Hi, I’m Rena. Glad you found me! Here’s a little about me. I’m a mother to three beautiful children, wife to a lawyer, and the owner of Rena Schenker Fitness. 💪🏼

 

My fitness journey started back as far as I can remember and was a passion and part of my life since early childhood. I was ALWAYS active: riding my bike, ice-skating on the weekends, going to gymnastics camp in the summer, and more. When I was a teenager, I became a certified lifeguard and certified swim instructor.

In college I decided to study nutrition because I recognized that what we put into our bodies is as important as being active. In 2008, I graduated from Lehman College with a Masters in Nutrition. While working in a nursing home, I started practicing bikram yoga. I really enjoyed this type of yoga because we did the same sequence every class so I was able to focus on my breath and my movement. I wanted to become a bikram teacher but realized that I would have to leave my family for 3 months and move to California, and that wasn’t an option! I decided the next best thing was to study and become a personal trainer. I did a self-study course and in the summer of 2015 I passed. I started working at various gyms and really enjoyed being a trainer. I just love pushing my clients past their comfort zones and watching them transform and grow stronger physically and mentally!  I always loved taking group fitness classes and thought that had to be my next certification. In 2016, I took a course with NASM to teach group fitness classes. I started teaching strength type classes. My students and I worked on our goals together. About 2 years ago, in one of my classes I decided to start a push-up challenge. In between sets of exercises we would throw in 10 pushups until we reached 100. Week by week, I saw everyone get much stronger! We tried different variations. We pushed each other. It was so amazing to watch and be a part of. I love teaching boot camp classes but always felt that something was missing. In 2018, a friend suggested we take a yoga teacher training. We took kinneret yoga training in the summer of 2018. It was the BEST decision of my life! It was a tough summer for me. I was going through a very rough time and that training changed my life. It brought me on the road to healing. I learned that I don’t alway need to be strong, and sometimes I need to have some restorative yoga in my life. I learned to come back to my breath and release the things that don’t warrant space in my head. For this I am forever grateful.  I have met so many amazing instructors along the way and they have taught me so much. Last summer, I started teaching ‘Burn’ in a yoga studio near me. Burn is a combination of toning and yoga. I absolutely love teaching this style and of course I brought my special love of pushups! This is my favorite class to teach. I love the combination of strength and then the release in a yoga pose. I love moving through a sequence and just focusing on my breath and the way my body moves. Finding our breath calms our minds and pushes us through our challenges.

 

My goal is to help you get stronger physically and mentally. I want to help you find your breath and help you push through challenging times. I want to boost your inner confidence so that you feel like you can do anything! There is no challenge in life that will stop you and I’d be honored to coach you to your goals.  

 

Let’s do this! 

         Rena