“That was really kind of my wake-up call and a reason to say life is short, and I should really follow what I know I'm meant to be doing,” he said.
Hough opened the Richardson franchised location in 2016 after two years of researching how to run a gym, he said.
The boot camp offers more than just fitness training, Hough said. It also specializes in nutrition and mindset coaching.
“We offer a coaching program for your entire life that just happens to include workouts,” he said. “That's the way that we look at it because we know that just signing up for a gym membership, just working out, is not enough to get folks to where they really want to go.”
When the coronavirus pandemic hit, Hough coordinated with owners of other Fit Body Boot Camp locations to quickly pivot. Within two days of closing the gym, instructors began hosting online workouts. While most clients enjoyed the digital format, Hough said the biggest challenge was keeping them motivated.
“When there was just so much going on, not everybody was focused on their health right away, even though at those times you really want to be able to control what you can control,” he said. “We know that getting in a workout every day will get you that win for the day, will get you feeling good [and will] get your self confidence up.”
The gym lost about a third of its 300 clients because of the pandemic, Hough said.
In-person workouts resumed on Memorial Day at limited capacity and with new sanitization protocols. Clients shared workout equipment pre-coronavirus, but now the gym has transitioned to keeping individuals in a designated area so they can safely exercise in group settings, Hough said. The space used to allow for 32 clients per workout but can now only accommodate up to 12 people at a time, he said.
“Everyone has their own space, their own equipment, and we're still giving them an awesome workout,” Hough said.
For Hough, the best part of coaching is watching clients transform their lives.
“It's not just about the number on the scale,” he said. “Fitness bleeds into every part of your life ... My favorite part is seeing the transformation in other people. It's the most beautiful thing in the world.”
