We were lucky to catch up with Nicole Farr recently and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

The timing couldn’t be more perfect for this question. I did just have this thought once or twice over the past month.
I absolutely love being a business owner. I love providing a service that I am so passionate about, on my terms. And while I am so passionate about helping women improve their health, fitness, and total wellbeing, there’s more to running a business. There’s a lot of responsibility. There are a lot of tasks that I’m not good at yet fall under my responsibility like accounting, marketing, and legalities. It can be overwhelming, especially as business grows. I coach a lot of women who are facing burnout in their professional lives, yet I often forget to use the methods I coach with myself and I’ve recently found myself feeling very burnt out.
I am so grateful that I’ve been the busiest I have ever been with clients and classes that I teach. But these growing pains have led to exhaustion and the thought does come up on occasion, “I wouldn’t have to do all of this on my own if I was working for someone else. I could just show up, do my job, and go home at the end of the day.”
But that thought leaves me feeling empty. At this point, I’ve put 10 years of heart and hard work in building NickiFit A to Z, am I ready to throw it away? No. Press on. Find out what’s on the other side.

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.

NickiFit A to Z began over 14 years ago when I personally recognized the mental health benefits of movement and exercise. In the midst of fear, worry, and uncertainty that came with a divorce, exercise helped me get up every day when depression and anxiety tried to keep me down. The joy I found in hiking and a new found love of running helped me discover other forms of movement to find balance like strength training and yoga. Moving more inspired me to make healthier food choices and adopt a healthier lifestyle. Within a few months I felt so strong, empowered, and a new level of confidence, I knew then I had to share this knowledge with more women, so NickiFit A to Z was born.
My coaching methods may look a little different than other personal trainers and fitness coaches out there. I deeply believe in meeting each individual where they’re at in their health and wellness practices and educating them in mindful movement. I am certified by the American Council on Exercise as a personal trainer and health coach, and am a yoga instructor with over 200 hours training in yoga and breathwork. I take traditional fitness training methods and incorporate the mind-body-breath connection that yoga teaches to make fitness more approachable and sustainable. Being more aware, more mindful, when performing any format of exercise reduces pain, reduces instances of injury, and can help the client better relieve stress and anxiety.
I strive to create an inclusive, non-judgmental, compassionate space for clients to achieve their health and wellness goals.
It’s not easy growing a fitness business where the real transformation happens on the inside for my clients (the outer transformation is a happy side effect). In a world of social media with feeds filled with before and after photos and influencers pushing tricks for quick fat burning results, it can be tough to stand out. But for any one that wants to make a true transformation, to feel just as strong and resilient on the inside as they do on the outside, mindful movement, like I offer in my coaching, is what will get them there and keep them there.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

There may be a few others out there who can relate, starting a business as a single women can be overwhelming and intimidating especially when it comes to finances. When I got the idea to start NickiFit A to Z, I was recently divorced, had very limited savings, and was living pay check to pay check with my corporate job in the insurance industry. My only option at that time was to start as a side hustle and schedule clients within the little free time I had. My business started slowly but even with just a couple of clients I was finding success, the clients loved the workouts I designed for them and appreciated the way I coached them through each workout.

The corporate job I held was later downsized and I was forced to go part time but that worked to my benefit, I was able to take on a few more personal training clients and teach a couple of fitness classes while still having a small salaried income to help pay the bills.

I’ll admit, it has taken many years for me to feel confident enough in my own abilities to run a business. I treated NickiFit A to Z as a side hustle for the first 9 years. In 2022, I knew I wanted to grow NickiFit A to Z beyond the side hustle but I didn’t how, so I hired a business coach. After a lot of mindset work and growing increasingly stressed and burnt out from working for other’s, I decided to take the leap in 2023 and go all in for NickiFit A to Z. I am still navigating business twists and turns today, feeling the growing pains of a business but leaving the corporate world has opened up my schedule and my mind to immerse myself in work that I truly love, helping other’s thrive in their health and wellbeing.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

The number one reason I choose a career in personal training is for that personal touch with clients, the relationship we build, the friendship that blooms. I’ll never let that go even as I grow NickiFit A to Z into the online space. When there is a deep and confident trust between client and coach, that’s where the transformation happens. And not just for the client, I have learned so much from the people that I work with, face to face communication is invaluable!

NickiFit A to Z’s mission has always been to make health and fitness more accessible to women, so as fitness has moved online, it was clear that offering online programs to women around the world was a no brainer for my practice. My online clients get a virtual check in every week where we meet 1 on 1 over Zoom and talk through the past weeks challenges and the next weeks goals and opportunities. They can also schedule virtual personal training sessions to go deeper into their fitness training. I will always maintain open and clear communication channels with my clients, this is how I coach them better and where they find the motivation they need to succeed in reaching their health and wellness goals.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nickifitaz.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickifit_a2z
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.farr.773
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolemfarr/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@NickiFitA2Z