Marja has a background as a nurse with a specialization in Obstetrics and Gynecology. After working in that area for 13 years, she and her family moved from the Netherlands to settle down in Tapanui, rural Otago, New Zealand. She retrained herself as a personal trainer to assist the community in getting fitter and stronger.

After the local yoga teacher left, she did her 200-hour yoga teacher training and is currently working to complete her 500-hour teacher training.

Marja’s passion is working with bodies that “talk”. When things don’t work, don’t add up or when clients are having health issues, that is when she is in her element.

The course “Exercise as Medicine connected her nursing skills with her capabilities as a personal trainer. Being part of the Holistic Movement Coach tribe reinforces her holistic approach to help her clients feel the best they possible can.