At 15 years old, Macy Gerig was preparing to play collegiate soccer. By 17, she wasn’t even allowed to drive.
Now a senior at Calvin University, Gerig is a kinesiology major minoring in business, and the student leader behind the revival and expansion of Calvin’s Group Fitness Program. Before she became a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor, her journey started in unexpected and painful circumstances.
After a concussion her junior year of high school — which led to a traumatic brain injury — she was forced to take a break from school, and was told sports were out of the picture indefinitely. Through the recovery process, Gerig was introduced to the world of group fitness.
“I started lifting as a way to cope with everything going on: losing much of the life I had always known, and losing my goals going forward.” Gerig started going to the gym, and immediately felt it was clear that God had a plan.
“The same day that my pediatrician told me I couldn’t do contact sports anymore, the director of the gym I’d been going to came up to me and said, ‘We have this group fitness certification class the hospital is putting on. If you come, we’ll hire you.’” Greig cautiously agreed to the opportunity.
She passed the certification process and jumped into teaching a variety of classes, from cycling, to strength training, yoga, aquatic classes and more. Gerig started a morning worship cycling class, which immediately became popular.
“I would play worship music, write a devotional to read beforehand, and we’d start and end with prayer.” She says it evolved into “a way to teach people that fitness could be a time of worship.”
“For me, it was what kept me going. That was my time to move, and I could only move through the Lord’s Spirit,” said Gerig.
By the time she got to Calvin, Gerig had over a year and a half of experience in leading group fitness. As a freshman she discussed the possibility of becoming a group fitness instructor with Calvin staff. Hearing that group fitness classes hadn’t operated since COVID, she decided to take it upon herself to start up and lead many different classes, including things like cycling women’s strength.
“Cycling took off quickly. By the end of the year, the classes were maxed out. Every single one of my six weekly classes was full. People would get there 15 minutes early just to get a bike. It was wild,” Gerig recounted.
Because of the high demand, Calvin Group Fitness has made some changes for the 2025-2026 academic year. After taking a look at other comparable schools, they decided to create a group fitness membership system, with a $20 annual fee. According to Gerig, this has allowed for the hiring of more certified student instructors, bringing in three new leaders who are all currently teaching classes.
Gerig is excited about the variety of this year’s opportunities, both in classes and instructors. “I firmly believe that in fitness, you’re going to connect better with certain people. If it’s just me all the time, that’s not healthy. Having different instructors with different styles is so important. I’m excited for more people at Calvin to be reached, especially now that we’re expanding our capacity.” She encourages anyone interested in fitness, regardless of major or skill level, to check it out.
At the center of it all for Gerig is the ability to have students meet God through movement. “My hope is that people walk away not just saying, ‘That was a good workout,’ but also seeing their body as something sacred, something to honor.”
