Changing The Way You View Fitness w/ Simone Tchouke

Steph Gaudreau
This is Episode 295 of the Listen To Your Body podcast. On today’s show, I’m welcoming special guests, Simone Tchouke and she’s sharing with us all of the reasons why movement can be a joyful experience in your life.

Steph Gaudreau
The next evolution of Harder To Kill Radio is here. Welcome to the Listen To Your Body podcast, on this show, we’ll explore the intersection of body, mind and soul health, and help you reclaim your abilities to eat and move more intuitively, hear your body’s signals, and trust yourself more deeply.

Steph Gaudreau
I’m Steph Gaudreau, certified intuitive eating counselor, nutritional therapy practitioner and strength coach. On this podcast. you can expect to hear expert guest interviews and solo chats that will help you deepen your trust with food movement and your body. Remember to hit the subscribe button and shar e this podcast with your friends and loved ones. Now, onto the show.

Steph Gaudreau
Hello, my friend, welcome to the podcast today. I am so very glad and thankful that you’re spending some time with me and my very special guest today Simone Tchouke, better known as Simone Loves Fitness. Before I hop into telling you all about Simone just wanted to remind you of a couple things. First, if you are not on the listen to your body newsletter list yet, what are you waiting for? You can do that at StephGaudreau.com/LTYB for listen to your body. That’s where I send out information coaching tidbits, all about topics that we talked about on the podcast. So it’s a really cool place to be and learn and just to be more in what’s going on in the community.

Steph Gaudreau
Second, hit that podcast Subscribe Button, please. That would be amazing. New episodes will come into your device every time they are available, which is almost always Tuesday. So you can go ahead and do that. And then if you love this episode, please share it on Instagram we want to help to share what Simone is up to in the world. She’s just such a wonderful, incredible soul and her work is so very important. So you can share that on Instagram and tag her. She’s got Simone Loves Fitness and you can tag me as well so I can see it and then share it. My very special guest today is Simone Tchouke better known as Simone Loves Fitness on Instagram. She’s a fitness trainer and I absolutely love the way that Simone makes movement really accessible. I love her enthusiasm, it is infectious and I also really love the way she teaches fitness to folks as not something to do to fix your body, not something to do to earn your food, not something to do to shrink yourself down, but as a way to really be embodied as a way to experience the joy of movement. And all of the other ways that movement and a regular fitness practice can benefit the way you feel. I just think that message is so very, very important, especially in a fit SVO world still, that places priority on how we look over how we feel and how our bodies function. So I know you’re gonna love this episode. Simone is such a joy and I can’t wait for you to get to know her better. Without further ado, let’s jump in.

Steph Gaudreau
Hi, Simone. Welcome to the show.

Simone Tchouke
Hi Steph, thank you so much for having me.

Steph Gaudreau
Oh my goodness is an absolute true pleasure to have you on the podcast. I’m so excited to chat with you and have you share a little bit about your story and your evolution in the fitness world. This is going to be awesome.

Simone Tchouke
Thank you. I’m really really excited.

Steph Gaudreau
Yeah, you know, I was trying to remember. How did I first Well, I started following you on Instagram and I just thought, how did I find out about you? And I don’t quite remember but I have to say that every time I see your videos or Instagram TV, everything that you post, it motivates the heck out of me.

Simone Tchouke
Oh my god, really I would have been You are so amazing. Because to me you like I love everything about you. I love your posts, and that’s really amazing that I could motivate you.

Steph Gaudreau
You have a really joyful way of moving. And since you’re, you know, a trainer and a coach, you’re when you do your videos, it is just so that you have really cool energy about you and I think you present fitness in a really approachable way.

Simone Tchouke
I really appreciate that. That’s the goal. So…

Steph Gaudreau
Right, whatever I mean, what do you see? Is that something that you really try to do is or is it just something that comes naturally to you? Like, are you thinking okay, how am I going to make this seem like something people can approach or is it just does it just come from you and how you engage with movement?

Simone Tchouke
I think honestly probably just came from how I am. I just like I’m, I never want people to look at the kind of like they feel either intimidating or, because that’s how that’s not how I was raised. Like, I think it’s more natural because you can’t really fake it. I don’t think you really can but I think you just Um, from my own personality.

Steph Gaudreau
Mm-hmm. I love that. It shines through and you always have such a wonderful smile. I’m not that we have to be happy all the time. But yeah, when you are, when you’re putting yourself out there, you radiate that.

Simone Tchouke
Thank you.

Steph Gaudreau
Positivity and that’s an that’s infectious, right? Like that enthusiasm is, yeah. It’s something that we can spread. I would love for you to share a little bit more about your story. Your background, I know you did not grow up in the United States when you were very young and you came here when you were a teenager, like take us through kind of that background and how it how you think it influences you in the work that you do today.

Simone Tchouke
Um, so yeah, I moved here when I was 15 when my dad and my stepmother, so I finished high school here or went to college, started grad school but dropped out to pursue fitness. I used to say that I left my country too late. No, I left my country too early, but I came here too late. But I don’t feel like that anymore. And the reason why because when I first moved here, it was too late for me to change my accent, I was too old to, to my vocal cords to change. But at the same time, I left too late because I left my country too late because I, there’s so much stuff that I missed out that when I go back home, I don’t necessarily feel like I belong completely. So I always kind of had that.

Simone Tchouke
It was always almost kind of like me against myself kinda. But as I finish high school, went to college and decided to become a personal trainer, I realized that having the best of both worlds if I could say that definitely helped me become a better coach, and I could really relate to a lot of people. So I think I’m really grateful for that because I’m not sure how would have been if I was raised here completely.

Simone Tchouke
Or if I came here, or in my 30s versus my 15. So I grew up in Cameroon. Most people like not wise in my case like my parents didn’t have a lot of money. So we had to grow our own food. We had our own little like a little farm like your basic had your own little chicken and etc, you raised you to know, you raise your own things. So I kind of grew up eating, just like that, just because that’s all we knew. And also, we didn’t have like money for like toys or buying a bike. So basically, we’re kind of like active so I literally grew up being playing soccer and moving around running around with my siblings, because that’s how we had fun.

Simone Tchouke
But moving here, it was a little bit different. You know, people can have video games that have a desk but I think grew up in Camaroon and definitely helped me be active, which is silly thinking of it as a chore. We just don’t like I’m having fun. I’m going to jump rope. I’m going to climb I’m going to do this. So that does really helped me, it’s helping me a lot. And I because of that also like on the stand when a client comes to me and then they have a hard time they see working out, I can understand. Like my Bhagwan helped me be where I am right now versus their background. So I think it really an I really appreciated that I grew up in Cameroon and came here when I came.

Steph Gaudreau
Yeah, that’s so wonderful that you pointed that out, and I picked the word that I stood out the most right there was fun.

Steph Gaudreau
Yeah, fun, right. You’re outside your playing. Yeah. Like, when folks come to work with you. How do you help them reconnect to that sense? That movement can be fun.

Simone Tchouke
Um, usually but because I think when, when you look at like social media, or you look at the magazine, working out is always shown to just like because you want to lose weight.

Simone Tchouke
Right, you barely maybe like now some people aren’t doing anything you barely hear the actual benefits of working out. So people always associate just working out like wanting to lose weight. And my goal as a trainer is always kind of like, you want to move because you’re going to feel better, you’re going to have all those amazing. Um, so we’re basically going to be you’re going to feel happy, you’re going to feel you’re going to sleep better, you’re going to feel lighter and your movements, you know, so I really try to like, let them see the reason because I wanted to lose weight. Like why you should be working out like why you should work out if you’re tired. Trust me. If you work out more, you’re going to feel better. So that’s my first thing. I never really, if a client comes to me, they want to lose weight. Yes. But I never really just talk about just losing weight. I just kind of like help them see the actual benefits of being active in general. And I always say listen, even if you don’t want to train with me the way I trained you could pick something else. There’s dancing, there’s walking, there’s bike there’s, we have so much stuff out there that you can do to help you be active.

Simone Tchouke
So just have to find what you like and just do it as consistently as you can. So that’s how I literally tried to like, tip them gauge as an you don’t have to work out because you want to lose weight, you’re not working out because you want to lose weight you’re working out because it’s good for you, and it’s going to help you feel better to sleep better. It’s gonna help people so much stuff and not just losing weight.

Steph Gaudreau
I love that. I think that’s so important, right? Because the culture that we’re in, almost makes exercise. I mean, exercise movement can feel hard and challenging, right, but still, be enjoyable. Exactly. Um, but I feel like our culture is made it out to be something that has to be so painful and something that you hate and have to like, make yourself do it. How do you approach that with your clients, if they come to you and they think oh, they have to like this. I’m going to hate this. You know, how do you? How do you hook them?

Simone Tchouke
So I am this is why when a client comes around, I always ask them, What is your WHY? I’m sure I read it somewhere. I’m always like, you need to have a strong why do you want to work out? Why are you here? Why did you find me? You know, and if your why it’s only because you want to look good chances are after working out twice or three times you’re not going to stick around. And, and also just because you see me or we see stats or somebody else doing something like I don’t know, some complex movement does not mean you need to do that in order to be fit, or, or be stronger. You don’t need to do that. So I basically I, I let them know because you have XYZ goal, this is what I’m going to do for you. But I also do what they like, you know. So I literally just ask them, Why do you want to work out? Let’s find an actual reason. Why do you want to work on like, do you understand the actual benefits of working out and no so we don’t have to do it if you feel like you’d never want to do a deadlift.

Simone Tchouke
I’m gonna find a way to make you I don’t know hinge without you think that like, so I kind of like find a compromise and um, and help them understand that you don’t need to do what I don’t know Simone is doing on Instagram or backflip you don’t need to do all that like, literally you could just you could keep it as simple as possible and you’re gonna, you’re gonna be fine. You’re gonna feel great, you’re gonna move better, you’re gonna sleep better. You don’t have to do anything. too complex, huh?

Steph Gaudreau
Yeah, I love that. I love that point. Because again, like you said, to amplify what you said so many people, they’ll see you perhaps doing something that looks above where they’re what where they’re at right now or seems too scary for them for whatever reason, and they or they hate burpees or whatever it is. And I love how you’re meeting people where they’re at. I think that’s so incredibly important.

Simone Tchouke
Yeah, you have to because then you lose them. I have clients that I trained for like five years, and I’m just so grateful, I don’t think in like, I don’t if, let’s say they wanted to leave me after one year they could have, but I think they people will stay with you because of how you make them feel. So if you make them feel good and you give them what they need, but also why they want, they will stick around and they will keep being active, which is kind of like the endpoint like they will just keep being, they will keep moving, which is for me as I don’t like as my most is my top goal like just to make sure people find a way to enjoy being active and make it a lifestyle.

Steph Gaudreau
You know, one of the things I really connected sort of to you with is that you have a degree or a science nerd kind of like I have a degree in biochem. But I was reading your bio and it said, you know, you wanted to connect with people and impact their lives beyond research and beyond being in a cubicle or in a lab. Yeah, take me through that decision that you made to sort of getting into a more person to person based career rather than to do bench science or work in a lab or working in an office.

Simone Tchouke
Yeah, so, um, if you’re an immigrant, you’re either a doctor or a lawyer, or a disgrace, there’s not much option. But luckily for me, I did love science at an early age. Um, so I end up going to college and studying biochemistry. And after undergrad, I went to grad school to work together, Master degrees in biochem. And while I was there, I was literally also studying for my MCAT to go to apply to medical school, and I was working in a biophysics lab, and those labs could be very long like you could start one experiment, you know, take eight hours just looking at you know, you got some just looking at each other. And in my lab also, I was the only master’s student every other person there was either like a Ph.D. or my mentor.

Simone Tchouke
I barely have any contact with people. And every time I will start studying the MCAT I always stop. And it’s not because I did poorly during my undergrad I did well, so all I have to do just sit down and review but I always stopped always stop. And I always had it in the back of my mind that I’m going to become a doctor and I want to have a gym. I always want to have a gym so that people could exercise and, and be active and just kind of like find a way to prevent certain things. And I myself I don’t like medicine, I don’t like supplements. I just like to eat my food and that’s it. So along with like no in grad school, I realized that I don’t think I really want to go to medical school or work in a lab because I don’t want somebody to come to me when they already sick. Or this you don’t really see the joy after but treating somebody that comes to you to be angry at 1 pm and 2 pm already happy because you either like you listen to them.

Simone Tchouke
They were feeling frustrated for whatever reason, but you put them into like a nice session like something. And in the end, they’re really happy. So just in one hour, I could see that change. And so that’s kind of like I told myself, I don’t think I really want to go to medical school, I want to I don’t want anybody to come to me when it’s like, oh my god, I have diabetes type two, or something or an operation. I don’t want to do that. And that’s literally how I decided to just transition. I told myself, okay, before you quit your lab eyes, biochemists, go check it out, go find the gym, try to see if you really enjoyed it. So I went to a gym. I told myself, I’m gonna give myself one semester, and I went and I just never left. And it’s been like, maybe seven years now and I just never left and it’s been like the best decision ever and I’m so glad I did that.

Steph Gaudreau
Gosh, I love that so much that you took that. It’s almost like you followed that inner voice that intuition that inner voice that nudge, that was just saying, you know, this isn’t? Maybe this isn’t the right thing for me. And I think so often. It’s easy to say, oh, but no, I already invested all of this time and energy and money and resources into this one path.

Steph Gaudreau
And I think that that leads into the next question that I wanted to ask you, which is, you know, you speak a lot about your own evolution, how you’ve changed and I would love to have you sort of, you know, tell us what, what has changed with your own beliefs or your own fitness journey your own way that you coach people because I get the sense that this is really going to help give others permission to change to grow, to be to do things differently.

Simone Tchouke
So, um, I was an until I, when I started my fitness journey I was very small. I was very skinny. And I’ve never personally first let me say this I’ve never personally had any kind of like body image issue to the point where I hated myself no I was always I always been fine with the way I look. But I started my journey very small like I was very small, I made the size zero size to very small and as I got into fitness and I will see although a woman fitness and will, will be much bigger than me like so much muscle and I somehow fell in love with that. And that has been kind of like I guess the aesthetic I want to achieve I just want to always have bigger legs and just bigger bag bigger muscle. And that’s how personally my journey changes from wanting to be just a small to like wanting to be bigger, but in terms of like physically or mentally, I am. I think I always kind of sold fitness as a one size fit all. That everyone could just, if I don’t know could just drop all bad habits. whatever that is, and just decide to just do things the way I do it or as a fitness trainer. If you don’t have a six-pack, or if you don’t have you can do pull-ups or you can bench whatever number then are you really a fitness trainer. So I used to kind of be that kind of like, that’s how I used to be how I think I thought a little bit.

Simone Tchouke
But as I as I grow older, you know, I’m getting mature and I run into different people, I started to realize that there’s not really a one size fit all and not everyone is out to be the next Serena Williams or the next I don’t know Microsoft, no. You have to meet people where they are and you have to be flexible. So I can be rigid in my training, for instance, like a client will come and say, Simone, I really hate burpees I don’t have to program burpees for them like I have to find a way to connect them physically but also mentally. So that’s one thing I’m so appreciative of because I don’t understand how I went through. I mean, I guess I had to go through that. But I really appreciate the fact that I had to seek fitness differently right now. And now understand that it’s not really one size fits all and people want different things. And that’s totally fine.

Simone Tchouke
And not really, I always say yes, I appreciate that you find me, you find me by the goal. But you have to understand that I do not represent the fitness defender fitness Look, I do not represent a fitness Look, this is how I look because of my habits, and also my genetics. So if you don’t look like me, or you can do what I’m doing it does not in any way means that you’re not fit or you’re not healthy. So basically, that’s kind of like what I quote over the years, and I’m so mindful of everything I say now or even like what I said when I share the food that I eat, or share my training, I’m very mindful because I know that words could be worth a hertz hurt and people feel like they could look at you and see what you write and be intimidated.

Simone Tchouke
So like right now my goal is to make sure everyone who comes to me doesn’t matter where they are in your fitness journey, and it could relate. And they go understand that I may look like this, it doesn’t mean that I’m against XYZ. So the look and feel they can very much feel welcome. Always to my patient on it’s like I’m a safe place for them. It doesn’t matter whether you’re on a fitness journey. So that’s kind of like my evolution to really understand people have to understand where they are mentally, not necessarily physically.

Steph Gaudreau
And I love how you mentioned that too, that, you know, it can feel like I think for people, especially folks on Instagram, they think, Oh, well, if I could just look like whoever right? If I could guess their body then I would be happy and I like how you make that distinction that even if it doesn’t, the end result isn’t that you look a specific way it doesn’t take away from, you know, maybe your strength or the changes in your mental health that you’ve been experiencing or like you said earlier feeling like you’re sleeping better or you have more energy? Exactly. And reinforcing that for people. I think that’s so important.

Simone Tchouke
Yeah, yeah, I am. I am. I see that. And then, because of that, I have been able to, I think reach more people because I get a lot of people who will take my class, my son flies who haven’t met me before. And it will come into my fish a little bit, I guess scroll down to, kind of, see to kind of get to know me a little bit. And then we say, Oh, my God, Simone, I’m so the reason I’m taking your class because I love that you are welcoming. You’re not fat-shaming, you’re not like into the diet culture. And I’m so glad to hear that because now I’m very, I try to be as mindful as possible, not just for, for sure, but also because I genuinely believe that and that’s so great to hear that somebody is coming to me because they feel welcome. They feel safe with me. So I appreciate that so much. It’s kind of like it’s a win for me.

Steph Gaudreau
Absolutely. You know, one of the things I also appreciate about you is that you do a lot of workouts at home a lot on here and it’s on your Instagram. And you also recently even do a lot of workouts outside of kind of like the building that you live. Yes, you’re out on the sidewalk. And yeah, I work out a lot on my porch and we also live kind of on a busy street, there’s always people walking by I think there was somebody that clapped at me yesterday when I was lifting in, you know, what advice do you have for people that say, you know what, I want to make the best with what I have, which is maybe the space sets in my living room or in a little outdoor area, but I’m afraid of what people are going to think about me. You know, I’m putting myself out there, I’m standing on a sidewalk or I’m in public view and I feel self-conscious. Do you have any advice for those people?

Simone Tchouke
So this is where I will ask them to go back to the why, like why you work it out. Like why do you want to work out? What do you want? Why do you want to work out in general? And I think if you really have a strong why, whatever that is, I think it’s gonna.

Simone Tchouke
You basically every time you go out, you’re gonna feel like you’re in a bubble. Like you’re in a well-protected bubble and you don’t have to worry about what anybody thinks. And people are always going to say something, whether they like you or don’t like you, or they wish they could do what you’re doing. People are always going to say something. But if you truly, truly know why you’re doing it for yourself, um, I think you’d be you should be okay. I there’s no, I don’t really have like a magic answer to say, Oh, just do this. No, there’s no I don’t think there is after us. I don’t know. But I just think that the wants people understand and know why exactly. They working out. They’re going to whatever wherever that space is they are going to take space and they do what they want to do.

Steph Gaudreau
Mm-hmm. I love that. And I love your workouts outside. I think they’re, you do a lot with a little bit. You know, it’s…

Simone Tchouke
Yeah, exactly, that’s what I always say you do what you can with what you have like. Um, just because you don’t have a barbell does not mean you can’t be a doctor if your body is enough and I sent them I use like I could use a chair, I could use a pillow I could you could use whatever you already have at home. And until you have more and if you don’t have more later, that’s totally fine. So that’s kind of like my goal because I come as I say, I come from like the very humble beginnings so I know there are people that may not even be able to afford a resistant band. So I want to make sure that it just because you cannot afford a dumbbell doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be active. And because a lot of like now you have so many, so many gadgets online, oh the best butt workout with this thing, all the best arm workout with this thing. And then I don’t want somebody to be deterred because oh, wow, I cannot afford a resistance band and it might even cost $1 but they just don’t have it. So my goal is kind of like if you already have you’re fortunate to have a home trust me, that’s enough. You can do whatever you can in that home. So that’s what I tried to do all those little workouts, whatever outside or in my home or to go to let people know like you don’t need much your body is totally enough to be active.

Steph Gaudreau
That’s so important especially with what has been happening in the world with everything shutting down and you know where we were talking before we started recording you’re currently as this is recording in New York and I am in on the west coast and even here we’ve had you know, gyms have open and they’re closing and now how do you help your folks that you work with stay mentally flexible? I know you mentioned just being able to kind of do, do what you can with what you have, and moving your body is really a great thing. But how do you help your clients with that mental flexibility of you know, maybe they got excited because they got to go back to the gym, and then they can’t now or they have to stay home for some reason?

Steph Gaudreau
When routines are off. Right? You’re like I got a routine and I’m sticking to it. And then yeah, the routine has gone. Yeah. How do you motivate your clients to start up again to keep going?

Simone Tchouke
I think being also transparent, letting them know like, oh, wow, it’s been four days I didn’t move on being because sometimes like your client is the because you could do certain things almost look at you like, oh, wow, you like this super person, they almost sometimes forget that you’re just as human as they are. So I think what helped me really is kind of like being as transparent as possible. When a client says, Oh, my God, I couldn’t work. I haven’t been working out today for XYZ. And I would say, you know, I understand. I’m in dissemble, I haven’t worked out in two days. But tomorrow, I’m going to do my best to get up first in the morning and do something. So always make sure that I’m relatable to them and let them know like, if you couldn’t do this for three or four days, that’s totally fine. Tomorrow, let’s try again.

Simone Tchouke
But I literally meet these clients where they are because I have clients who will have a totally different personality. So I don’t necessarily have one thing, one thing in general, but more or less I kind of like meet the client where they are and let them know like, Listen, you’re human, I’m human. And I’m sorry that we don’t have the routine that we used to have. But let’s see what we could do now. They see if you can work through it. That’s fine. Tomorrow is another day. Let’s try tomorrow. And just kind of like, just basically let them know like, Oh, yeah, we’re in the same boat. And that’s fine. Just because I didn’t work out for two weeks or one month doesn’t mean that I’m not worth it or something like that. I am still worth it. You’re still worthy. And we’re going to try again tomorrow.

Steph Gaudreau
I love I think that’s so so very key right now, especially, you know, we’re just like, you know, today’s a bad day or I’m not feeling it. I’m not feeling up to it. And I just I think that when, like your ability to be really vulnerable and in that way and be relatable, right is yes. So key, so important. So I have a couple of fun questions I’d like to ask you. If you if what is one? So you said earlier if a client hates burpees I’m not going to make them do burpees what is one movement that you just never want to do? Because you don’t like it?

Simone Tchouke
Myself? Yeah. Just one thing. I honestly think I dread push-ups a lot. Because for some reason, I think I just have very weak potato carbs. And no matter how much I practice, I just never really, I don’t think I’ve ever been to do 30 push-ups straight. I just am, I’m always at 10 12 10 12 15 and if I don’t do push-ups for like two or three days, I lose it. So I just I really, I dread push-ups. Yeah, that’s probably my least favorite thing to do because I feel like I in my body just lose it so quickly.

Steph Gaudreau
I appreciate that honesty. I feel the same way. Sometimes I think I have done push-ups are weak. Where did they go? They just left this. Yeah.

Steph Gaudreau
On the other hand, what is one? movement? You can’t like you would do it every day if you could you can’t get enough of it.

Simone Tchouke
Pull-Ups. Hmm. I will do pull-ups all the time.

Steph Gaudreau
What is uh, what’s one substitution that you’d like to put in for pull-ups? If people don’t have a bar pull up bar or they’re just not there yet. What do you like to give them instead?

Simone Tchouke
Oh, so it depends where we are. If they are home and they have maybe access to a tr x, we could use that. If they have bands, we could do a rosewood band as well. If they happen to be outside in the park, there’s some way you could modify pullups and make them do that. But honestly, if they can do plotting that day, and if they’re if you’re in the gym, that will do a modification. But without a home, I just made them do push-ups and back extension. So yeah, depends on each person.

Steph Gaudreau
Mm-hmm. Those are all really great. And the last question would be, I know you’re about to move pretty soon. Yes. What is your biggest? Like what is something that you’re dreaming about with moving to grow your business? Like if you could have everything or you can create the vision for what you have in your mind, what would that be?

Simone Tchouke
It would just basically be helping people feel so much better by themselves. Like when someone says to me like thank you so much for being part of my fitness journey. Because of you, I have such a different relationship with my body with the way I see food The way I see fitness. To me it just like it’s such a blessing to hear. So if I could have my way just because even if I only touched like five people to make sure that they are so happy and I was able to help them go from point A to point B, I’m just helping them to see fitness and health, like, just have a better idea or like a better view, a better understanding and a better relationship with it. That’s basically what I like my dream thing. Just have somebody say, you know what, whenever they see a dumbbell they think of me as Oh my god, like, or whatever it is. See, I don’t know they want to eat, be happy to eat, they have just like a better relationship with anything around them. And they associate me with that. Just that just kind of like, Okay, I’m like the Martin Luther King of trainers.

Steph Gaudreau
That just gave me like goosebumps in such away. Because that transformation I think that you’re talking about is you can’t I mean, how do you put a It feels so good in your heart, right? Like, how do you put a price on that or it just right? Yeah. Isn’t that you can’t put a price on it.

Simone Tchouke
You can’t like that. I’ve traded clients for their wedding, when they’re getting married, when they were pregnant and give birth, they came back. And we basically grew up together I have a client that basically have two kids together. I have been part of her life and she always like we have such a nice bond and she is such as she’s in a different place now and every time she thinks about exercising or whatever, she always associated with me that she talked about me to her family, and I just I can’t, I can’t really, I don’t I can’t even explain that to somebody unless they’re a trainer and they know what I’m talking about. So I that’s just my thing. I just want people to think of me and just smile.

Steph Gaudreau
Well, that is perfect, it’s a perfect summary of who you are. It is a perfect summary of the energy that you bring. And the way you inspire people is that energy is very palpable and it’s just so beautiful to witness and to watch and so grateful for what you put out into the world.

Steph Gaudreau
We’re out of time, which is crazy. So quickly with you let us know. So if people are listening to this, and they want to learn more about you, they want to follow you. How can they get in touch?

Simone Tchouke
So, whatever is on Instagram or Facebook, you could just look up Simone Loves Fitness, and that’s my username, whether it’s my email, my website would be SmallLoveFitness.com. Instagram, Simone Love Fitness.com. So just that would just send username everywhere. Um, so that’s how you can reach me I have a website. I’m currently working on a few things right now. So yeah, you could subscribe and I’ll keep you in the loop. And if you want to do my classes on zoom, just look up also Small Love Fitness, and I’ll send you the link.

Steph Gaudreau
That’s so great. We’re gonna link all of that stuff in the show notes. Dear listener, whoever’s listening to this right now, please go follow Simone, and honestly, you’re just doing the work like the workout videos are so great, and you have so many wonderful ideas. It’s just such a great thing that you’re putting out and I can’t wait to see what else you are creating, because I know it’s going to be good.

Simone Tchouke
Thank you and I really appreciate it. And really thank you for having me here. I really appreciate that.

Steph Gaudreau
Absolutely. It’s been my pleasure. This has been so fun. And I’m just excited to see where this journey is going to take you next.

Simone Tchouke
Thank you. Thank you.

Steph Gaudreau
All right, that does it, Simone Tchouke. Thank you for being part of the podcast. I really appreciate it.

Simone Tchouke
Thank you. Thank you.

Steph Gaudreau
There we go. That’s a wrap on this episode with Simone Tchouke, better known as Simone Loves Fitness. She is such a joy. I think her energy is so palpable. it rubs off on me without a doubt and I really love her perspective on movement and on fitness. And I think we need more fitness trainers who are doing the kind of work that Simone is doing in the world and really being that positive light for her clients and meeting them where they are at.

Steph Gaudreau
If you love this episode, you learned something, you found it super inspirational, then make sure you share it on Instagram. Make sure you tag Simone. She’s at Simone Loves Fitness and myself at Steph_Gaudreau that way I can see it and share it out and amplify Simone’s work. Also, make sure you hit the subscribe button on the podcast app. I am bringing you more solo shows and more guest episodes. So that’s coming and we’re nearing 300 episodes and I have no plans to slow down so push that subscribe button. And then lastly, you can get the Show Notes for this episode, including links to everything that Simone is doing in the world, how you can get in on her zoom classes, and so much more full transcript as well over at StephGaudreau.com

Steph Gaudreau
All right, next week, I’m going to be back with another installment in my 10 part series, all about the principles of intuitive eating. And I’m going to continue where I left off, which will be principle five, and that is a good one. It’s all about how to feel your fullness, which is such a loaded topic for so many people. We’re going to deconstruct that a little bit and sort of dissect it and pull out some really important points for you to know in that episode. All right, until we chat again, have a wonderful week, and be well.