Photo Courtesy of Coach Me Fit~West Bloomfield
Catherine Munaco, owner of Coach Me Fit in West Bloomfield, recently sat down to share information about her personal training business. Opened one ago, her busy studio has been successful due to the results and personal attention clients receive.
Please tell us about Coach Me Fit, and explain your personal mission. CoachMeFit is a private, personal fitness training studio designed for people who want a more personal workout experience away from the crowds of big gyms. We eliminate membership fees and match clients directly with personal trainers. Clients see improvements in strength, weight loss, balance, and functional ability. Our main goal is to inspire lifestyle changes and show clients how fitness and health can easily be an everyday thing for them. We ultimately want our clients to be living the life they want to be living and feeling as fantastic as they can.
What is your background and what lead you to this business? I have a Degree in Movement Science from the University of Michigan. Movement Science studies the consequences of human movement from biological, biomechanical, and motor control perspective. Many Movement Science majors go on to graduate schools to become doctors or physical therapists. While these are noble and necessary professions, I wanted to be more proactive in preventing illness and injury. Personal trainers help clients thwart diseases related to a sedentary lifestyle, such as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension. Most people would list health as a priority, yet our society makes it difficult to act on that priority. Being a personal trainer allows me to help clients make exercise a regular part of their lifestyles.
How does holistic health apply to your business? At CoachMeFit, we believe exercise can be just as effective, if not more effective, as any medicine on the market. Exercise enhances mood, increases energy, and can even help alleviate pain related to a sedentary lifestyle. It seems counterintuitive, but many clients who complain of muscle ache and fatigue actually feel better in the days after a workout—if done properly. We work with our clients to combine exercise with healthy eating so that they can feel their best and get the most out of their bodies. Exercise is one of the healthiest, easiest, and cheapest ways to achieve emotional and physical well being. Our goal is to show clients that they can do it, and to hold them accountable to their goals amidst a busy lifestyle.
What makes your business unique and sets you apart from your competition? Without a doubt, the level of education and training in our personal trainers. All of our trainers are certified by one of three National Certification Bodies—all of which require an extensive test for certification. Many also have degrees in exercise related fields. It allows us to work with any type of limitation safely and effectively. Some of our current clients include clients with Muscular Sclerosis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, heart conditions, hypertension, and knee or back pain. I tell clients that you can safely exercise with any condition, if you have enough education to make the necessary modifications. Many of these clients have been told they can’t work out safely and have given up on exercise when it may be the key to improving their limitation. It is truly rewarding to help someone change their life through exercise.
Has the recession impacted your business, and if so, how have you adapted? When people have to make cuts financially, exercise related spending is usually the first to go, so I won’t say we haven’t been affected by the recession. However, in the past year we’ve seen a steady increase in business, and I attribute this to the fact that our clients are seeing such good results per dollar spent. When you sign up with a personal trainer, you show up, as opposed to a gym membership with no accountability that goes unused. Down the road, an active lifestyle saves money on health care related costs. Clients see the results and health benefits from training with us as an investment in themselves. For this reason, clients recommend us to their families and friends, and we receive many referrals, even in a down economy.
What is your favorite success story you have about a client? Currently, I have a client who was diagnosed with Muscular Sclerosis over twenty years ago. She’s worked with many neurologists and physical therapists who have all told her that her movement issues were a result from her MS. Consequently, she was living a largely sedentary lifestyle and was extremely dependent on her husband for just about everything. After consulting with her physician, I told her I thought many of her movement issues were a lack of strength due to her sedentary lifestyle due to MS instead of solely from incurable neuromuscular issues related to MS. I train her three times a week and we focus heavily on exercises that will help her complete tasks related to daily living, such as squats and balance. I am adamant that she complete any exercise with proper form, and in cases where she doesn’t yet have the strength to do it perfectly, we modify it. What I do not allow is cheating on form so she can complete the exercise, which is what other trainers in the past have allowed her to do. Because of this, she’s seeing results like never before. She’s standing straighter, walking better, has more energy, and is able to complete tasks that were nearly impossible before (as small as putting cookies into the oven and as large as getting up a flight of stairs without her husband's help). She’s living her life again and doing things socially and physically that she long ago gave up on. It’s the ultimate reward as a trainer.
I also have another client who came to me eight months ago as what we sometimes call “a walking heart attack risk”. He was over 300 pounds, was on over ten medications for his high blood pressure and diabetes, and he a litany of aches and pains related to his weight. He told me his medications often left him exhausted or shaky. We started extremely slow, but since starting with us, he’s lost 80 pounds and has completely regained his life back. He’s off every medication except for one and is so inspired by his new lifestyle that he’s thinking about becoming a personal trainer himself after he retires from the business world. He did the work, but we were able to counsel him on diet and exercise so that he could be as effective as possible given the busy nature of his career.
What are looking forward to in the future for your business? Continually helping others change their life through health and fitness. I realize people are skeptical of the benefits of an active lifestyle until they make the choice to commit to it. I get to see the results every day—it’s very rewarding. I sometimes wish I could show people the person they will become be before they start—and stick with—an exercise program because it would be incredibly motivating. We’ll continue our tradition of excellent customer service and quality training and build our business around helping clients do things they thought were impossible.
For more info: Visit www.CoachMeFit.com/WB
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