Meet SuperCue's Founders

Rebekah Charlton

Hi, my name is Rebekah Charlton and I am an Active Living and Wellness Coach and group fitness instructor of 25+ years.  When completing my personal training qualification at the beginning of my journey, I knew I wanted to focus on special populations such as those with mental health struggles and older adults rather than gym bunnies.  

Over the years, I have taught various class styles and types, from freestyle step to Les Mills, Tai Chi, Zumba, Yoga, and what is now called SuperCue! As an independent instructor, I gained the knowledge, skills, and experience to prepare and design a programme that can respond to the needs and abilities of class participants while being fun for me and them.  

I have always worked with older adults in some capacity and learnt that many instructors didn’t know how to positively engage without being condescending or demeaning.  This fueled my desire to provide a programme that didn’t make my participants feel old and incapable but rather lifted them up and helped them to realise what they can do and why they want to improve.  As Community Services Manager for Enliven this strength based approach was an important aspect of programme delivery and assisted the positive outcomes gained by the 100’s of weekly day programme attendees.

I also found it was a lonely, difficult job being an independent contractor as you had to drive the creative process of programme design while also keeping yourself fresh and aligned with the latest research. I saw how that impacted the content of classes and quality of class delivery when approving classes for the Live Stronger for Longer Initiative.  As Lead Agent, my position with Enliven meant I assessed the quantity and quality of class provision in the Tairawhiti and Hawke's Bay region.  During that time, I met Marya and I valued her teaching approach as it aligned with my desire to teach in a strength-based way. SuperCue was born to help support instructors but also offer older adults a programme that can be accessed from the community or online. 

Alongside SuperCue, I provide yoga classes and Wellness Coaching at my studio Halcyon Wellness in Tararua. I love the feeling as an instructor when you teach a class and your participants leave smiling, worked but satisfied, tired and energised, seen and cared for.  I value their trust in me as their instructor and that maintains my desire to continue to provide them with an exercise experience that keeps them coming back for more.  Because SuperCue is choreographed when you start teaching a programme, everyone is learning together so it can be a bit disjointed. But a few weeks later you teach the same routine and everyone moves together with knowing and energy, you can’t but smile, it's an awesome feeling. And your participants feel it as well.  They know when the routine flows, when their balance exercise is easier, if they complete all the squats or when they master a routine. 

I have seen the difference you can make in the lives of our older adults when you make exercise instruction invigorating, exciting and rewarding.  In addition to that, if they have understanding and awareness of how they are moving their bodies, not only do they learn safe movement but it empowers them to do more with confidence.  I want to share with other instructors what has taken me years to learn and perfect and give them the support and help they need to deliver safe, fun, effective SuperCue classes.  Because one day, it will be us sitting there staring at a fresh-faced instructor and I want them to teach me in a way that empowers,  and energises me but most importantly keeps me coming back for more. 

Marya Hopman

Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist, owner of OptimalMe Fitness Studio in Taradale, Napier. Co-Founder of SuperCue.

Kia ora! I'm Marya Hopman and I am a personal trainer and corrective exercise specialist with my own fitness studio OptimalMe Fitness in Hawkes Bay. But I’m definitely not a gym person. I'm interested in helping people to live an active life, free from pain and confident to do whatever it is they want to do. 

I retrained as a personal trainer in 2010 because I was looking for a career that would be better for my own health, rather than being stuck behind a desk. I'd heard the industry was looking for trainers that a wider range of people could relate to. As an “older” woman who wasn’t a fitness fanatic, and as a person who loves to help people, I fit the bill!

Within a year I was awarded Personal Trainer of the Year at CityFitness in Napier for my quality programming and outstanding results. Surprisingly I had found my purpose!

My fitness experience now includes being a Rehab Trainer, Nordic Walking Instructor, Counterpunch Parkinsons’ Instructor, Gravity Instructor and Les Mills Body Balance Instructor. My passion is corrective exercise and working with people who have aches, pains and physical limitations, empowering them with tools and knowledge to self help their recovery and fitness journey. 

Incredibly, a commonly missing element in exercise is a level of instruction that resonates with the non-fitness professional (and actually the fitness professional as well), so they gain a deeper understanding of what it feels like to sit, stand and move well. And yet this simple difference makes all the difference in the results we can achieve as instructors. I believe it is critical that the fitness industry and people of all ages and fitness levels sit up and take notice - we all need to get better at getting the basics right. 

That’s where SuperCue comes in. Bec and I recognised the need for better exercise options for the over 65s. We wanted to offer a service that was all encompassing - providing fun, effective and highly educational exercise programmes for older adults, while also supporting trainers by providing them with fully choreographed programmes. We want to show how working with our older population can be invigorating, exciting and rewarding.

Combining my own skills and strengths with Bec’s choreography and her extensive experience working with older adults, gives us really well rounded programmes that have great music, great moves and great learning points. I wouldn’t get that on my own. 

I love the fact I now have a selection of really fun carefully constructed programmes that I can choose from every week. We also teach you how you can vary a routine from week to week by simply having a different focus or making a few minor changes to keep the routines fresh and progressive. We show how between tracks you can spend a little more time on discussing key movements and how they apply to day-to-day living. 

 All together that is the SuperCue difference!