APTITUDE FITNESS - Key Persons
Brooke was born and raised in the Des Moines area. Before stepping into the health arena, she spent 10 years in the nonprofit/event planning world before taking some time off to raise her two young daughters. She now works part time at the Valley Community Center as their Health and Wellness Associate and is excited to start teaching classes with Aptitude. She is passionate about coming alongside women and helping them love the body God gave them, and see exercise as part of a lifestyle to stay healthy, rather than just being skinny. When she's not racing her two girls off to sports practice, she enjoys getting her workout in, learning how to use her cricut machine, and cuddling with her goldendoodle Remy.
Jami graduated from William Penn University with a Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science. She grew up playing sports and staying physically active at a very young age. She enjoys lifting, spending time with family and friends, and being outdoors. She is very passionate about helping others find happiness in life and feel good about themselves. She believes when you feel good, you excel in life.
Jill is thankful for each day that she can be active and moving! Jill loves to work out in a variety of disciplines. It's most enjoyable to her to motivate and coach others to find their potential. Currently, her first loves are yoga and yoga barre. Jill has been practicing yoga for the past 15 years. Prior to getting her certification as a yoga instructor, Jill tackled triathlons. She recently certified in barre and has been teaching yoga for the past 6 years and teaching water aerobics for 20 years. If not in the studio for a workout, you could find Jill in the sunshine, or at the dog park with her husband and Aussiedoodle pup, or face timing one of their 4 young adult children with 2 "son-in-loves", and "daughter-in-loves"! She might also be working her part-time business cleaning houses or maybe, and delightfully so, sipping coffee and sharing life together with a friend.
Josh is co-owner of Aptitude Fitness. He is a former collegiate sprinter for track and currently runs marathons with his wife, Nikki. Josh has coached runners to qualify for the Boston Marathon, and has qualified and ran it himself.
His desire is to create a community that is affordable, accessible and welcoming for everyone.
Kayla has been teaching group fitness classes for over a decade. She kicked off her coaching career teaching Zumba at local YMCA locations, but she has really ‘done it all' throughout the years - receiving certifications in Zumba, WERQ, CXWORX and Synrgy360. Kayla enjoys a good mix of strength and cardio and believes variety is the spice of life. She tries to keep her classes fun and fresh. When she's not teaching, she's trying to keep up with her two toddlers and working in marketing for an insurance company. A fun fact about her is that she can (and likes to!) make pasta and bread from scratch.
Kristin McManus is a lifelong Iowan. During her own personal health journey, she experienced various unhealthy obsessions & cycles. During this time, she was led by God to get her personal training certification. It has truly given her the ability to meet people where they are in their journey, while being able to provide the encouragement and resources needed to succeed. Kristin previously worked in a big gym atmosphere which is what led her to coach group fitness. Kristin absolutely loves coaching group fitness, creating a space for community with others, and being a source of encouragement. Empowering others through fitness is her passion! Outside the gym, she enjoys being outdoors (specifically hiking), baking for her family, and all things holistic living.
Kyle is also a lifelong Iowan. He lives in West Des Moines with his wife, Kristin, and their four children. Kyle has a passion for fitness, specifically concentrating on functional strength and conditioning. With Kyle's diverse background, he brings an added dimension to our strength training classes.
Mariel has lived in Des Moines since 2007, shortly following graduation from the University of Iowa. Mariel has always been interested in fitness and mind, body, soul connection. She first took yoga classes in college. Following the birth of her first child, she received her yoga teaching certification (RYT 200 hr with Kris Hot Yoga). She also has obtained education in prenatal yoga. She has been teaching vinyasa and yin yoga for the past 8 years. Her focus is on breathing, pranayama, strengthening muscles, and finding a space to feel calm and intentional every time a yogi comes onto their mat. Outside of yoga, she loves to be with her family (husband, two boys and pup), travel, enjoy the awesome food scene in town, kayaking, and just generally getting out on those trails.
Nikki is the owner of Aptitude Fitness. Her passion for encouraging others to achieve their goals and helping others to feel their best prompted her to open Aptitude Fitness in the fall of 2021.
Nikki is an avid runner, including qualifying for the Boston Marathon three times. Nikki's dream is to create a supportive community, centered on fitness and wellness. She is a certified group fitness instructor and certified nutrition coach. Outside of coaching and running, Nikki enjoys spending time with her husband of seven years and two daughters, Lyla and Este. Her happy place is in the kitchen, cooking and baking nutritious meals that also taste delicious is a challenge she works towards weekly.