Michael Anderson- Exercise Physiologist/Outdoor Educator
B.S. in Sports Medicine, Pepperdine University, Malibu 1992
M.P.H. in Social and Behavioral Sciences, Boston University, Boston 1994. M.Ed. in Outdoor Education, Linköping University, Sweden 2006

Mike simply wants to "Go Outside and Play" and finds joy in helping others do the same.  Mike founded "Go Outside and Play" - an adventure fitness and outdoor conditioning program - that has partnered with State of the Heart Fitness and extends their mission of integrated wellness into the environment by helping people to explore the outdoors.  Mike is at home on land and in the ocean and provides instruction and guidance as he leads members in hiking, surfing, trail running, rock climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, and discovering the bay and the mountains of Santa Monica.  Within these landscapes, participants are able to escape the stress of everyday life, learn technical skills, develop fitness across a broad spectrum of activities, and lose themselves in nature.

Mike has taught physical education, trained marathoners and triathletes, lead various group exercise classes ranging from elite to introductory levels and from children to nonagenarians.  He specializes and particularly loves teaching adult swimming to beginners and to those with fear or anxiety of the water.

With a love for travel and exploration, Mike has worked in a variety of capacities: he was a health educator in the Peace Corps, coordinated the physical education department and instructed at Pepperdine University, and led outdoor environmental studies courses within a study abroad program in Thailand.  He is also a credentialed elementary school teacher.

Mike divides his free time by reading at the Santa Monica Library, drinking ice coffee at Groundwork, practicing Olympic lifts in his friend's garage gym, and eating free samples at various farmers' markets.

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