Grace Schroder - Personal Trainer

Our newest evre. girl is Grace Schroder. Growing up, Grace competed as a rhythmic gymnast across the world. She has now transitioned into a career in personal training after facing tough injuries that led her to make the decision to retire from competition. Join us as we sit down with her to discuss what she does for self-care.

What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

Drink Water! Then Coffee.

If you’re feeling low, what self-care steps do you take to cheer yourself up? 

 Have a long shower and take extra time with my skincare.

Current favourite song?

Waves - Miguel and Tame Impala

How do you like to unwind after a long day?

Reading or sitting outside in the sun.

Who has inspired you to be so driven to reach your goals?

I have been taught from an early age that you are your biggest competition - so I am often comparing myself to a younger me and striving towards a better version of myself.

What are your top 3 evre. Products and why?

The cleanser because it is super gentle and perfect for everyday use! The face mist because it is incredible for early mornings or freshening up after the gym, and the moisturiser because it smells amazing and leaves my skin soft and glowy. 

What drives you to be the best version of yourself?

I am always chasing success, and change can be really scary. When I feel fear towards my goals, I know that I am pushing outside of my comfort zone and something great is around the corner.

Tell us about a time you had adversity in your life, how did you overcome it?

I struggled with many injuries during my gymnastics career, the most impactful being my two stress fractures in my lower back. The adversity came in two parts. First, I had to deal with the pain, and then I had to learn how to rest and recover when all I wanted to do was go back to training normally. Although this is a physical injury, overcoming it was all a mental game. Mindfulness, goal setting and accepting support from others really helped.

Describe your journey from rhythmic gymnast to a personal trainer?

The end of any athlete's career can be extremely difficult. Being so young also played a part in the 'identity crisis' that I went through. Luckily, I had begun training at Les mills with my now colleague Kelly Macdonald who was also a former rhythmic gymnast. I fell in love with the gym environment and could really see how her experience in gymnastics could make an impact on other people's training. I studied and began working at Les mills in 2020. The shift from 'athlete' to 'coach' was hard at first, but now I am so grateful that I get to play a part in my clients' health journeys.

How do you balance your work life, studies, and practicing self-care?

It is super important to set boundaries for yourself. This is something I struggled with in the past, but now I have various 'non-negotiables' that help me stay on track. For example, I make sure to put my laptop away by 5pm so I have ample time to rest and prepare for the next day.

How do you look after your skin while being so active?

Cleanse and moisturise twice a day! Especially important after a sweaty workout.

What made you decide to transition from rhythmic gymnastics to personal training? 

I understood that my experience with training long hours, working with different coaches and travelling around the world at such a young age was something that not everyone was able to do. Because my health journey started young, I had been through all the ups and downs. I really wanted to be able to teach people how to live a healthy lifestyle without having to make the same mistakes I did. A lot of the skills I learnt as an athlete have transferred into my coaching very well!

What was the most challenging thing about rhythmic gymnastics?

Travelling and competing alone overseas! It was difficult to not have my family or other gymnasts with me, and because of low funding, my coach would often have to be on the judges panel instead of with me on the floor.

Favourite Sunday activity? 

Sounds strange, but I love cleaning and feeling so refreshed and ready for the week! 

Where can we find you?

I'm on Instagram @graceschroderpt and TikTok @graceschroderpt