Jane Clapp is a top personal trainer in Toronto and the founder of Urbanfitt, a boutique Toronto fitness studio located in the heart of Little Italy. She caters to clients in cultural, media, and academic industries that come to her for her signature blend of dynamic, intelligent muscle building training that builds a functional, healthy body, and as well for nutrition advice, wellness counseling, and for her passionate spirit.

What does a typical Thursday look like for you, starting from when you wake up – to heading to bed?
Thursdays are crazy days for me because my daughter is with her dad. I work less on the days I have her and do drop off and pick up at school so I work my butt off on Wednesdays and Thursdays when I’m on my own. This description of my day might sound exhausting but it’s not representative of every day of my life! I also get to hang out in comfy clothes often barefoot and listen to my favourite music all day in a beautiful restored garment factory with wonderful people.

6:00 am Blackberry alarm goes off and I press snooze a couple times. Give Maggie my dog Maggie a snuggle.
6:10 am jump out of bed and turn CBC radio on, make my coffee and normally organic oatmeal with protein powder and blueberries. Then I check out health news online at the Globe and Mail and New York Times Well blog. I let Maggie out, then jump in the shower and throw some work clothes on.
6:45 am head off to Urbanfitt at College and Manning
7:00 am I see my first client, a female criminal court judge who’s full of energy first thing. Love it.
8:00am then comes my client getting prepared for IVF
9:00 am take Maggie out for a little walk and poop!
9:30am then a wonderful theatre artist and writer I adore
10:30 am one more client, a comparative lit prof, breast cancer survivor and force of nature
11:30 am get a chicken or tuna salad from Riviera bakery
12:00 pm teach FITT class and do most of the class with everyone to get my workout in
1:00 pm answer a few emails and cross a few small to dos off my list
1:15 pm drive to my therapist at Mt. Pleasant and Lawrence for a tune up
3:45 pm back at the studio for my Tamil sociology prof and writer client
4:45 pm get a snack, sometimes protein shake or nuts and fresh fruit or tea from Green Grind
5 pm squeeze one more client in, varies week to week
6 pm Maggie walk again
6:30 pm Core Tabata class when I get to kick some butt and crank the tunes
7:45 pm leave studio and sometimes pick up from Tacos El Asador or head to my friend Victoria’s for a little Grey’s fix or connect with a friend for some chow at one of my favourite restaurants
10:30 lights out
Yikes! What a day.

What was your first job out of school?
I’ve been trying to earn money since I was about ten doing extra chores around the house growing up, cleaning my dad’s office building, landscaping, whatever I could do. I started my first real job when I was fifteen and walked around downtown Victoria’s inner harbour with a sign-board shamelessly promoting a restaurant while I wasn’t flirting with the Kabuki cab drivers in hot pants. But if we’re talking what was my first job after University, I was kept on at a trade union where I had been doing my internship during business school at UBC. I was one of the only people in my class that was interested in working for the left. I learned more about the world in the two years I worked there then I did in the four years at university.

What are the 3 skills you require most to do your job well?
Relationship building, intuitive understanding of the human body and the human experience, adaptability.

What do you love most about your career?
I love the people I get to spend time with. I learn so much from my clients, get exposed to parts of our city I wouldn’t normally and have such a wonderful community of people around me. I feel so grateful for how my clients help me move forward in my life as well. I love that people always feel better after they see me. It’s so rewarding to watch people get their MOJO back and see how all aspects of their beings start to evolve. It’s a gift to be a part of making people feel better, look better and be able to engage in activities they couldn’t before they started working with me. My career makes me feel like what I do for money has a very clear purpose. I want to go to work every day and I look forward to opening my studio door every morning.

Do you have any warnings?
There is no real security in terms of what anyone does for work. Choosing what you think is a secure route in life is deceiving. An organization can never commit to you the way you do to it. My favourite professor in university hammered this into our heads and I’m so thankful to him.

However, the overhead of a small business like mine can be tough to live with sometimes but no one can ‘fire’ me outright. It would be nice to have the benefits of a traditional job though. I’m not afraid to take risks and always come back to my worst case scenario. It’s never that bad. If you can live with the fact that so many things in life are uncertain then you can own a small business.

Be careful when you start a business that you’re not just buying yourself an expensive job. Make sure your business model allows you to pay yourself early on!

If you could try a different career on for a year, what would it be?
I’d want to work in music production (not as a singer. My voice sucks!). I’m obsessed with music in my life. Or I’d make documentary films and conceptual art. The beauty of my career is that I can still do these things if I want to. Health is all about balance and I believe it’s important to follow our passions even if they’re part time endeavors.