We recently connected with Adam Turrey and have shared our conversation below.
Adam, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of the most important things small businesses can do, in our view, is to serve underserved communities that are ignored by giant corporations who often are just creating mass-market, one-size-fits-all solutions. Talk to us about how you serve an underserved community.
In the sport of Triathlon, the level of inequality that exists amongst participants is incredibly high. For the past few decades, participation amongst minorities and low-income individuals remains largely unchanged. Statistics from USA Triathlon show that 88% of participants are Caucasian/White, 4% Latino, 3% Asian and less than 1% African American.
The reasoning behind this disparity is well-documented. For one, Triathlon participation remains a significant amount of resources. Bikes, running shoes, gym access, race entry fees and many other materials are too much to afford for individuals living in communities of color. Another reason for low participation amongst individuals in communities of color is related to poor infrastructure and lack of access to adequate training locales. These communities tend to include broken asphalt which makes bike riding & running dangerous, lack of trees which doesn’t offer shade, high traffic increasing the chance of vehicle-pedestrian accidents, lack of swimming pools and poor street lighting making training at night unsafe.
During my schooling at San Jose State where I received my Masters Degree in Urban Planning, I studied these issues at length. I then worked on initiatives to improve water, litter and air conditions in low-income communities. It was during this work that I finally saw first-hand what I had learned in college about the lagging conditions that exist in our communities of color. I made it a quest to help people within these communities. I didn’t think it was fair that communities of color had to suffer the most and I was disturbed that these individuals could not have access to the same resources as residents of more affluent communities. Some how I knew I wanted to do more impactful work within these communities but I wasn’t quite sure how yet.
Fast forward to 2015, my wife and I welcomed our baby daughter to this world. I was also in one of the lowest points in my life. I was struggling to find consistent employment and my physical and mental health had deteriorated. Alcohol and cigarettes became my coping mechanisms and I was not the father or husband I wanted to be.
During this time, Ironman Santa Rosa was a major race in town and only a few blocks from our home. One morning my family walked to see the commotion and to my amazement, I saw overweight and older athletes completing amazing feats. What I thought was a sport reserved for only individuals who were in olympic peak shape was clearly a sport that most anyone could accomplish if they were dedicated enough. I rubbed my eyes, which were swollen and puffy from being hungover and caught a thought that maybe, quite maybe, I could get my act together and be one of these amazing, smiling and happy finishers at one of these triathlon races.
Over the next half year I relentlessly researched triathlon training and diligently hit the gym. The training was challenging but I needed it. Within a few months, I began losing weight and my energy began to climb. I lost the desire to consume alcohol and my smoking habit was way behind me. I must have had a more glowing aura because I was able to land a steady job and my happiness for life grew exponentially.
One-year later I was at the start line of my very first race. The event was Ironman Boulder 70.3. I had a solid performance and was living what felt like a dream. I was sharing the race course with smiling people from all over the world and we supported each other the entire way. Although the experience was remarkable, I couldn’t help but notice the lack of minorities on the race course. Upon my arrival from Colorado, I had the immediate urge to somehow help more people of color find their way to triathlon so hopefully they could experience the same fortunes that the sport bestowed upon me. Finally, my passion of giving back to communities of color while expanding my passion for triathlon connected.
I came home and raced thru the USA Triathlon Level 1 program so I could become a coach. I then became a personal trainer and rummaged for a name of my coaching team. After lots of deliberation with my wife, I chose the name “Lucid Motion”. I chose the name based off the image that I wanted to coach people to become the best versions of themselves and ultimately shine brightly in all aspects of their lives.
Today I coach a team of 20 athletes in running, cycling and triathlon. I have a program called the “Pay It Forward Program” where we sponsor athletes from communities of color by giving them scholarships for coaching and pay for their various equipment and race entry fees.
This is my perfect vision for giving back.
Adam, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I grew up in an middle upper class family who was the benefactor of parents finding good employment in Silicon Valley. I had many family members who grew up less fortunate and this always bothered me. I had the notion of wanting to create a more equitable world from an early start.
In college I got my Masters Degree in Urban Studies because I was interested in learning how to make our cities work for everyone. I found employment in low-income communities as a teacher and environmental services employee and I met many great individuals who lived in communities of color.
Always into fitness, I decided to give triathlon a try after I hit a spell of bad fitness and mental health when my daughter was born in 2015. What happened to be was transformational and I became healthy, happy and full of life. I decided I wanted to share triathlon with individuals who live in communities of color because they’re presence was often not found at triathlon events. In my mind, everyone deserved equal opportunity to participate in this great sport and I was determined to work tirelessly until more people of color became triathletes.
I founded Lucid Motion with the idea of giving back. Our athletes donate 25% of their monthly coaching fees to sponsor athletes from low-income communities who otherwise couldn’t afford to participate in triathlon.
Over the last 3 years as a coach, I have helped my athletes accomplish great feats! One athlete podiumed at a 70.3 distance race, another athlete who couldn’t hold a run for 10-seconds finished her first half-marathon and another athlete finished a half and full-distance Ironman.
My athletes and interested potential clients should know that my coaching program is more than about fitness–it’s about giving back. While my athletes receive workouts that get them in the best shapes of their lives, they also get to personally connect with the athlete from a low-income community they sponsor.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I have had two business coaches, both were pivotal in getting my business where it is today. Each had their own specific contribution. One business coach helped me develop my visual (website, colors, fonts) and social media content. Another coach helped me further my messaging but encouraging me to lean into my target audience and scale my business so my services were more in line with industry norms.
Beyond lots of the administrative tasks, I believe the main lesson I’ve learned about growing my business on social media is to create content that speaks to your ideal audience. For me, my audiences are charitable athletes who want to give back and create opportunity for others and my other audience is low-income athletes who want to try triathlon for their first time. If you effectively put your energy towards your target audience, you will eventually receive the clients that bring you joy.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
In the first year and a half of my business, I had very little idea on how I should structure my business. I was practically working for free because my rates were so low and I wasn’t sure what to include in my coaching offerings. I was making semi-regular trips to train 1-individual at a time while driving 1-hour back home. I was making content that I felt no one was interacting with. All while this was going on, I was trying to manage my own fitness, raise a 5-year old, make payments on a mortgage and work a whole other full-time job.
Either thru resilience or luck, a few very pivotal individuals noticed my efforts with my business. One is a magazine called “RunTriBike”. They noticed my efforts in trying to bring equity in endurance sports and decided to make me a “Community Leader”. They promoted my business heavily and put me on interviews and articles in their magazine and from their my following ballooned. Another was at a seminar for endurance coaches where I happened to cross-paths with a coach who noticed me on Instagram. She recruited me to an endurance coaching program and mentored me. My business tripled in size since working with her and I now have a healthy and thriving business.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.LucidMotionFitness.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucid_motion_fitness
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LucidMotionFitness/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamturrey
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwoGJe05PmLUSu-fvQq-CUQ
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/lucid-motion-santa-rosa
- Other: https://www.trainingpeaks.com/coach/lucidmotion-adam-turrey#about
https://member.usatriathlon.org/coach/2236
Image Credits
Michael Bargo