Nelson Dang

The decision to become a personal training apprentice of Roy Duquette’s was not a particularly difficult one to make. Prior to enrolling in Duquette Strength’s Professional Development Program, I had already completed several courses through a well-known personal training certification organization as well as completing two years of a Human Kinetics degree at the university level. Although I still reflect on my past university experiences fondly, my best memories are almost entirely based on the great people I met. Other than having a lot of fun meeting new people, I didn’t find university to be the path to higher learning as I once expected it to be. I feel that the only way to truly test the extent of someone’s ability is to have them apply their knowledge and experience in a practical setting, not by having them regurgitate it word for word onto a piece of paper which is all that the standard educational system asks you to do. Being somewhat unenthused about the conventional educational model, I didn’t find myself thriving in what I felt was an uninspired classroom setting and found that the more time I spent in school, the more flaws I saw in our educational system.

Through my trials and tribulations as a student I have definitely discovered one thing; learning in a one-on-one environment is infinitely more effective than simply sitting in a classroom. And I would like to emphasize a point that effective learning is different than simply getting good grades in school. Further, it was frustrating for me to realize that although I had a near 4.0-GPA in a university exercise science program, I didn’t really learn anything I could use as a professional trainer.

As a result of using my photographic memory to ace my way through university, most of the superfluous theoretical data I accumulated is no longer stored in my memory bank – even though I was an honours student. The old adage, “Use it or lose it.” definitely applies here.

All of the inherent problems with standard university programs that I listed above are non-existent at Duquette Strength and this is just one of the many reasons why I chose Roy Duquette’s Professional Development program over all the other certification options I looked into. Sure there are much easier, cheaper, and faster ways to become certified as a personal trainer, but did I really want to look for shortcuts in something as important as my career? And as far as I’m concerned, to be the best you have to train with the best. And since I already made up my mind that I wanted to become the best trainer I could be, DS’s PD Program was the only option for me. After all, what’s the point of getting certified when it clearly has nothing to do with becoming qualified?

As far as mentors go, Roy Duquette is one of the most passionate, inspiring, knowledgeable and supportive people I have ever met. Without him, I would still be without direction; no different than a chicken running around with its head cut off. It’s obvious that he really wants to watch me succeed in life. In addition to being a mentor and instructor, he has also been my counsellor in times when educational advice was what I required and my friend when emotional support was what I needed. You simply cannot receive this level of personal attention and guidance from any other institution or organization.

- Nelson Dang
Certified Personal Trainer
DS Professional Development Program