About

Santa Monica California might be the fitness capital of the world. With the wide beaches and bike paths combined with yearlong perfect weather, Santa Monica arguably has more personal trainers, weight loss centers, and gyms than any other city on Earth. Just a mile from the border of Santa Monica and West LA you will frequently find Monika Tarkowska-Carter at Joe's Gym working with one of her clients. Monika has a completely different approach than most personal trainers in the Santa Monica area.

Most Likely Fitness Goals:

  Lose 10, 20, 50, 100 pounds
  Tone all your muscles
  Gain muscular strength and/or endurance
  Improve cardiovascular conditioning
  Increase flexibility
  Train for a specific goal
  Learn to eat better
  Feel Great, Be Healthy, Look Fit

Our clients are not slaves to calorie counting and constant measuring. Nor do they have to walk around hungry, grumpy, light-headed and depressed. Food is pleasure to be enjoyed. Food is nourishment to learn bes appreciad for what it can do for your body.

At Fitness Science Inc. we believe each client is unique. Your biochemistry is unique to you and you alone. Your genes, your heritage, the climate where you live, as well as your current age, activity levels, health and degree of stress, will predetermine how your body will react to certain  kinds and ratios of foods. All of us have very unique nutritional needs.  

The Metabolic Typing Assessment we utilize helps to determine what kind of “diet” your body will respond to the best, considering all the above factors and your current state of health. Although not the “be all end all” method we use to help you achieve your desired goals, it is extremely helpful in designing a program that will make you feel your very best.

Every training, nutrition or holistic lifestyle coaching program starts with an in depth 1-hour initial interview. During this interview we discuss whatever is relevant to your goals: previous exercise experiences, diets you have tried, physical injuries and any other health concerns that might be precluding you from functioning at your best. Then it is your turn to ask any questions about me, my education, and my experience or training methods. Best of all, there is no charge for the initial interview.

If you decide to proceed with training or coaching you receive an informational folder containing, among other things, a thorough health/medical/nutritional history questionnaire.

In the case of training, the first session is devoted to going over the questionnaire and discussing specific goals in more detail, as well as different ways to accomplish them. This session also includes a full fitness assessment.

Based on my findings from the assessment and the information received from you I design a detailed program that includes both short and long term goals specifically designed to meet your needs and goals.  I share my rationale for the program design with you and get your input.

Your full training program will start on the second session. I will teach you how to plan proper cardiovascular workouts that will challenge your heart but not lead to overtraining. The strength training workouts will first focus on correcting muscular imbalances and working on muscle stabilization necessary to progress to muscular endurance as well as strength training. Balance and flexibility are also important components and they will be addressed according to clients’ needs.

At the beginning of our training relationship I do a general nutrition assessment but you are encouraged to incorporate nutrition sessions into your program to ensure results. Nutrition and holistic lifestyle coaching sessions are separate from training. I look at your diet history, your lifestyle factors, your individual health, ratios of foods you might best respond to, your stress levels, hormonal imbalances, digestion and detoxification issues, quality of sleep and many other factors that might negatively affect your results and interfere with achieving your goals. In some cases, when I deem appropriate, I may refer you to highly qualified professionals from various medical specialties, including alternative fields, who might best help you on your journey to good health.

Your goals and progress will be re-assessed periodically and your constant feedback and input will be crucial to the success of your program.

If you have had any experience with personal trainers in Santa Monica or West LA, you know that this approach is substantially more comprehensive and personalized than most others. Your body and overall fitness condition is unique. Your response to various foods and exercise is not the same as your friends’ or your neighbors’. As a professional trained in several disciplines, I will help you meet your unique goals with a personalized approach designed uniquely for you.