Meet Manju Nivsarkar | Adaptive Fitness Trainer & Baker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Manju Nivsarkar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Manju, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had always been an advocate for exercise and actively pursuing a healthy lifestyle. I realized that while programs were available for the public, they rarely were accessible to those with special needs. I recognized that this missing service was one of the primary reasons why the special needs community had a sedentary lifestyle and poor eating habits. Upon doing more research on how I could help, I found Special Strong. I was excited to bring together my passion for fitness, my education and my skills that I had acquired having worked in the special needs community for the last 10 years and start with my own service as a franchise of Special Strong

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Serving those in need has always been my passion, from volunteering at local animal shelters or supporting the local soup kitchens. But I found my calling when I was asked by a friend to help with a child with special needs. I soon realized that this community needed more support, and began looking for ways to serve. I completed formal education in the field of applied behavioral analysis and worked in this service industry for the next 12 years before starting Special Strong. Through out this journey, there were many challenges but I would say the most difficult was gaining the skill of earning trust. I learned quickly that forming a bond with the client and also the caregiver was vital to the success of any program and started focusing on being good at that.

Now I can proudly say that my superpower is my ability to connect with every type of client. Whether they are six or
sixty years old, I take the time to get on their level and connect with them to create a strong bond that encourages trust and dedication. I attribute my success to my skills of observation and assessment and I try not to simply throw clients into a cookie-cutter plan but make an effort to understand their specific needs and create an individualized program just for them.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Although I love everything about North Texas, I am a city girl at heart so I love the choices of walking malls, places to eat and the museums in the Dallas area. I love trying food from different cultures and we have so much of that here. So definitely a few days of day time spent around museums and malls and evenings for food tourism. I also think you have to hit up the hill country and Fredricksburg for 2-3 days to make it a complete vacation.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband Ojas Nivsarkar has always been my rock. Supporting me through my educational journey to being a small business owner and everything in between. I would also like to thanks Daniel Stein, the founder of Special Strong for his dedication and passion towards improving lives of people in the community

Website: https://www.specialstrong.com/west-north-dallas-tx/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/specialstrongwestnorthdallastx/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manjunivsarkar/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westnorthdallastx

Other: https://linktr.ee/specialstrongwestnorthdallas