Every morning at 6 a.m. Sandy Ihlenfeld enters the Butler YMCA for another day of hard work and sweat.

The director of health and fitness for the local center, Ihlenfeld, 46, spends each day coaching other members, demonstrating proper technique and developing new ideas to improve the lives of those around her.

In a solitary third-floor office, overlooking the activity of the basketball courts, she receives about 200 e-mails a day, seeking information about health and tips for staying fit.

Yet Ihlenfeld spends most of her day away from the desk, working directly with clients, training new fitness instructors, developing new health programs, working as a personal trainer for several members and teaching a dozen classes, including spinning, rope jumping and senior strength training.

"I think a person is always better if they give their gift," she said.

Though the mere list of her weekly tasks seems daunting, Ihlenfeld never flinches, putting in 12-hour days with the goal of helping others to maintain their health.

"There's no pride in me," she explained. "I'm not injured and I never burn out."

This dedication to training has led to the development of the personal training program at the Butler YMCA and an impressive record for certifying new instructors.

"Most people certify about 70 (instructors) a year," said Mike Johnson, executive director at the Butler YMCA. "Over that period (last year), Sandy had done 200."

Recently, Ihlenfeld reached an even larger goal, traveling to two YMCAs in Taiwan in late May and early June, certifying 150 new instructors in only 12 days.

"My idea was just to do a job that needed to be done," said Ihlenfeld, who was accompanied by fellow trainer Dee Ann Demby.

Working with several interpreters, the duo was able to bring their fitness expertise to a country where the YMCA's main focus was more social than physical.

"The YMCA has always stayed with trying to make a healthier person," said Ihlenfeld, noting in countries like Taiwan, the YMCA provides services most needed such as day cares, day camps and other social services.

Despite the language barrier and limited time, Ihlenfeld thought the training was a success.

"People are just people. They wanted to know and I had the knowledge to tell them," she said.

"Ms. Ihlenfeld and her co-trainer, Ms. Dee Ann Demby, did a great job in representing U.S. YMCAs. The training was a success according to Taiwan Y's, trainers and trainees," said Tony Liu, a representative of the YMCA International.

Even before her success at international training, Ihlenfeld had received offers from YMCAs and other fitness studios large and small all over the country, but the Butler native has no intentions of leaving the YMCA where she began as an aerobic instructor 25 years ago.

"The lure of money is not really a lure for me," she said, having returned to the YMCA about 10 years ago after working in several other fitness-oriented positions.

"Butler doesn't realize what a jewel they have in her," said Bonnie McElhaney of Butler, a retired physical education teacher at Butler Intermediate High School.

Ihlenfeld has served as McElhaney's personal trainer for about five years, developing workouts that accommodate her fibromyalgia and torn rotator cuff.

"To me she is just a lifesaver," said McElhaney. "She's a very Christian, conscious, loving person who cares about her students."

Responding to the increased demands on her time, the YMCA now employs several interns in exercise science to assist in responding to Ihlenfeld's numerous e-mails and other daily tasks.

Yet instead of slowing down, she continues to search for new challenges.

Currently pursuing a master's degree in physiology, she is working to develop a program to deal with childhood obesity.

"I guess I'm a big-picture person," she said. "Tomorrow I'll be more passionate than I am today."