Business & Tech
Kimberly Linton, 'D.C.'s Toughest Trainer'
Local personal trainer quit corporate America to pursue a career in fitness.
In these weeks leading up to the New Year, Springfield personal trainer Kimberly Linton is going to have a lot on her plate, but she calls herself “D.C.’s toughest trainer,” so she’s ready for it.
“You’ve got Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year,” she told Patch recently. “People want to just slide through them to the New Year and ignore all good discipline and order.”
Linton, who lives in the Rose Hill area, owns Fitness 4 Life Consulting, a personal training business she established in 2007, after quitting her job at a corporate firm in Washington, D.C.
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“I worked for a corporation from 2005 to 2007, and in that two year period it didn’t take me long to figure out it wasn’t the place for me,” Linton said. “I just took a chance, knowing that if there were a lot of other busy people in the D.C. area who needed to manage their healthy lifestyle, I would be better serving on the outside looking in.”
Within a year, the income from her personal training business had surpassed the income from her corporate job, she said.
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A Booming Nationwide Trend
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the personal training industry is in the midst of a 30 percent growth period (2008-2018). And since the economic downturn, the availability of personal training jobs has been reason enough for people to get certified, said Chuck King, a marketing manager for the National Academy of Sports Medicine, in an email.
Nor Linton isn’t peculiar in abandoning a prior career path to focus on personal fitness.
I have a history of diabetes and high blood pressure issues in my family, so it’s more than just, ‘I want to look good,'
“NASM has seen quite a few professionals leave their careers to become certified personal trainers,” King said in his email. “Whether it was due to layoffs, a hard time finding a job in their field or just wanting to do something that they were truly passionate about, the growth rate has been impressive.”
A Plan for Herself and Her Business
Linton has been a member of the fitness community for more than 17 years, and for her, staying fit is about more than maintaining her appearance. In 1993, she lost 50 pounds and has managed to stay healthy and fit ever since.
“I have a history of diabetes and high blood pressure issues in my family, so it’s more than just, ‘I want to look good,’” she said. “It’s a health issue for me to stay fit.”
Linton said she found knowing she was the master of her own success was the most rewarding part of owning her own business.
"There is no one controlling the decisions that are going to benefit you or not," she said. "I like the fact that I am controlling when I take a vacation, when I expand, when I hire people. I can be creative."
Linton is a mother of two and spent time in the United States Army. The military instilled a mindset in Linton that has really helped her business to excel, she said.
She also has openings for a few new clients at the moment, she said, but she was sure to clarify that she is very selective with her client base.
"Generally, on my book, I keep about 10 to 15 people," she said. "I don’t take every client. I base [my] business model on results."
The Fitness 4 Life Consulting private studio is located in Springfield, on Bath Street. Fitness 4 life also offers online and phone coaching, and customized meal plans.
For more information, visit the Fitness 4 Life web site or call 703-965-0818.
You can find more articles from this ongoing series, “Dispatches: The Changing American Dream” from across the country at The Huffington Post.
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