Functional Strength Training - Empirical Fitness

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and fitness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jon Brown, Owner, and Manager of Empirical Fitness, located in Austin, TX, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Hey! My name is Jon Brown, and I work within the realm of health and fitness. I’m always careful not to use the word “industry” as the landscape of the health and fitness world is constantly changing, growing, and evolving in ways that still surprise me to this day.

Before I go into detail about my business, I want to ask you a question… Do you watch anime, play video games, or debate about Star Wars vs. Star Trek? Well, the good news is that you’re probably a nerd. Specifically, I work with nerds, geeks, and gamers in order to help them recomp their bodies’ for cosplay. If you haven’t heard the terms “recomp” or “cosplay” before, don’t worry about it because the terms are relatively new and have only recently been gaining popularity. Recomp often refers to changing one’s appearance and aesthetics by altering the ratio of body fat and muscle. Cosplay, on the other hand, is the act of dressing in costume to portray a fictional character, especially from science fiction, fantasy, manga, or anime.

Body recomp is a process, and for some people, it can be a lengthy one, especially when attempting to cosplay anime or some other fictitious character. So as a coach, I always like to set realistic expectations about what the end result will look and feel like. What a lot of people don’t realize is being at 5% body fat or below doesn’t feel very good. Yes, aesthetically, you’ll look amazing, but your mental and emotional health normally takes a beating.

That’s why for the strategies we use, the finish line is never the cosplay; it’s the physique that the client will like that is sustainable after the cosplay. Sustainability is one of the most overlooked factors when it comes to aesthetics. Maintaining 5% body fat for an extended period of time isn’t a great idea. However, maintaining 8-10% body fat with visible abs can go a long way to boost and build someone’s confidence and completely change how they view and feel about themselves.

So, in summation, my business is helping nerds level up their bodies. Not just to succeed at cosplaying but to help them feel better in their own skin.

Tell us about yourself

Admittedly it almost feels like I stumbled into health and fitness. I grew up as an obese kid in a pretty unhealthy family. I got picked on, bullied, the whole gambit. One day I decided I’d had enough and made some drastic changes. I threw myself into athletics and saw that the harder I pushed myself, the more positive physical changes I could see in my body. For a kid who had been “fluffy” for most of his life, these changes were addicting. Never before had I seen any definition in my arms or abs. It was probably halfway through high school that I finally realized I wasn’t afraid to take off my shirt at the pool anymore.

I got the aforementioned result by pushing myself at what I felt was 80%, so I had the bright idea that if I pushed myself at 110% of capacity, the results would be exponential! Unfortunately, fitness or aesthetic results don’t work that way, and it took quite a few injuries and a lengthy bit of time for me to figure that out. It wasn’t until after my college athletic career that I realized things needed to change. Playing while injured is somewhat expected in sports and is normalized; however, repeated injuries from working out too hard should have been a red flag.

Shortly after graduating college and realizing that med school wasn’t for me, I decided to dive deeper into health and fitness. Hungry for knowledge while yearning for growth, I participated in multiple internships and accrued a hearty number of certifications. My goal was to unlock all of the health and fitness cheat codes and fully understand how to make repeatable progress without incurring the wealth of injuries that I seemed to receive whenever I chased progress.

Thankfully I found my answers for improved performance within the framework of “progressive overload” and “linear progression.” Not long afterward, I found the secret to aesthetics within the four principles of nutrition: calories, macronutrients, nutrient timing, and nutrient quality. Pro tip: these items are mentioned in their proper order of significance.

Results make people happy and happy people are fun to be around. So after I was certain that the methods I learned were tried and true, I started using them to help my clients get results. My clients became happy people, so now I get to hang around mostly fun-loving, happy people all day, and I mean, … who wouldn’t love to do that?

There are occasional situations where my clients are unhappy, the results don’t come, or things are just hard. Honestly, I get excited for those times as well because, as a coach, it means I get to flex my skill set. I get to dive deep into educational courses, read studies, and further hone my craft. I enjoy challenges as they motivate me to be better and do better for other people.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I normally don’t subscribe to the idea that any one event can be considered a crowning achievement. But if I had to choose one, I would say that it would be learning to navigate the fitness space during a COVID pandemic. Businesses in every industry struggled during this time period, and that’s understandable. In my opinion, any small business still open deserves praise and proverbial flowers, to be sure.

I opened Empirical Fitness, a brick-and-mortar gym, approximately a little over two months before the first case of Covid reached the US. I’d been a personal trainer and coach for years, but unfortunately, very few of those skills transfer to business management and ownership. So, I was learning how to be a business owner under the pressure of a pandemic from the get-go, which was a trial all by itself. Adding Covid on top, everything else felt like the equivalent of a waking nightmare. Thankfully I rarely shy away from a challenge!

I got help from various business coaches, learned how to operate my business on a virtual platform, and started to adapt to the new landscape. Nothing was instantaneous, and admittedly I’m still learning as I go. But now, the existential dread is gone, and I have systems in place that help me see progress every day.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

One of the hardest things about being a business owner is realizing that you don’t have all the answers. When I first launched my business, I had all the confidence in the world. I felt like I had all the answers, and if there was something I didn’t know, the answer would eventually come to me after a little experimenting.

After repeated bouts of trial and error that left me with more questions than answers, I realized I needed a change. Thankfully I came to this realization early enough, before it was too late to save my business. As soon as I got help, guidance, and coaching, things started to change for the better.

There is no amount of positive and wishful thinking that can alter the reality you face or the situation you find yourself in. What is often needed is knowledge, experience, and a system where the aforementioned can be applied correctly. Without a system or framework to apply knowledge and experience, you will be stuck spinning your wheels, wondering why nothing is working.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Let’s be clear, in today’s environment and climate; you’ll need far more than just three tips to be successful. But my hope is that these tips will at least point you in the right direction or to a resource that can help you.

My first tip is to get a coach or a mentor who has knowledge, experience, and a framework that applies directly to your industry. There is no need to reinvent the proverbial wheel when it comes to running and or managing your business. Attempting to do so will keep you stagnant while your competition will continue to progress, taking more and more of your market share. I believe it was Eric Thomas who famously said that “speed kills” when it comes to seeing success in the world of entrepreneurship. Inventing your own system instead of using those that are already established and available is equivalent to doing yourself and your business a disservice.

The second tip I can give you is to be wary about how you model your business. As a microgym owner, gyms much smaller than Gold’s or 24hr Fitness, I can’t use the same models and methods they do. They are corporations and have access to resources that I don’t. So as a small business, I can’t try to compete in the same game as they do; it wouldn’t be smart. Instead, I should focus on other strategies and methodologies to make my business successful.

As your business grows, you’ll need to expand your team by hiring employees or recruiting business partners. A lot of entrepreneurs and business owners will tell you to hire before you need to. I’m not saying this strategy is bad, but from my experience, I’ve come to enjoy a different viewpoint. I recommend keeping your team as small and as lean as possible for as long as you can. The reason being is that your business is your baby, and nobody will want to see it succeed more than you. It will be hard to hire anyone who will be truly invested in your vision and match your drive to see it succeed. So, take your time to find the right person for your growing team, and if need be, operate as lean as possible until then.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I wouldn’t change my career path for anything. I love what I do and am passionate about changing lives. But most people glorify the entrepreneurial journey. So let me be the first to tell you that being an entrepreneur is difficult. It will require you to constantly evolve your strategies or yourself as a person. At times you can do everything right and still fail, and that’s just a part of being an entrepreneur. There is no shame in quitting or switching career paths, life is short, and you should do what makes you happy.

iI you’re someone who seeks comfort, stability, and regularity, then entrepreneurship may not be the right career path for you. Conversely, for those of you who are ready to “go for broke,” then entrepreneurship is for you, and I happily welcome you amongst our ranks!

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://empiricalfitnessgym.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jon.brown.56027
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quadfather_77/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/77quadfather
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-brown-strength-coach/

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