COVID ruined a lot of things for a lot of people, including Lisa Russell’s small Eagle Grove business,, SLAY. But when mask mandates and group gathering limitations forced her to close the doors to her fitness studio in July, it also forced her to open her mind to a new way of doing business. The Zoom app had taken the nation by storm to keep family and friends connected, so Russell figured why not use it to start a new chapter in her personal training career. People liked this option so much, her business actually grew. While Russell had a lot of people drive a distance to attend her in-person classes, none came as far as the one she picked up when classes went virtual when she gained a new client from France…but let’s start at the beginning.
“Corporate America was crushing my soul,” admitted Russell about what got her into being a fitness trainer in the first place. “I wasn’t happy…and I didn’t like myself. I had a great job that paid me great money with great insurance…but I wasn’t happy.”
That’s when she decided to start making a change. In 2011 she became a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. She also got a specialty certificate in Pilates and began teaching fitness classes on the side, at night. She began offering classes at the Wright Medical Wellness Center in Eagle Grove, but quickly outgrew the space, so moved her classes to the Goldfield Elementary gym. The place was packed for every class. Her motivational, open and honest, no-judgement zone was a place women wanted to be.
In 2018, Russell decided to take a leap of faith and left corporate America and opened Slay fitness studio in Eagle Grove. She started off with group fitness classes, then added yoga, Pilotes, full body workouts, a “boot camp,” and even started a “Slay Your Mind” session which was a safe place for women to come and talk about things on their mind. Her focus has been, and always will be, on total body wellness from head to toe.
In 2019, Russell got yet another certification – “Rock Steady Boxing.” This is a special program that has been proven to have significant impacts on people with Parkinson’s disease. People came from as far away as Ames to work with her…and they loved her just as much as her regular weekly work-out clients.
Slay was booming, thriving, and growing…then COVID hit. Classes got smaller in size as people stayed home for fear of catching the virus. Then came the governor’s proclamation that gyms “couldn’t” be open. Russell was forced to close her doors from March through July.
“It got hard to pay the rent,” said Russell. “I hated to go because I loved my studio…and the safe place it offered for women……I held on for as long as I could.”
Russell closed Slay for good in July, which brings us back to how one door closing opened new and unexpected opportunities she might not have ever pursued had this not all taken place. While she misses seeing “her tribe” of people face-to-face, she is grateful to still be able to help them through group Zoom classes which she started late in the fall of 2020. She was thrilled to have nearly a dozen people join her for each class.
She also added Zoom classes for her Rock Steady Boxing clients.
“They love it, and they really enjoy the fellowship,” she noted.
With those successes, she decided to try something new yet again – personal training via Zoom.
“It really took off,” said Russell excitedly, now averaging about 14 clients of varying ages.
They are women who don’t like the group aspect, but want to exercise as well as enjoy the convenience of working out in their own homes – no driving, and working out at any hour of the day that suits their needs rather than trying to fit a specific time into their schedule.. This option is perfect for them, and Russell might not have ever added Zoom one-on-one had it not been for the pandemic.
“I really didn’t expect for it to be so successful,” she admitted.
The way it works is she designs a work out based specifically on her clients needs. She does it with them the first time, then sends them a link so they can access the recording and do it two more times in the week on their own schedule.
Heather Stein is one of those women who took Russell up on her one-on-one Zoom training offers.
“I was skeptical at first. I have not worked out in a couple years! She asked me my goals and what I wanted to work on and just like that my Zoom workouts are personalized just for me,” said Stein. “Lisa is very supportive and positive, and always has great vibes! Even when I struggle on certain workouts.”
Stein has been at this for just over two months and says she feels like a totally different person. Not only does the private zoom workouts help her physically, but she said it is a great mental boost too.
Russell said Zoom sessions have helped her as well.
“Zoom kind of saved the world during this pandemic,” she said. “It has helped me mentally to stay in touch with people even if it’s not in person.”
Helen, from France, was another person Russell became acquainted with because of the Zoom classes. Helen said in an online post to Russell that she had been following her Slay Facebook page and was thrilled to now be able to join in on a class with her.
“To meet someone like (Helen) through Facebook brought about by COVID is just so inspiring…it just goes to show you never know who you are inspiring and how,” said Russell.
“I think online fitness will be a big part of the future…the pandemic has opened some new doors for me that I believe will stay open,” she added.
Since the second half of the year has been mostly all about big changes for Russell, she decided to go one step further and recently started her own Podcast.
“It was one of those ‘God nudges’ that have been happening for a while, but I was just ignoring them,” she said. “I had no idea how to do them, but I figured it was finally just time to give it a try.”
As you probably guessed, they have been wildly successful. Since December she had done three Rise&Slay365 episodes – “Be good to yourself when nobody else will,” “Channel your inner Dalton,” and Love, Loss, and the Lloyd Dobler Mindset.” You can find them all on Spotify where she shares health and fitness advice (including the mental side of health), personal stories, fears, random thoughts, and shenanigans.
So what’s next, you might be wondering? Russell is making plans.
“Out of necessity comes great ideas and great progress,” she said.
That next step forward, she plans to offer Zoom “Slay Your Mind” classes. Women, perhaps now more than ever, need to be able to share their thoughts, struggles, stresses, laughter, etc. with each other. Russell is also throwing around ideas of a Parkinson’s online support group.
Russell admits that making the change from being a corporate America employee to owning and operating her own business has been both scary and exciting at the same time, especially during COVID and all the unforeseen challenges it presented. But she’s glad she continues to follow her passion.
“I feel like now I’m a better mom, a better wife…and it’s your happiness that matters most,” said Russell. “Now more than ever we need to care for ourselves …body, mind and spirit so that we can care for each other and live happy and vibrant lives.”
