CFES HISTORY
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Canadian Fitness Education Services Ltd (CFES) was founded by Margaret Hewitt-Zaitlin in 1983 and was originally called the Total Training Centre, Ltd (TTC). TTC was created to offer Aquafit instructor courses, fitness leadership courses, workshops and conferences. For almost thirty years CFES has been advancing the standard of the fitness industry, always willing to set the stage for new policies and direction. In 1983 TTC held its first fitness conference, Fitness for the Future. This was one of the first conferences of its type in the Vancouver area. The one day event attracted more than 200 delegates.
In 1988, the fifth annual Fitness for the Future conference drew more than 1,000 delegates. TTC held these conferences for seven consecutive years. In 1985 TTC was a pioneer in developing and using fitness modules. Weight Training and Group Exercise instructor course modules were added to the Fitness Leadership course. Within two years TTC had twelve trainers traveling around BC delivering fitness course modules. Douglas College approached TTC in 1986 to deliver fitness leadership training programs within the college’s continuing education department, now within the college’s Sports Institute. In 1989 TTC received its first request from a resident of Vanderhoof, in the BC interior, to take the Fitness Knowledge Course by correspondence. Until then the course had been offered over two consecutive weekends in classroom settings in larger cities. It became evident that a new solution was needed to make fitness courses more accessible in the remote areas across Canada. TTC responded by creating a home study program which was reviewed and approved by the BCRPA. T
The CFES Fitness Knowledge Home Study Program quickly became one of the most popular and comprehensive fitness courses available. In May 1990 company operations were moved to Nelson, BC. In 1993 the company created a new educator distributor model of delivery for classroom-based programs. Rather than the company being responsible for setting up courses and registering students, the instructors were to be independent educator distributors and utilize the company’s student resource manuals, program booklets and educator materials. To better reflect the new direction the corporate name was changed from TTC to Canadian Fitness Education Services Ltd. (CFES). CFES was relocated to Summerland, BC in 1998. The company’s website, http://www.canadianfitness.net, was built in 2000. A new mission statement: “To enhance the fitness knowledge and activity effectiveness of individuals through quality leadership, lifetime programs, products and services” was developed to guide the company’s new focus. In 2001 the BC Ministry of Education reviewed and approved the CFES fitness leadership resources. They added the Fitness Knowledge Course to the Ministry’s Integrated Resource Package for grades 11 and 12 high school physical education and its Grade Select Collections of resources. CFES was proud to be chosen as the resource that matches the greatest number of prescribed learning outcomes for PE 11/12. The course was also approved for locally developed or Board Approved classroom based curriculum for Group Fitness andWeight Training Instructor courses. In 2002, CFES added the Introduction to Weight Training for Young Adults resources for high school grades 9 and 10 PE. The following year Loyalist College in Belleville became the first community college in Ontario to offer CFES courses through their Continuing Education program, and as part of their School of Health Sciences Diploma in Fitness and Promotion. Graduates also earned their CFES certification. In 2005 the Fitness Knowledge Home Study Program added online learning courseware components. To date, more than 1,500 student have utilized this new media to assist in completing the fitness theory component of leadership training.
The CFES Fitness Knowledge Course and Group Exercise Instructor Course and Weight Training Instructor resources were recognized by Alberta Education in 2010 and 2011 as support resources for Career and Tech Studies for Health, Recreation and Human Services: Community Care Services Grades 10 – 12; Health Care Services, Grades 10 – 12; Human and Social Services, Grades 10 – 12; Recreation Leadership, Grades 10 – 12 The CFES Personal Trainer resource package was published in early 2011. New CFES Aquafit Instructor resources were released in early 2012). CFES continues to revise and reissue new editions of its various resources to ensure the continue to exceed all national leadership standards. Growing more concerned with the national health crisis and the lack of regulation in fitness certification,CFES took a bold step in 2011 to launch several new programs. CFES now offers its own nationally recognized certifications in Personal Training, Aquafit, Group Exercise and Weight Training. This will provide fitness professionals the opportunity to raise the bar in national certification standards, advance educational credentials and connect with peers for networking and guidance. To announce these programs CFES developed a new and improved website describing its courses and resources, as well as the CFES Webstore featuring over 300 fitness and wellness products. CFES’sgoal, now more than ever, is to motivate and inspire people of all walks of life to become more healthy and physically fit. http://www.canadianfitness.net/home/history.html