At least one excuse not to exercise goes out the window when an exercise van rolls up to your home or business. Now, there’s no need to get gym ready. Photos: Mark Ruff
A West Metro entrepreneur is making it easier to fit in fitness.
Mark Ruff, formerly of Excelsior and an avid backpacker, trail runner and all-around active person, has always included fitness as a cornerstone of his life. He understands that, when it comes to fitness, busy lives can force decisions that sacrifice quality for convenience. He has an innovative solution: Ruff brought GymGuyz, a mobile personal training franchise, to the Minnetonka area on a mission to help people achieve accessible and balanced exercise routines.
Ruff’s GymGuyz West Metro and Minnetonka location officially launched in September and is the franchise’s first setup in Minnesota. So far, Ruff has shared his personal training approach with clients in Excelsior, Hopkins, Minnetonka and Minnetrista. “We just need a goal, and we’ll help you get there,” Ruff says.
Offering an in-person at-home alternative to hunting down the last dumbbell at a crowded gym or struggling to find the right workout class, GymGuyz offers a private and personalized exercise model that focuses on the specific goals of each client. With a variety of equipment in tow, trainers meet clients one-on-one and in their own spaces, “tailoring the workout experience to the individual and to each individual day,” Ruff says. He recommends at least two to three sessions a week, but workouts can be scheduled in accordance with his clients’ needs.
Sometimes, all it takes is encouragement and expert advice to get in a fitness groove.
Interested in making franchise ownership a career, the GymGuyz model stood out to Ruff. He enjoys the creativity involved in “building a custom fitness roadmap based on the goals, schedule and lifestyle,” he says of customizing fitness regimes for clients. “It’s at home, it’s in your office [or] it’s in the park. Wherever you want to train, I will send a certified personal trainer there with equipment, and we’ll design a program just for you,” Ruff says.
GymGuyz can also do semi-private classes, and Ruff encourages clients to invite friends or partners to join in on the fun. “We can create classes and group sessions, and we can also work business to business,” he says. He and his close-knit crew of trainers are adaptable, and he imagines a future of potential GymGuyz programs that could cater to small sets of employees, afterschool programs and senior groups. “Pretty much any way you want to train, we’ll find a way to do it,” Ruff says.
A confluence of experiences led Ruff to commit himself to improving the health of others. He remembers watching family members struggle with declining strength and balance, and shares that his fitness goals are primarily motivated by his wish to help others maintain a healthy quality of life. “It’s amazing to be that dad or mom at the park who can run around with your kids [or to] be that grandparent who’s on the floor playing with them,” Ruff says.
GymGuyz
Instagram: @gymguyzminnetonka
