Deep fit

Exercise instructor uses spirituality and her
own kind of magic to get clients sweating

by CHRIS BARRY

Name: Karin Ganter

Age: 69

Occupation: Fitness instructor

Bio: This beautiful spirit of a Ville Émard babe who “once lived for a year in a van in Mexico” was born in Lima, Peru to diplomat parents and arrived in Montreal around 1989 “because I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else in Canada. I love the people and it’s so very cosmopolitan and… I just love it.” After a stint working at the Westmount YMCA as a personal trainer, in 1992 Karin decided it was time to open up her own gym smack dab in the middle of her loft “because it was the perfect atmosphere, exactly what I wanted.” An intensely spiritual gal who just returned from an extended stay in McLeod Ganj, India, attending the teachings of some character you might have heard of called the Dalai Lama, Karin is the picture of health, something quite remarkable given she recently underwent hip replacement surgery and has a neck largely constructed out of titanium, this the result of a nasty spinal cord issue that had been plaguing her. “You’d never know to look at me that I’m a bionic woman.” She drives a 2001 Honda Civic.

Something Karin has noticed about the Dalai Lama: “He’s got an amazing sense of humour.”

Is it safe assume the big, bouncy, lovable Tibetan specializes in fart jokes? “No, he’s just a very jovial, happy human being who finds life to be very funny. He’s always laughing.”

How her fitness sessions differs from what you’ll find at most gyms: Mucho spirituality is involved.

So participants chant or mumble prayers while doing their jumping jacks? “No, it comes from my caring about other human beings. I’m present with you, I feel you, I relate to people on a spiritual level. When I was little, I called it magic. There’s definitely a spiritual element here, and while people do come to me personally for spiritual counselling, they also share with the group—especially since we have psychologists and psychoanalysts among us. We’re really a community, a very productive community out to help one another. I experience great surges of joy seeing how much people help each other here.”

Who makes up this community: “All sorts of people. Young people, older people, I have one woman who just did 300 crunches with me this morning who is 84. People from all walks of life and religions come here, including some very affluent people, which is interesting because it’s certainly not a chi-chi place—but I suppose people with real class don’t really look for that. People come for social reasons, others as a way to beat depression and of course everybody comes for the training. Even though we’re almost like a social group, we do hard-core training, it’s a very serious work-out.”

What a roughly two-hour workout with Karin is gonna cost you: “It would be so lovely if I were wealthy and didn’t have to be paid. But I’m not very affluent and still have to pay the rent, so it’s about $30.” Contact her via karin.ganter@gmail.com.

Last book read: Ancient Wisdom, Modern World, by the Dalai Lama.

Musical preferences: Bruce Cockburn, Nawang Khechog, Wasis Diop.

Words of wisdom: “Happiness is reached through physical, mental, moral and spiritual perfection.”

Comments: dimwit@hdot.net