Today we’d like to introduce you to Rhonda Mapp.
Hi Rhonda, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’m a firm believer that you can achieve anything you put your mind to. God has been my CEO of both of my businesses and they both have been successful. I put him first in everything.
I started working out in 2019, I wasn’t too serious about it. I was super skinny and I know I wanted to gain some muscle mass. During this time I was a self-employed fashion designer since 2016, I had a tall women’s clothing brand, Rhonda Lynette. In 2020, I began to suffer from panic and anxiety attacks. I lost weight, I didn’t have an appetite, I was weak, and I was in and out of the ER, Cardiologist, and Neurologist offices.
Fitness was more than just getting into shape physically it helped me mentally. At the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, I started to slowly get back into the gym and my panic attacks went away. Working out was my escape from the world, I felt good and empowered after every workout. I gained my weight back and put on even more weight, muscle weight to be exact. I was consistent each week. I began to post my workouts on my Instagram, I attracted other women in fitness and women who wanted to start working out.They would comment and message me wanting tips and advice on workouts and nutrition. So, I began to get interested in becoming a personal trainer. My passion for fashion died down some and I felt like my purpose for that assignment was completed.
I got certified as a Certified Personal Trainer, Glute Specialist, Nutritionist, and Strength and Conditioning (in progress).
Once I got certified in 2021, I started online personal training. It was a success but I wanted that in-person experience and to actually connect with my clients face to face. My main goal was to continue to work for myself and not a gym or anyone else. I use social media for my marketing. My Instagram @Rhonnie_Fit continues to attract women not just locally but all over the world. Social media has helped me gain more clientele, I began to search around Raleigh for small local gyms that allowed personal trainers to train their clients at their location.
I found a great gym, and each month my clientele increased. It increased to the point that now I offer more than just one on one personal training, I also offer semi-private personal training where I train up to 4 clients at once. This has become very popular because it’s cheaper than one on one training but my clients are also still receiving their own personalized training program.
Today, I currently train my clients in Northeast Raleigh. My goal is to continue to help women strive and achieve their fitness and nutrition goals and to own and operate my own gym one day.
Having faith, trusting God and staying in my lane has gotten me this far.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I feel like every entrepreneur has had challenges and obstacles, it’s not meant to be easy.
I struggled a lot with doubting myself. I questioned my pricing, my training style, on whether my clients would lose their desired weight. I had to stop doubting myself and be confident in myself and everything else followed.
It’s rewarding when my clients randomly tell me that I’m doing a great job and that they love how I teach and motivate them. It’s rewarding seeing their smiles and the excitement when they hit their weight loss or muscle gain goals.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I’m a Certified Personal Trainer, Glute Specialist (yes, I specialize in growing booties lol), Nutritionist, and Strength & Conditioning (In progress) who helps women love and appreciate their bodies through lifting weights and glute training.
I focus on strength training because it’s the best way to burn fat, build muscle and it makes you stronger. I utilize compound exercises while also adding accessory exercises. I make sure when it’s time for my clients to transitions on their own that they know every aspect of fitness, nutrition, correct form, how to progressive overload correctly etc.
I currently offer one on one, semi-private, in-home, and online personal training. Semi-private and one on one personal training are my most popular. Semi-private is where I train up to 4 people at once but everyone still has their own individualized workout program that caters to their goals.
Other areas of training that I offer are glute training, weight loss, cardiovascular training, muscular development & toning, and performance improvement for competitive athletes.
One thing that my clients love is the fact that every 4-6 weeks we change phases in their training program. This helps them from getting bored with workouts and it keeps their bodies from hitting a plateau. I’m not the type of trainer to just give my clients random exercises to do. The workouts and phases cater to their specific goals. In my semi private sessions we make it even more fun on some days by doing “dumbbell only” workouts, flip a coin workouts etc.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Some of the things that matters most to me is having a business that doesn’t consume my life. I’m a wife and a mom. I want to show my daughters and people that you can have a successful business that doesn’t take away family time. I control the hours and days that I want to work. It’s a blessing!Also showing women of all ages and sizes that you don’t need cosmetic surgery, a diet fad, or starving yourself to lose weight or feel good about yourself. Exercising can literally allow us to live a longer healthier life.
I love that I’m able to train and teach women that fitness is the answer. Fitness provides a healthier lifestyle, helps you lose weight in a healthy way, relieves stress, helps with anxiety and depression, helps you get off the medications and you legitimately feel good inside and out.
Contact Info:
- Email: rhonda@rhonniefit.com
- Website: https://www.rhonniefit.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rhonnie_fit
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rhonniefit
Image Credits
Remy Media Photograpy
