Meet Dylan Knight | Fitness Trainer and Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dylan Knight and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dylan, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I worked for years in commercial gyms all over Los Angeles, and being a personal trainer in this town is extremely challenging. When I was working at Equinox there were 40 other trainers that I had to compete with on a daily basis. Which made it vey difficult at that time to grow my business. I think looking back working in a big gym just wasn’t something I wanted to do the rest of my life because it was not sustainable for the type of life that I had wanted longterm. Eventually the pandemic hit, everything shut down, and I had been out of work for over a 2 months. I figured it was time to try and pursue building my own business for a change. It started out just going to parks and people’s houses to train clients. Little by little I started to getting referrals, and at the time I was also posting adds on a neighborhood app called “Next-door”. Things then began to take off slowly and I had saved up enough money, that I decided to open a private gym in my local neighborhood.
I then started having all my clients come to me instead of having to go to them, which allowed me to take on much more clients in a single day because I could cut down on having to drive to people all day. Everyone really started loving my gym and it began to turn into a neighborhood favorite. Before you know it I was working 40-50 plus hours a week, which as a result allowed my to be more financially independent than ever before. Now, people come to me, and I love my clients. At this point looking back I am so grateful for the journey I have taken to create my own business and all the things I have learned along the way.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
What sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about? I genuinely have a passion for helping people better themselves, it’s something that has always been important to me. I feel I am extremely knowledgeable when it comes to designing a personal training program for my clients as well as delivering proper results for them. This is because I have taken the time through extensive education and a lot of professional experience to learn what works and what doesn’t. I am proud to think my gym has become a very special place for my clients, it is their safe spot and is an environment tailored for their success.

How did you get to where you are today business-wise?
Reading books on business development and entrepreneurship have helped me stay motivated and focused; inspiring me to create my own personal training business. I also think learning how to market myself and advertise my brand properly on the right platforms have helped me with my success. Also delivering exceptional customer service is vital in my line of work. You want to always deliver top of line service to your clients or customers; the kind where people trust you enough to refer their family and friends to you.

Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges:
It was never easy, I have been a personal trainer for 12 years and it wasn’t until mid-pandemic that my career took off. It is very challenging to be successful in this industry. I think it wasn’t until I decided to work for myself that my life truly changed. Now I have my dream job and I get to train people I really enjoy working with.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?
Do what you love because the success and finances will follow. We are blessed to live in an era with social media, youtube, and digital platforms, because anyone can reach millions of people and grow their business or showcase their natural talents. Now more than ever people can make a descent living doing what they love, no matter what that is because of the internet. So don’t give up on what you’re the most passionate about.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
That I chose the name “Fitness From Within Personal Training” because I wanted my business to have more of a deeper meaning behind helping people, than just fitness alone. I wanted to get people to achieve a more balanced and fulfilled life, through things like better sleep patterns, lowered stress levels, and helping them make better decisions for a higher quality of living. This is a big reason I created my business; which was to make peoples lives better on many levels. Fitness is just one piece of the puzzle , rather fitness is just the gateway into a better a life.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Day #1: I would take them somewhere called “Mo’s House Of Axe ” which is place where you can go to do axe-throwing located in Reseda. So much fun to do , and you’ll get a solid workout while your there.

Day #2:
I would take them to the “Century City Mall” to check out this new virtual reality center called “Dreamscape”. Each ride is about 10-20 minutes long, you put on a VR suit and go in a room; which allows you to immerse fully into another world. It’s very fun to do but a but trippy of an experience at the same time. It is something everyone should try once, when you take your headset off it’s a little wild being back in reality after such a strange experience.

Day #3
I would take them to an escape room in downtown LA, then follow that up with a nice lunch at a local delicious vegan restaurant called “Sage”. All of “Sage’s” ingredients are from their family owned farm in the valley so their food is not only delicious but fresh and ethical. Eating there is a unique experience!

Day #4
Would be surf lessons in Malibu with an instructor followed by lunch at the world famous “Gladstone’s”, restaurant.

Day#5
I would take them for a cryotherapy deepfreeze session in Santa Monica at “Cryozone” to help them with their recovery from all the activities and excursions of their trip here to LA.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My partner Sasha who has been here with me the entire time before and throughout this journey of mine of starting my own business. She has taught me so much when it comes to success, hard work, and being a good businessman, and most importantly pushing me to do what I love and create my business.

My dear clients Kian Karimi, Omid Mehdizadeh, Michael Hoffman who stuck with me through the pandemic supporting and helping my business stay afloat; as well as mentoring me to into becoming a more successful businessman.

I am grateful for some books I have read … “4-Hour Workweek” by “Tim Ferris”, “Think and Grow Rich” by “Napoleon Hill”, “Rich Dad Poor Dad” by “Robert Kiyosaki” which are all incredible books I have read. These books have completely changed my entire outlook on life and financial freedom.

Website: Yourfitnessfromwithin.com

Instagram: fitnessfromwithinla

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fitnessfromwithin/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fitnessfromwithinla

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/fitness-from-within-personal-training-los-angeles

Other: Next-door app: fitness from within personal training

Image Credits
Photography by Austin Pick Duncan IG: https://www.instagram.com/austinpickduncan/