April 10, 2017

Meet Ditanyon Demps of Tru Fit Bootcamp in Van Nuys

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ditanyon Demps.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m originally from Flint Michigan and developed an interest in fitness in 2000 while on a personal journey to overall good health. I lost my father to diabetes as a young boy and have been on a quest ever since to help people overcome their fears and struggles in the areas of health and fitness.

I soon discovered the incredible emotional and spiritual rewards of helping people after I helped my college roommate lose over 40lbs in three months. The overwhelming boost of self-confidence and energy I saw in him inspired me to figure out how I could do this on a grander scale. And so, the pursuit of building Tru Fit Bootcamp began.

I started as a personal trainer, lifestyle and nutrition consultant. When the economy took a dive, my clients stopped training with me 5 times a week and decreased to twice a week and in some cases, all together.

In-between our personal training sessions they started going to other local gyms and taking their circuit classes. Having a background in teaching Group X classes and aerobic classes for big cooperate gyms, I knew the pitfalls and lack of programming AKA “results” these classes provided. To save my clients from this I had to figure out a way they could stay on my programming and make it affordable.

To help cut their training cost and keep them on track I started grouping them together based on their schedules and fitness levels. The small groups grew into bigger groups and even bigger groups and finally grew into Tru Fit Bootcamp.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
This has not been a smooth road at all to say the least. Going from renting a small room at a local gym to owning my own building has added a few unpredictable problems. In addition, going from a one-man team in charge of 30 clients to 130 in 3 months almost knocked me out of business just due to overwhelm.

However, believing this is my purpose on earth helped me overcome those feeling of fear and overwhelm. I soon realized I can’t do it alone and figured out fast how to build a strong team of coaches and a dedicated administrative staff.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Tru Fit Bootcamp – what should we know?
Before starting Tru Fit Bootcamp I started attending other boot camps and group-training programs all over California to see what they did that was working and what they did that wasn’t. One thing that stood out to me was most of these programs would just give a free week away with no orientation or consultation. You could just show up and jump right in.

That’s the first sign of no program design, just a bunch of activity that amounted to no progress or growth. In addition, by not having a consultation or orientation they had no idea what your goals were, if you had an injury or what your fitness level was.

Without this information how can they attend to and individual’s specific needs? There was also no discussion or education on nutrition in many of these programs.

I develop a program that could be tailored to your individual goals and needs. My program educates you on exercise and nutrition so you can make smarter decisions outside the gym. Tru Fit Bootcamp challenges you mentally and physically. Most importantly the Tru Fit program guides and supports people in becoming the best versions of themselves.

Tru Fit Bootcamp has 3 primary elements:

Mental fitness. From the moment, you sign up for one of our trials we are assessing your mental needs. You have to be mentally committed to achieving your fitness goal, otherwise you will live a continuous start and stop cycle of dieting and exercising.
Nutrition. At day one we provide you with a meal plan, nutritional tips, and a list of approved foods. “You can’t out work a bad diet” You have to be willing to make the nutritional changes or the hard work you put in to the gym will never be seen.
The workout. This blends all three elements. Tru Fit Bootcamp workouts are meant to challenge your body and mind. In addition, if your nutrition is off you will immediately feel it in your energy output during a workout.

We have a 30 minute Tru Fit Express class which is low-impact and all about building your core, cardiovascular system and endurance. These training sessions consist mostly of body weight exercises done “Tru Fit Style”.

Tru Fit Body Fix our Level 2 training sessions involves more strength training and teaches you the basic techniques for the Weight lifting done in the level 3 Tru Fit Elite Training sessions.

The great thing about Tru Fit training sessions is all three levels can hold their own in transforming someone’s mind and body. In fact, many Boot campers have joined and lost over 50lbs in just the Tru Fit Express classes alone.

The biggest thing I would say our members rave about outside of the results we deliver is our supportive community. We welcome everyone with open arms. My staff and I do our best to make sure everyone feels comfortable and supported. Our members do an amazing job at supporting us with this by giving new comers supportive and encouraging words during training sessions when they see someone new may need it.

This is a team environment and we happily welcome new team players!

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
If it’s one thing I have learned on this journey is true success cannot be attained without help. If it wasn’t for my Amazing Team of Coaches, trainers and assistants I would not be where I am today. It takes a team of people who understand your vision, believe in you and believe in the process.

Most importantly the love and support of my AMAZING wife is the backbone of my success. There are so many long and stressful days. It can be very easy to lose focus and feel defeated. Without her support and confidence in me I would not be where I am today.

Pricing:

2-Week Trial for $39 – Includes unlimited access, Fitness evaluation, Meal plan, List of Approved Foods
4- Week Trial for $49 – Includes unlimited access, Fitness evaluation, Meal plan, List of Approved Foods

Contact Info: