Thrive Coaching - Health & Fitness is a personal training and health coaching practice run by Christine O'Connor in Beckenham, Christchurch. Christine takes a holistic approach that combines fitness, nutrition and mindset, aiming to help clients build sustainable habits rather than quick fixes.
Christine's path into coaching began in her twenties after developing a love of health and exercise, training as a Personal Trainer and working with clients in Auckland gyms. She later moved into human resources before burning out in 2023, and was diagnosed with ADHD in 2024 at age 44 — an experience that now informs how she supports clients facing their own struggles with motivation, overwhelm and creating positive change. Outside coaching, Christine is a mother of two girls and a step-mum, with a household that includes two dogs, two cats and four chickens.
Thrive Coaching offers personal training, health coaching and online coaching, with in-person sessions available at Christine's home gym or at local parks. The practice particularly speaks to clients dealing with mental health challenges, burnout, perimenopause and menopause, or neurodivergence, and offers a free consultation for those wanting to discuss their goals before committing.
Thrive Coaching - Health & Fitness is built around one coach's personal journey through burnout, self-discovery and a late-in-life ADHD diagnosis, and how that experience now shapes the way she works with clients in Beckenham, Christchurch.
Christine O'Connor's interest in health and fitness took root in her twenties, when she trained as a Personal Trainer and worked with clients in gyms around Auckland. In her early thirties she shifted into a career in human resources, continuing to train for her own strength, fitness and mental health along the way. Working as an HR business partner proved rewarding but intensely stressful, and in 2023 Christine burnt out completely. While rebuilding her health, she was diagnosed with ADHD in mid-2024 at age 44 — a diagnosis prompted in part by her oldest daughter's own diagnosis. Understanding ADHD retrospectively helped explain much of how her life, habits and behaviours had tracked over the years, and living with it has given her particular insight into the challenges people face when trying to create positive change.
Rather than focusing narrowly on workouts, Christine describes her coaching as combining fitness, nutrition and mindset — the belief that wellness isn't just physical, but also about nurturing a positive mindset and building habits that lead to lasting change. She aims to create a supportive, motivating environment for clients, whether their goal is weight loss, building strength and fitness, or simply improving overall wellbeing.
Thrive Coaching's core services are personal training, health coaching and online coaching. Personal training sessions are one-on-one and tailored to fitness level and goals, whether for a beginner or a seasoned athlete; clients training in person can do so at Christine's home gym or at one of the local parks. Health coaching takes a broader view, focused on identifying barriers and building sustainable habits rather than short-term fixes. For clients who want flexibility, the online coaching service — introduced as a newer offering aimed particularly at women — provides personalised exercise plans, health coaching, or both, delivered through a user-friendly app with regular 1:1 check-ins to track progress and stay accountable.
Thrive's messaging speaks directly to a range of specific situations: people whose mental health is affecting their life and relationships, those feeling burnt out from an all-consuming job, women navigating perimenopause or menopause whose previous approach to health and fitness no longer seems to work, and neurodivergent people for whom starting a healthy lifestyle can feel overwhelming or unachievable. For anyone unsure where to start, Thrive offers a free consultation to talk through goals before committing to a programme.
Client reviews point to a consistent theme: steady, encouraging support that builds real results over time. One client credits Christine's guidance with helping her complete the Auckland Half Marathon and discover a love of weight training she never expected. Another, who had never had a good relationship with food or exercise, describes finally sticking to a healthier lifestyle after Christine took the time to understand her. Clients managing ADHD, post-surgery recovery, and hormonal changes have also spoken to how Christine adapts sessions to their specific circumstances, describing her approach as attentive to "mind, body and soul" rather than a one-size-fits-all programme.
Thrive Coaching is based in Beckenham, Christchurch, with services available in person or online, and can be reached through the website's contact form or booking page. Christine also maintains an Instagram and Facebook presence and offers a mailing list for those wanting updates, alongside a planned blog covering nutrition and how it supports overall fitness.