Today we’d like to introduce you to Carson Simonton.
Hi Carson, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My parents love to joke about my career path because when I was little, I thought it was gross to sweat. If you understood how active and athletic my parents are, you would understand this phase did not go over well in my family 😉 Once we moved to Gainesville, Florida they encouraged me to try sports again as a way to meet new friends. I’m not sure if I loved soccer or if I just loved outrunning the boys, but I became obsessed with being competitive and using my natural athleticism to win.
Late in high school I suffered a slide tackling injury that led me needing to go to Physical Therapy. At PT, I learned so much more about mobility, weight lifting, and looking at fitness and the way the body functions beyond the field or track and knew that the health world was where I wanted to be after graduation; I just was not sure “what” my “what” would be.
Like all college kids, I bounced around a little with my major and finally settled into the College of Public Health at the University of Georgia. They have an incredible health promotion and behavior program in which each semester you are required to work an internship in a different field of public health:, community, worksite, nonprofit, for profit, and clinical setting. Being exposed to so many different healthy specialties and getting to study food and nutrition abroad the summer of 2011 in Ghana, Africa left me extremely excited and also overwhelmed about my impending graduation.
The same feeling of knowing what I loved, but not “what” my “what” was still lingered as it did from four years prior. Ultimately growing up with a dad who was a robotics engineer and created multiple of his own business, I had always felt inspired to become an entrepreneur. I wanted to combine my creativity with business and my love for health and fitness, it just took me a while to get there.
In between the time of finishing school and opening Inspire Fitness & Wellness Studio, I worked in the corporate setting as a Health Coach and personal trainer, I taught and managed at a local small business studio for 8+ years that gave me so much of the knowledge and experience I have today, and I went back to school to become an Integrative Nutrition Coach.
Inspire was only possible because of the team, clients, and community I have supporting me, and for that I am forever grateful.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Simply put, the fitness industry is tough.
I have worked in boutique fitness for nine years and the growth, competition, and expectations are wildly different than a decade ago. There is a new crossfit, yoga, spin, barre, or HIIT studio opening weekly – add the surge of social media plus a global pandemic and you’re in for a real business treat. As with any small business sector, you have to be ready to pivot, adapt, and listen to what your clients want quickly and efficiently.
I have been very blessed and very lucky to meet some incredible men and women who have supported my idea of a creating a space that is not just about the workout or the aesthetics, but the relationships they make and how they feel when they come AND when they leave the studio. I know that if I did not have these relationships opening a new business would have felt impossible.
As saturated as the fitness market is, I think it is so much more important as wellness leaders to cultivate a willingness to work together and support each other to help inspire our community to feel and thus be the best they can be.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Inspire Fitness & Wellness Studio?
One of my favorite founding moments of the studio is that Inspire was actually named by its clients. I knew I wanted to create a space where its occupants felt encouraged and energized by the instructors, by their progress, by the other people next to them in class everyday, and the surrounding community, but I couldn’t figure out the “right” fit for a name. Thankfully, through a little plea for help, they did it for me. The resounding word about how they felt was “inspired” and I have never looked back; everyday they inspire me to be a better leader and teacher.
At Inspire, we currently offer Vinyasa Power Yoga, Signature Barre, Barre Strength, Cardio Barre, Cardio Dance, and HABITS (an interval strength and conditioning class). Our goal is to continue to build the options of class types for our clients so they can receive a holistic realm of fitness while sticking to the integrity of our brand. In addition to the fitness component, we offer (all free) a monthly book club, in studio challenges, out of studio social events and in 2022, we will be adding nutrition counseling and other wellness seminars about fascia, mobility, skincare, and self-care.
It is also very important for me to note that Inspire’s logo is a triangle that represents the three core pillars of the studio: Fitness. Wellness. Community. Not one is more important than the other, and all three hold us accountable for driving our mission: “Through fitness, we create a community that inspires wellness”. Ultimately, I want Inspire to be a space that women come to feel empowered, grow stronger, and meet lifelong friends. You will come for the workouts but stay for so much more.
Also, none of this would be possible without Kelli Gloekler and Susan McHugh and I am forever grateful for them.
Pricing:
- First Class $10
- First Month Unlimited $99
- 20 Class Pack New Years Special – $240
Contact Info:
- Email: carson@inspireeastcobb.com
- Website: www.inspireeastcobb.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/inspireeastcobb/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/InspireEastCobbStudio/
