The Walter Rivers Audio Bio

LISTEN TO WALTER RIVERS ON VOCALO.ORG RADIO: 

ONE OF THE FIRST PERSONAL TRAINERS AND THOMAS EDISON OF FITNESS

Click to see PDF of Vocalo interview page

Walter Rivers, known as the “Thomas Edison of Fitness”, has been in the fitness business for over 35 years. He was one of the first recognized “Personal Trainers” in the country. Walter opened the first personal training studio in Chicago, and shortly afterwards opened Gold’s Gym Chicago, in River North, which he changed the name to Rivers North Fitness Center. He owned & operated the facility for ten years. Walter was ahead of his time, including a gym exclusively for children within Gold’s Gym, as early as 1989.

Walter Competed successfully in “Couples Bodybuilding Competition”. His competition partner & he appeared on many news shows including The CBS Morning News, with Bill Kurtis, The Oprah Show, and The prestigious Phil Donahue Show. Walter has appeared on the historically popular Jenny Jones Show and the Jerry Springer (before it was a fight show). Walter appeared regularly on Chicago’s NBC Sunday Morning News Fitness segments for Today’s Chicago Woman Magazine; he has appeared on ABC, CBS, NBC, and other television, segments on exercise and nutrition, as one of the areas experts.

 Walter has been interviewed on many radio stations’ segments on exercise and nutrition. Walter has also been featured in many newspapers and magazines, including national publications like the Robb Report, EM Magazine, Iron Man Magazine, and local publications including Crain’s Chicago Business. Walter was himself a fitness columnist for The River North News, and he wrote fitness articles for several other Chicago newspapers and magazines. Walter is a respected fitness authority who has lectured at the annual “Expo for Today’s Woman” for 7 years. Walter was also sought after & lectured at the Chicago Museum of Science & Industry’s 6 week Sport exhibit on the importance of fitness in sports. Walter’s instruction experience includes all types of individuals. He has trained some of the highest profile people in Chicago, and some of the most inconspicuous. He has worked with various clients, some who were obese, underweight, pregnant, postpartum, younger, and older, men, and women. Walter sat on the Governing Board for the Illinois Physique Association, for ten years. He competed successfully in “Couples Bodybuilding”, naturally (no steroid use), winning 2nd place in both the Illinois Couples’ Championship, & the Couples USA Championship, and 1st place in The Central USA Couples Championship. Walter promoted physique competitions, and exhibitions for ten years. Walter used the sport of bodybuilding to promote a fitness lifestyle to the mainstream, holding competitions at venues including the famous Park West, and the Prestigious Auditorium Theatre. Walter is currently the President and founder of Rivers Fitness, Academy of Fitness Education & Consultation.

Walter has a degree in Economics from the University of Illinois. While in college Walter studied science courses relative to fitness; specifically, anatomy/physiology, and kinesiology.

Walter sold his Public Gym to Bally’s in 1998. Since then he has continued researching, studying fitness trends, and social behavior, relative to fitness failures, to determine possible solutions. Walter has continued to attend fitness industry trade shows, critiquing new equipment; reviewing personal training trends; studying new gym openings, and operating procedures; studying home fitness industry trends; studying fitness infomercials; studying various “diet” programs; and establishing solutions.

Walter says what he has researched is finally substantiated by all the latest respected medical & government institutions. He knows that correct information regarding fitness is crucial and about time! Our country, and most of the developed world, is in dire need of fitness education.

Walter has been fighting the “battle of Ignorance” about fitness for over 35 years by preaching, writing, and lecturing, regarding the ignorance about fitness, and the need for education. Walter says that it’s obvious what has been practiced is not working! The Obesity epidemic, which is only one variable in the fitness equation, is worse than ever.

Walter is uniquely qualified to educate possessing a working knowledge of functional anatomy, kinesiology as it applies to fitness, successful experience changing his body, over twenty years of nutrition for fitness training, and the ability to teach. All 35 plus years have been spent researching, and applying real no-nonsense science to fitness education.

He is on a mission to teach everyone how easy it is to achieve optimal fitness in the safest, most effective, most efficient way possible.