Time Stamps:
1:35 – Abdullah Al Askari is an entrepreneur and fitness guru who is involved in many fitness and health related businesses.
2:55 – He says that the biggest problem in Kuwait’s gyms is the service.
3:45 – The biggest problem with coaches and trainers at gyms is that the owners feel pressure to have “big name” coaches at the expense of having a variety of trainers for all levels of clients.
5:31 – Gyms fall into the trap of being overly concerned about making money and not concerned enough about providing great service.
7:11 – In terms of trends, he encourages proprietors and clients alike to know their specific needs and not get too caught up in the next big thing.
9:37 – In the future, Abdullah expects the training industry to become more regulated, but it will likely be a while.
11:31 – Liam says that he sees trainers at the extremes: either having a ton of certifications and experience but no talent or no certifications but being great coaches. It’s important to find one in the middle.
12:57 – High level trainers also need to have a good personality and the ability to coach their clients.
15:25 – Abdullah says that from a gym’s perspective, having a trainer on staff who is an influencer is seen as a necessary risk.
16:25 – Abdullah’s ideal gym experience, from the front desk interaction to the workout area.
21:05 – Liam says that while some gyms are popping up for one specific purpose, the most versatile gyms have multiple modalities in one place.
22:54 – The start up cost for a 500 square meter gym space is about 120-150 KD in Kuwait because of the high rent.
24:30 – Mahdi and Liam talk about their experiences at old school basement gyms.
28:45 – There are a lot of consumers out there who are buying the trendy fitness tools but lack the education about what they really need to be doing.
30:40 – Abdullah talks about the dynamics of gyms that are not innovating, what can cause them to succeed or fail.
32:29 – Abdullah stays in shape by having no social life and getting to the gym every morning at 5:00am.
33:11 – He talks about shifts in bodybuilding over the years.
36:55 – Liam describes the difficulty of his clients getting contradictory information from multiple sources which impacts the effectiveness of their training. There are not enough legitimate sources out there, but physicians can give you the proper tests and sample dosages.
40:38 – These days, the trainer also serves as the steroid dealer because the clients put pressure on them to deliver results. This comes with many additional challenges.
44:48 – Abdullah talks about 70/30, a meal prep service that he started in November 2018. They work with clients and trainers to personalize their meals to their specific needs based on their preferences and their planned workouts for each day. There are four packages: Shred, Fuel, Build, and Bulk.
49:18 – Kuwait loves the copycat business model, so Abdullah sees the oversaturation in the market of meal prep services right now as par for the course. Those businesses with great quality and service will outlast the rest.
53:48 – They talk about the phenomenon of Kuwaiti owners who don’t truly take ownership of their business, which leads to their downfall.
55:39 – There is also an influx of Kuwaiti trainers, and Abdullah says that the ones who are truly passionate about it will outlast the rest.
Links:
https://www.instagram.com/abdullaalaskari/?hl=en