Training with the

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DECEMBER JANUARY 2012

Training with the TRAINING WITH THE

STARS

James Duigan is a personal trainer to stars such as Elle McPherson. He reveals how he started training the A-list and how PTs can follow his path.

I

knew very early on that I wanted to be involved with helping people; I have always been interested in health, nutrition and sport so it was a natural progression to become a personal trainer. I looked at the industry and tried to find as many mentors and role models as I could, and I learnt from and listened to whoever would talk to me. I identified successful trainers and tried to see what it was that made them successful. The key to training celebrities is to be working where celebrities train; your chances of meeting a high profile client are much better in Kensington than in Croydon. I met Elle McPherson 15 years ago at a gym in Kensington and we've worked together ever since. She has been a constant support to me and my career. My advice for PTs that want to train celebrities is that it is vital to have good intentions – people don't like being used and it is obvious when someone is just looking for someone to raise their profile. First and foremost, you must want to help them, to do the job you are being paid for. Focus on building relationships with people and doing what you can to help them rather than looking for ways to leverage your connection with someone. Integrity is a quality I value very highly in the trainers that work for me, they get to meet an incredible array of celebrities at Bodyism and we pride ourselves on discretion. It’s important to see the person, not the celebrity.

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Training celebrities has helped me enormously and I’ve been very lucky to have the support of some incredible people over the years, such as Elle and model FITPRO NETWORK | DECEMBER JANUARY 2012

and Transformers 3 star Rosie HuntingtonWhiteley. Both wrote forewords for two of my books and have raised my profile tremendously. They have become good friends over the years and I am eternally grateful to both of them. I think the most important thing you can do is believe in what your message is. So, think about what you want to say to the world, what you really believe and are passionate about and push your message out to as many people as possible.

Training celebrities has helped me enormously and I’ve been very lucky to have the support of some incredible people over the years, such as Elle and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley The most common thing I notice with trainers at gyms is 'the talk' – they're all going to do something, yet they never actually do it. Rather than talking about opening up your own studio or raising your profile, get a business plan together and actually do it! Stop talking and start doing. If it doesn't happen, you only have yourself to blame. Once I took on this way of thinking I became far more successful in getting things done rather than relying on someone else to do it for me.

My top four pieces of advice for anyone looking to train celebrities are: 1. Stay humble – don't ever get too big for your boots and keep learning whenever, wherever and from whomever you can. 2. Train in areas and gyms where celebrities are likely to train. 3. Be grateful – all sorts of people will help you, so don't be afraid to say thank you. People love hearing it and you should learn to love saying it. 4. Take action and don't look for excuses. Get things done, no matter what, just get it done. Prepare your business plan now. Every successful person I know never gave up. That’s the difference. fn

JAMES DUIGAN The creator of Bodyism, James has been transforming bodies and changing lives around the world for 10 years. His clients include Elle McPherson and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. www.bodyism.com