Cori Ann Lentz, San Ramon Valley Fitness

Cori Ann Lentz's career in fitness began about 12-years-ago, prompted by her own quest to get healthy after the birth of her daughter and a bad divorce.

Lentz, who lived in Danville through high school and returned about three years ago, left her career in finance to start working as a personal trainer.

She started her business, San Ramon Valley Fitness, about five years ago in chiropractic offices, physical therapist's offices, town classes and in elementary schools. She opened a studio for her business on Camino Ramon about 10 months ago and now has 11 instructors and more that 900 people, aged 12 to in their 60s, have taken classes.

Soon after Lentz opened her business, a San Francisco publisher asked her to write a chapter for a book, "Incredible Life," that also includes work from 19 other inspirational women across the country.

Lentz lives in Danville with her husband David, daughter Nicky, 13, and step-son Garrett, 13. Their favorite family activity is hiking in the open-spaces in Las Trampas or behind Sycamore Valley Elementary.

I sat down with Lentz to discuss her fitness career and the new book.

Danville Patch: Why did you start your career in fitness?

Lentz: It became such an important part of my life that I decided to change careers and became a fitness instructor. I lost about 80 pounds in the period of about a year. It's been very, very inspiring to inspire others, especially women, to embrace their bodies, to love their bodies and to see them become more confident and more healthy.

Danville Patch: How is San Ramon Valley Fitness different from other gyms?

Lentz:  There are a lot of great health clubs and studios in this area, but this is a place that's girlie, it's very feminine in the look of it and its style. You have classes that you don't find anywhere else like cabaret cheer dancing and Bad Kitty Sassy Fitness. We try to stay on top of the trends and offer new classes and keep the choreography fresh. You're still getting all that wonderful effective exercise but you are also getting all of the mental and emotional things that go along with having fun as well.

Danville Patch: Where do you get the ideas for your classes?

Lentz: I'm really open to new forms of exercise. Bad Kitty Sassy Fitness is definitely the most unique. It's really, really fun. It's similar to Zumba in that it's athletic drills set to music with some dance and some funk. You can be there and laugh at yourself and feel like OK, I feel like I'm having a really good time. (see the You Tube video for the inspiration for Bad Kitty Sassy Fitness).

Danville Patch: What is the premise behind the book, "Incredible Life"?

Lentz: It is about inspiring people to tap into their passions and their true purpose and to take action to incorporate that into your lifestyle.

Danville Patch: Tell us about your chapter in the book?

Lentz: It is about finding a form of fitness that you are passionate about and  making sure that you are truly enjoying moving your body. Instead of working out, it's play, where you have something that you look forward to, just as much as you look forward to your coffee, or a piece of cheesecake or to a glass of wine.

Danville Patch: What lessons did you learn from writing the book?

Lentz: I learned how to let some things slide. Learning how to let the dishes pile up, let the laundry pile up and let the floor not be vacuumed. If you didn't have a lot of time left, how would you fill your time? Would you fill it doing laundry and washing dishes? No. So, let that stuff pile up every now and then it's ok. Do things that you enjoy and the rest of your life really falls into place when you do that.

Lentz will speak about "Incredible Life" at the Pleasanton Hilton as part of The Bright Side of Life Women's Gathering on Thursday, June 24  from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tickets are available here or at the event.