Behind The Rise Of The New Age ‘Super-Trainer’

With almost 20 years experience under his belt, James Duigan, founder of Bodyism and the globally successful Clean & Lean diet plan has come a long way since he arrived in Britain, aged 20, with no qualifications. It took years of studying, training private clients and launching his own gym before his talents were truly recognised. Of course, these were the days before social media began propelling personal trainers into the international spotlight.

“I’ve been really lucky to have had some amazing people around me that have helped to build a business whilst I’ve focused on creating a wonderful philosophy and lifestyle. It’s incredibly difficult to build a brand and just as difficult to build a company around that brand. Bodyism has taken a lot of hard work and self-belief, from a lot of different special people, to make it happen. So, if I’m honest, whatever status I’ve achieved has less to do with me and more to do with the people who have helped along the way,” explains Duigan.

Today it’s a different story. The wellness industry is now a multi-billion dollar market and the media has wised up. According to the 2015 State of the UK Fitness Industry Report, the health and fitness industry has more clubs, more members and a greater market value than ever before. 1 in every 8 people in the UK are gym members, which translates to an all-time penetration rate high of 13.7% and all this healthy living is vigorously documented.

Some of the most well-known fitness trainers amass over a million followers on Instagram. This is perpetuated by new reality shows like Bravo’s ‘Work Out New York’, which follows trainers working at some of the capital’s hottest studios and training popular celebrities. As a result, many trainers are now viewed by consumers as celebrities in their own right. And in an era where the number of ‘likes’ an individual receives after posting a gym selfie with a popular trainer, garners more admiration than actual results, it can be difficult to decipher where the hype ends and the hard work begins.

Millions of Instagram followers and celebrity clients might prove to be a hit with the media, who elevate said individuals to ‘super-trainer’ status, but how do labels like these sit with the figures who have acquired them?

Duigan, who has lived through the metamorphosis, isn’t sold on the idea. “Unfortunately the emphasis currently seems to be less on the trainers and more on the celebrities that they train,” he says. “At Bodyism, yes, we have high profile clients, but we’ve always tried to maintain focus on our philosophy and our message. That’s certainly what attracts people to work for us and having the best people will attract more clients, celebrity or otherwise. Being branded a ‘celebrity trainer’ is the least cool thing in the world and I’d like to think we have more strings to our bow,” he adds.

Duigan’s aversion to being labelled in this way is felt by a number of his peers. Russell Bateman, founder of the hugely successful Skinny Bitch Collective – an elite workout with supermodel and A-lister clientele – might be happy to train them, but he’s just as turned off as Duigan by the ‘celebrity trainer’ tag. “I must say that when I see someone calling themselves a ‘celebrity trainer’ I’m sick in my own mouth,” he muses.

“The media is so obsessed with celebrity culture and wants to know what they are doing and who they are doing it with, so if two girls with millions of fans train with me it’s suddenly a newsworthy story, but I would never say I’m a ‘super trainer’ or ‘celebrity trainer’. I just stay true to my vision which is about making girls feel and look awesome, allowing them to think and move with clarity and making them realise they shouldn’t underestimate themselves.”

Both Duigan and Bateman have a strong physical presence. They train their clients privately and the results speak for themselves, but for other personal trainers building a brand in the era of social media, it’s getting harder to convince critics that there’s any real substance.

In fact, Instagram popularity and media-buzz are now such common markers of success, that the thrill of securing a coveted a place with popular trainers at establishments like Barry’s Bootcamp is now akin to being first in line for the latest iPhone.

Anya Lahiri, instructor at Barry’s Bootcamp in London (which is notoriously hard to get into) is one of the studio’s most in-demand trainers. She admits that some of the instructors at Barry’s have clients who go to great lengths to train with them exclusively, but she feels this is down to the relationships that have been forged rather than the instructor’s perceived popularity.

“I feel like the trainers who have a bigger following all seem to go the extra mile and really invest in their clients’ training programs and lives, but each individual’s opinion of who works for them is different. Clients search out different trainers for different reasons, which is evident in an environment like Barry’s where all the trainers are completely unique,” she says.

“Yes, a platform like Barry’s obviously helps as you have exposure and some well-known clients, but ultimately it is the passion you put in that matters. Clients come to me for a tough workout, but my classes are also a lot of fun. I give my all and I think they feel and appreciate that.”

It’s difficult to argue with Lahiri’s work-ethic, and client testimonials attest to her abilities. But it doesn’t stop some customers from indulging in fan-like behaviour.“I had an American client who was on holiday in Paris and she came to London for the day just to take my class, not once but twice,” she admits. “But those moments just make me realise [that] they are friends and supporters not just customers.”

Fans of Bateman’s technique are a little less reserved, sending naked pictures and bombarding the trainer with emails when in pursuit of a place in one of his limited classes. “Oh and I get offered lots of money,” he reveals. “There’s incredible hype around what I do and I guess it’s all a bit mysterious. It’s human instinct to want what we can’t have, but the class is next level,” he adds.

Careful not to feed into the hype, Bateman won’t just take on anyone, instead prefering to protect his brand and its credibility, which is a common worry for any reputable trainer in today’s murky market where labels such as ‘super trainer’ can have little do with expertise and more to do with popularity.

“I don’t want to call anyone out, but there are guys and girls with 200 followers on Instagram with more vision and knowledge than those with thousands. It’s a real minefield. Yes, celebrity endorsement does help, but the reason people come to me is because SBC is a bloody good workout and gets results,” Bateman says.

Equally as cautious of the new trend, James Duigan admits that although exposure helps, some of the best trainers and health professionals he’s encountered are completely unheard of because of the difficulty in doing good work and building a brand at the same time. For him, there’s really only one thing that matters: “If there’s something I’m proud of it’s being able to change people’s lives and really help them, rather than being trendy or cool,” he says.