This article is one in a series of interviews with expats in Stavanger. Its purpose is to share with everyone what your fellow expats are doing and also to help advertise the businesses/services/events that these expats are involved in. If you would like to or know of a business/enterprise to be interviewed, feel free to contact us!
Interview with Trevor Lea-Smith; owner of Strength and Conditioning AS, personal training in Sandnes.
Where are you from?
I am from Winterport Maine, If you know where this is I will be amazed!
How long have you been in the Stavanger/Sandnes area? What brought you here?
I have been here for about seven months. Lutefisk, I love it so much I had to be closer to the source. That is a lie. I get that question a lot (as do most ex-pats), the answer is usually work or love. I choose love! My amazing wife is Norwegian, so here we are.
[See interview with Trevors wife here]
What do you like best about living in Stavanger/Sandnes?
Off the top of my head: The environment, I come from Maine, not having to shovel frozen water is an amazing and new experience for me, I think that it has made me a better person.
Wise ass answers aside, I love being here with my wife and being close to her family.
Socially the expat group has been great, as has becoming a board member at a local powerlifting strongman gym.
Business wise: I am able to bring a completely different aspect of physical culture to the fitness scene in Norway.
You have opted to live a bit outside Stavanger, why is that?
The Initial reason for living outside the city was practicality; we had the option for really nice housing at a reduced cost. This has proven to be a very huge blessing. We have a large yard (for Norway) and quiet neighbors. I am not used to houses being so close together (growing up I couldn’t see my neighbors houses), so having space is very comforting. I like open spaces, fresh air and growing things. We have that where we live.
What advice would you give someone who is about to move to Stavanger/Sandnes?
Assess what your key interest is and find a way to do that with other people in a social environment. It will help with making connections to the area, and help you stay sane if you are waiting for a visa. Get to know the area, I find it easier to view a new place as home if I can get around without getting lost all the time.
Do you feel like you have integrated into the culture and lifestyle here?
I feel like I am on my way, my English has certainly started to get weirder. I will feel far more integrated when I have the language down. I have made some very good Norwegian friends, that have really helped me understand and become a part of the culture.
I appreciate the lifestyle here, it is far more chill then I am used to (in terms of work), but I won’t ever really integrate into that (the 8,8,8 balance) , I grew up on a farm and I am building my training business, I am used to working very hard to get jobs done, and that won’t ever leave me. That being said, I am striving for more balance in work/leisure life, and I plan on having much more free time in the next two years (once the biz is established).
What do you like to do in your free time?
I love physical training, so I do a fair amount of that. I read, a lot, half of what I read is training oriented, but that is what I love, so it is very relaxing for me. The rest of my reading is mostly fiction. If you haven’t read Mark Helprin I suggest you go do that.
Once life is less crazy, my wife and I have some traveling that we both want to do.
What do you do?
I am the owner of “Strength and Conditioning” it is a training business operating out of ‘Ganddal Atlet Klubb’. I make people stronger, leaner, and conditioned. I focus on fixing imbalanced movement patterns, and getting people stronger, much stronger (when it is needed, much leaner). I work with both men and women of varied ability; I can work equally with athletes trying to take their game to the next level, or office workers who are tired of being sore, weakend out of shape.
Strength and proper movement is the cornerstone of my people’s training programs, everyone needs to get stronger, as people get stronger everything else they do is easier; they lose fat faster, get to a very high level of conditioning faster, and become more powerful. Teaching people to move correctly through training ensures that they remain injury free, and are able to move however they want free of pain and uncertainty.
How did you get started with Personal Training?
I have been engaged in some sort of training since high school (I am 26 now), the majority of my college education was in physical therapy. During school I worked a YMCA gym, there was a strength coach there that I became friends with, and he started showing me that most of what I (and 99% of the world) had believed to be true about getting stronger and in better condition was wrong, he set me on the path to real education and training knowledge. In my fourth year of physical therapy (PT) school I realized that my passion was more in helping others excel and push their limits than in rehabilitation. One day I felt like the walls were thrumming with expectation, I walked out of class, called my (then) finance and told her that I was quitting PT and dedicating myself to training others with the goal of someday opening my own small gym. Now here I am, in Norway opening up my training business and bringing real physical culture to people.
How would someone locate you at ‘Strength and Conditioning’?
I have a fledgling website up at strength.no, it has info on my training methods, and philosophy. To contact me, hit me up with and email me with the subject line “Training at SC”. I would love it if you did that, I offer a free week of training to whoever is interested, because I don’t expect anyone to become a part of something when they are not 100% committed.
Do you offer training outside of your gym?
Right now I don’t, but if I get ten people that are interested I would definitely run some Boot Camp style workouts. Get in touch with me if you and some friends are interested in getting stronger and leaner (getting all sexy like).
I do run a free boot camp on Saturdays, the time changes a bit but it is usually between 10-12. You can contact me if you want to check that out.
I do offer training for people that are not interested in gyms at all. This training is not easy, I created it for the soldiers at the Army Mountain Warfare School in New England, and it is now a part of their current curriculum. Email me at the contact information above if you are interested in that.
Do you train at specific locations or do you travel to your customers homes?
I do not do in home training; right now all training I offer is at my gym, with boot camps, and seminars thrown in.
Can you share with us what types of training you offer?
At my gym I train small groups of 3-5 people, this way people get all the benefits of a personal training session with the added motivation and accountability of training with a group. The one downside to this is my clients sometimes gang up on me to give me shit (good natured of course ; ) ).
Boot Camps are possible; I just need to see the interest and I will get a couple going off site.
I offer company and sports team seminars as well. For companies I offer boot camp services and information on the proper way to train (hint: machines are insanely dumb, inefficient and unsafe).
For sports teams I lead seminars on proper warm-ups, and strength training to balance their bodies according to the sport that they play. I focus on drastically reducing injury potential, and skyrocketing performance.
How can you be contacted?
Website / email / Facebook / Phone: 459 62 530
Again, my name is; Trevor Lea-Smith
If you are bored in your current training or you aren’t getting the results you want come by for a free week of training, you will experience training that leads to real fitness.
Thanks Trevor for telling us about your journey and new business, we wish you all the best!
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About Fonda LaShay
Fonda is an American who has been living in Stavanger since July of 2008 with her Norwegian samboer. She enjoys tea, visiting with friends, music, taking photos and traveling. She loves the rain, but really dislikes when her feet get wet - this is always challenging since it rains so often in Stavanger. Follow Fonda LaShay on Google+ Fonda is a design blogger - blogging about design, architecture, photography, and music. Check out her blog!
