Built on movement

Almost three decades ago, a die-hard ski bum and his sporty girlfriend left Montréal in pursuit of a life in the mountains.

Robert Roy and Jacinthe Lemieux wanted winters on skis and summers on tennis courts. They could not have known how completely Mont-Tremblant would capture their hearts, or that they would build two businesses, raise two sons and devote their lives to helping others keep moving through the landscape they loved.

This fall, RobFit KinCentre celebrates its 10th anniversary and Clinique Mouvement Optimal (CMO) its 25th. Their history is not simply a timeline of two growing practices. It is the story of a shared life built on movement.

Following her early career as an athletic therapist with Cirque du Soleil, Jacinthe began treating clients in the basement of their new home, building her practice one person and one recovery at a time.

That solo practice grew into Clinique Mouvement Optimal a sprawling multidisciplinary rehabilitation and health centre on rue de Saint-Jovite, with more than two dozen employees across eight professions.

While Jacinthe helped clients recover, Robert focused on performance, serving as the clinic’s in-house kinesiologist. Together, they created a bridge between recovery and performance.

As demand for his kinesiology services grew, Robert began offering strength and conditioning training outdoors and in the same basement where Jacinthe’s practice had taken root. People were coached and challenged — not simply for daily life, but for the lives they wanted to lead.

Eventually, Robert’s practice outgrew the basement. In 2016, Robert moved into an old garage off Montée Ryan, signing a one-year lease because he was unsure that an independent kinesiology centre could survive.

RobFit was officially official. There was a strip club on the corner and storage sheds along the street. Heat was scarce in winter. In summer, air conditioning meant rolling up the garage door.

But people came.