If you have been in the physical fitness and health arena, you probably know Guest Mentor Cedric Bryant, Ph.D. The President and Chief Science Officer for the American Council on Exercise (ACE) based in Seattle. Maybe you are one of the 90,000 certified through ACE as an exercise professional and health coach. Cedric has received distinguished alumni honors from Penn State University for his leadership.

Today we talk about his journey as an educator, coach, innovative thought leader and where he learned his appreciation for hard labor. Cedric is the first to tell you that others conclude you are an innovator and thought leader. I bring in management guru Peter Drucker’s Five Principles of Innovation and get Cedric’s insights into each of them. You will learn why Cedric says, “We are in a physical activity pandemic.” DOWNLOAD

Resiliency has its place in innovation. How you think about yourself, which is a significant factor in recovering from setbacks, would influence how you think about problem-solving. In Cedric’s family, you just dealt with problems and setbacks or learned how to work around them and move on. A lot of what he learned about innovative thinking is reflected in his upbringing, role modeled by his two parents, like getting comfortable with things not always turning out as planned and not being afraid to try things. Being a quick learner by failing fast, learning what you can about what went wrong, and then move forward are things that work well when Cedric is implementing new programming.

Cedric and his two older siblings acquired a remarkable love of education, fun, and putting an honest effort into everything you do from their now-deceased parents. His mother was a nurse’s aide throughout her life. His father changed trades working in the fields, sharecropping in rural Georgia to becoming a longshoreman unloading ships when they moved their family to New Jersey. His mother earned her GED later in life, while his father had a grammar school education. They provided the relational requirements needed in a resilient family: love, security, and connection.

Before joining ACE, Cedric joined the faculty at Arizona State. Teaching and researching to explore using exercise to improve the functional capability of those afflicted with peripheral vascular disease, which impairs the quality of life, led him to work as a Senior Vice President at StairMaster (an exercise equipment company). You will hear about how he modified one of the steppers and the results of that change.

The stable family foundation, education, research, and mentors sprinkled throughout his career prepared Cedric to be someone on the move to lead, coach, and drive innovation in exercise- science and behavior-change programming while overseeing program development at ACE. An organization that helps people sustain healthier lifestyles. Please tune in to hear our engaging, motivating, and thoughtful conversation.