Ever since Helen Vanderburg graced the podium as the queen of the synchronized swimming world, she’s been helping others reach their own levels of excellence.

Since achieving the pinnacle of her sport, winning the world synchronized swimming championship as a member of the Calgary Aquabelles 24 years ago, the vibrant Vanderburg has hardly stopped to catch her breath.

She continues to make a big splash with her infectious enthusiasm and tireless work ethic – as one of the world’s leading authorities on fitness and co-owner of two Calgary fitness clubs.

Spend an hour with the human dynamo of Heavens Fitness and you’ll feel like running a marathon.

Larry MacDougal, Business Edge
Helen Vanderburg has kept Heavens on top of the latest healthy trends.

1. What was your childhood dream growing up in Calgary?

“When I was really young, I wanted to be a princess or a ballerina. But then I used to go and watch my sister (Dianne) when she was with the Calgary Aquabelles synchronized swimming team. I’d watch her perform and wanted to do it myself, so I followed in her footsteps (at 11).”

2. What was the most memorable moment of your athletic career?

“The greatest memory was winning the world solo and duet championships in Berlin (1978). Those were the first gold medals I had won. The most memorable moment was standing on the podium and watching the Canadian flag being raised.”

3. What made you a world champion?

“If I was to sum it up into one thing, other than all the coaching and all the encouragement that I was given, it was being more prepared mentally than the other athletes on that day. I was never the most talented swimmer. My parents (Anne and John) told me after the first world championships that I was initially quite weak as a swimmer and I was actually a weakly child. I wasn’t a gifted athlete. But I think the mental determination and strength is what really made me a world champion. That’s the message I like to send to other people, that it’s not always about our physical abilities.”

4. Who has had the greatest influence on your life?

“There have been many people but the greatest influence has come from my mom and dad. The values they instilled in me were things like ways of dealing with people. They stressed honesty, integrity and fair play. They always had a sense of (being) positive. They always said: ‘Let’s look for the positive outcome instead of dwelling on the negative.’ That was a powerful message. They taught me to look beyond the problem and see the opportunities.”

5. Have you been able to channel the lessons from your athletic career into your fitness business?

“Yeah. Things will come up in business and I’ll be able to see an answer or resolution. People in the company will ask me: ‘Where did you learn that?’ And it isn’t until they ask me that I realize that it was usually something from my swimming career. In swimming, you learn to understand different personality types and you learn to understand people under pressure situations. And, those lessons – understanding what makes people tick – are all really important tools for managing.”

6. What motivated you to go into the fitness business?

“It was all timing. I had just graduated from the University of Calgary with a degree in physical education, but I wasn’t interested in taking the teaching route. I was very interested in exercise physiology and wanted to take a masters in exercise physiology. But then after my swimming career and university, I thought I needed a little time to ease up on the intensity. I got a job at the Glencoe Club as a fitness director and I started to experiment with different fitness programs. The programs were really successful right away, so that kind of motivated me.”

7. How difficult was it to establish this business and ride out the tough times?

“We’ve been in business now 20 years and we’ve been able to ride many of the economical waves that ride through Calgary. We’re affected like any service business in tough economic times. We’ve been through at least three major downturns in the economy. The biggest challenge was when we (Heavens Fitness) went from a very small business in a 4,000-sq.-ft. facility to this building, which is 18,000 sq. ft. That was a big jump for us. The first year of making that transition was the most challenging. Right now, I don’t think Calgary is being affected that much by the economy. I do a lot of international work and when I go away from Calgary, I think: ‘Wow, things have really changed.’ But what’s interesting is that our businesses (Heavens Fitness and Fountain Park Health Club) are actually becoming busier. I think people are changing their values a little bit. I think they’re saying: ‘These other things, like my career, are not guarantees.’ And they’re focusing on their own health. In the past two years, our businesses have been very good.”

8. Are corporations putting more of an emphasis on staff fitness?

“Yeah, we really see that in our club downtown (Fountain Park). But I don’t think they ever do enough (laughing). We’d still like them to do more.”

9. What’s the gold medal of the fitness industry?

“I don’t know if there is one yet. My business partner Elaine (Arthur) and myself would like to have one club that is exactly the way we want it. This (Heavens Fitness) is close, but it’s not quite there because we have things we have to deal with because we’re in an older building and that kind of thing. We’d like to take our philosophy as far as fitness and lifestyle and be able to give people the environment that would meet that. Our big thing is to offer people health and fitness alternatives, not just from a physical perspective but also mentally. We want to look more at how we can change people’s lives through education and positive experience and really take what I’ve learned from swimming. I’d like to share all the positive experiences I learned from being an athlete.”

10. With running the business and instructing six to eight classes a week, are there enough hours in the day?

“I am a very busy person. I work seven days a week. A lot of people find it difficult to work in the fitness industry because it’s seven days a week, 365 days a year. But I never even thought twice about it, because of the world that I came from where I trained seven days a week.”

11. Do you have time to work out outside of your teaching?

“The teaching keeps me in shape, but I’d still like to be able to do my own workouts towards my own goal – whatever that may be. I haven’t been able to find the time. But I’ll have to learn to start saying no to things.”

12. How fit are Calgarians?

“I think we’re a fitter city than most cities. I think CEOs of major corporations here probably have more balance than other cities I’ve travelled to. I think that’s part of the Calgary mentality of trying to balance our lives.”

13. Have you ever been out of shape, you know, getting out of breath running to the fridge for a beer?

“(Laughing) No! No! I went right from my swimming career into the fitness industry. The only time I could relate (to being out of shape) is when I had a C-section when I had my baby (daughter Kiah). I was not allowed to do anything for six weeks. So I kind of went, ‘whoaaaaaa.’ ”

14. Would you let Kiah grow up to be a synchronized swimmer if she chose that?

“I sure would. There were difficult times and stressful times and questionable times during my career, but I will always look at it as a positive experience. And the lessons have been invaluable. Now, being a parent has definitely changed my perspective on life. Children really bring you back to the basics. For a personality like myself, where I can be totally focused and full steam ahead, it can bring me back to some of the basics and say, “It’s OK if I don’t do this.’ ”

15. Do the careers of you and your husband Terry Kane (Calgary Flames’ physiotherapist) overlap?

“Yeah, they do. It’s been great. In the fitness industry, there are a lot of products or programs that are launched where there is very little research. So I can ask Terry his opinion from a physiotherapist’s perspective. I think what I can offer him sometimes is insight into the mentality of athletes. He’ll often ask me questions if he’s frustrated with a situation and it’s good for him to just bounce it off of me because I can kind of look at it from the athletes’ perspective.”

16. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

“I’m still working on this. It’s to have a greater sense of balance and not to be quite as focused. I’m a very, very focused person. To be able to say: ‘Hey, if I don’t do anything, that’s OK.’ If I don’t do something, I get anxious. I’d like to sit back and smell the roses, to spend more time with family and friends.”

17. Beyond business, what do you see in your life’s crystal ball?

“I’m an adventurer. I want to continue to travel and see the world and try as many different things as I can.”

18. How do you see your business and the fitness industry evolving in the next decade?

“I’d like to get the businesses to a better financial position. They’re very solid right now, but I’d like to make sure that everyone who works for us is financially well taken care of because they all work very hard. I think the industry will keep evolving and I think what we’re looking for in the industry is more ways to get people active. What people are looking for is the integration of mind and body with programs like yoga.”

19. What in your mind is the key to inspiring people?

“The best advice that I could give myself and everyone else is that everyone is different. I always think of Steven Covey’s quote from his book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: ‘Seek to understand before being understood.’ So whenever I go into a conversation or when there’s a conflict, I always try and seek to understand. From a management perspective, to help inspire people you really need to understand them.”

20. What do you say to people who say they don’t have time to work out?

“I used to be very polite and say: ‘Well, try and find the time in your day.’ But 20 years later I’m not so polite. My answer now is: ‘If you don’t make the time now, you won’t have the time later.’ It’s as simple as that.”

IN PROFILE: Helen Vanderburg

* Born/raised/age: Calgary, 43.

* Occupation: Fitness club owner and consultant.

* Family: Husband Terry Kane, daughter Kiah, 3.

* Education: University of Calgary, Bachelor of Physical Education.

* Athletic career: Vanderburg won the world solo and duet synchronized swimming championships as a member of the Calgary Aquabelles in 1978. She also won gold at the PanAmerican Games in the same year. She was Canada's female athlete of the year three consecutive years and is a member of the International Aquatic Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.

* Business career: Vanderburg began her career in fitness by launching Heavens Fitness in Calgary in 1982. She currently co-owns two Calgary clubs – Heavens Fitness and Fountain Park Health Club – and is also president of Heavens International Consulting Services.

* Awards: In 2001, Vanderburg won the Mall Peepre Memorial Award by the National Fitness Leadership Advisory Council and the Calgary Women of Vision Award. In 1996, she was the International Association for Fitness Leaders program director of the year and the CanFitPro (Canadian) instructor of the year.

* Passions: Travel, hiking, skiing, gardening, cooking.

* Web watch: www.helenvanderburg.com

* Club information: Heavens Fitness, 738-11th Ave. S.W., Calgary (403-263-3113); Fountain Park Health Club, Gulf Canada Square, 401-9th Ave. S.W., Calgary (403-262-4277).