We were lucky to catch up with Aly DiRoma recently and have shared our conversation below.

Aly, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

During March of 2020, the studio I was working at full-time with 40+ clients and classes a week had shut down for covid safety and I found myself at home scared of what would come of my job, questioning my career and wondering what my future would look like. Just before I was out of work my husband had lost his job during a large corporate lay off, you could say we were stressed and truly didn’t know what was next for us. The funny thing is the year before covid I had already started to think about what I would do for my own business if I had one and going online for my work, but I put it to the side because looking at my schedule I had zero time to commit to growing my own business while showing up for my overly full schedule.

But since I was out of work and I had a lot of time on my hands I started brainstorming what I would do for my own business, teaching Pilates and movement online seemed like the logical next step, so after some meetings with a friend of mine we came up with the name Modern Body.

I resonated with this name because Modern described the scientific research and evidence-based exercises I use in my classes, it reflected my past background as a Modern dancer which are elements I apply in my work, and to represent living in our current body in this moment in our modern life.

Although all of this was thought of in 2020, my first offer wasn’t launched until June of 2021, which was a 30 day Intro to Pilates course I created in a week at my home along with a second option of making 1-1 private training services available online. My husband played a major role in getting things off the ground setting up the back end, doing all tech, and marketing. We knew we were on the right track when we started seeing sales right away the very next day and hearing from numerous customers and 1-1 clients how good they were feeling in their body.

I started posting more regularly on social media and experimenting with different types of content, but never grew my business into more than my first course because I started getting back into the swing of things at the studio once business reopened, however I never forgot about the potential and opportunity available to me with an online business.

At the end of 2022 I made the decision to begin the task of creating classes for an online membership site. The main problem I saw that I wanted to solve was that no one was teaching people to use Pilates and Movement to rebalance their body from inside out, support their posture, alleviate joint discomfort, improve their relationship to their body, and see movement as an essential part of life rather than a chore. And all this could be done while still getting stronger, regulating the nervous system, and as complimentary training to anything they wanted to do in their life.

I knew what I was doing was different because I wasn’t advertising my services for aesthetics as Pilates was booming online and on social media, instead I wanted to focus on all the benefits of Pilates and movement that you couldn’t see from the outside.

In 2023 I experimented with an 8 week small group training course called “Find Your Foundation” then worked up to opening my membership site, Modern Body on May 1st. Getting ready for this launch tested me in ways I didn’t know because I was still working my full-time in person instruction at a studio while I was creating this. I had finally come to the point where I no longer wanted to be working for someone else, but for myself and creating something new and unique for the masses.

This work is absolutely a labor of love and has pushed me far outside of my comfort zone, but every time I’m feeling worn down I read a comment left from a member on a class about how much it’s helped them or how good they’re feeling in their body and it all becomes worth it again. Hearing how this work and these classes change peoples lives is something that will always keep me going. Service is at the center of why I do what I do and knowing how classes are impacting those who take them is all I can ever ask for.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Background/How I got into the industry: I’ve been a mover my entire life, I call myself a movement enthusiast. I started taking dance classes when I was 3 and never stopped. I was one of those kids who wanted to do every sport at school and do every craft, art, or homemaking hobby under the sun. I didn’t know it at the time, but looking back it clear that I was completely fascinated by the human body and using the body to create, movement or things.

I decided to pursue a dance degree in college and once I graduated I began to teach at several studios, I performed with a company, and choreographed for various project. It was while I was juggling multiple jobs, that I started to notice how poorly my body felt, because although I was in shape from the outside, I was hurting on the inside. I also started to see this in the dancer I was working with too. I was then reminded of the Pilates and conditioning work I did in college and began to research Pilates certification courses.

I signed up for a local Mat Pilates course so I could begin to learn more, help my own body, but also the dancers I was working with. Little did I know this first course would change my life forever, I never looked at the human body the same. I wasn’t even 3 days into my first course when I realized this work wasn’t just good for dancers, but all people could benefit because Pilates was something anyone could do at any point of their life no matter the state their physical body was in. From the moment onward I didn’t stop taking training courses, learning anatomy, understanding postural rebalancing, deep diving into special conditions and joint issues that can arise. I treated my Pilates training as if I was going to graduate school.

I found a wonderful studio that I taught at for 10 years under the guidance of a wonderful instructor and mentor who I truly believe helped me get to where I am today. I had the opportunity to work with all types of bodies, become someone who is qualified to teach others to be instructors, and deepen my understanding of how the body works, moves, and functions.

My work differs from that of most Pilates instructors who focus on being “toned”. Instead I bring the focus on learning about your body while you move, understanding how your body functions, knowing what to do to best support your body today, and tuning into what your body needs currently whether it’s a joint issue, posture, or strength. Once that’s all in place everything else is a positive by-product of the work we do like becoming more capable in your body, stronger, and more mobile. I focus on quality over quantity when as I teach and connecting back to our true nature of how we were meant to move.

Currently I run an online movement membership site called “Modern Body” where members have unlimited access to all classes, programs, special live classes/events, as well a community of people committed to moving their body. I also offer 1-1 private training for those looking to deep dive into taking care of their body, learning about their body, and creating a practice of movement longevity.

It lights me up when

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I started posting back in 2020 when the world was shut down due to covid. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing and I was extremely out of my comfort zone, but I knew if I wanted to grow a business I had to get over my fears and market myself. I cringe looking back as some of my first posts today. I kept posting on and off for a couple of years, but in 2022 decided to be more regular about it and try new types of content.

It wasn’t until I began getting very specific with my content and applying my teach skills to my content creation skills that I really started to see some traction on social media. I will never forget when the simplest video I ever made, which I thought was common knowledge went viral. I had been starting to dabble in voiceovers with my content and that’s where I really found my audience.

I think when we become experts in our field we often forget that what seems like common knowledge to us is new to our audience. Doing voiceovers has also shown me that can play to my strengths as an instructor and those skills can transfer over into organic social media marketing, which is how I grew my audience first on TikTok then on Instagram.

My best performing content is typically when I choose a specific area of the body whether it’s a joint, a common problem most people face and explain how to improve it through movement, or when I post about a movement philosophy I have that isn’t main stream. Sharing what makes me a unique instructor is what has resonated with my audience.

I also always take the time to respond to every comment I receive or message in my inbox. Every single person is important to me and I want them to know I care enough to take the the time to help them to the best of my abilities or thank them for their support because I truly wouldn’t be where I am today without those people.

The biggest piece of advice I would give to someone who wants to grow their social media is to keep experimenting with different types of content creation and to lean into your strengths. What makes you stand out from others, maybe it’s using your voice in a voiceover, talking directly to the camera, making jokes, creating memes, whatever it is you will find it as long as you keep going and don’t take yourself too seriously, no body is going to remember every post you make.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Being specific, demonstrating my knowledge about the body, and my philosophy on movement.

I create content and classes that make movement accessible. We tend to overly complicate our lives and specifically health. So many of use believe we have to have special care, we need to go over the top to fix our problems, and sometimes that came true, however often times the answers are simple and available to us.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://modernbody.io/
• Instagram: @alydiroma
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVEy2rFLU-qvjYSvlfG776Q
• Other: TikTok: @aly_diroma

Image Credits
Photo 1: John Barkules Photo 2: Mike Ossola