Getting Fit

Arne Hyman Brings Fitness to the Palisades

By ELLA KRAYNAK | Intern

With a goal of making fitness accessible to everyone, Arne Hyman leads classes twice  per week in Pacific Palisades.

Hyman recently spoke of his journey exploring fitness—and sharing it with the community—with the Palisadian-Post.

Hyman said that his interest in fitness dates back to his younger years. The youngest of five children, he said he felt driven to be the “biggest” and “strongest” of his brothers.

He went on to become a competitive powerlifter while in college. He said that he continues to lift weights because he feels that it plays a role in his physical and mental wellness.

“Working out takes away … blues,” he said. “[Exercise is] preventive health care in its finest form.”

Hyman began working in adult fitness through a program offered by Los Angeles Unified School District, where he worked for nearly a decade. With experience as a psychotherapist and physical trainer, Hyman has always been a big believer in preventive healthcare and that the “single best thing you can do for your health is exercise.”

When the LAUSD fitness program ended in 2012, Hyman decided to begin teaching classes of his own.

Since launching his own fitness program, Hyman described the experience as a “struggle,” but simultaneously, the only job that has left him feeling good because he is making others feel better.

He shared that one of his goals was to make his fitness class accessible to everyone—and that he has succeeded in doing such.

Hyman’s class is offered twice per week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 1:15 to 3 p.m. at Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church. The class roster features local participants, and Hyman described it as a “big social event where we all like each other.”

In fact, he said, a big draw to his classes is the social component: If people are committing each week to seeing their friends while they exercise, they are more likely to stay dedicated.

In regard to the type of exercise that his class offers, Hyman said he draws on his past experiences to create a unique fitness regime that “everyone can do.”

In previous years, Hyman partook in martial arts, weight lifting, yoga and Tai Chi—a Chinese martial art technique—which he has combined with resistance training, dynamic tension and Sanchin to create an “easy-on-the-joints” fitness program.

He said “you get what you put in” with his class, and he welcomed Palisadians of any age, though his classes tend to lean more adult oriented.

Hyman—who is in his early 60s—attributed his health to physical fitness, a well-balanced diet and healthy sleeping patterns—habits he hopes to instill in his fitness class participants.

When asked what advice he has for somebody hoping to embark on their own fitness journey, Hyman said the most important thing is commitment.

“If you want to keep your teeth in good health, you have to brush them everyday,” he said to the Post. “If you want to keep your body in good health, you have to do the same thing. If you decide to occasionally work out, you’ll occasionally be healthy.”