A couple dozen Aldershot High School students are riding stationary bikes, lifting weights, stretching and doing deskwork like learning how muscles work while earning high school credits at the same time.

Welcome to Aldershot High School’s new Can-Fit-Pro Certification Program class that does two important things. One, it provides Grade 10-12 students with three valuable credits toward their secondary school diploma – a credit in Food and Nutrition Sciences, Recreational Fitness Leadership and Interdisciplinary Studies. Participants also receive certification as a personal trainer, fitness instructor and nutrition specialist.

Basically, students learn about anatomy, nutrition and how the muscles work while participating in two exercise classes a week in order to put the theories they’ve learned into practice.

The semester-long program is run in combination with fitness certification provider Can-Fit-Pro.


By all accounts, students are enjoying the course, with some saying it has opened the door to a potential career.

Grade 12 student Rachel Travaglini says she’s really interested in fitness training and the Can-Fit-Pro course is feeding that interest.

“I figured it would be a good gateway and it’s different from a regular gym class,” she says, adding it’s encouraging to see all the students want to be in the program.

Having started in September, the course has been a resounding success so far, says Physical Education Teacher Cara Greenslade. She helped get the class started – a first of its kind in the Halton District School Board – to get younger people thinking about health and wellness.

“We’re amalgamating Ontario’s curriculum and Can-Fit-Pro’s mandate,” Greenslade explains. “Because I’m a professional trainer, I can certify students as personal trainers, fitness instructors and nutrition wellness specialists at the end of the course…and it’s completely free to them and they get three credits at the same time.”

Aldershot High School Principal Larry O’Malley is very impressed with how the course has been received. He says he agreed to the program because it is a unique course that has helped learning be more fun while increasing student enrolment and creating a positive school image.

“I like the fact the course is promoting personal health and wellness in a very positive way, and students are able to see a real connection to careers in this field, particularly in the area of personal fitness,” he says. “The program provides students with a set of skills and a knowledge base that will be helpful to them throughout their lives. Some may, for example, find employment in this field and/or use this training to obtain part-time jobs while they pursue careers in other fields at the post-secondary level.”