either run with
them or cycle along next to them as they run. But I also
run three or four times a week and weight train at the
gym when I can fit it in between sessions. It's so easy
to forget about yourself when you're busy, but it's important
for me to keep in top condition.'
(April 2001)
