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Published on: 5/19/2001
Last Visited: 2/21/2003
FitnessDesigns was started back in 1987 in Minneapolis by president and founder Jessica Adlin as a fitness and wellness consulting and personal-training business."I wanted to develop a service to educate individuals in achieving and sustaining physical well-being while maintaining the highly personalized, one-on-one relationship that is so vital in achieving one's fitness goals," Adlin says.After three years in Minnesota, Adlin decided to move her company to Bellevue, Washington, where she stumbled upon a very timely opportunity.Many of her clients in Minnesota were dismayed by the thought of losing their personal fitness coaches and having to start all over with someone new, so Adlin decided to maintain relations with some of her clients via telephone and mail.And in the early '90s, as the Internet evolved, Adlin's fitness coaching became more accessible than ever.
Here's how it works: FitnessDesigns pairs clients with a highly skilled fitness and wellness expert via e-mail.Clients can ask questions about nutrition, stress management, exercise, positive thinking and just about anything else related to healthy living.Annual membership costs $360, which includes unlimited e-mail access, six sessions of in-person or "t-coaching" (via telephone) at half the normal rate, a regularly sent e-newsletter and a self-assessment "Get Fit" packet.
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In a market that's usually limited by location, Adlin is making use of the Internet's increasing popularity.Business in the past year has grown 200 percent, and Adlin now attributes about 80 percent of her business to her e-coaching service.Says Adlin, "Using the Internet as a medium is like having a health and fitness expert at your fingertips, anytime, anywhere."