Today we’d like to introduce you to James Stallworth.
James, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Right before I started my own business, I worked for a bank, and for years prior to that I sold cars. I have always loved fitness whether it was group training, personal training, or just achieving my own fitness goals. In the back of my mind, I always felt like this it was something that I could see myself doing in the long run. I also loved the way I could help people not only feel great about themselves but help them achieve their wellness goals. I taught group fitness and did personal training part-time for a few years in addition to my full-time job.
After heavy consideration and with the full support of my better half, I decided to step out on my own and delve into the fitness industry full time. I have never been happier doing what I truly love and working on changing the world, one person at a time. I have been helped throughout my lifetime in various ways, so I feel I should pay it forward by using my fitness skills to help others the way I have helped myself. It is so satisfying to see clients reach goals. In that same vein, I recently was able to cross fitness competition off my own goals list. I competed and won in my first National Men’s Physique Competition, winning four 1st place medals. It was a great feeling to win my first show and see the results of my dedication and I can’t wait to come back even stronger in 2020. I want all of my clients to experience that same satisfaction with their own goals, so I push them the same way I push myself.
Has it been a smooth road?
There are most certainly ups and downs in the fitness industry and being an entrepreneur. Slower times are evident as we move closer to holidays and the sun goes down earlier- people are less motivated. It’s very important to try and build a routine with customers throughout the year so they don’t fall off track. In preparation for this, I try to offer incentives to stay on a routine and recommend people who have New Year’s goals get a start on them before the end of this year. By already committing to a routine now, in January you will be more likely to stay on track and feel better during the holidays when we tend to indulge a bit more. Also, just learning to market myself and the ins and outs of running a business, it’s all been a learning and growing experience. I am lucky to have a good network of people in similar industries to bounce ideas off of and be inspired by their success. I try to keep in mind that my worst day as a business owner is still better than any day before I made the leap to entrepreneur because I truly love what I do.
Lastly, as a trainer, you have to gain the trust of the client to be successful. Hesitation & doubt are some of the biggest hurdles to overcome when trying to acquire new clientele. Thankfully, I have built a strong foundation of clients who believe in my methods, trust my process and have results to demonstrate to new clients what they could achieve if they took that leap and hired me too. I am ready to build onto that foundation and help as many people as possible, and I believe virtual training and written programs are the next steps in that plan. I have some great ideas for how to grow my impact for clients, even if I can’t see them in person regularly. When you hire me to be your trainer, you need to trust that I have your goals in mind and am pushing you on purpose to achieve them, and I have some tools coming in 2020 that will help me do this even more effectively. I want new clients to know I don’t plan to waste their time or money. Finding the best way to demonstrate the value in my services is key to removing that hesitation and doubt, and ultimately creating a bigger impact as a business owner.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Fitness Outside The Box – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Fitness Outside The Box specializes in group and personal training, born out of my desire to share my passion with those who want that extra accountability in their health and overall wellness goals. We use The Box Approach, i.e., my training philosophy, focusing on four key areas: balance, variety, convenience, and consistency. These are the areas I thought were the greatest struggle my clients faced and I wanted my training style to specifically address them. I build my workouts around those parameters and thus, Fitness Outside The Box was born. It throws out any notion that working out can only occur in a gym or has to be a boxed into an activity, let’s switch it up.
I offer a variety of services to help meet client’s needs- in person training, virtual training, and written workouts to name a few. All of my services come with the ability to add on meal planning. Options eliminate excuses, then I can focus on helping you get the results. I also created premade workout programs based on the fitness questions I get asked the most, The 30 Day Ab Plan and a 7 Day Kickstart, with more to come. Most recently, I launched an online training program called Push 90, which includes customized workouts updated week to week based on your real-time results, over three months. I get updates and check in on all my customers, even those just purchasing a program, to be sure they are getting their money’s worth. I want everyone to succeed and I take the “personal” part of my job serious. The world is your gym and effective workouts can be done anywhere and I can coach you through that. We start with a great foundation and build up to continue making the changes you want to see in your health and overall wellness. I’m most proud of the fact that I can provide a judgment-free zone, lead a challenging yet flexible workout, and share my version of tough love. My clients know me for my no-nonsense approach to training. If you put in the work, you see results – period.
I’m also extremely proud and thankful for the opportunities that have been presented to me to be involved locally. I was invited to participate in a Career Day for an elementary school to discuss what I do and offer an alternative career path example. The kids loved it, I put them through a light workout, showed them some of the equipment I use, and challenged them to a push-up competition. I have priceless thank you notes from that day. I also was invited to lead the pre-race warm-up for the 3rd Annual Dashing Through the Square 5k in 2018, a fundraiser hosted by Rho Zeta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated & The PEARL Foundation on Marietta Square. Getting the crowd, which included several of my own clients, warmed up and hyped about a fitness event was a perfect fit for me. I love getting out in the community and sharing what I do and I am looking forward to getting more involved and finding new opportunities to share my love for fitness.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love that there’s always something going on in the city, I’ve gone to art exhibits, musical tributes, and day parties. I attended the 2018 MLS Cup for Atlanta United FC, comedy shows and various concerts. I can always easily find something of interest here and know that I’ll have a good time. I love the fact that we such a diverse mix of cultures here as well. It presents many opportunities to learn about different people and helps expands my world view. This is something I encourage others to do.
On the other hand, commuting for work can be challenging. Because of the many events happening in the city, traffic can hinder my ability to serve more clients, choose an event to attend and even just my own personal commuting. But, that’s the price you pay to live in a great city, everybody’s out enjoying it too.
Pricing:
- Push 90: – $170
- 30 Day Ab Plan: – $45
- 7 Day Kickstart: – $35
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jfitatl.com/
- Email: james@jfitatl.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jfitatl/
Image Credit:
Renaldeaux Photography
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