Fighting fit: the painless way to get into shape

Lifestyle – Judy Murphy meets exercise guru Eoin O’Donnellan, a man who has turned adversity into opportunity

Having more than one string to your bow is an advantage in a constantly changing world, where a job for life can no longer be taken for granted.

As Eoin O’Donnellan points out, most of us have skills that can help us earn a living – it’s just a question of tapping into them.  And that’s something he knows a bit about.

Eoin, who worked all his adult life as a life assurance, mortgage and pensions broker, was also a talented sportsman, but it wasn’t until the economic downturn a few years ago that he turned to his passion as a way of earning extra income.

The financial services industry was badly affected by the recession, but at the age of 47, Eoin found opportunity in adversity and decided to train as a gym instructor. In late 2012, after receiving his ITEC qualification he set up in the fitness business and now runs his new company, UBFit Sports International, alongside his traditional job.

So far UBFit Sports International is forging ahead – although the ‘international’ element is still aspirational, he says with a grin.

UBFit offers pay-as-you-go classes across a range of activities from kettlebells to yoga, circuits to Zumba. These take place in three venues in the City; Salthill-Knocknacarra GAA Centre, and St Enda’s Primary School, both in Salthill, and the GMIT.

While world domination will have to wait a bit longer, Eoin does plan to expand the classes into County Galway.  No class costs more than €10, while some are cheaper. And if a client books more than one class a week, the price drops to €5 for second and subsequent classes, he says.

“Once people find something they enjoy that’s affordable and there’s a good vibe from it, they will want to go to classes. I want people to enjoy getting fit,” explains Eoin over a tea in the City’s Dáil Bar as he explains what UBFit is about.

It’s not about weighing people, it’s not about measuring people – it’s about having fun while keeping fit on a pay-as-you-go basis. And, the added bonus is that if you exercise and watch what you eat, you will lose weight and keep it off. That’s an approach that has served the father-of-two well since childhood.

“I was always into sport,” he says. “People would have known me more for sport than for anything else.”

Eoin, a talented footballer in his youth, has been involved with the Salthill GAA Club all his life. He was into rowing at school, and also played rugby with Corinthians. Gaelic and rugby were his two main disciplines, he says, but in his early 20s he had to fix on one, so he opted for Gaelic.

He played well into his 30s, until family responsibilities meant he could no longer commit.

In 2000 Eoin returned to Salthill-Knocknacarra as a coach, working with adult teams, which he did until three years ago. In that role he realised that if he trained as a gym instructor, he could help his teams achieve better results.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.