Hi, my name is Ryan and I've been working as a self-employed personal trainer for 8 years. Before that I worked in a bank; I also worked for a renewable energy company on their sales team. I liked the idea of wearing a suit, shirt and tie, which is why I think I ended up in those jobs. Whilst working at the bank, following a training interview I did with a new member of staff that my manager sat in on, part of the feedback he gave me afterwards was that I was good at explaining things to people. A few week later he said it again, but followed this by saying "you're clearly more interested in the gym and fitness than financial products, why don't you do something related to that?"
A few weeks on from this I left and applied to start a personal training course. I already had a Level 2 Fitness Instructor qualification from university so this new course was an extension to what I had previously learnt. About 2 weeks following the completion of the course, after doing a few interviews with various gym managers, I decided to join what was then LA Fitness Canary Wharf.
I enjoy helping people and I enjoy training, so it made sense for me to do something along these lines. Being a PT has its challenges, but the job satisfaction is something I feel will be hard to attain in any other career. Seeing clients progress from never being inside a gym before to feeling confident, getting stronger, losing weight and doing exercises they never thought they'd be able to do, makes me feel amazing. That client is never going to forget the help I gave them.
As long as I can continue to have a significant and positive impact on people's lives, it'll be a job I do for as long as I'm able to.