Community Highlights: Meet Dr. Demetrius Moore of American Fitness Center

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Demetrius Moore.

Hi Dr. Demetrius, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I was raised in the wellness industry, as both of my parents are—and remain—elite professional bodybuilding champions. My mother earned the title of British National Champion, and my father became a European Champion. Although wellness surrounded me from birth, my personal journey to health, discipline, and self-mastery was one I had to discover on my own.

Growing up, I chose to follow the Standard American Diet. Despite understanding the guidance and warnings my parents gave me, I became deeply attached to fast food—the taste, the smell, and the convenience. That attachment gradually took its toll. I gained weight, my confidence declined, my physical abilities diminished, and my happiness faded. Over time, I became disconnected from myself to the point where I avoided mirrors and felt trapped within my own body. Eventually, I reached a turning point. I made a conscious decision to reclaim my health, my discipline, and my self-respect—and I have never looked back.

That decision changed the trajectory of my life. I went on to remain undefeated throughout my teen bodybuilding career, earned the title of 14-time Southeast Bodybuilding Champion, and ultimately became the 5th globally ranked Men’s Natural Classic Physique bodybuilder. Alongside my physical transformation, my self-love, confidence, and intellectual drive expanded exponentially. I later earned both my Doctorate and PhD, proving that true transformation extends far beyond the physical body.

My academic journey, however, was far from easy. During high school, I entered a dual enrollment program that allowed me to earn my high school diploma and a college degree in Marketing Management simultaneously. I excelled—earning grades ranging from 98 to 100 across all college courses. Despite this performance, my counselor incorrectly entered my grades as 95s, negatively impacting my GPA. When I challenged the error, it was dismissed. Appeals to school administrators went unanswered. What should have been a straightforward correction became months of resistance, silence, and obstruction.

Refusing to accept injustice, I escalated the issue through every available channel—from school leadership to district officials, legal counsel, and media outlets. When no resolution came, I made the difficult decision to temporarily withdraw my attendance until the issue was addressed. That action finally forced attention to the matter, though not without retaliation. I was ultimately expelled under circumstances that made it clear I was being treated unfairly.

Despite this setback, I refused to allow my future to be derailed. I enrolled in an online academic program, where I completed all five senior-year high school courses in just five weeks, while continuing college coursework simultaneously. During this same period, I launched my teen bodybuilding career and earned first place overall, further proving to myself that adversity would not define my limits.

Months later, after intervention by district leadership, my academic record was fully corrected. My transcript was revised to reflect my true performance, my GPA was restored to perfection, and the issue was formally resolved. Several administrators involved were removed shortly thereafter. I remained in contact with the officials who supported me during that time—individuals who believed in my potential and stood for integrity—and today, we are able to address one another as Doctors.

These experiences shaped me profoundly. I learned that true self-discovery rarely occurs during periods of comfort—it emerges through adversity. Hardship forces a choice: surrender or rise. I chose to rise. Through this journey, I developed a deep understanding of emotional health, energetic balance, and the relationship between nutrition, consciousness, and self-worth.

Low-quality, nutrient-deficient foods and unresolved emotional trauma lower an individual’s vibrational state, while whole, living foods and self-awareness elevate it. Emotional imbalance—often labeled as anxiety, depression, lack of focus, or self-sabotaging behaviors—is, at its core, a disruption of internal harmony. Everything in existence carries a frequency. When individuals operate at low vibrational states rooted in shame, guilt, or unresolved trauma, they experience stagnation in all areas of life. When alignment is restored, clarity, confidence, and purpose emerge.

I’ve learned that self-love is foundational. Without it, everything collapses—relationships, confidence, perception of self, and professional direction. With it, nothing is unattainable. Unfortunately, confident individuals are often resisted—not because confidence is wrong, but because it reflects what others have yet to cultivate within themselves. I experienced this firsthand, yet I refused to diminish myself to make others comfortable.

Today, I stand as a double doctorate holder, professional bodybuilder, and CEO of a life transformation enterprise at 22 years old. I earned professional bodybuilding status in both Men’s Classic Physique and Men’s Bodybuilding at age 18, and became one of the youngest competitors to rank top five globally at the World Bodybuilding Championships. I do not settle beneath my standard because I know my worth.

Every obstacle I faced contributed to who I am today. I am grateful for the resistance—it forged resilience, clarity, and leadership. My mission is to help others align their body, mind, and spirit, awaken their inner power, and recognize their true value so they too can become unstoppable.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
American Fitness Center was founded nearly 16 years ago in Fayetteville, Georgia. Since its inception, it has evolved into a premier life transformation center serving the greater Metro Atlanta area. We specialize in 24-hour fitness access, award-winning personal training, bodybuilding coaching and competition preparation, athletic performance training, and sports strength and conditioning. Our expertise also extends to comprehensive rehabilitation and adaptive fitness programs for special populations, including amputees, bariatric clients, cancer survivors, diabetics, individuals with hypertension, sleep apnea, heart disease, Myasthenia Gravis (MG), spinal and disc dysfunctions, sciatic nerve disorders, paraplegics, quadriplegics, stroke survivors, and many others.

American Fitness Center has been honored as Georgia’s Best Health Club and Personal Training Studio every year since 2021—a testament to the life-changing results our clients consistently achieve. Leading these transformations is our Head Trainer, Ricky Moore, whose elite-level expertise sets our standard of excellence. Ricky Moore is a Professional Natural Multi-Time Bodybuilding Champion and the father of Dr. Demetrius Moore, founder and CEO of American Fitness Center. Ricky and Dr. Moore became the first father-son bodybuilding duo to ever compete at the World Championships. Ricky trained 2x Olympic Gold Medalist and 4x World Champion Christian Taylor for the 2012 Rio Olympic Games in the men’s triple jump. He is also the exclusive celebrity fitness trainer for high-profile figures such as Mason Betha (MA$E)—Billboard-chart-topping hip-hop icon and host of It Is What It Is—Jay R. Hart, acclaimed set design producer for films including Black Panther and Triple Frontier, and R&B star Donnell Jones, among others. In 2025, MA$E publicly credited Ricky Moore for his remarkable 70-pound weight loss transformation. Ricky has also appeared on Iyanla: Fix My Life, where he provided a fitness training segment during the show’s original airing.

The American Fitness Center Natural Bodybuilding Team remains undefeated in the Southeast United States and achieved a 5th-place global ranking at the 2024 World Bodybuilding Championships in Germany. This dominance reflects our unwavering commitment to discipline, integrity, and excellence.

While we serve elite athletes and competitors, American Fitness Center is open to all demographics. Our mission is to uplift and strengthen our communities by delivering a luxurious, holistic approach to health, fitness, and athletic recovery. Unlike profit-driven big-box gyms focused on scale rather than service, we prioritize individualized care and real results. Many of our members come to us after months—or even years—of stagnation at large commercial gyms, where they experienced little progress or ineffective training. We refuse to accept that standard. Our goal is simple: to ensure every client succeeds based on their unique objectives—whether improving appearance, increasing confidence, or achieving a complete body transformation.

Through our ancillary brands—AFC VitalForge™, AFC MacroForge™ Meal Prep, The Health Bar, and The Recovery Realm—we offer a fully integrated wellness ecosystem designed to balance the body, mind, and spirit while helping individuals reconnect with their higher potential.

The Recovery Realm is a comprehensive wellness and recovery center offering holistic beauty and aesthetics, natural health and wellness services, advanced sports recovery, regenerative medicine for cellular and sexual wellness, and regenerative sports medicine—all in one location. Our services include Whole Body Red and Near-Infrared Light Therapy, Stem Cell Wave Therapy™, HyperOx™ Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Dry Float sensory deprivation therapy, and Italian BIOSculpt™ for precision-based body contouring, cellulite reduction, and skin tightening. Together, these cutting-edge modalities provide everything needed to support optimal health and longevity.

The Health Bar serves as a central wellness hub, offering organic AFC VitalForge™ juice blends, fresh AFC VitalForge™ acai bowls, and healthy, performance-driven AFC MacroForge™ meal prep options.

By uniting these innovative concepts under one roof, American Fitness Center is redefining total body wellness—elevating health, fitness, and recovery into a higher dimension of complete mind-body-spirit transformation.

Our success stories speak volumes. We have helped an amputee client walk again after 17 years of immobility, guided a client through a 200-pound weight loss while resolving multiple health conditions, and assisted a quadriplegic client in regaining motor function within just three weeks. These transformations are the true measure of our impact and purpose.

What does success mean to you?
Success, to me, is the ability to develop the skills, discipline, and self-awareness required to overcome obstacles that once would have caused you to falter or react incorrectly. It’s having the self-control, resilience, and intentionality to manage challenges effectively and rise above whatever stands in your path. Success doesn’t exist in only one form—it shows up in both small victories and major milestones. As long as you achieve your goal or fulfill your purpose in a given moment, that, to me, is true success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://americanfitnesscenter.net
• Other: https://drdemetriusmoore.com

Image Credits
American Fitness Center