At an early age Sam Bluemel discovered she loved exercise. It’s her personal kryptonite and throughout her working life she has always prioritised it, marking out time in her diary each day for a workout and making a rule to never cancel those meetings on herself because she knows that it will make her feel great and give her more energy to face the day.
It’s not surprising she became a personal trainer, though the former model has also enjoyed a successful career in sales, most recently at Good magazine, a role she resigned from to care for her mum Michelle O’Neill who had terminal cancer.
“Mum was sick for two and a half years before she passed away and she fought like hell which was pretty incredible to see but also really hard. There’s not really any words for the experience of going through it with your loved one and being there by their side throughout it all,” she says.
Resigning from her job to take care of her mum was the best decision she made. Looking back they shared so many amazing moments and made magical memories despite it being super tough.
Before her mum’s illness Sam, 33, knew she had the BRCA gene. Her mum had it, and her grandmother Anne-Marie died of cancer age 52 so likely had it, too.
“The advice was always to have a double mastectomy before the age of 30 because your risk of getting breast cancer increases exponentially compared to a woman who doesn’t carry that gene mutation,” Sam says.
She’d begun to set things up with general surgery at North Shore Hospital but as she was caring for her mum when she turned 30 the surgery had to wait.
Shortly after her mum passed away age 54, Sam had the surgery as quickly as possible which she now admits was probably not the best timing. “When you are grieving your body isn’t necessarily as robust or resilient, not to mention your mind, to go through something like that,” she says. “I think that might have contributed to the fact I ended up getting an infection. Thankfully a couple of nights in hospital on IV antibiotics sorted the problem out. I’m very glad I did it and had the surgery. I felt a huge sense of relief afterwards because
I felt like this big horrible black cloud that had been following me around had finally gone and I’m really proud for doing that for myself and my future. I have no regrets.”
Her experience gave her time to rethink her future and about what she is most passionate in life, which is fitness. It has seen her swivel to her roots as a personal trainer but with a whole new toolkit and approach. Her gym Mode Studio, which opened its doors recently at 202 Ponsonby Rd, Auckland, is different from other gyms in that it offers restorative facilities for the mind and body, and a focus on recovery as well as workouts.
“The idea of Mode came from a very stressful time in my life and I learned that exercise alone wasn’t quite enough to keep me balanced and sane, and keep my mind and body feeling okay as much as I could during that time. I realised when I reflected back that I hadn’t made any time for my mental health,” she says.
Because she finds meditation quite difficult Sam sought out physical practices that allowed her to access that mindful side of wellbeing and for her that was contrast therapy.
That’s why Mode Studio has three purpose-built contrast therapy suites each with a sauna and ice bath, dark tiles, low lighting, luxury Sans [ceuticals] products and waterfall showers.
“I’ve always found mindful practices quite challenging without having some kind of physical access point,” she explains. “So, for me the sensation of heat, the quiet and solitude in a beautiful room puts me in a state of mind in which I can be mindful and present. It’s the same with the ice bath. It’s a real mental challenge to stay in it for longer than a few seconds. When you allow yourself to breathe and push through the experience and allow your body to relax, you feel very present in your skin and there’s not much else you can think about. It quietens your mind and allows it to let go of all those racing thoughts because you just have to sit there and breathe. I find it a really strong way to access that kind of mindfulness.”
From the age of five Sam was always active and growing up played every sport imaginable.
“I was really fortunate that Mum would drive me to all of my practices and make time for that,” Sam says. “I love exercising. When I’m running it’s the best feeling in the world and I feel really privileged that I’m able to do that, that my body’s healthy enough to do it. I enjoy the feeling of it being hard, my muscles hurting and that feeling in your chest, your breath going in and out as it does when you work out.”
She knows that not everyone shares that point of view and many struggle with exercise – the doing, or even wanting to do it.
“The mission of Mode Studio is to help people find that joy in exercise and to help them understand that it’s such a powerful tool for your physical and mental health. That it can be fun and it can be joyous and it really works for you – your body and mind, it doesn’t have to be a chore, and that might not be Mode Studio and that’s totally fine. It’s about trialling different modalities and different ways you can move your body to find the thing that works for you.”
At Mode Studio the idea is that we all have different modes in terms of the way we move and express our own wellbeing.
“My favourite mode is workout mode and I’m still learning about restorative self-care, so that’s my restore mode,” Sam explains. “So, the tagline for the business is “workout restore”.
Mode will also offer New Zealand’s first treadmill studio as far as Sam is aware. The class will be split between treadmills and strength benches so that you work on your strength as well as cardio. “It’s going to be the best workout ever,” she laughs.
Recovery classes will comprise of stretching, foam rolling and mobility work, which is great for people who are not into yoga.
And by her side will be her border collie Theo, seven months. “I can’t run with him yet as you have to wait until they are one before they can run but I’m very excited that he is going to be my running buddy,” she says.
As a working dog Theo is also Mode Studio’s mascot whose job it will be to greet everyone and guard the studio in a friendly way.
