Charmaine Washburn feels like a drill sergeant when she works. As a physical trainer for more than 65 clients in Bowling Green, she helps whip people into shape. My day starts at 5 a.m. I work 14 to 16 hours a day, she said. My clients are ages 14 to 91. Half of them are men and half are women. Helping people get in shape is a calling Washburn has enjoyed for about 10 years. I work them hard, she said between appointments at Bowling Green Parks and Recreation, one of the exercise facilities at which she trains clients. Im passionate about my job. Ive never wanted to have a client who was just a paycheck. Before becoming a personal trainer, Washburn was equally passionate about her career as a regional saleswoman of LEGGS pantyhose. I traveled thousands of miles the whole western Kentucky area. I did that for 18 years, she said. Then, we went from a dress up market to a casual market. I was downsized. During this time, Washburn was battling her weight. She had joined Weight Watchers and was being trained to work with the group as well. Ive always been worried about my weight. It has always been an albatross around my neck, she said. I joined Weight Watchers. It took me eight months to lose 40 pounds. That was 11 years ago. As she became smaller, she noticed that the skin around her arms was sagging. It was then that she discovered what she calls the secret to sculpting and toning the body. You need to lift weights. It took me two months to change fat to muscle, she said. I love what it made me feel like and how it made me look. Washburn began working out at the Parks and Recreation Department. At first she felt intimidated because mostly men worked out there, so she took male relatives to work out with her. Personal training was free then, so I told women in Weight Watchers about it. I was working for Weight Watchers part-time, she said. That helped bring more women to the gym. Then the parks department began limiting free personal training to the first few visits, Washburn said. She decided she wanted to help people get healthier, so she began studying to become a physical trainer. She is certified by the American Council on Exercise. When you train to be a personal trainer, you always hear about having a client whos a 300-pound man with high blood pressure and diabetes, she said. Well, you learn everybody has a malady. I have clients with things like epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Washburn, who primarily works out of the Parks and Recreation Department and Bowling Green Fitness for Women, even helps her clients with nutritional counseling, something she learned in Weight Watchers, which she left nearly two years ago. I measure their food for them. I teach them how to read food labels, she said. I do everything to help them. The most important thing Washburn said she teaches clients is how to love and accept their present body shape. She said she doesnt compare herself to women half her age. You have to love your body for what it is and love yourself, she said. I can look at my body and say, Not bad for a chick your age, and Im almost 50.