Carla Roberts didn’t plan a career in fitness. She planned a life in service.
After finishing her psychology degree, she went to Zambia to volunteer and stayed for seven years, moving across Zambia, Uganda, and South Africa, drawn by the work and the people and the feeling that what she was doing actually mattered. When she eventually moved home to Dublin, she was looking for that same feeling again. She found it in a Facebook ad for a POUND training in Birmingham.
That was over ten years ago. She hasn’t stopped since.
What Carla has built in Dublin is hard to put into a single category. She teaches adults and toddlers, kids in schools and people with intellectual disabilities. She brings Baby Rave to families and Baby Massage to new mums. She took POUND to Wellfest, Europe’s largest outdoor fitness festival, after getting turned down the first year she applied, and ended up teaching 10 classes that weekend plus a bonus Sunday session because no one wanted to leave. The following year she was on the main stage, and she’s been back again and again, drawing huge crowds every year.
She is precise the way you have to be when you teach children: clear, purposeful, no wasted words. And she is warm the way you are when you genuinely believe movement belongs to everyone. Her students don’t just come back. They bring their kids. Then those kids grow up and come back too.
POUND is working closely with Carla for the July series of events: ICON Camp, Tour Crew Meetup, Band Practice, and Pro Jam, all on Irish soil, and we cannot wait to see Dublin through Carla’s eyes. If you haven’t been in a room with her yet, you’re about to understand what all the fuss is about. 💚
POUND Journey 🤘
When did you first discover POUND?
I first discovered POUND over 10 years ago after moving home to Dublin from Cape Town, South Africa. I had spent about seven years living in Africa altogether, and when I moved home, I was very much in a “yes, yes, yes” phase of life where I just wanted to say yes to opportunities and experiences. I saw an ad for a POUND training on Facebook, which is slightly terrifying when the algorithm knows you better than you know yourself! But something about it immediately caught my attention. The training was in Birmingham in the UK, and because I had friends there that I had met in Cape Town, I decided to turn it into a trip to visit them and also taking the training. Safe to say, it ended up changing my life.
What made you fall in love with it?
This sounds incredibly cliché, but it really was…love at first STRIKE! I remember being greeted by my beautiful POUND Icon Jess McKee at training, and I still have the clearest image in my head of her standing on a table during our Pro training being the ultimate hype woman for every single person in the room and thinking, “she’s so f*ing cool”! It felt loud, empowering, welcoming and unlike anything I had ever experienced before. I couldn’t believe fitness could feel like that. I instantly knew I wanted to create that same feeling for other people someday.
Favorite POUND program/continuing edu to teach and why?
I’m going to keep this answer short because I don’t like using the F word… Obviously, I mean: favourite. Honestly, I love them all for completely different reasons. Each programme brings something unique and reaches people in a different way, which is one of the things I love most about POUND as a whole.
What’s a POUND moment you’ll never forget?
One POUND moment I’ll never forget has to be my journey with Wellfest, which is Europe’s largest outdoor fitness festival here in Dublin, Ireland. What a lot of people don’t know is that the very first year I reached out to be involved, I actually got turned down. They were already full, and to be fair, they had never heard of either me or POUND before. I can only imagine how many people were reaching out, trying to bring their own fitness formats to the festival. But not long after that, a brand that had an activation space at the event contacted me because they wanted something high-energy and fun on their stage. My first Wellfest I ended up teaching 10 POUND classes AND a bonus class on the Sunday because people were LOVING it so much! That weekend completely changed everything for me. It was one of those huge reminders that people don’t always understand POUND until they experience it for themselves. We can try to explain it until we’re blue in the face, but the second people pick up the Ripstix and feel the energy in the space, that’s when the magic happens. The following year, WellFest invited us back onto the main stage, which felt incredibly special and honestly, very full-circle. Watching thousands of people over the years drum, sweat, laugh, cry, sing-along, and completely let go together will never stop feeling emotional to me. It’s one of the biggest honours of my career.
Fitness Background 💪
How long have you been in the fitness industry?
What?! I’m in the fitness industry?! This is still something I struggle to classify myself as because I’ve never really used the word “fitness” to describe what I do. I’ve been teaching movement classes to both kids and adults for almost 20 years now, but for me, it has always been about so much more than exercise. Everything I teach is rooted in connection, confidence, community and helping people fall in love with movement in a way that feels fun and accessible. Whether it’s drumming with Ripstix, dancing in schools, toddlers at Baby Rave or mums bonding with their babies through Baby Massage, the goal is always the same — I want people to leave feeling lighter, happier and more themselves than when they arrived.
What did/do you teach besides POUND?
Before POUND, my path actually looked very different. After finishing my psychology degree, I volunteered in Zambia and completely fell in love with both the work and the people. That experience led to opportunities working with volunteer organisations across Zambia, Uganda and South Africa, and I ended up spending around seven years living in Africa altogether. When I eventually moved home to Dublin, that’s when I discovered POUND and it changed my life in ways I never expected. Your oldest friends will always be your oldest friends, but life naturally pulls people in different directions sometimes, and POUND opened up this incredible new community and network for me. Alongside teaching POUND to both adults and kids, I also teach Baby Rave for toddlers and families, dance classes in schools and children’s movement programmes. One of my newest loves, especially since becoming a mum myself, is teaching Baby Massage. I also completed a postgraduate qualification in Therapeutic Play Skills and another in Sexuality Education & Sexual Wellbeing, which definitely influence how I teach too. A huge part of what I do is creating spaces where people feel safe, seen and able to express themselves without judgment.
One certification or course that changed your teaching?
I think becoming a mum changed my teaching just as much as any qualification ever could. Of course, my psychology degree, postgraduate studies and POUND training all shaped me massively, but becoming a parent completely changed the way I view people, pressure, confidence, exhaustion, emotion and connection. It gave me a much deeper sense of empathy and helped me realise that you never truly know what someone is carrying when they walk into your class. I think now more than ever, I teach humans first and participants second. Whether someone comes to class to sweat, escape stress, build confidence, make friends or simply have one hour where they don’t have to think about everything else going on in their life — that matters.
What’s something you believe every great instructor should focus on?
For me, the most important thing any instructor can focus on is the people in the room. People will rarely remember if your choreography was perfect or if you missed an eight count, but they will remember how you made them feel. Did they feel welcome? Included? Safe? Empowered? Seen? Did they leave feeling better than when they walked in? That’s what really matters. I think great instructors create experiences, not just workouts. They create environments where people feel comfortable enough to let go, make noise, take up space and reconnect with themselves. But I also think the longer you teach, the more you realise you can’t pour endlessly from an empty cup either, and that’s something I’m personally still learning. As instructors, we spend so much time giving energy to other people that sometimes we forget to protect our own. The best classes happen when there’s a balance of both.
Your Community 🌍
What’s unique about your fitness community or region?
I think one of the most unique things about the Irish fitness community is the sense of warmth, humour and connection people bring into rooms. There’s a real community feel here. People genuinely want to support each other, and there’s something very special about seeing strangers walk into a class and leave feeling like friends. (…I’m also very aware that I have just described the entire POUND community here too)! I also think Irish people sometimes need permission to fully let go. We can be a little hesitant at first, especially with something as loud and different as POUND, but once people relax into it, the energy becomes absolutely unmatched. Because Ireland is relatively small, there’s also this lovely crossover where communities intertwine. I’ll have people come to POUND who then bring their kids to Baby Rave, or mums I met through Baby Massage, ending up at WellFest classes years later. It creates this really lovely sense of connection across different stages of life.
What’s one way you’ve seen POUND impact your local Pros?
I think one of the biggest impacts I’ve seen POUND have on local Pros is confidence. Not just confidence in teaching, but confidence in themselves as people. I’ve watched instructors who once doubted themselves step onto stages, lead huge crowds, build communities, create friendships and completely grow into themselves through POUND. I also think POUND permits people to stop trying to fit the traditional “fitness instructor” mould. There’s room for personality, emotion, humour, individuality and real human connection, and I think that’s incredibly powerful. Some of the strongest communities I know have been built through people simply picking up Ripstix and finding their people.
Rapid Fire (short answers only!) 🎶
Coffee or tea?
Coffee
Salty or sweet?
Sweet
Early bird or night owl?
Early bird
Favorite pre-class hype song (non-POUND)?
Maniac 2000 — Mark McCabe Remix
Go-to post-class/training snack?
Jelly Babies
One word your participants use to describe you?
Bubbly
One word you’d use to describe yourself?
Heart-led
Personal Side 🤗
Something most people don’t know about you.
I can roll my tongue into a shamrock! That’s my very niche party trick. Music also runs very deeply in my family. My dad has played guitar since he was a kid, so I grew up in pubs and music sessions watching him play alongside loads of incredible musicians over the years. His cousin was actually in The Boomtown Rats, so there’s definitely a strong musical streak in the family… and then there’s little old me with a pair of Ripstix making noise for a living!
A hobby outside of fitness.
This question has genuinely made me realise I need more hobbies outside of work, so thank you, POUND HQ! I think becoming a mum and juggling life/work has made me realise I need to reconnect with those parts of myself again, too. One of my favourite things to do is put on headphones and run — even though I run like Phoebe from Friends! No times, no specific distance, just running for the love of it. I’ve actually signed up for the Rome half marathon in October if anyone wants to join me?! …more so for the celebratory pasta and pizza post run!
A recent win (big or small).
Without a doubt, my biggest win over the last few years has been growing two tiny humans. Something that feels really special to me is that my girls already get to be part of so much of what I do. Whether it’s handing out Ripstix at festivals, dancing side stage, joining me during classes or growing up surrounded by music, movement and community, those moments mean everything to me. There’s something very full-circle about building a career around joy and connection and then getting to share that world with your own children.
Looking Ahead 💚
What does being an ICON mean to you?
Being an ICON still feels a little surreal to me. I very much feel imposter syndrome as an ICON. When I first discovered POUND over 10 years ago, I was just someone who completely fell in love with the feeling it gave me. I never imagined that one day I would have the honour of representing the brand in this way. To me, being an ICON isn’t about being the loudest person in the room or having the biggest following. It’s about community, connection and helping people feel seen. It’s about showing up authentically, supporting other Pros and helping people realise that movement doesn’t have to look perfect to be powerful. I think one of the most beautiful things about POUND is that it gives people permission to take up space exactly as they are, and being able to be part of that, especially within the Irish community means so much to me.
A skill you’re currently sharpening?
Slowing down! Apologies if this is supposed to be in relation to POUND! I’m someone who naturally says yes to ideas, projects and opportunities, I’m learning that not every good idea has to happen immediately and that rest is actually part of creativity too. I’m constantly trying to sharpen my ability to create experiences rather than just classes whether that’s through music editing, storytelling, atmosphere, crowd connection or making people feel emotionally connected to movement in a way they didn’t expect. The longer I teach, the more I realise that the magic is rarely in perfection. It’s in presence.
