Simon Ramsden

I was brought up as a massive Sunderland AFC  fan and was lucky enough to sign for the club at 15 years old whilst  being a season ticket holder at Roker Park. It was a dream come true to  then sign professionally for the club after I left school. This was  during one of the most successful periods in the club's history, when we  moved to the Stadium of Light off the pitch and on the pitch progressed  to back to back top 7 Premier League finishes under the management of  Peter Reid.

To  be involved in the club and to train alongside these players on a daily  basis was a dream come true and I would go on to make my debut under  Mick McCarthy as a late substitute away to Ipswich Town in an FA Cup  match during the '03/04 season.

As  a young boy in the Roker End I always dreamt of pulling on the red and  white shirt for Sunderland, so to go and do that will always live in my  memory.

After  leaving Sunderland I went on to play for numerous clubs including Notts  County, Grimsby Town, Rochdale, Bradford City, Motherwell and Gateshead  before retiring at the age of 34.

As  I look back on my career the main stand out moments, apart from my  debut for Sunderland, would be making my debut for Motherwell in the  Champions League against Panathinaikos from Greece. Also to play in the  Europa league for Motherwell against Kuban Krasnador in Russia and in  the following season again playing in the Europa League against Stjarnan  from Iceland. During my time at the club we also had two second place  finishes in the Scottish Premier League behind Celtic, which was a great  feat for a club like Motherwell and some amazing times.

Other  stand out moments would be playing at the new Wembley in the play off  final for Rochdale. That was an amazing experience to run out on the  hallowed turf. 

Another  amazing experience was being made Captain of Bradford City for two  years by Stuart McCall and then the ex England manager Peter Taylor. To  have the confidence of these two managers to lead the team meant a lot  to me and still does.

I’ve  always had a passion for fitness and my aim at every club was to be the  fittest player in training. When I stepped over the white line at 3pm  on a Saturday I was generally not the best player on the pitch, but what  I lacked in natural ability I made up with my determination and will to  win, for myself and for my team mates.

After  retiring from football I lost my way a little bit and I've been looking  for that spark ever since. I’ve now found that by training people and  inspiring them to achieve their own fitness goals. I also enjoy the  mental side of things and helping people with their mindset through my  own experiences over the years.

During the lockdown imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic I decided to set up SR Functional Fitness for a couple of reasons...

One, for myself. To give me purpose, to each day wake up and feel motivated to help people to better themselves.

Secondly,  for others. I feel that I can really help people reach their goals by  training them in the same way that I have trained myself over the years,  I know these methods really work, they did for me and they will work  for everyone that decides to commit to the classes that I provide.

I  aim to create a friendly environment at all my classes, everyone is  welcome no matter what level of fitness you are at and I want you to  feel that you can come, participate with no judgement whatsoever and  leave the class feeling better for the experience, both mentally and  physically.