Asher Kondziela stands in front of an equipment rack at the nonprofit gym, Prism Moves, in Portland, Ore., on March 30, 2026.
Julie Sabatier / OPB
Asher Kondziela is leading a class at Prism Moves in Northeast Portland on a sunny weekday afternoon.
This is their third class of the day. There are five people in the class and they’re each doing things a little differently.
Kondziela says that, in addition to working one-on-one with people, they try to coach each person in a class so that they can work out at the level they’re comfortable with.
“I always say, whatever’s written on the board is the guidelines, it’s the suggestions, and then we definitely branch out from there,” they said. “Today, we’re front squatting ... then from there, we’ll go, OK, but if this part of the front squat is uncomfortable for you, because sometimes, you know, this bothers people, here’s another option. And then if that also bothers you, here’s another option.”
People have all kinds of motivations for hitting the gym — mental health, weight loss, building strength or finding community to name just a few. Sometimes, finding the motivation to keep going can be tough. That’s where a coach can come in.
For OPB’s “At Work With” series, we wanted to learn more about what it takes to be a fitness coach.
Attuned to other people’s needs
Asher Kondziela is the founder and executive director of this nonprofit gym. Prism Moves is focused on making fitness affordable and accessible, especially for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities. They explained that, before creating their own gym, they were working as a personal trainer out of other fitness spaces.
“A lot of my clientele were women, humans in the queer community, humans that repeatedly told me they didn’t have a space they felt safe in to work out as themselves,” they said. “I envisioned a space where those humans were centered and not, you know, the typical, ‘gym bro’ image being centered.”
So, what does it take to be a good fitness coach? According to Kondziela, a big part of it is the ability to be attuned to other people’s needs.
“What I look for in my coaches, and what I think makes good coaches, are people that know how to listen to their clients, coaches that can really connect with their clients and learn when it’s OK to push, when it’s not OK to push, and also understanding that everyone’s goals are different and that not everybody’s goals needs to be weight loss or looking a certain way or competing,” they explained.
Not focusing on weight loss or changing the way your body looks sounds good, but it also seems like a tricky thing to do in a fitness space. Kondziela explained a bit about how that works for them.
“Instead of focusing on weight loss, we focus on your body getting stronger,” they said.
For example, they look at how much someone can lift or a particular movement they can do and how that changes over time.
“I’ll sometimes have clients say they’ve noticed muscle mass, they’ve noticed muscle tone. So, things like that where it’s focused more on what you can do versus the weight that you’ve lost.”
A listener asked for advice about finding a fitness coach who is a good match for them.
“We’ll have a lot of people reach out and say, ‘I want to work with a femme coach only, or I want to work with someone who has experience with gender-affirming surgery.’ So things like that,” they said. “The more detailed information you’re willing to give us about what you’re looking for, what your comfort levels are, the better we can match you to a good coach.”
‘People will surprise themselves’
Tristy Taylor is a regular at Prism Moves. She says she’s been coming to the gym for about five years.
“I like to tell my age as well: it’s 53,” she said. “I also weigh 400 pounds as well. So, those numbers feel important to share.”
Taylor also shared that she has been doing Olympic weightlifting and power lifting for almost two decades, but when she went through menopause, she really needed some guidance.
“My body has changed a lot, so I had to literally change how I lift the bar, which sent me into a spiral of depression,” she said.
Tristy Taylor has been coming to Prism Moves for about five years. Pictured here on March 30, 2026, Taylor is trying a new way to do squats. She says she enjoys trying new moves with the support of a fitness coach.
Julie Sabatier / OPB
She credits the coaches at Prism for helping her adapt and see that she didn’t have to stop lifting; she just needed to change the way she did it.
She recently tried a new move during Kondziela’s afternoon class. She had been doing squats with some large weights and she moved over to a station that was set up a little differently. Instead of using a barbell to lift in front of her, she had the bar and the weight over one shoulder so she was squatting with the weight behind her.
She said it was a little scary at first, but Kondziela coached her through it. Taylor says having a coach to help her figure things out in real time is key to finding success with something new in the gym.
“I love when there’s a new exercise that I’ve never heard of, I love like, ‘oh, can I do this?’ And, you know, often I can’t in the beginning, and then it’s fun to adapt,” she said. “And I like that kind of problem solving ... If I were by myself, I’d just be like, ‘I can’t do that.’”
Kondziela says that’s one of the most satisfying things about coaching.
“People will surprise themselves, and it’s always so much fun when they do,” they said.
