We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashley Mejia. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashley below.

Ashley, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with something countless entrepreneurs have had to figure out on the fly – how have you dealt with the rise of remote work?

In 2020, Tumble Method had pivot to figure out a way to continue coaching and helping kids on a daily basis. In late March 2020, I started a live training program where athletes all over the country, and eventually the world, would join. There were daily classes ranging from tumbling and conditioning, all the way to jumps and stunts. The development of these live classes are what fueled the start to the newly formed online training courses of Tumble Method Academy. Although it seems challenging to train virtually on what is primarily a hands-on coaching sport, I have learned that there are drills and skills that can be completed safely at home under the correct guidance. Tumble Method Academy has several courses that will be launching over the next year that are for athletes, coaches, parents, and small business owners. What makes us unique is that all training uses minimal equipment and no gym is needed to complete the courses.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Growing up, I was a competitive gymnast, all-star cheerleader, and NCAA pole vaulter. I have been coaching since 2009, and I have coached thousands of athletes globally in-person and virtually. As Tumble Method has grown, it is no longer necessary to coach in a gym setting. All in-person coaching takes place at a client’s house, or virtually in my home studio. Tumble Method provides training for beginners to collegiate athletes and beyond. While most clients are gymnasts, cheerleaders, and dancers, I also provide mobility and strength training for baseball players, basketball players, and several other types of athletes.

In 2023, a new division of the company opened – Tumble Method Academy. Using hundreds of concepts, our courses break down different aspects of the art of tumbling. We currently have one course that is live and enrolling, five in development, and several more in the works. Our courses are intended for athletes, coaches, and parents to gain a better understanding of the development of correct tumbling technique to help prevent injuries, help athletes succeed to the best of their ability, and to provide supplemental training outside of their regular practice schedule.

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

Building your reputation is like a short and steady race. It doesn’t happen overnight and you must be consistent and show up for your clients. The most important thing is to practice your craft and never stop learning. As an athlete and coach, I have been in the industry for over 30 years and I am still learning to this day. There are always new techniques, new skills, new drills, new ideas… social media is amazing because you can learn from people all over the world! On the other hand, you can also share your resources and coaching techniques with other people. I believe in collaborating with others and lifting each other up as opposed to keeping secrets, and not sharing your knowledge with others. This is the key to helping you build your reputation in your industry — be open to learning and open to sharing.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

After college, I started coaching on the side because I missed being an athlete. Very soon after, I realized how much I loved helping young athletes. My degree is in Biomedical Sciences, and so using my science-based knowledge to help kids in tumbling has been very fulfilling. I worked my way up through coaching different levels, working with both gymnasts and cheerleaders. What is unique about tumbling is that techniques and skills are used across so many disciplines.

I’ve worked with many programs all over the nation, and I love being able to work one on one with athletes. What started off as coaching at one person’s house, quickly turned into going to ten clients’ houses per week. When the demand was there, I decided I would make this my full-time career. After starting my business, I had success immediately. Success to me is having that daily fulfillment and knowing you’re making a difference in an athlete’s life. My business has now scaled up to where it is today because I have figured out the key between training in a gym and at home. Athletes that train outside of their regular practice times find more success. I love that I can help bridge that gap.

My first key milestone was having a solid waitlist. There is not enough time to train everyone that reaches out, but I do my best to create a schedule to fit as many people in. I split time between both virtual and in-person sessions. My next milestone was being ranked the #1 cheer and tumbling coach on the online platform CoachUp. That is how I know my online training works. My latest milestone is launching Tumble Method Academy, which has been a ton of work, but I have a great team that has helped create amazing resources. Be sure to check out our website to see what courses are available and launching in the future. We hope to see you there!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.tumblemethod.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/tumblemethod and instagram.com/tumblingwithashley
• Facebook: facebook.com/tumblemethod
• Other: CoachUp Virtual Lessons: http://www.coachup.com/join/tumblemethod