I have loved sport from an early age. In school I played hurling and Gaelic football. I also performed well at gymnastics, getting into the top ten in the all Ireland competition in Butlins. Other sports that I loved to take part in were soccer, rugby, table tennis and athletics. After school, I worked for the I.R.F.U., coaching rugby to kids in Cork City. Teaching sports skills to the children and motivating them to enjoy sport was very rewarding. Following on from this I pursued a course in sports and leisure management. As part of this course I obtained qualifications in sports massage, sports nutrition, swimming, gym instruction, speed agility & quickness (SAQ) and, finally, personal training.

After qualifying, I worked as a gym instructor for Jury’s hotel in Dublin before going on to become their leisure suite supervisor. This meant that I had to look after the running of the gym and pool, organize the staff, and ensure that everything ran smoothly. In 2002 I decided to move back to Cork City, where I worked at Source Health & Fitness as a gym instructor. There I devised programs to help people achieve their fitness goals. These programs were very varied and included weight loss, toning, muscle gain, sports-specific training and general fitness. I would start with a full assessment, and then teach the client suitable stretches and exercises. Then, I would monitor the client's progress over time, and ensure that he or she was given all the support needed to accomplish their goals.