Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashton Roberts.
Ashton, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Where I am today is based on four F’s; Faith, Family, Fitness, & Fun. My upbringing has shaped who I am today.
March 2011, at the age of 21, I had my first child. I had my son two months before graduating from college. I graduated college from Azusa Pacific University, first in my family to graduate college, at the age of 21 with a BS in Applied Exercise Science.
Right after college, like many, I struggled for two years trying to find a job in the health and fitness industry. In that time, I worked as a pro shop attendant at a golf course, a warehouse package handler for a shipping company, and a sales associate at a sporting goods store.
After consistently applying for two years, at 23, I landed a job at Catz Pasadena where I became a sports performance coach. Catz Pasadena is a state of the art physical therapy and sports performance complex that is at the forefront of major health and wellness trends and proven training programs.
This was big for me in my professional career but at first a huge struggle for me in my personal life. At the time, I was living with my girlfriend (now wife) and 2-year-old son in San Pedro… San Pedro was on the opposite end of the 110 freeway from Pasadena and a long daily commute.
At the age of 24, I married the love of my life and became the General Manager of Catz Pasadena. Both my personal and professional career sky-rocketed… but came with a lot of challenges and expectations.
Managing time between building a business and spending time with my family became a minor struggle that had a major impact on my emotional well-being. It was at this time, my faith was tested. A lot of great things were happening in my life at one time, but I emotionally felt unfit as a father, as a husband, as a performance coach, and as a friend. Through prayer and reflection, I found inner peace.
At the age of 26, I bought my first home and had my second child… “It’s a girl!” Life couldn’t get any better! WELL… it could. My professional career took a turn. I was demoted from my position as General Manager at Catz Pasadena and ultimately parted ways with the company.
In that time, I started my independent training company, AR Performance Training. I had many clients willing to follow me and train with me wherever I went, but I needed something fresh and new. It was time for me to start focusing on building my business.
At the age of 27, I landed a really cool position as a wellness and performance coach at a residential building in Beverly Hills. The position was unique in that it was the first wellness and performance program being implemented in one of the real estate firms’ buildings.
Because the program was the first of its kind, there were many struggles and challenges that came along the way. However, I realized in my time there that this was a stepping stone in my professional career. The experience with starting a new program for another company has been invaluable in launching my own performance training business.
I now have my own performance training business, AR Performance Training.
Has it been a smooth road?
No. it has not been a smooth road. Many bumps, bruises, obstacles and struggles along the way. However, all of my challenges and obstacles turned into successes in my personal life and in my business.
As I mentioned in my story, my struggles and challenges were finding balance between family and my professional career as a performance coach.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
AR Performance Training provides online fitness and performance training programs for individuals and groups. I customize and build training programs to help individuals and groups take the guesswork out of training.
My company started based on the needs of my clientele. Many of my clients travel or play sports in various places around the world. For weeks at a time, we would lose track of our training progress and become inconsistent in our training routine. I decided to add an online component to my training by creating customized plans for individuals that trained with me in person.
Now I provide access to people across the world to sign up for my programs. I am most proud of the time and drive I consistently put in to grow my online business. It’s tough! I train small groups, teams, and individuals throughout the day, and sometimes I want to throw in the towel after a long day. The hours put in customizing online training plans, shooting videos, editing content, and providing goal-oriented programs is worth it when individuals are able to achieve their fitness and training goals.
My versatility as a performance coach sets me apart from others. One of my mentors in the fitness industry told me as I entered my training career to become a generalist before a specialist. I followed that advice and learned about various practices, various modalities and various training methods in our industry… and continue to do so. This has given me a toolbox equipped with providing result oriented fitness and performance programs.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Our city is a great place to start a performance training business. I would highly recommend individuals start here. People in LA and surrounding cities are all about fitness and having something that fits their needs and their schedule.
Pricing:
- Movement Programs – $30
- Specialty Programs- $30
- Membership Programs- $20-$30/month
- Online Personal Training- $100/month
Contact Info:
- Website: www.arperformancetraining.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @a.fit.golfer
Image Credit:
CATZ Pasadena
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