SINGAPORE — When James Long agreed to appear on fitness website Aktiv Intel on his TikTok page, he didn’t expect the 36-second clip to go viral.
“I met someone from Aktiv Intel last November when I was running in East Coast Park, and he asked if he could do a TikTok on me at the end of March,” the 41-year-old said.
Mr. Long is a part time fitness trainer who tours Singapore in his van, taking his gym clients for their morning workout.
“Over 30 people have already inquired about my services. I usually get clients by word of mouth, so I’ve never had so many inquiries,” he said TODAY on Friday (April 4).
The TikTok video, posted on April 3, had 16,800 views when TODAY spoke to him. He has accumulated more than 372,000 views as of Sunday (April 10).
The black van, which has been equipped with fitness equipment such as dumbbells and a weight bench, has enough space for one person to exercise under Mr. Long’s supervision.
If it’s not raining, Mr. Long sets up the equipment outside the van, allowing his clients to exercise outside.
“I drive up to about half of my clients’ homes in estates or condos,” he said.
In addition to the residential locations, customers also use the mobile gym in an open-air parking lot in East Coast Park and an open-air parking lot near Marina Bay Sands.
Describing himself as an outdoorsy and active person, Mr. Long quit his job in the advertising industry to become a full-time fitness trainer in 2019.
“I wanted to get out of the corporate scene, focus on my passions and do what I love… I also wanted to spend more time with my kids and my wife,” he said. His children are turning 11 and nine this year.
As a gym trainer and having taught several classes, Mr. Long said there are days when people need an extra push to get to the gym.
“I thought, why not bring fitness into people’s homes? So there’s no excuse, you’re home with a gym and a trainer,” he said.
PEOPLE CAN TRAIN RAIN OR SHINE
He started out transporting equipment in his car, driving to his clients’ homes. But the limited space in his car meant that he could only carry a limited amount of equipment.
So, in August 2020, Mr. Long purchased a typical delivery van, modified it with hooks and gym equipment, and began driving to his clients’ homes.
And as his services began to improve, he decided a year later to invest in a larger van, which allows one person to work out in it.
“If we train in the park, we may have to cancel if the weather is bad because the van is too small. With the (larger van), people can exercise and train rain or shine,” he said.
For Ms. Emilie Annweiler, 39, a service leader at ING Innovation Labs, Mr. Long’s mobile gym is the perfect motivation for her husband to wake up for a morning workout.
Having met Mr. Long when he was a trainer at the F45 gym, Ms. Annweiler said he gave her the confidence to start lifting heavier weights.
“In May 2021, there was another round of restrictions that closed gyms. James offered his services as a personal trainer and I accepted,” he said.
Mr. Long stops by her house three times a week, where she works out under his supervision from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., and her husband does his exercises from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.
“(My husband) needed the motivation to stay active, and James coming was the perfect motivation,” she said.
While Long has been inundated with inquiries since the TikTok video went viral, he said it’s unlikely he’ll open any new spaces since he’s a full-time real estate agent and only spends weekday mornings at the gym. .
“I love my clients, most of them I see them at least twice a week, sometimes up to four times a week. So I want to focus on them and then see if the people who asked fit into my schedule,” he said.
“Of course I hope to expand the (traveling gym) business, but it’s hard to find like-minded trainers who are willing to go to clients, without great gym equipment and air conditioning, and sometimes without a bathroom nearby.
“I just want to help people.”
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