Fitness means a lot of different things for different people. For some, it is eating healthy and doing home workouts. For others, it is going to the gym every day and sweating out the calories. For Danielle Gray, it means doing gymnastics to stay in shape and keep healthy. If you’re looking for something unique to incorporate into your fitness routine, this article will introduce you to a whole new world of fitness.
Danielle Gray, The Brains Behind Train Like A Gymnast
Danielle Gray is a 29-year-old certified personal trainer, fitness model, entrepreneur, and founder of Train Like a Gymnast from Los Angeles, CA. she started her gymnast routines back in 2014 while working at an online marketing desk job. Her passion has pushed her to grow a fitness company that she dedicates all her time to and work with clients across the country.
What Is Train Like a Gymnast?
TLAG is a program that helps people, especially women, to exercise through gymnast routines and breaks away from the norm of gym fitness. The program started as a 3-month e-book in 2014 and has since evolved into an online and in-person membership program in 2018. Gray came up with the program after several people approached her to train them on training their bodies with gymnastics. Since 2018, the program has grown to in-person one-day workshops, 5-day destination retreats, and an app.
Gray states that the program’s mission is to keep people active, particularly women (though she does help men as well) for their entire lives and show them that they are capable of staying in shape as a forever athletes by using their own incredible minds and bodies to do things they never thought were possible all while enjoying the process.
How Did It Begin
Gray’s drive to coach people in gymnastic routines for fitness started when several adults asked her to coach them in her gym routines such as pole fitness, calisthenics, weight training, and gymnastics. However, she wanted to get certified before working with people professionally. She enrolled for the NASM certified personal trainer exam and passed. She started working with a few private clients on weekends, and she fell in love with it.
The concept for TLAG was born in 2016 when Gray realized that she was enjoying working with her clients so much that she forgot to pick her paychecks at the gym. She was enjoying her job so much that she forgot she was being paid. At this point, Gray realized that gymnast coaching was her passion. When her supervisor at her desk job wanted to promote Gray to senior accountant, she told him that her interests were elsewhere. She quit her job and shifted her full attention to TLAG.
So, Did She Get Fully Certified?
Gray is a fully-fledged professional in gymnast training and fitness. Here are some of the professional achievements she has earned in the years of her profession:
- BA in Public Relations & minor in Consumer Behavior from the University of Southern California,
Certifications:
- NASM Certified Personal Trainer
- Precision Nutrition L1 Certified
- Former T3+ Equinox Trainer
- Kettlebell L1 & 2 Certified
- Pre & Post-Natal Certified
- Functional Bodyweight Specialist
- Women’s Fitness Specialist
- Youth Exercise Specialist
Gray’s Creative Process
Gray says that her work process is not centered on a specific routine. Instead, she relies on her intuition and the energy around her to figure out how and when to do things. Sometimes, she is verbose and can write paragraphs of information, while on other days, she can barely construct a meaningful sentence. Sometimes she is talkative, and these days are the best for podcasts, interviews, and storytelling sessions. Gray takes the unpopular opinion of starting with the simple tasks as she gets the energy to work on the more complex projects. She says that because of her gymnastics background, she works best under pressure.
Demystifying TLAG
According to Gray, the most significant misconception people have towards her program is that they have to flip and swing like the gymnasts they see on TV. However, she says that everyone has a starting point, and she encourages her clients only to go as far as their bodies allow. She focuses on the mental aspect of why the client wants to train like a gymnast, their goals, and finally covers the logistics through small steps to make sustainable change. Gray says that athle4tes of all; levels can train like gymnasts with the right modifications and progressions. After all, if a 3-year-old can do it, why not an adult?
Any Challenges?
Gray says that her business was hard hit by the Covid 19 pandemic. Towards the end of 2019, her membership program was struggling because people wanted in-person events. Gray made an executive decision to terminate the online membership and make 2020 the year for in-person events. She was even able to hold the first in-person event in February 2002. However, when the pandemic hit, these were stalled. Gary says that she wishes she knew better, but it has also been a learning process.
If you’re interested in what Danielle Gray has to offer, you can link up with her on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and website.
