has anybody started independent personal training business without working at gym?
Hi Tyler,
How long have you been a trainer? How much experience do you have working with a various types of populations and taking on clients who have a number of health issues? Is your business background strong enough to help you build a successful personal training business? These are some questions I asked myself before I decided to go on my own. It took me 16 years of working in gyms (large and smaller ones) to finally feel comfortable to start my own business. I just wanted to be sure that when I make the jump from an employee to a business owner I had all the necessary experience (both on the business side and the training side) in order to face the challenges of owning a business. It takes a lot of time and effort and unless you have someone to share responsibilities with it will consume a lot of your time until you have it up and running.
I’m on my second business at the moment. I successfully sold my first one and I decided to build another one because there is nothing more satisfying than working for myself. The opportunities are unlimited as long as you are willing to take some risks and learn form any mistakes. A good business plan, knowing your competition and your limitations, building a good networking relationships around you and keeping things simple are few of the things I kept in mind when I was building my businesses. Stay focus to your goals and also remember that testimonials and reviews can either make you or break you.
If you are confident enough to start your own business without much experience in the gym environment, more power to you. Some people can do it, unfortunately it wasn’t me ;-)!
Best,
Harris
If you want to be an independent personal trainer and have a client base to support you than thats fantastic!
There is no right or wrong way to build your business.
Find your niche, develop your business plan, market yourself, have proper credentials, do as much research as you can!
I personally managed a fitness studio for (ever) 25 years. I did my training there.
Today I have 2 outdoor bootcamps, an in home personal training business/health coaching business.
Thank you everyone for the great and timely responses.
This question was me planning for the future. I’m in the process of getting certified and was just wondering if there was anyone out there who had success being an in home trainer without having to work at gym first? The reason I ask is because my goal is to someday run my own successful independent training business. I was wondering if anyone had luck starting part time independently and slowly going to full time? I currently have a full-time job that I am usually off every day by 3 pm and they are flexible that if I wanted to take a full day or get off early to train someone I could. I was wondering if I could continue to work that so I can keep money coming in well trying to build my book of business independently. As I continue to get more clients I can go part time at my current job and then drop it once I’m successful enough.
A little background on myself is I have never worked at a gym but I have years of sales experience and customer interaction. I have designed lots of workout plans for family and friends and love to read and continuously learn about health and fitness. I have plenty of time to build a book of business on the side as I work my full time job. I really just want to know everyone’s thoughts and if they think it is possible.
Tyler,
I have a private facility at my home (not connected to the house) that is nicely equipped for all fitness levels. I work a full time job with the goal of full time PT out of my home. I have been in the health and fitness world for many years but became certified in 2013. I currently train clients before and after work. I agree with the others about finding a specialized area to train, but in order to figure that out I am working with clients that are all levels of fitness, ages and limitations. I have many years of experience with trainers and have always kept up on health and fitness so I don’t feel like I’m blindly going into my business on that side of things. I have worked in the corporate world all of my career so I feel confident on the business side as well. I do not have other trainers working with me, it’s just me at this time. So can it be done? Sure it can. I have not been in business long, but I am already having to turn people away because of time constraints. I train every morning before work and every evening after work. I’m not ready to leave my job yet for a few reasons, but hopefully by the end of the year I will be in the position to do so. Good luck with your certification and starting a business. I believe you can do anything you set your mind to.
Thanks,
Kerry
I started a private studio at my home 30+ years ago. Within 3 months I had to move to a large facility. As the workload became to much, I move to a smaller studio. That is where I currently train. How did I start? I went out one night and put flyers on car windows. I did get caught by police as I did not know I needed a permit to do this. But, I guess I put enough and people came. Then, word of mouth took over. However, the competition is greater today. Even the internet is your competition. So, you must prove yourself to the population in which you wish to train. How you do so is to get results for a client. Results can not be denied. Word of mouth will occur and, success will happen. How long this will take? I do not know as it is different for all trainers. Good luck, Brian Rozzi